Hearthstone Clydesdale vs. Kuma Sequoia

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tenthbuzz

Member
Aug 5, 2011
9
Idaho
Hey Folks, I been mostly watching here for a few years but now am going to get a insert for my fireplace. It is a masonary exterior chimney. I have a choice between the Clydesdale and Sequoia at the same price. Dealer is giving me a deal on a showroom unused Clydesdale. Stove will be used as supplement heat except for power outages when it would be used more ( we have a few of these a year where I live in Idaho, but not usually for more than a few days). Really wondering if anyone has any ideas on which one would convect the heat better when the fan is not running. Clydesdale is pretty but Kuma is close and has good customer reputation. Any thoughts would be appreciated.
 
The sequoia looks like a heating monster, if so there may be no comparison.....
 
the Kuma has a much larger firebox
I have on on the showroom floor, but have not sold one yet.


I could use probably use the larger box as the downstairs alone is 3300 sq. ft. The upstairs is another 1250 sq. ft., but can be sealed off by closing one door and I am not intending to heat upstairs with this insert. It will also be supplement heat to the radiant floor heat I already have. None the Less it would be nice to get as much heat as possible when wanted. Propane is not cheap with the boiler.
 
One major difference is the flue size. The Clydesdale requires a 6" flue. The larger Kuma requires an 8" flue. Make sure you chimney can accommodate the larger liner if you chose the Kuma.

Location of the insert may also be a deciding factor. A centrally located stove generally heats the whole house better than one off to one end of the house. How large is the stove room and how open is that area to the rest of that floor? How tall is the ceiling in the stove room or area?
 
One's a good size heater and the other is a monster. I was going to go with a Kuma but my fireplace was a tad too small, dealer was giving me a great deal on his floor model, good thing I didn't get it I would have never got an 8" liner down the flue. If I could have fit the Kuma I would have it right now, looks like a well made stove, made in the USA.
 
The fireplace is is on a exterior wall and not a great location. The room itself is about 30 by 20 but is open and connected to a large portion of the downstairs including living, entry, and sunroom. Would like to have it in the middle or on the other side of the house, but that ain't gonna happen. This fireplace was built by the previous homeowner and is sturdy, but not designed well. We have not been able to use it for the past 2 years, and are tired of not being able to have a fire when we have a huge fireplace. Plus all the extra heat when wanted/needed will be a big bonus. The Flue is questionable for the 8" liner, existing is a 7"x11" interior dimension clay flue. It looks like the ovalized 8" stainless liner should fit. If not I guess my decision will be made for me. At this point I think I am leaning towards the Kuma. I have the local shop coming out tommorow to check the flue and make sure a 8" oval is possible. Thanks for the info and let me know if there is anything else I should be taking into account.
 
I could use probably use the larger box as the downstairs alone is 3300 sq. ft. The upstairs is another 1250 sq. ft., but can be sealed off by closing one door and I am not intending to heat upstairs with this insert. It will also be supplement heat to the radiant floor heat I already have. None the Less it would be nice to get as much heat as possible when wanted. Propane is not cheap with the boiler.


The Clyde will heat 2000 sq. ft.

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I went with the Kuma Sequoia and it puts out plenty of heat for the entire downstairs and a good amount flows upstairs which is greatly reducing the amount our electric baseboards run up there. Downstairs so far
we really don't need to use the propane boiler unless I let the Kuma go out for four or so hours. This is only for a few days now testing, we got it installed 3 days ago. I can't imagine how much I am going to save in propane and electricity. It was costing us close to 4 grand a year in propane alone. Temps last night were in the -15 range and today was a high of about 10. This baby puts out some serious heat!!
Now I just need to learn how to control it best. I have been burning through the combuster at only about 500 degrees. This is my first woodstove. How hot can I let this get. I have a magnetic thermomoter on the stove top about an inch away from the flue collar. Once I am up and running thru the combuster can I close the air intake lever completely or would this completely starve it of all air. I have done it for a few minutes and the fire seems to lay low but seems to keep burning hot. Just wondering if this is OK or if you have to leave it open at least a little. I get plenty of heat at 500 degrees, but would like to get the longer burn times.
Once again any advice or knowledge would be appreciated. Any one else with one of these Sequoia stoves. Oh, i also have the blower which is pushing air thru the plenum right below the thermomoter if that makes a difference. The house temps are in the 76 to 78 range in the stove room and in the 70 to 72 range at the far reaches of the downstairs. I am working on Ideas to push the heat around more evenly, but to warm is better than to cold for us.
Thanks
 
It looks like the blower pushes air from the bottom and out the top? If so a thermo on the top is not at all accurate. I'd get the laser thermo and find the hottest spot like on the front/side and place it there. You can also get an idea how far off the magnetic thermos are. If the construction is like I think then getting the stove top to 500 is very high! My stove top is about half of what the front of the insert says. I'd place the thermo near the door to better accuracy till you get a laser.

However, if the top is the actual top of the firebox then 500-600 is good. Mine for instance is not a cat stove but I get it up to 650 regularly with no issue.

I could be wrong but just cautious for safeties sake.
 
It looks like the blower pushes air from the bottom and out the top? If so a thermo on the top is not at all accurate. I'd get the laser thermo and find the hottest spot like on the front/side and place it there. You can also get an idea how far off the magnetic thermos are. If the construction is like I think then getting the stove top to 500 is very high! My stove top is about half of what the front of the insert says. I'd place the thermo near the door to better accuracy till you get a laser.

However, if the top is the actual top of the firebox then 500-600 is good. Mine for instance is not a cat stove but I get it up to 650 regularly with no issue.

I could be wrong but just cautious for safeties sake.

Thanks for the response, I will have to get the thermo corrected. Do you know if I can shut the intake air all the way? Does it still let in a little air?
 
Thanks for the response, I will have to get the thermo corrected. Do you know if I can shut the intake air all the way? Does it still let in a little air?
All the new stoves let in a little air turned all the way down, I have a cat stove and if I don't need a lot of heat I turn mine just about all the way down, the cat stays hot and still puts out heat, albeit less heat but in shoulder season that's ok and I got long burn times. I would think you could get 12+ hours on that stove depending on temps.
 
You need to get a Condar cat probe to keep an eye on your cat temperature, that will be your main guide not stove top or sides.

This one is set up as a insert and the cat probe hole is behind the surround. I have the surround off right now and that is how I got the stove top thermo so close to the flue collar. Last night I relocated it to the top of the front door where there is no air plenum between it and the inner stove and the temp rose only about 50 degrees. Maybe someone makes a cat probe with a remote guage I could locate outside the surround. I am burning at around 500 to 550 with thermo on the stove front with the intake about 90 percent closed and only about 4 logs 16 x 8 pine. Very dry, my meter reads 0 to 3 percent moisture. It is extremley dry where I live in Idaho and the wood has sat for over 2 years. If I pack it full of wood is the temperature going to get dangerous. How would you slow it down if I am already almost closed on the intake. Does bypassing the cat and leaving the intake closed bring the temp down. Just worried about overheating as this is my first experience with a woodstove. The longest burn I have had so far is about 4 hours. Want to know what to do if my fears of overheating come true before it actually happens. What temps would you want the cat thermo to read?
Thanks for your help!!
 
Open the bypass half way and let that heat go up the chimney if it is getting to hot and close the air intakes to get it under control. You should be getting 8hr+ burns with that stove, with time I am sure you will dial it in.

Cat probe should read in the in the 1500-1800 range with a loaded full stove piping out plenty of heat, don't want to go any higher than that.

As for a remote cat probe you could look into Condars product or pickup an AT100 from Auberins.com and get a thermocouple.
 
Open the bypass half way and let that heat go up the chimney if it is getting to hot and close the air intakes to get it under control. You should be getting 8hr+ burns with that stove, with time I am sure you will dial it in.

Cat probe should read in the in the 1500-1800 range with a loaded full stove piping out plenty of heat, don't want to go any higher than that.

As for a remote cat probe you could look into Condars product or pickup an AT100 from Auberins.com and get a thermocouple.

Burn times have been low because of me not loading it up. Thanks for all the info and when I get some time to be around I will load her up and let it rip. Guess this is what you call learning by fire!!
Thanks again and I will post how it goes.
 
tenthbuzz,

If you have need of some technical help with your new Sequoia, send us an email through the contact form on our website. Jack, who handles most of the email coming through the website, owns and uses a Sequoia insert in his own house. He will have a wealth of information for you. Also, feel free to call any time with any technical or operational questions than you may have.

Jason
 
Any Kuma Sequoia updates???? Will be replacing an 18 year old insert and Sequoia and Buck 91 are on short list. My Ohio dealer will not have a Sequoia back in stock till March and I have never even seen one. Looking for an update from any users of the Sequoia. Thanks in advance
 
Any Kuma Sequoia updates???? Will be replacing an 18 year old insert and Sequoia and Buck 91 are on short list. My Ohio dealer will not have a Sequoia back in stock till March and I have never even seen one. Looking for an update from any users of the Sequoia. Thanks in advance

tenthbuzz has not been on the side since last fall. Click on his name and in the pop-up you will see the option "start a conversation". Click on that and write him your question. That will generate an email which he hopefully will respond to.
 
This is obviously a very late reply. I apologize. I bought the Sequoia and it is a BEAST for heat. It heats 2 floors totaling 3500 sq ft with ease. My wife cooks on the top. Amazing stove and amazing staff at Kuma too. Recommended by my chimney specialist Eron Armour.
 
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Congrats. Insert or freestanding?
 
Maybe start a new thread with a review.