Keep or toss VC resolute acclaim 2490 . . replacement?

[hondochica]

Greetings; Been gone for awhile - so haven't used my RA 2490 in about 5 years. Bought it used - knew (know) next to nothing about wood stoves. So trying to get it working this year I find I am having issues with air control and getting a fire going. wood I am 'trying' to burn has been split and stacked for 5 years - if it ain't dry now - it never will be! Am wondering if I should put the time/$/effort into repairing this stove or if I should cut my losses and look for a new stove. Am trying to heat an 1100 sq. ft manufactured home that is pretty well insulated. Here's what's up with the stove in its current condition:
1) very small crack in the glass at the very edge.
2) combustion package has certainly seen better days - holes at the bottom are 'worn away'; was going to post a photo - but don't want to take out the rear fire bricks again cuz:
3) rear fire bricks: one is cracked and missing a small piece of the brick at the center edge - not sure how much this matters
4) cracks in the L and R fire bricks; one is very close to falling apart
5) air control valve (name?; lever at the bottom of the stove) does not seem to be operating. I can't keep a fire lit w/o the air controller in the 'start' (full right) position all the time, and even then it's tough.
6) minor, minor smoke leak somewhere, only noticeable after a few hours of burn time - possibly only common gasket replacements but maybe full breakdown and reseal?? 'smoke test' revealed nothing; light in the stove in a dark room shows no 'leaks'.

Quite frankly - I don't have the time, energy or interest in rebuilding this stove or troubleshooting it. Unless you think a few tweaks might be all it needs. I'm in the middle of a house overhaul that really needs all of my time and energy. I 'might' be able to find someone local to do it for me if you think it's more cost effective - tough call - I realize.

IF I opt to replace it - recommendations for a suitable, somewhat inexpensive stove that could also heat a 1400 sq ft house - as I'll likely take the stove with me when I move in a year or two.

thanks for your time and input

Kelly
9000 ft Colorado (hopefully moving to 7000-8000 ft, and a little farther south, in the future)

 

[begreen]

This doesn't sound like something that's fixable with a few tweaks. It sounds like it's ready for a complete rebuild. Most likely the combustion package has degraded badly along with the side bricks. The parts cost will be above $700.

Look for something in the 2 cu ft range. There are good new stoves under $2000 from SBI (Drolet & Englander) and True North (TN20). I would sell the VC for $300 and apply that to a new stove unless a good used stove shows up soon.

 

[EatenByLimestone]

Sell it and start new!

 

[hondochica]

Thanks so much for your comments - I was thinking the same thing. This has become a very expensive year for me - another $1500k (maybe a lot less, doing a quick search) certainly isn't helping. But in the long term - an investment that will certainly pay off (knocking on wood so as not to jinx the universe)!

 

[hondochica]

So . . I was thinking about how much area I will likely be heating with the wood stove. The house is 1100 sq ft (+-), but the area I'm heating is really only about 800. maybe that doesn't matter that much. Given the configuration of the house - the bedrooms will mostly/entirely (in the dead cold of winter) be heated by my furnace - with the main living area vents closed. Not sure I could get the heat from the stove back into the bedrooms - down the hallway.

In the @ 2.0 cu ft box range - I'm seeing up to 1200 sq ft (@ 1.8 cu ft, 'small') or up to 1800 sq ft (@ 2.4 cu ft 'med'). Maybe I'm getting too detailed with this - but really - it's my first stove. should I lean larger or smaller? If I lean larger (in anticipation of taking the stove with me to a slightly larger house) is it a problem using a larger stove to heat a smaller area?

thanks again
Kelly

 

[begreen]

It depends on how much one depends on the stove. For 24/7 heating it helps to err on the larger side. For evening and weekend fires a smaller fire may be fine. In this range, N/S loading is more important for me. That allows one to use the full capacity of the firebox without worrying if a log is going to roll up against the glass.