Woodstock PH ?

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Rich L

Minister of Fire
Jan 25, 2008
859
Eastern,Ma.
g-mail.com
The PH weighs in at 700lbs.With that much weight why is the firebox smaller at 2.82 cubics than the Mansfield at 3.2 cu and the Lopi at 3.1?The PH weighs 200 plus pounds more than the other two.With that much weight you would think you could put more wood in the stove than the lighter models.The Equinox has a 4cubic ft firebox.The King is 4+ even the old Hearthstone I gave you a 4cu ft. firebox to go along with so much weight.I'm stump as to why I would want to move 700 lbs. only to put so little wood in it.
 
A lot of mass to radiate after the fire goes out. It's a steel firebox covered in soapstone and cast pieces so it's gonna be heavy. Realistically you only have to move it once unless you count the time when you have to retrieve it from the basement after it falls through the floor. ;lol
 
The PH is two layers of soapstone with steel in between. That adds significantly to it's weight. But when you say "put so little wood in", you may want to measure the Mansfield's firebox. I don't know about that model specifically, but I do know other Hearthstone's useable firebox sizes are greatly overstated. I would guess it holds about the same amount of wood as the PH.

Comparing the weight to the King and the Liberty to a stone stove is kind of silly, don't you think? Stone weighs a lot.

You might want to move that much weight for much longer burn times (compared to everything you mentioned except the King of course) and fantastic support directly from the manufacturer. That's without even going into the benefits you get from having more thermal mass. To each their own, but there's a couple reasons.
 
Keep in mind, the Hearthstone stoves overestimate their firebox sizes. The usable portion of the Mansfield firebox is probable about 2.5 cu ft. It is much smaller than the usable firebox area of the Defiant (3.2) and also the 30NC (3.5). The Progress is closer to the Equinox in turns of mass while only having a slightly smaller firebox. The usable portion of the firebox on the Equinox is probably close to that of the Defiant.

The Progress has a very usable firebox without burn tubes getting in the way.

The Hearthstone 1 was a massive stove that weighed the same, if not more, than the Progress. It does have a much larger firebox as it also has no burn tubes or weird corners getting in the way. But, it wasn't the most efficient stove on the block (I'd still like to try one, though). 2.8 cu ft of usable space is not a small firebox. It just isn't huge. Not everything can be a BK King. And even the BK VP admitted that the market for such a stove is very limited.

Size and mass do play a part in heating. So, I would say it does offer benefits.
 
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Keep in mind, the Hearthstone stoves overestimate their firebox sizes. The usable portion of the Mansfield firebox is probable about 2.5 cu ft. It is much smaller than the usable firebox area of the Defiant (3.2) and also the 30NC (3.5). The Progress is closer to the Equinox in turns of mass while only having a slightly smaller firebox. The usable portion of the firebox on the Equinox is probably close to that of the Defiant.

The Progress has a very usable firebox without burn tubes getting in the way.

The Hearthstone 1 was a massive stove that weighed the same, if not more, than the Progress. It does have a much larger firebox as it also has no burn tubes or weird corners getting in the way. But, it wasn't the most efficient stove on the block (I'd still like to try one, though). 2.8 cu ft of usable space is not a small firebox. It just isn't huge. Not everything can be a BK King. And even the BK VP admitted that the market for such a stove is very limited.

Size and mass do play a part in heating. So, I would say it does offer benefits.

I don't know if the specs back me up on this, but my back tells me the Hearthstone 1 is a bit heavier than the PH.
 
I don't know if the specs back me up on this, but my back tells me the Hearthstone 1 is a bit heavier than the PH.
Would not surprise me. Could have sworn it was about 800 lbs. I could be wrong, though.
 
The PH puts out a great deal of heat. I'm in a cold climate, it is COLD tonight, I still have not had to load my firebox full. Don't see any need for a larger firebox. Don't want a bigger stove. This is a lovely modertely sized stove that will fit in just about any application. The people at Woodstock knew what they were doing when they sized the firebox.
 
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The PH is two layers of soapstone with steel in between. That adds significantly to it's weight. But when you say "put so little wood in", you may want to measure the Mansfield's firebox. I don't know about that model specifically, but I do know other Hearthstone's useable firebox sizes are greatly overstated. I would guess it holds about the same amount of wood as the PH.

Comparing the weight to the King and the Liberty to a stone stove is kind of silly, don't you think? Stone weighs a lot.

You might want to move that much weight for much longer burn times (compared to everything you mentioned except the King of course) and fantastic support directly from the manufacturer. That's without even going into the benefits you get from having more thermal mass. To each their own, but there's a couple reasons.
What are you getting for useable heat times?I heard glowing things being said about the Fireview so I got one only to be disappointed by the heat output.Same with the Classic.Both the Liberty and the Mansfield out heat them.Now I hear glowing terms about the PH.I have a chance to get a used PH for $2200.00 and if it doesn't satisfy me I'm stuck with a 700 lb rock of disappointment.At least I know if I can put a good amount of wood in a stove I'll get good heat.The Liberty takes a good load and the Mansfield takes a bit more and they both kick out the heat.I need heat first and heat length is second.Now if I could only know if this stove is for real or not then the decision would be easy.Otherwise it's like going to the Casino.
 
What are you getting for useable heat times?I heard glowing things being said about the Fireview so I got one only to be disappointed by the heat output.Same with the Classic.Both the Liberty and the Mansfield out heat them.Now I hear glowing terms about the PH.I have a chance to get a used PH for $2200.00 and if it doesn't satisfy me I'm stuck with a 700 lb rock of disappointment.At least I know if I can put a good amount of wood in a stove I'll get good heat.The Liberty takes a good load and the Mansfield takes a bit more and they both kick out the heat.I need heat first and heat length is second.Now if I could only know if this stove is for real or not then the decision would be easy.Otherwise it's like going to the Casino.
Usable heat will vary from owner to owner due to heating needs, insulation, size of home, layout, etc. How big of a space would the PH be responsible for heating, and what temps do you need from your existing stoves to maintain temperature?

The PH should put out at least as much heat as the Liberty and Mansfield. You should see longer burn times from the PH. If you are the average Mansfield owner and get 8-10 hours of heat, the PH would probably give you the 12-16 hours that you are seeing reported here.

But, your mileage may vary.
 
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What are you getting for useable heat times?I heard glowing things being said about the Fireview so I got one only to be disappointed by the heat output.Same with the Classic.Both the Liberty and the Mansfield out heat them.Now I hear glowing terms about the PH.I have a chance to get a used PH for $2200.00 and if it doesn't satisfy me I'm stuck with a 700 lb rock of disappointment.At least I know if I can put a good amount of wood in a stove I'll get good heat.The Liberty takes a good load and the Mansfield takes a bit more and they both kick out the heat.I need heat first and heat length is second.Now if I could only know if this stove is for real or not then the decision would be easy.Otherwise it's like going to the Casino.

Don't know how long you have to make your decision, but why not make a quick trip to Woodstock to see the PH in action? You are not all that far, they are open Saturdays. A woodstove is a big investment.

Or, post your town, and ask if anyone lives near you and has a PH that you could go see in action. Or call Woodstock and ask them if there is a customer near you that has one. They will contact a customer for you to see if the person can accommodate letting you see their stove functioning...gives you a bigger pool of customers than here, and a geater likeihood of finding one near you.

IMO, the PH puts out a great deal of heat...way more than the Fireview. By testing standards, nothing much beats it for heat output. However, you are the best judge of whether the stove puts out the ehat you want. I will say Woodstock is not exaggerating with its posted BTU output. .
 
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Don't know how long you have to make your decision, but why not make a quick trip to Woodstock to see the PH in action? You are not all that far, they are open Saturdays. A woodstove is a big investment.

Or, post your town, and ask if anyone lives near you and has a PH that you could go see in action. Or call Woodstock and ask them if there is a customer near you that has one. They will contact a customer for you to see if the person can accommodate letting you see their stove functioning...gives you a bigger pool of customers than here, and a geater likeihood of finding one near you.

IMO, the PH puts out a great deal of heat...way more than the Fireview. By testing standards, nothing much beats it for heat output. However, you are the best judge of whether the stove puts out the ehat you want. I will say Woodstock is not exaggerating with its posted BTU output. .
I like your thinking .
 
What are you getting for useable heat times?I heard glowing things being said about the Fireview so I got one only to be disappointed by the heat output.Same with the Classic.Both the Liberty and the Mansfield out heat them.Now I hear glowing terms about the PH.I have a chance to get a used PH for $2200.00 and if it doesn't satisfy me I'm stuck with a 700 lb rock of disappointment.At least I know if I can put a good amount of wood in a stove I'll get good heat.The Liberty takes a good load and the Mansfield takes a bit more and they both kick out the heat.I need heat first and heat length is second.Now if I could only know if this stove is for real or not then the decision would be easy.Otherwise it's like going to the Casino.

Not sure what to say. It sounds like you're burning whatever stove at a very high setting because you need a ton of heat. Therefore, to a large extent, you're right. The stove that holds the most wood is going to put out the most heat. The PH is tied for the second most efficient stove ever and has a very high btu output at a high burn rate. My guess is you would get a more heat from the PH than the Mansfield, but not a ton. You would also definitely have more flexibility in burn rate. To be honest though, if you are only looking for as much raw heat as possible for as little weight or cost as possible, there are probably better btu/$ / btu/pound ratios out there on the used market.
 
RichL, you've owned more than one modern cat stone stove. If you don't understand and value the benefits of thermal mass and a cat stove then I doubt you ever will. Stick with a huge steel stove for the blast furnace heat and shorter burn times.
 
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RichL, you've owned more than one modern cat stone stove. If you don't understand and value the benefits of thermal mass and a cat stove then I doubt you ever will. Stick with a huge steel stove for the blast furnace heat and shorter burn times.
Nah, I want the heat and the burn times.I did like the King for both however it smoked me out every time I put wood into it.So it had to go.My quest continues.
 
Nah, I want the heat and the burn times.I did like the King for both however it smoked me out every time I put wood into it.So it had to go.My quest continues.

I'm dealing with the smoke problem right now too. I think I can overcome it.
 
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