Jotul rangeley owners

  • Active since 1995, Hearth.com is THE place on the internet for free information and advice about wood stoves, pellet stoves and other energy saving equipment.

    We strive to provide opinions, articles, discussions and history related to Hearth Products and in a more general sense, energy issues.

    We promote the EFFICIENT, RESPONSIBLE, CLEAN and SAFE use of all fuels, whether renewable or fossil.
Status
Not open for further replies.
I dont have any draft issues with mine unless its windy and on the warmer side. Even then if i take some newspaper and light it and place it on the bafold so the smoke cant come out the door it starts the draft going better and once the fire is started its fine. Thats only when its probably a small one fire and windy day just to take the chill off.
 
I dont have any draft issues with mine unless its windy and on the warmer side. Even then if i take some newspaper and light it and place it on the bafold so the smoke cant come out the door it starts the draft going better and once the fire is started its fine. Thats only when its probably a small one fire and windy day just to take the chill off.
 
Honestly i forget exactly how tall it is... I think about 6 feet single wall black into 9 feet double wall... Roughly 15 feet straight up.
 
15 ft is the tested minimum. It should work ok. Worst case scenario you might decide to add another 2-3' of pipe, but it might draft fine with the current chimney. This depends on the outside temps, house tightness, geography, etc..
 
Correct and mine is fine at 15. Like i said above draft isnt as good at warmer outside temps but not had any real issues in the last 2 years... Im itching to fire it up and test some of my wood.

Just some food for thought... I dont often load from the top other than to say i have done it... But love the winter grill... The ashpan i could care less. I have heard reports it burn better with the ash pan full and some ash in the box. This year i plan to test that as my wood will be better seasoned this year.

The f55 is basicly the same stove with less parts to break and i dont think it has the ashpan. Also holds a bit more wood. So the main diffrence i see is the winter grill. Which i wouldnt give up. However if you dont care for that option i would probably go with the f55.
 
On a windy day with strong gust from a cold start up with less than dry wood last year and i would say 38+ outside i might get some smoke out the front but only with wind... Other than that, unless i open the door to fast no smoke comes out. As begreen said 15 feet i probably could add a few more feet... But thats my setup not the stove.

Also i have never had smoke come out at startup when useing dry wood... Its normally on days like above with wet wood leaving to door open trying to get it going... With dry wood it makes more heat and a better draft.

So when it does its my shorter stack, warmer temps outside, wind, and wet wood... I wouldnt say its the stove at all.
 
I looked back over reports from F50 owners. Most are very satisfied. There was one that had a small issue with smoke spillage in milder weather. That setup had a stove pipe issue. It was single wall with a 90 to a long horizontal run and then another 90 up the chimney. Suggested double-wall pipe and correcting the long horiz. run. Did not hear back whether this solved their issue.
 
I read that stoves with a bypass are better for starting and reloading is the bypass on rangeley helpful for this or is it only for top loading? Thanks
 
Hi,

The bypass is only for top loading. It's really not a bypass. Half of the baffle is hinged. To top load, you open the cook top, then use the side handle to rotate the baffle up so a split can be dropped in. You then rotate the baffle back, then close the cook top. If you forget to return the baffle to its normal position, there is a little gizmo that makes it fall back into place when the top is closed.

I too rarely use the top load. It works, but loading through the front makes it much easier to arrange the splits, rake the coals around, et cetera. Typically, I completely reload the firebox 3x a day. Once in a while, I use the top to chuck in a split or two to goose the fire, but I could live without it. I didn't get the free winter grill because my rangely was a floor model o_O. I think the price for one was around 200 clams. Too rich for my blood, but one of these days I may fabricate a reasonable facsimile.

I've never had any draft problems when burning (27' insulated liner in an interior chimney), but I do sometimes get some smoke spillage, which is curious. Might be because it's rear vented. The horizontal run is only a foot or 16 inches though. I think that is my only gripe with the stove. It's a great heater, doesn't look too shabby, and provides a spectacular light show through the huge 'glass' door. The f55, on the other hand, omits the rotating baffle and the ash pan in exchange for a bigger firebox.

I do enjoy the ash pan. I empty it usually once a week, though I should do it a little more frequently. Usually when I do it, the pan is full and ash has started to pile up in the firebox. when the pan is pulled out, the heaping ash is scraped off level by the ash door opening. I empty the pan, then put it partly under the ash door, then pull the remaining ashes out of the pan compartment with a simple ash 'hoe' that I made. Sounds like a PITA, but it's really not a big deal.

If i fill the stove before bed, there are always enough coals in the morning to light up the next load. I think that I only cold started the stove twice from december through march last year.

Hope this helped.
 
Mine was the floor model as well... I still was able to send in for the winter grill for free.... Not sure why they dont just give them with the stove since 90% get it free. I dont think i ever had smoke from the top. Either way i think the stove will do what you want and work great.

Made some great pizza and ribs last year... Ribs were so tender and juicy...
 

Attachments

  • IMG_20141228_164901_528.jpg
    IMG_20141228_164901_528.jpg
    73.8 KB · Views: 423
  • IMG_20141214_193608_160.jpg
    IMG_20141214_193608_160.jpg
    84.5 KB · Views: 236
Mine was the floor model as well... I still was able to send in for the winter grill for free.... Not sure why they dont just give them with the stove since 90% get it free. I dont think i ever had smoke from the top. Either way i think the stove will do what you want and work great.

Made some great pizza and ribs last year... Ribs were so tender and juicy...


Wow, that looks good. I think I'm going to make me a winter grill. Just in time for winter. Does that pizza cook wicked fast? I imaging that it took a little trial and error. As I recall, there have been a few wood stove cooking threads. Gonna have to look them up. Pizza....
 
I can take a pic of the grill if you want...

Pizza i cooked over the coals when the stove was cooling down... And had some cherry i made real small and tossed on... Didnt take to long... Ribs i did on a warmer day... Cooked over a small fire for hours... I tend to let it go to coals and add small stuff to keep a low temp...

Makes some good hotdogs as well.
 
wow - I'm hungry, that's looks delicious, also nice stove
 
I only get the smallest of spills when its really warm. My Rangeley drafts quite well. About 8' of double wall black through a cathedral ceiling, and up and out another 8' of stainless. Its been a great stove, and I love the functionality of the ability to cook over flame.

With that said, I may consider a cat stove next (maybe even with soapstone, not sure). Its been a great stove, but I may want something different as I go.
 
Does anyone have any smoke smell in house from these slight spills ?

Well, the spilled smoke certainly does smell smokey, but I don't feel that it lingers more than a few minutes. I remember those smouldery, smokey, smelly houses during the '70's wood stove craze. It's nothing like that.
 
When its cold out that im burning 24/7 or close to it... I never have smoke spillage... When i have the windy warm days i might smell smoke for a few minutes.
 
Last edited:
Status
Not open for further replies.