BrowningBAR said:
wasn't there a recent post (within the last month) about someone asking questions about how long a cat typically lasted?? i think one of the answers was 5 years or so.
the stove i'm using now is from the 70's---over 30 yrs, right?
Pros and Cons of your stove
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wasn't there a recent post (within the last month) about someone asking questions about how long a cat typically lasted?? i think one of the answers was 5 years or so.
the stove i'm using now is from the 70's---over 30 yrs, right?
yooperdave said:
Wrong. The catalytic combustor needs to be replaced every 5-ish years. Not the stove. The cat stove I have is 15-20 years old.
BrotherBart said:
Yes, don't get me wrong. My quality of life so much better with this great little stove. It's the little engine that could. My wood stove "starter kit." It will probably be quite awhile before I get something else.
Plus I have all my new hearth.com pals ;-)
But you know what they say about us gals.
BrowningBAR said:
i was referring to replacing the cat, not the whole stove, but i did not make myself clear in that aspect. i realize that you wouldn't have to trade the whole stove away instead of just replacing what was defective. i just expected that the cats would last longer or not need to be replaced...the only thing i've replaced on my stove is fire bricks.
We are about to test another pro of the T6. Pizza stone is on the coals. This is where a big wide door should be nice. Hope it works out ok, the stone is 766°F!
yooperdave said:
And on a modern EPA stove you have to replace fire bricks or baffles or burn tubes. No different.
i think its hard to figure out whats best when it comes to stoves, i try and research big ticket items and then find someone who actualy owns one. i bought the buck because we have another in the family. the next winter after purchasing the buck i found soapstone stoves at a home and garden show. i was interested in the heat retention properties. i know someone who has one and couldnt be happier, so i feel ive made the best choice for me. now theyres the other tasty stove choices i read about here, if i was just slightly more ecentric and loaded id have a seasonal switch out of different units to be able to enjoy them all. when it comes down to it i am greatfull to be a stove owner and like most all of them. keep warm, pete
Guys let's save the cat vs. non-cat vs. a thirty year old hunk of scrap iron argument for another thread.
precaud said:
I've seen plenty of posts on here of stove owners that have replace fire brick, baffles, and burn tubes within 5 years of ownership.
yooperdave said:
A few hundred bucks every 5 years is nothing when you think of the wood you'll save burning a CAT stove. Even if you cut/split your own wood your time must be worth that much over 5 years. People going from a Pre-EPA stove to a CAT-EPA stove report saving up to 50% on their wood usage.
OK, I gotta get this off my chest. There's a contingency of CAT burners on this forum who seem to be unable to keep things in context. It may be hard for some of you to understand, but CATs are not the answer to everything. Most wood burners (and most of the members of this forum, I'd bet) DO NOT burn 24/7. And many or most of those don't need or want the burn characteristics that a cat offers. I certainly don't. CATs may be excellent as a round the clock heater but that doesn't make them the be-all or end-all of wood heating.
And that is enough for you to proclaim it as the norm? Pretty weak. I'm on the 5th season with the Quad and the only part showing any signs of needing replacement anytime soon is a washer on the door handle.BrowningBAR said:
Hello Kathleen,
Just so you know, I have seen a couple of these on CL for $500. Keep an eye on it and you can find the right one! Check out this thread:
https://www.hearth.com/econtent/index.php/forums/viewthread/69006/
As far as the stove, I got my first stove off CL for $80. Worth every penny. Heated my house for an entire year. But was a pain. It was a small size Surdiac coal/wood. The tiny firebox was not capable of an overnight burn. 6 hours between reloads(with 16-17"wood, I couldn't master the coal,) so fresh start every morning. But the best thing about it was the amount of heat it could put out. It would put my EPA stove to shame. Fast, abundant heat. It was cast iron with a huge ceramic coated steel exchanger that would heat up within short minutes of a cold start. Then once the cast iron body was hot forget it. It was like having two stoves in one with that heat exchanger!! If I could change one thing about that stove, it would be a bigger fire box for longer burns and some sort of secondary burn for more efficiency.
The Dutchwest has been great. I love the look and heat it puts out. More reliable and keeps the house at more constant temperatures. The wide firebox is a good plus. I can actually fit 23"+ logs in there. If I could tweak out a couple of things, I'd put some sort of thermostat for more automatic air regulation. I'd also put some sort of temp monitor that would sound off at a certain level, so that you'd never overfire the thing. This could be said for any stove on the market. The third thing I'd do, is give it a bit more cubic footage. Like the extra large Dutchwest! I wish it was black enamel instead of flat black.
Don't get me wrong, I'd love to have a heat rock in my house, in the form of a soapstone stove. Those warm stones would warm my heart. I also like the Bordeau Vermont Castings Defiant 2n1, beauty! My wife likes the Biscuit color. I love stove dreaming!! Great thread!
nicely put Precaud. Unfortunately I live in a cold climate and do burn my old cat stove 24-7 for several months but still it is only in the coldest weather that I can really fully engage the cat without smoke in the house. (Ya something is wrong.) Otherwise most any woodburner would shine.
Don2222 said:
If I had to buy my fuel supply I would certainly think about pellet stoves! So much easier.
Period of replacement should be longer for bricks and burn tubes if the stove is not rough-housed. Our baffle has a lifetime warranty and I expect to see it through.
Great thread subject:
Having nothing else to compare to, I love my Oslo. I also fell in love with the soapstone stoves I saw when looking for a stove but a soapstone would not fit into my hearth mount plans.
What would I do different? Hmmm... nothing as far as stove choice but I am still considering either extending or lowering my raised hearth in order to get a T connection for easier clean out. I 'scrounge' wood - I wish everyone would cut their wood to fit my stove (instead of 16-18" a length of 22" would fit my stove better).
Having nothing else to compare to, I love my Oslo. I also fell in love with the soapstone stoves I saw when looking for a stove but a soapstone would not fit into my hearth mount plans.
What would I do different? Hmmm... nothing as far as stove choice but I am still considering either extending or lowering my raised hearth in order to get a T connection for easier clean out. I 'scrounge' wood - I wish everyone would cut their wood to fit my stove (instead of 16-18" a length of 22" would fit my stove better).
BeGreen said:
So you're expecting your baffle to outlive you? ;-)
All in fun, of course. I say the same sort of thing about my house when people see how massively it is built. It will still be standing long after I'm gone.
Given my age, probably. We restored this house to last another century, which is a lot longer than I'll be around.
rjr240 said:
Yeah, I'd say there's something wrong. What kind of stove do you have?
As far as cat vs. non-cat I think we all know the answer. Whatever floats your boat, or keeps you warm and happy! I'd like a Jotul Firelight, an Equinox, A woodstock Fireview, a Blaze King King, a PE T6, a Defiant 2n1 an NC-30 just so I could see which one I'd like to really keep!! I bet I couldn't pick just one or two even. :cheese:
Disclaimer: Sorry if I forgot your stove, I did not mean to offend you or your superior cat/ non-cat stove! :lol:
Oh, I also want one of those hybrid Elms Steve builds up in Vermont!
Good night all, stay warm!
Well it's the right thing to do BG, for sure. Sure beats the 35-year life expectancy of the new construction I see going up here.
My Quad has a lifetime warranty on all parts (lifetime of the corporation, that is). They dropped that the year after I bought it.
My Quad has a lifetime warranty on all parts (lifetime of the corporation, that is). They dropped that the year after I bought it.
When was the flue last cleaned. First thing to do is check the flue and cap for creosote build up. If that is ok, it may be time for a new cat. Have you tried pickling the old one yet?
So my Hearthstone Heritage. Glad you asked. What do I like about it? Being waarrrrrmmmmmm.... I like that it's kinda idiot-proof. Runs like a champ, although I can't tell you how much of that is the stove and how much the chimney. I like having a front door and a side door--allows me to finesse a multi-split load. Don't care for the ash-pan setup, but this doesn't bother me because I find it much quicker to scoop ashes w/a dustpan from the firebox into a turkey roaster (my hearth set also contains a wallpaper paste brush, and a spatula and fork from a barbeque set). I like the wide door that allows me to get in there and do that. I like the looks and the window. I like that it stays warm even when the fire is out, which means it comes back up to temp pretty quickly.
Don't think much of the channel at the back of the firebox where the back and the floor meet. Just something to clean the ashes out of. I like the controls and the air intake (big and self-cleaning). Secondary burn is very pretty. I like soapstone a lot. I like the location, which I thought I would hate. It's out where people can pull up chairs on three sides of it, side door is easy access to the sunroom where I keep firewood. I like the granite hearth I made for it. I like that it's heating my whole house upstairs and down consistently and comfortably in the middle of an Alaskan winter. I like that I had it installed when my boiler went down, cuz I'd have been out of luck otherwise.
If I could do it again/differently what would I do. I'd know exactly what stove I wanted, and where, so that I wouldn't drive myself and everyone around me nuts when I researched it and bought it. I'd build an addition on my house like the one I dreamed about a few nights ago (a lot like a wing of the Biltmore). I'd put a Fireview in it, just because I like the look and the customer service and it would match the period. And my Hearthstone would only need to be loaded as often as a BK. And I could bake bread in it.
And it would have a stomp petal.
Don't think much of the channel at the back of the firebox where the back and the floor meet. Just something to clean the ashes out of. I like the controls and the air intake (big and self-cleaning). Secondary burn is very pretty. I like soapstone a lot. I like the location, which I thought I would hate. It's out where people can pull up chairs on three sides of it, side door is easy access to the sunroom where I keep firewood. I like the granite hearth I made for it. I like that it's heating my whole house upstairs and down consistently and comfortably in the middle of an Alaskan winter. I like that I had it installed when my boiler went down, cuz I'd have been out of luck otherwise.
If I could do it again/differently what would I do. I'd know exactly what stove I wanted, and where, so that I wouldn't drive myself and everyone around me nuts when I researched it and bought it. I'd build an addition on my house like the one I dreamed about a few nights ago (a lot like a wing of the Biltmore). I'd put a Fireview in it, just because I like the look and the customer service and it would match the period. And my Hearthstone would only need to be loaded as often as a BK. And I could bake bread in it.
And it would have a stomp petal.
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