Request for Rais and Scan experience and opinions

[desterline]

We are about to remodel an old farmhouse and are looking to install an efficient wood stove. I am considering a Rais Komba (which looks fine -- and costly) or Scan (possibly 5-2). I will be grateful to hear from anyone with experience with these stoves -- and opinions in general about Danish stoves and/or soapstone. Many thanks.

 

[rockettmantoo]

A happy choice to make. I like the Scan 5-2. If you like Danish stoves you owe it to your self to check out the Morso stoves. You really cant go wrong.

 

[summit]

the scan anderson 10 would be a better choice between the scans. its firebox takes a good 18" log, you can do it w/ the soapstone sides as well, whereas the 5-2 takes a 12" log max. unless you are really hooked on the idea of the baking oven, that is...

 

[desterline]

Thanks very much for your help. We owned a Lopi a few years ago -- how would you compare Scan to Lopi? I will certainly look into Morso stoves as well.

 

[SteveKG]

I don't have either model of those stoves, but we do have a Rais in the kitchen, one with an oven that I use as my only oven. I believe I bought it in '92 and we use it to heat that end of the cottage all winter and I use it year around for bread baking, etc.

Which means I have experience with the Rais brand. Very well-built stoves, and they heat and work very well. I can't think of anything I'd change on ours.

Our ash grate broke after about 16 yr. I got hold of someone at Rais, after a few phone calls, and was never able to get a replacement--maybe too old a model for them to have stock on parts, but no one ever got back to me and after trying for a few weeks, I got lucky when a buddy was able to weld me up a replacement part which used the original pieces and it works fine.

I am not familiar with the other stove you mentioned, but with the Rais, the sides and back are double-walled with an airspace between the walls and a little sheet-metal thing between to dissipate heat. I can put my hand on the outside and it is just warm. This allowed us to put the stove closer to the wall and save space in our small home. Pretty nice. Don't remember whether all Rais stoves are designed that way....

 

[summit]

lopis will burn longer for you generally speaking. most of the lines you are talking about have a firebox sizes no bigger han the smaller lopis... they both burn just as clean, however... scan and morso, rais, etc are all very efficient, but lack the bigger fireboxes (generally speaking) for true overnighter kinda burns.. we sell the scans, and have run several of them, as long as the customers were aware that they were not a "whole house heater" they liked them, and have had good results; pretty stoves, compact in design, and very efficient. work well as a larger sized space heater, and the flame picture is awesome once the skamol is heated and the 2ndary burn really starts to crank. I like the double baffle design that winds the exhaust thru the stove longer.. more residence time in the stove results in high burnoff of gasses and excellent heat output for a smaller series of stoves. once again, we have had the best runs with the anderson 10 scans, as only about 2 logs at a time produce a high rate of heat output, and the burn times to not have to re-kindle a new fire run about 8 hrs (although good heat output stops around 5-6, as that is when our ecofan slows down significantly), due mostly to the firebox that will accept a good chunk of american sized wood.

 

[wendell]

I have a friend with a Scan and is very happy with it and I really like my soapstone Morso but after spending the weekend cutting 2-5" off of all the pieces of a 36" diameter elm that was chunked up by a tree service, I would strongly suggest getting the A10. I'm not going to change stoves but seeing the amount of extra cutting and splitting involved when you need 14" wood as opposed to 18" makes me wish I would've gotten the A10.

 

[desterline]

Thanks for the advice. Do you find the soapstone to be a significant advantage? Do you find the glass easy to keep clean on the Morso? Thanks again.

 

[wendell]

Yes, I love the soapstone. The stove isn't big enough to do an all night burn but usually has enough coals left to get the fire started in the morning but the stone is still too hot to hold your hand to it in the morning. The glass does stay pretty clean but the residue I do get I believe is mostly from the 2 90's I have in my chimney but what I do get easily wipes off with a damp paper towel in the morning.

 

[MountainStoveGuy]

Unfortunately SCAN decided not to test any of there stoves for the federal tax credit, if you where planning on utilizing this tax credit this would make that a bad choice. RAIS, to my knowledge, has tested most of there stoves, the same with Morso.

 

[desterline]

Thanks. I'm interested in the Morso 8150, 8151 or the new 7642 -- but still need to see one. They appear (from reputation and reviews) to be very efficient, and easy to maintain clean glass for a clear view of the fire. Small wood size is a drawback.

 

[MountainStoveGuy]

Most all of the euro stoves have small fireboxes, however they put out an impressive amount of heat. Small cuts of hardwood burn really well in these stoves. Out here in colorado, we are usually burning end cuts of untreated railroad ties in these smaller stoves. They perform really well with that type of fuel. If you want big cuts and a big firebox, i think your going to have to go with a more traditional setup.

 

[wendell]

Those are 3 spectacular stoves! I saw one of Morso's round stoves on a rotating pedestal last year and although the fire box is narrow, they had their wood angled in the firebox which was pretty cool to watch burn. You might want to check with the dealer if that would work for you. As mountainstove guy said, these stoves do put out a lot of heat as I'm heating 2400 square feet with a 3450, twice what it is rated for.

That being said, here are some things to think about. You are obviously attracted to beautiful stoves and you need to decide if that is going to outweigh the downsides. And here they are:

1) Short wood sucks. No seller is going to have 12" wood so you you will need to process it yourself and that means 50% more cutting, splitting and stacking than if you use 18" splits. It's also a lot harder to make a stable stack with wood that short.

2) Short burn times. To keep a steady flow of heat (The soapstone on the 8500s will help with that) you are going to need to be feeding it every 2-4 hours to keep a good fire going. I go to bed around 11 and get up around 7 and most mornings will still have enough coals to get the next fire started with enough kindling but I'm getting more envious of these guys with their 8+ hour burns.

3) Pushing the stove too hard. I was worried that if I got too big of a stove, I would heat myself out of the room it is in (and some days I still do) but overall, I could've definitely gone bigger. As they say, in a bigger stove, you can just have a smaller fire. I'm sure it is not a good thing to try to make a stove do more than it was designed for over a long period of time.

So, if you are just looking for a beautiful piece of "warm furniture" to supply supplemental heat, I think you are spot on. If you live in the northern part of the state and are looking to heat the house, you may be disappointed.

 

[desterline]

Thanks Wendell. I saw an 8150 burn a bit of kindling today (in a shop near Grand Rapids), and it certainly did a fine, pretty job. As I expect to cut most of my own wood, the 12 inch size should be ok -- and easier to split and dry. "Warm furniture supplying supplement heat" is probably the right definition, plus a bit of savings over the long haul.
Thanks for the thoughts and conversation.

 

[wendell]

You're welcome. Make sure you post some pictures once you get your stove installed.