I am new here so Hi to all! I'm considering purchasing a Lopi Leyden wood stove and would like input on it-pro and cons. I am currently living in my hunting cabin in NW PA. and the winters here can be pretty cold and snowy. And yes my cabin is far from airtight, rather drafty at times. It's 600 sq. ft. with 2 bedrooms addd on that are both 12 ft. by 12 ft. In some other posts it seems that these stoves can be "finicky" and people have trouble with them. Also I have no idea what downdraft means! All input will be greatly apppreciated! I don't want to go and spend $2,500.00 and and than be disappointed! Also I have bad back problems and really like the top loading feature. Thanks! Jim
Lopi Leyden Wood Stove Opinions
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Stax
Minister of Fire
I couldn't keep my eyes of that stove in the shop while I was purchasing my insert. Brown enamled and a beauty! Can't speak to it's heating capabilities but Lopi does have a good reputation.
I wouldn't put this stove in a cabin. It is a bit touchy about draft. Setup with an ideal flue, it can burn fine, but this does not sound like your circumstance.
Instead I would put in something less costly with a decent burn, and I would put in a steel stove. Why? Several reasons, first being that you are probably going to want rapid heat. Steel can be better for this. Cast iron tends to take a bit longer to warm up. Another reason being that you'll most likely have a shorter flue on the stove, worse if it will be connected to an exterior chimney on the side of the cabin. You'll want a stove that is very unfinicky about draft or you will end up with some frequent, smokey start ups.
At 600 sq ft , normally it wouldn't take a very big stove to heat the place. But if it is going to be starting off from very low temps, you are going to want some power to raise the interior heat quickly. An Englander 13NC or Drolet Eastwood 1900 should work well and won't break the budget.
Instead I would put in something less costly with a decent burn, and I would put in a steel stove. Why? Several reasons, first being that you are probably going to want rapid heat. Steel can be better for this. Cast iron tends to take a bit longer to warm up. Another reason being that you'll most likely have a shorter flue on the stove, worse if it will be connected to an exterior chimney on the side of the cabin. You'll want a stove that is very unfinicky about draft or you will end up with some frequent, smokey start ups.
At 600 sq ft , normally it wouldn't take a very big stove to heat the place. But if it is going to be starting off from very low temps, you are going to want some power to raise the interior heat quickly. An Englander 13NC or Drolet Eastwood 1900 should work well and won't break the budget.
Wood Duck
Minister of Fire
I don't know anything about the Lopi Leyden, but I have a Lopi stove and it works great. That, of course, doesn't mean you'll have similar success.
If I was living in a place heated only with wood I'd want long burn times as perhaps the single most important feature of the stove. Any stove is going to be enough to keep the place warm - you probably can't get more than about 10 ft from the stove! I'd consider something that will give long burns, perhaps a stove with a catalytic burner (cat), which allows long, clean burns at low air settings.
If I was living in a place heated only with wood I'd want long burn times as perhaps the single most important feature of the stove. Any stove is going to be enough to keep the place warm - you probably can't get more than about 10 ft from the stove! I'd consider something that will give long burns, perhaps a stove with a catalytic burner (cat), which allows long, clean burns at low air settings.
Shane
Minister of Fire
I burned a Leyden the first year it came out. Heated the back half of the store with it. It was on a 24' exterior 8" metalbestos chimney. I really liked it, I would load it up at night and have a couple coals I could coax back into a fire in the morning. When the store was closed my father in law kept that stove, out of 30 or so he had in stock.
My local dealer dropped the Leyden from the rest of the Lopi line that he carries (Leyden is their only downdraft). Said he never had more customer problems (overfires) with a stove. Do some research - same stove as the Avalon Arbor unhappily mentioned in a recent thread.
have burned a lopi leyden for 4 years now & love it, there are some things to get used to, and a little extra maintenance, but well worth it to have the ease of loading and the incredible burn times. getting 10 - 12 hours without much problem at all (oak & hickory). Once a year when you clean your chimney, take a minute to lift the pipe off the stove and vacuum on both sides of the "combustor box". about every other month, (with 24/7 burning) i let the stove cool down and take a 3/4" flex tube & vacuum the ash that gets pulled back into the combustion chamber. prevents a build up that can affect the air flow. Think Lopi has addressed all the initial issues with the stove.
ddddddden
Minister of Fire
Downdraft = the method this stove uses to achieve secondary combustion. From what I've read, it's more challenging to get a good burn with this technique than it is with a catalytic combustor or burn tubes. It's new and unproven, but if I had to have a top loader, I'd be looking at the Jotul Rangeley. Putting a regular stove on a raised hearth can also be a back saver. 
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