Rebuild Overfired Cawley 800?

[Hike Hounds]

Hello all,

I just bought a fixer-upper that has a Cawley 800 that failed inspection. At the very least, the baffle needs to be replaced, but I suspect it will be more involved. I am a complete newbie to wood stoves, but I'd like to heat my home with it if possible.

My question is, considering that it will cost almost $3000 to have a new wood stove installed (this is New Jersey), is it worth having the Cawley 800 repaired/restored? Considering the efficiency of new wood stoves and the new EPA guidelines, is the Cawley just an old lady that needs to be put out to pasture?

Thanks in advance for your help!

 

[begreen]

Welcome. In it's day this was a decent stove, but that was quite a while ago. Parts may be hard to come by and there may be other damage we don't know about. If there is serious cracking it may be time to scrap the old stove. What are the particulars of the inspection failure?

The chimney requirements to install the Cawley are going to be similar to a new stove and a good new stove can be had for a thousand or less. What makes up the other $2000? Pictures are always helpful.

PS: Do you have a good, fully seasoned wood supply already? Tell us more about the house you are trying to heat.

 

[Hike Hounds]

Thanks for the quick reply!

According to the inspection report, the side doors are warped and don't close all the way. The rear baffle is warped and there's a crack in the baffle plate from over-firing. And the door gaskets are worn. But the 8" flue is okay.

I went shopping for a new stove at a local shop, and the models they showed me (Jotul, Hearthstone, Lopi) were all around $2500. Plus installation ($380). Plus the fee to scrap the old stove.

And no, I don't have any firewood :>( The house is cement block construction, a converted tractor shed, where the three bays were converted to sliding doors (all south facing). So it is now a three bedroom ranch. You enter into a 16 x 16 great room with cathedral ceilings and ceiling fan; on the other side of one inside wall is a 15 foot stone fireplace with the wood stove. There are two small window between the great room and the 15 x 30 living room with the Cawley. The dining room is open to the great room, and the kitchen is next to the living room. The bedrooms are down the hall. Total square feet around 2400. Heated with oil, hot water baseboard.

So I assume that the bedrooms won't get the heat, but there is 3 zone heating, so that should be okay. My biggest fear is that the room with the wood stove (where I spend most of my time) will get super hot and the other living areas will not. I plan to put fans in the two windows, as well as the entrance to the kitchen.

I am completely overwhelmed with this decision, and the wood stove salesperson was amazingly unhelpful, so any advice would be sincerely appreciated!

 

[begreen]

Sounds like there are already a couple strikes against that stove. I would try to get my money back, it should not have been sold.

2400 sq ft is a big area to heat. Cathedral ceilings compound the issue. I wouldn't worry about overheating the place if the heat can be circulated. Did they insulate the interior and ceiling when this place was converted to living quarters?

I'm not clear on the installation. Is the Cawley already installed and is there an existing chimney in the house? Can you post a picture of the stove location? A floorplan sketch is also helpful.

For sure if you want to heat with wood you will need to get several cords of dry wood asap. This can be challenging for a new stove owner because often wood sellers will say the wood is seasoned when it is not. An alternative might be compressed wood sawdust blocks if available in your area.

 

[Hike Hounds]

Sounds like there are already a couple strikes against that stove. I would try to get my money back, it should not have been sold.

2400 sq ft is a big area to heat. Cathedral ceilings compound the issue. I wouldn't worry about overheating the place if the heat can be circulated. Did they insulate the interior and ceiling when this place was converted to living quarters?

I'm not clear on the installation. Is the Cawley already installed and is there an existing chimney in the house? Can you post a picture of the stove location? A floorplan sketch is also helpful.

For sure if you want to heat with wood you will need to get several cords of dry wood asap. This can be challenging for a new stove owner because often wood sellers will say the wood is seasoned when it is not.

 

[Hike Hounds]

Sounds like there are already a couple strikes against that stove. I would try to get my money back, it should not have been sold.

2400 sq ft is a big area to heat. Cathedral ceilings compound the issue. I wouldn't worry about overheating the place if the heat can be circulated. Did they insulate the interior and ceiling when this place was converted to living quarters?

I'm not clear on the installation. Is the Cawley already installed and is there an existing chimney in the house? Can you post a picture of the stove location? A floorplan sketch is also helpful.

For sure if you want to heat with wood you will need to get several cords of dry wood asap. This can be challenging for a new stove owner because often wood sellers will say the wood is seasoned when it is not. An alternative might be compressed wood sawdust blocks if available in your area.

So the Cawley came with the house. It's been here for years. The last couple of years there were renters here, and they just destroyed the place, including overfiring the wood stove.

There is an attic with insulation, and I assume that there is insulation in the walls... but they are thick, the size of cinder block plus framing plus siding... I'll see if I can get a floor plan - I think I drew one at one point.

 

[begreen]

Bummer, sorry to hear that. A napkin sketch is fine. I want to see what can be done to assist heat circulation and for wood stove suggestion. Home Depot and Lowes sell a good brand that will be under $1000. (Englander at HD aka Summer's Heat at Lowes) You should be able to have it installed by a certified chimney sweep for under $500 if the chimney is in good shape. That is if you want to go this route. If you prefer a more expensive stove like a big Jotul or Lopi that's ok too, just want to let you know that there are alternatives. Regardless of choice a modern stove will be much more efficient but only if fully seasoned wood is burned.

 

[Hike Hounds]

Here's a floorplan.

 

[begreen]

Unclear where the doorways or room openings are but I'll take a guess. If this were my place I'd place a box or window fan in the great room connecting window so that it sucks cooler air from the great room and blows it into the stove room. Run it on low speed. This will create a circulation pattern that will pull warm stove air through the kitchen and dining room into the great room. With this circulation you can install a big stove without worry of overheating the living room. To keep costs reasonable I would recommend either an Englander 30NC ($899 at Home Depot) or a Summer's Heat 50-SHSSW02 ($899 at Lowes). That should get you heated affordably. Spend some of the savings on getting the driest wood possible.

http://www.homedepot.com/p/Englander-2-400-sq-ft-Wood-Burning-Stove-30-NCH/100291302
http://www.lowes.com/pd/Summers-Heat-2-400-sq-ft-Wood-Stove/999918850

To find a csia sweep in your area to get installion estimates enter your zip code on their website:
www.csia.org

 

[bholler]

http://stoves.com/category/product/cawley-lemay/#close

This is the only source for cawley parts I know of But they are not cheap I spent almost $1000 rebuilding my 600

 

[Hike Hounds]

To keep costs reasonable I would recommend an Englander 30NC ($899 at Home Depot)

Currently I have an 8” diameter Homesaver liner system. If I were to get an Englander 30, would I have to convert it to a 6" liner?

Also, I have read reviews on the Englander 30 that complain about the damper getting stuck every time you have to move it; terrible customer service; expensive replacement parts (fiberboard/ceramic insulation, "dog house" air distribution); the blower being not only loud but ineffectual; a too small ash pan; no vent in the front for air intake; shoddy craftsmanship; back-drafting smoke; warping firebox; etc. User error, or legitimate concerns?

Are there any other recommendations for a 2400sf ranch with an 8" flue?

 

[begreen]

Ash systems on several steel stoves leave one wanting. We don't use ours, but that doesn't negate the stove. A lot of the other complaints are somewhat peculiar to the installation and not all a fault of the stove. The 30NC is an exceptional value, but they sell thousands of them and there are bound to be some that don't come off the line perfect. This happens with any stove production, but is not common.

There are many other stove options, but Englander and Drolet are champs in the value line of large stoves. If your budget is larger then there are many other options.

 

[Hike Hounds]

Ash systems on several steel stoves leave one wanting. We don't use ours, but that doesn't negate the stove. A lot of the other complaints are somewhat peculiar to the installation and not all a fault of the stove. The 30NC is an exceptional value, but they sell thousands of them and there are bound to be some that don't come off the line perfect. This happens with any stove production, but is not common.

There are many other stove options, but Englander and Drolet are champs in the value line of large stoves. If your budget is larger then there are many other options.

Okay, thanks for all the help. Would you recommend getting the extended warranty on an Englander (for a newbie stove owner who doesn't know the first thing about how to maintain/fix these things :>)

 

[begreen]

No, personally I would not get an extended warranty. The factory warranty is sufficient. Properly run, burning dry wood, they are not high maintenance and most warranties don't cover user error.