Reconsidering the T6, Mansfield--BK Parlor instead?

[pvfjr]

After doing a lot of reading, I'm can't get the long burn times, thermostatic control, and even heating of the BK out of my head. There's a used on for sale "locally" that's only 2 years old. I know with a cat stove, there's greater risk of it having not been operated properly, but I suppose I could inspect the cat if I were to go look at it. From my other thread, https://www.hearth.com/talk/threads/hearthstone-mansfield-1995-vs-2015-vs-something-else.149429/ , here's the basics on our situation:

We bought a house a year ago, and I'm finding our current wood stove's performance inadequate. We have a 2200 sq ft house with two stories. The stove is in the extreme corner of the house in the living room, nestled between two exterior walls. The pipe/chimney run is straight up, and probably tops out at 26' off the ground. It's on the windward side of the house (west), with some trees around. Sometimes I think this causes some positive pressure outside that gives us draft troubles when starting up cold, but it's fine after a few minutes.

The main problem is the inability to achieve long burn times, and the lack of heat distribution in the house. This thing will chase you out of the living room, but the entire upstairs is cold, and the rest of the house stays cool. The house doesn't have a very open layout, and I think the transom of the living room is blocking the heat flow. The firebox lacks height; I can't stack two 5" splits in there! This stove is just too small for this house. Maybe they just purchased it for ambiance? We have a modern gas furnace with forced air, but would prefer to use it sparingly.

So I have a couple of questions:
1. He is asking $2000 for a used "Classic", but I think it looks like a Parlor. I also feel like $2000 is way too much, but probably less than a new one. What do you think? I was thinking half of that, but maybe he overpaid himself and thinks it's made out of gold. It's been for sale for a month though...

2. I'm not sure if it's a Princess or a King. Is there an easy way to tell? A Princess may be sufficient, but I think a King would be nicer.

3. Are Blaze King warranties transferable? I suppose the warranties aren't that long to begin with, and I don't mind welding/bricking/gasketing this thing a few years down the road if needed.

 

[begreen]

Looks like a Princess parlor. Ask for the model number off the back label to verify. This has the fancy door and does it have the blower too? If so the price could be up around $3K new. If you could finagle the price down to $1800 that will pay for a new cat if needed.

 

[pvfjr]

Looks like a Princess parlor. Ask for the model number off the back label to verify. This has the fancy door and does it have the blower too? If so the price could be up around $3K new. If you could finagle the price down to $1800 that will pay for a new cat if needed.

Thanks, how can you spot the difference between the Princess or the King? I asked for the model number, and got what looks like a serial number:

Is there a way to tell from the serial number?

Also, since we're in the PNW, I'm thinking the prices should tend toward the low end, as opposed to those east coast prices.

As for the blower, wouldn't those hang off the back a bit? I'm thinking that's around a $300 feature right? I don't see one in this picture...


The door trim is nice, but I don't know if the original purchaser's preferences really equate to a higher value in the end. Fancy rims on a car rarely increase it's true value (unless you find the right buyer). I'm thinking this should probably be closer to a $2500 stove in this area, but I could be off. Either way, I gotta get them down quite a bit from $2000--especially if it's just a Princess.

 

[begreen]

Offer $1500 cash, see if they bite.

 

[termv]

After doing a lot of reading, I'm can't get the long burn times, thermostatic control, and even heating of the BK out of my head. There's a used on for sale "locally" that's only 2 years old. I know with a cat stove, there's greater risk of it having not been operated properly, but I suppose I could inspect the cat if I were to go look at it. From my other thread, https://www.hearth.com/talk/threads/hearthstone-mansfield-1995-vs-2015-vs-something-else.149429/ , here's the basics on our situation:


View attachment 167728

So I have a couple of questions:
1. He is asking $2000 for a used "Classic", but I think it looks like a Parlor. I also feel like $2000 is way too much, but probably less than a new one. What do you think? I was thinking half of that, but maybe he overpaid himself and thinks it's made out of gold. It's been for sale for a month though...

2. I'm not sure if it's a Princess or a King. Is there an easy way to tell? A Princess may be sufficient, but I think a King would be nicer.

3. Are Blaze King warranties transferable? I suppose the warranties aren't that long to begin with, and I don't mind welding/bricking/gasketing this thing a few years down the road if needed.

The princess has a 6" flue and the king has a 8".

 

[Highbeam]

Call a dealer any get the new price. Offer this guy 50% IF the stove has no defects. This is a current model stove so you can get a real price.

I see no fans, no ash pan, and no convection deck so it's a stripper parlor princess with a gold door. I would subtract value for that ugly door but you can use the plain black door cost.

You can price a classic model and if that's lower then use it for your offer since that's the ad.

I love my princess and paid 3000$ for fully loaded ultra a few years ago. Had a noncat before and I do not regret the upgrade one bit.

 

[pvfjr]

I already sent them another message to ask for the stove top width measurement. That should be easy enough, as it should be 27" vs 31". It sounds like you're all pretty sure it's the Princess anyway. I kinda would've liked it to be a King, but then again, I'd have to get a new chimney for the 8" flue. I'll probably have to buy some new double wall 6" stove pipe for the Princess anyway, but at least my chimney is already the right size. I think I'll contact some local dealers for a quote, and use that as a starting point. I was kinda thinking about the 50% price point as well. Afterall, assuming the warranty isn't transferable, that takes quite a bit of the value off.

 

[pvfjr]

Well, the plot thickens now. I got a quote from a local-ish dealer for $2200 for a Princess. I ran our Oregon Energy Trust tax rebate calculator, and it came out to $1080 for that stove. So, if I were to be interested in a used one, I think it would have to be in the $700-$800 range. I think my plan will be to spend $200 on a solar tube to fill the space left by the old chimney location. I want to install the BK in a more central spot in the house, so the heat naturally spreads easier. I'm running too many fans right now, and it's still lackluster.

A few questions on installing the new BK:
1. Should I buy some double wall stovepipe? I don't think I can shoot for the "reduced clearances" unless I have side and/or rear shields, so would double wall pipe be a moot point?
2. Does plain old tile really count as a floor protector? So if the area was tiled, would I not need a hearth at all? That may give me a pretty clean install.
3. If I were to put an iron railing along side the stove on one side to keep people from bumping into it, how far away should it be?

 

[Chimney Smoke]

If I could get a new stove for $1100 after rebates I wouldn't even consider a used stove at $700. Sometimes piece of mind knowing your are the only owner/operator is worth a few hundred bucks.

 

[Highbeam]

Well, the plot thickens now. I got a quote from a local-ish dealer for $2200 for a Princess. I ran our Oregon Energy Trust tax rebate calculator, and it came out to $1080 for that stove. So, if I were to be interested in a used one, I think it would have to be in the $700-$800 range. I think my plan will be to spend $200 on a solar tube to fill the space left by the old chimney location. I want to install the BK in a more central spot in the house, so the heat naturally spreads easier. I'm running too many fans right now, and it's still lackluster.

A few questions on installing the new BK:
1. Should I buy some double wall stovepipe? I don't think I can shoot for the "reduced clearances" unless I have side and/or rear shields, so would double wall pipe be a moot point?
2. Does plain old tile really count as a floor protector? So if the area was tiled, would I not need a hearth at all? That may give me a pretty clean install.
3. If I were to put an iron railing along side the stove on one side to keep people from bumping into it, how far away should it be?

Buy new, that rebate and a good dealer price add up to an excellent deal. Great idea on the solar tube.

1) Yes, double wall pipe. Preferably all vertical. The manual now requires 15' of chimney height from top of stove. These stoves really like a good vertical, insulated, flue with no deficiencies. I would make this a consideration when locating the new stove. The fan kit counts as a rear heat shield for reduced clearances on the rear. I would recommend the fans, they're pretty cheap and effective. Then you can slam this stove 6" from the wall!

2) Yes. Grouted of course so that sparks can't fall through to the wood subfloor. Belt and suspenders approach would be to add the standard 1/4" thick layer of durock backerboard under the tile. My hearth is just grouted pavers on plywood. They do warm up a little. Dog loves to lay under the ashlip.

3) The iron railing is not combustible so there are no limitations on how close it has to be.

 

[pvfjr]

Buy new, that rebate and a good dealer price add up to an excellent deal. Great idea on the solar tube.

1) Yes, double wall pipe. Preferably all vertical. The manual now requires 15' of chimney height from top of stove. These stoves really like a good vertical, insulated, flue with no deficiencies. I would make this a consideration when locating the new stove. The fan kit counts as a rear heat shield for reduced clearances on the rear. I would recommend the fans, they're pretty cheap and effective. Then you can slam this stove 6" from the wall!

2) Yes. Grouted of course so that sparks can't fall through to the wood subfloor. Belt and suspenders approach would be to add the standard 1/4" thick layer of durock backerboard under the tile. My hearth is just grouted pavers on plywood. They do warm up a little. Dog loves to lay under the ashlip.

3) The iron railing is not combustible so there are no limitations on how close it has to be.

Thanks for the input again, Highbeam. I'm leaning towards the new stove, as I get a good feeling from this dealer and am starting to like them. I'm not 100% confident on jumping through all the hoops for this rebate though. If there's a chance we may not qualify, it may be a deal breaker.

The current stove pipe/chimney configuration is probably around 24' or so, all in one straight shot. I'm hoping to keep the new installation similar. I don't suppose it would cost much just to get double-wall to go up to the 8' ceiling. Do the double-wall and single-wall pipes connect to the Class A chimney in the same fashion? Or would I need some adapters of some sort?

So what is a belt and suspenders approach? The floor of the new stove's destination currently has wood laminate. I'm digging a Brazilian Pecan porcelain wood-look tile that I've found recently, so I think we would go with that. I typically put down mortar, then 1/4" hardibacker (probably similar to durock?), then the porcelain. I'd be doing the entire room, so it would have a nice, seamless, cohesive look.

For the iron railing, I was kinda just thinking I wouldn't want it to get too hot to the touch. What's the worst-case side temperature for these stoves? Given that, I could do some thermal radiation calculations to make sure the railing wouldn't burn anyone.

 

[Highbeam]

Thanks for the input again, Highbeam. I'm leaning towards the new stove, as I get a good feeling from this dealer and am starting to like them. I'm not 100% confident on jumping through all the hoops for this rebate though. If there's a chance we may not qualify, it may be a deal breaker.

The current stove pipe/chimney configuration is probably around 24' or so, all in one straight shot. I'm hoping to keep the new installation similar. I don't suppose it would cost much just to get double-wall to go up to the 8' ceiling. Do the double-wall and single-wall pipes connect to the Class A chimney in the same fashion? Or would I need some adapters of some sort?

So what is a belt and suspenders approach? The floor of the new stove's destination currently has wood laminate. I'm digging a Brazilian Pecan porcelain wood-look tile that I've found recently, so I think we would go with that. I typically put down mortar, then 1/4" hardibacker (probably similar to durock?), then the porcelain. I'd be doing the entire room, so it would have a nice, seamless, cohesive look.

For the iron railing, I was kinda just thinking I wouldn't want it to get too hot to the touch. What's the worst-case side temperature for these stoves? Given that, I could do some thermal radiation calculations to make sure the railing wouldn't burn anyone.

I use duravent chimneys and like the ceiling support box installations. This attaches to the ceiling joists and supports the class A above, the class A threads right on, and then a snout sticks into the room for hookup to the black connector pipe. Whether you use double wall or single wall (I recommend double wall again) you would use an adapter that provides a positive connection for the dangling black pipe. Then you would buy two chunks of double wall, one adjustable and one fixed length. The stove end also needs what they call an appliance adapter. Not all stoves need it but the BK does.

Belt and suspenders meaning you don't technically need anything but grouted tile. The backer board makes it extra gooder.

The sides of the ultra model come with side shields so I don't know how hot they get but I'm guessing not very hot at all. The BK, being a cat stove, makes most of the heat from the cat element that is right under the top center of the stove. The sides are quite a ways away and since you usually run these stoves on low it should be pretty cool on an iron railing even four inches away. Really though, I wouldn't worry about people bumping into this thing. It's big and hot and the burn damage would usually be very minor.