2020-21 Blaze King Performance Thread (Everything BK)

[Diabel]

Im sitting here scratching my head lol, 1st.. I'm getting ready to rotate wood from the outside stacks to the shed, my wood shed is broken up into (2) 2 cord bays, (1) 1 cord bay and (1) 3 cord bay, this year I burnt the full one cord bay and only 1/2 of the 3 cord bay, doesnt make sense that I reduced my consumption by a full 1.5 cords since I burnt my typical Nov thru now (not everyday this spring) but still a full 1.5 cords? Idk but I have a section of the 3 cord shed that has had wood in it since I built the thing since I rotate every other year 4 & 4 cords, so now I'm stuck with picking through the remaining wood, transferring it to the 1 cord bay then reloading the 3 cord and stuffing the remaining 1/2 cord into the front of the 3 cord bay... labor, labor, labor.
Next is the weather... going to top off my inside bucket for the final time, looks like a cold rain coming starting tonight, will have the stove running tomorrow and Friday, maybe part of Saturday to and thats it I think, house is getting way to much radiant heat now during the day with the sun.

You either move the remaining wood to the front or create access to that bay from the back of the shed. When I build my shed this summer I will have some removable boards at the back.

 

[Highbeam]

I suppose you could stack rows front to back in each bay and then remove it left to right. If you didn’t want to take the back wall off.

 

[AndrewU]

I suppose you could stack rows front to back in each bay and then remove it left to right. If you didn’t want to take the back wall off.

Yeah I’d probably just restack the bay to put the old wood all on one side then pull starting on that side next winter until it’s used up. Moving to a different bay seems like a lot of excess work.

 

[stoveliker]

For that precise reason ("Am I going to use all the wood in my bay"), I'm in the process of building a "shed" consisting of 3 equal bays that are accessible from both the front and the back (one bay per year, 3 year seasoning).
It means that one never has wood left that is older than the rotation + 1 year (3+1 for me) if one year one suddenly only burns at least half a bay of 3 y/o wood, b/c the next winter would be the other half, and it can be reached from the back side while the front has been filled up already with green wood.

Mine will be 18' x 8', divided into three 6' wide 8' deep bays.
Sloping roof equates to about 6'6" tall on average. (Pics will follow in the woodshed forum once it is finished enough as I'm a little apprehensive...)

 

[Diabel]

You either move the remaining wood to the front or create access to that bay from the back of the shed. When I build my shed this summer I will have some removable boards at the back.

Just found your woodshed build thread. The entry from the back looks very difficult due to that wall.

 

[kennyp2339]

Oak, cherry and ash this evening, well fully loaded so it will burn till tomorrow evening.

 

[Poindexter]

Hope you guys are about done buring. The first Canada geese of the summer arrived in Fairbanks this week. I still have snow piled higher than my truck along the curb in front of my house, but this burn season looks to be about over.

 

[Nealm66]

Wow!

 

[AndrewU]

Got 1 more burn planned, just to burn out the creosote inside the firebox. Then getting it cleaned for the summer.

 

[begreen]

We're in what appears to be a long streak of dry sunny weather. At this rate we may set a record for the driest April.

 

[kf6hap]

The burning season is just about over here in Nevada City, Ca. Only 20.8" of rain, half of normal. Wood shed is full. Mild winter.

 

[Woodburnerguy2]

Hello,
Is a BK Princess Too Big for a 1300 sq' Rancher? Really like the lower firebox and general look compared to the smaller Sirocco 20.2 which is similar. Price for the princess is only a few hundred more too. My concern is that it would cook the place out too get the temps into the Cat zones.
Should I go with the smaller but only by 2" width and depth of the Sirocco with the smaller firebox and glass?

Thanks All BK Fans for your input.

 

[Nealm66]

I’m on my first year but have learned type of wood can make a big difference on how low you can run it without stahl but even at a low setting the heat eventually warms the house bones and it’s time to open some windows. I’ve got a buddy that leaves his upstairs window open all winter. I’d go with the princess and keep a mix of wood types available. BKVP will probably be the best advice though. Talked me out of the king thank god

 

[Diabel]

All depends how insulated is your place.

 

[stoveliker]

Hello,
Is a BK Princess Too Big for a 1300 sq' Rancher? Really like the lower firebox and general look compared to the smaller Sirocco 20.2 which is similar. Price for the princess is only a few hundred more too. My concern is that it would cook the place out too get the temps into the Cat zones.
Should I go with the smaller but only by 2" width and depth of the Sirocco with the smaller firebox and glass?

Thanks All BK Fans for your input.

Go to the k website and download the brochures. You'll see that the princess can do 12 500 BTU per hour (for 30 hrs) on low, and the Sirocco 11 300 (for 20 hrs).

That is not a big difference.

Also, getting the cat up to temp is only the first time after light off, and then there is a lot of stove to warm up.
Upon reload you still want to burn high for a while (30 mins says the manual), but if you wait with reloading until the cat almost drops out of the active zone, the half hour in high won't cook you out.

But your heating needs depend on your layout, ceiling height, insulation, etc. So it's hard to say something from "1300 sqft" alone.

Is your chimney ready for a BK? 6" insulated liner? 15 ft straight up?

 

[Woodburnerguy2]

Go to the k website and download the brochures. You'll see that the princess can do 12 500 BTU per hour (for 30 hrs) on low, and the Sirocco 11 300 (for 20 hrs).

That is not a big difference.

Also, getting the cat up to temp is only the first time after light off, and then there is a lot of stove to warm up.
Upon reload you still want to burn high for a while (30 mins says the manual), but if you wait with reloading until the cat almost drops out of the active zone, the half hour in high won't cook you out.

But your heating needs depend on your layout, ceiling height, insulation, etc. So it's hard to say something from "1300 sqft" alone.

Is your chimney ready for a BK? 6" insulated liner? 15 ft straight up?

Hello Stoveliker

We have a 2 year old modern design well insulated house, 9' Coved living room ceilings with the rest 8'.

Liner 2x walled would be almost straight up but the main living space connection appears to need a 45 degree to go through the Coffered section then straight thru the attic and roof.
The installer at the store we are getting quotes from thought the Princess would be too large for the place and had thought a Osburn 200 non-cat would be better But I want the slow long burn times not Blast of heat then none unless more wood added and repeat. The installer had also said Alot of Creosote is formed with the Blaze Kings. He has an issue with a install on the Princess but he also said it has 3 90 degree elbows and smoke is filling the house and well seems like that is the real problem, "draft".

Does anyone know if there is considerable Creosote build up from the long slow burns using the Blaze Kings?
How is the Princess on less wood burns for longer times? I assume if the Cat was in the operating range one could just add 1 or 2 logs at a time.

Appreciate the Feedback everyone.
Thanks!

 

[begreen]

Long slow burns will build up more soot and potentially creosote. Keeping track of the flue temperature can help keep this manageable along with regular cleaning. Generally, these stoves are more batch heaters that are better off with less frequent door opening.

 

[stoveliker]

Sounds like the other issue is indeed due to the flue.

These stoves are not meant to have small fires of one or two splits. Instead, think of the firebox as a fuel tank, and with the thermostat you set the heating power. The bigger the fuel tank the longer the burn. The thermostat keeps it constant. Opening the stove is not advised until the tank is empty. Just set the Tstat and forget (for 20 hrs if low is what you need).
This mode requires some getting used to, but I like it a lot.

Creosote can be an issue if your flue does not keep warm enough. Hence the insulated liner (rather than a double walled one!)

It's hard to estimate the stove size you need (for me). Also depends on climate...
Most people here say to get the bigger one, because the tank is bigger and the minimum output similar. If you are really going to be at the bottom end of the output, a 20 box may be better. Have a ceiling fan to push down the heat?

Also note that it in principle remains a space heater, and it depends a lot on the lay out of the house whether you can heat the house.

I'd contact @BKVP for advice in the size.

 

[stoveliker]

Bottomline, it's not how much wood you out in the stove that determines the heat output. It's the Tstat setting. Hence the "small burns in a Princess" remark is not applicable (as it would be for non-BK stoves).

 

[Diabel]

@Woodburnerguy2 welcome to the club. You came to the right place to ask these questions. Princess will be better, worst case you will gwt some fresh air via open window during winter!

 

[BKVP]

I think you need a King! (NEALM66...just kidding)

If you are retired or work from home, the Sirocco has a shallower firebox, so the glass will stay cleaner....but you will clean ashes out twice as often.

The Princess is a great option. Larger fuel tank, deeper belly, larger too surface should you need it, easy to maintain.

BKVP

PS guys/gals. I was down for 17 days and not responding, sorry. Up and running! Off to Boston, Boise, Raleigh, Philly, etc....Thanks for helping folks.

 

[kennyp2339]

@Woodburnerguy2 - Heating a raised ranch about 1500sq ft with a BK princess in NW New Jersey, I think our climates are fairly similar, perhaps your slightly warmer in the heart of winter, but our shoulder seasons are prob the same. My place certainly has less insulation (cons circa 1987 2x4 framed)
I totally understand the worry some comment on whether there will be excessive creosote build up, and I can say I do not have that issue. My setup is straight up from the flue collar to chimney cap, since I dont have an existing masonry chimney I went with 6" dvl black pipe (double wall) to class A pipe at the basement ceiling then class A the rest of the way up, approx 18 -19ft total from stove to cap. I'm assuming based on your post that you will have almost the same setup, dont quite understand the 45deg elbow with coffered ceiling though, that doesnt make sense to me with a prefab chimney.
As with any stove, to reduce chimney build up is comes down to wood supply, BK recommends wood to be below 20% moisture, I have noticed a big difference in stove operation and performance when I use wood thats between 15-18% vs the 18 to 22% in terms of build up and overall burn time satisfaction. When burning wood that was between 18-20% I would have noticeable cap debris that would need to be brushed off mid season then again (although not as bad) at the end of the season, still only need to clean the chimney once a season but I do a mid season cleaning due to my concerns of chimney fires (I'm on the fire dept and see it all the time in the winter, so I'm a helicopter chimney / stove cleaner)
When I had my epa reburn tube stove I think I had a dirtier chimney, this was because I was getting to much heat at a short duration and I would constantly fiddle with the stove, trying to turn it down earlier to have low output, load less but burn medium to high, and lack of experience. Like what @Poindexter stated, think of your stove as a fuel tank, the air adjustment t-stat is your throttle, so once you get a well seated fire with the cat active, all you have to do is turn the stove down to your desired output and walk away, for myself, depending on the weather depends on how fast I return back to the stove, if its real cold I'll be back to reload 8 hours later, if its warmer like now (lows in the mid 30's, highs almost to 50 deg f) I'll be back the next day to reload.
With build up on glass, yes my princess window gets dirty in the shoulder seasons, its actually like a badge on honor to me to see black glass, but no smoke coming out the chimney, thats what I paid for lol, but once it gets colder out and I need more heat, I turn the stove up and the glass for the most part self cleans, you can also do a small to medium load of smaller split wood and run the stove on high and within 40min that glass is 95% clean, minus the extreme corners.
The next thing is totally a user preference, I dont like any stove that has a fire box 2.2cu ft and under, to me its silly to think you'll get a full nights burn out of it with useable heat, but thats up to the user to decide whether they want to go to bed a 11pm with a fully loaded stove and still wake up chilly at 6am due to the stove only having a few coals to re-lit wood left over.
I'm also a big proponent of the BK princesses deep belly, for me I clean out the ash every 2 weeks when burning full time, thats huge, I went from every 4 days to 2 weeks, cut my potential dust production down hugely.

1st pic is the end of November, dirty glass from shoulder season burning. 2nd pic is end of this January, it got colder and I burnt hotter, glass cleaned up just by the fire itself.

 

[71montess]

I think you need a King! (NEALM66...just kidding)

If you are retired or work from home, the Sirocco has a shallower firebox, so the glass will stay cleaner....but you will clean ashes out twice as often.

The Princess is a great option. Larger fuel tank, deeper belly, larger too surface should you need it, easy to maintain.

BKVP

PS guys/gals. I was down for 17 days and not responding, sorry. Up and running! Off to Boston, Boise, Raleigh, Philly, etc....Thanks for helping folks.

I’m near Boston !

 

[Woodburnerguy2]

I’m near Boston !

Thanks No the King is def. too big.<G>
Not in Alaska, only the somewhat mild weather of Vancouver Island.

Leaning towards the Princess and hoping it dials down nicely.

Cheers..

 

[Woodburnerguy2]

@Woodburnerguy2 - Heating a raised ranch about 1500sq ft with a BK princess in NW New Jersey, I think our climates are fairly similar, perhaps your slightly warmer in the heart of winter, but our shoulder seasons are prob the same. My place certainly has less insulation (cons circa 1987 2x4 framed)
I totally understand the worry some comment on whether there will be excessive creosote build up, and I can say I do not have that issue. My setup is straight up from the flue collar to chimney cap, since I dont have an existing masonry chimney I went with 6" dvl black pipe (double wall) to class A pipe at the basement ceiling then class A the rest of the way up, approx 18 -19ft total from stove to cap. I'm assuming based on your post that you will have almost the same setup, dont quite understand the 45deg elbow with coffered ceiling though, that doesnt make sense to me with a prefab chimney.
As with any stove, to reduce chimney build up is comes down to wood supply, BK recommends wood to be below 20% moisture, I have noticed a big difference in stove operation and performance when I use wood thats between 15-18% vs the 18 to 22% in terms of build up and overall burn time satisfaction. When burning wood that was between 18-20% I would have noticeable cap debris that would need to be brushed off mid season then again (although not as bad) at the end of the season, still only need to clean the chimney once a season but I do a mid season cleaning due to my concerns of chimney fires (I'm on the fire dept and see it all the time in the winter, so I'm a helicopter chimney / stove cleaner)
When I had my epa reburn tube stove I think I had a dirtier chimney, this was because I was getting to much heat at a short duration and I would constantly fiddle with the stove, trying to turn it down earlier to have low output, load less but burn medium to high, and lack of experience. Like what @Poindexter stated, think of your stove as a fuel tank, the air adjustment t-stat is your throttle, so once you get a well seated fire with the cat active, all you have to do is turn the stove down to your desired output and walk away, for myself, depending on the weather depends on how fast I return back to the stove, if its real cold I'll be back to reload 8 hours later, if its warmer like now (lows in the mid 30's, highs almost to 50 deg f) I'll be back the next day to reload.
With build up on glass, yes my princess window gets dirty in the shoulder seasons, its actually like a badge on honor to me to see black glass, but no smoke coming out the chimney, thats what I paid for lol, but once it gets colder out and I need more heat, I turn the stove up and the glass for the most part self cleans, you can also do a small to medium load of smaller split wood and run the stove on high and within 40min that glass is 95% clean, minus the extreme corners.
The next thing is totally a user preference, I dont like any stove that has a fire box 2.2cu ft and under, to me its silly to think you'll get a full nights burn out of it with useable heat, but thats up to the user to decide whether they want to go to bed a 11pm with a fully loaded stove and still wake up chilly at 6am due to the stove only having a few coals to re-lit wood left over.
I'm also a big proponent of the BK princesses deep belly, for me I clean out the ash every 2 weeks when burning full time, thats huge, I went from every 4 days to 2 weeks, cut my potential dust production down hugely.
View attachment 277922View attachment 277923
1st pic is the end of November, dirty glass from shoulder season burning. 2nd pic is end of this January, it got colder and I burnt hotter, glass cleaned up just by the fire itself.

Thanks so much for your reply and your tips/help on the Princess. We have Coffered ceilings that are approx 19" at 8' from the wall then jump up to 10' tall around the living room. We want the stove to be as close as possible to the LR wall so a 45 degree may need to be installed to put the pipe btw the 19" . I don't think/hope 1 45 degree elbow will pos problems with draft.
I also like the deep firebox on the Princess plus hear it is the most eff. WS made currently.
Will be talking to the dealer here this week on this. Definitely leaning to the Princess over the Sirocco.

Thanks again.