11 year old BK Princess in new to me house

[M1SF1T]

New to me house has an 11 year old BK Princess. I thought there should be lots of life left in this stove, but it needs to be cleaned up.

We're putting in a new floor and hearth area so pulled it out. It needs a fan replacement and I planned to give it some fresh stove paint.

It was overflowing with ash and unburnt debris when I got into the house. After cleaning it out I notice parts corroded near the top of the interior. I understand that this is CAT stove, does that need to be replaced maybe?

There was also a lot build up in the stove pipe. It was absolutely full, like choked 90% with light fluffy creosote that I easily vacuumed out. I also see quite a bit of creosote overflowing from the top of the chimney. Is that a reflection on the previous owners burning / maintenance practice or a possible issue with this particular stove? I saw that he had a pipe cleaning brush when we looked at the house and he left it behind for me, so I had assumed he was taking care of it.

I visited the local shop that sold and installed with the previous owner but they weren't helpful unless I want to buy a new stove.

As I look more at this stove I wonder if I should not bother with the clean up and consider replacing it outright? Either way I plan to have a professional do the reinstall and inspect but, I don't want to waste my time cleaning and painting this thing if I should have just started new.

I appreciate opinions!

My stove.



Interior view.



Inside top corroded part.

 

[stoveliker]

Lucky guy, getting a BK out of the blue.


You'll need a new catalytic combustor. Most likely that's the cause.of.the creosote .

Get your wood stacked to it is drying. One can't really buy wood that's dry enough. The stove is a great stove, but it needs dry wood.

I do think the inside needs repairing. I'm not sure that's worth it - depends on how.much that costs.

@BKVP

 

[M1SF1T]

Thanks for your reply. I started going over it more closely today and I see 3 cracks on the corners of the door opening too... I don't think they're right through but I'm not going to F-around either. We plan on using this for our main home heat source so I'm just going to buy a new stove.

That said, I'm not going to junk this either. I have another older stove in my shop and I think a bit of a weld repair, grind, repaint, new cat and burn it ..

 

[stoveliker]

It appears this stove was abused. With cracks and how far that bar below the cat was gone, that's not how these are built.

Bummer

 

[begreen]

Lots of neglect and skipped maintenance in that stove. it will need a complete set of firebricks too. When the bricks are pulled look for creosote corrosion behind them and test for weak spots.

 

[EatenByLimestone]

Check that chimney over carefully. I bet it could tell some stories sitting above a stove that was treated like that.

 

[M1SF1T]

Thanks for your comments.

It's disappointing this stove won't work out but honestly it is only a bonus if it did... I expected we would replace it when we bought the house and my wife doesn't like the style of it anyway... Oh well at least I can get something new that will work great. I'm going to go shopping next week.

Question now is cat vs. non-cat - this stove obviously put a ton of gunk into this chimney... Maybe a non-cat would burn better with my draft?

Or maybe it was the operator. I'm not sure if this guy was burning wet wood or what... he was a logger, maybe brought the heating come with him from work every week?

 

[stoveliker]

That choice depends more on how you intend to use the stove and what other heating you will have and use.

Whatever happy to that BK is user error. This is not at all normal BK stove behavior.

 

[kborndale]

The most likely reason for all the creosote buildup was burning wet wood. Get your wood stacked yesterday or your going to have the same issue. And don't believe the dealer that tells you his wood is fully seasoned because it rarely is.

 

[stoveliker]

I think running in black box mode with a dead cat and dry wood can do the same?

If you plan on using this thing after fixing it, get a new cat and ensure (do not trust and do verify) dry wood.

 

[Wisco Shepherd]

 

[M1SF1T]

I picked up a couple cords and I'm splitting and stacking now. I have a moisture meter too. I won't make the same mistakes.

 

[Itslay90]

I picked up a couple cords and I'm splitting and stacking now. I have a moisture meter too. I won't make the same mistakes.

What kinda stove do you have ?

 

[M1SF1T]

Well, I have this BK Princess, but I'm going to get something new. Not sure yet...

 

[Wisco Shepherd]

Why?

My dude read the whole post

 

[begreen]

Thanks for your comments.

It's disappointing this stove won't work out but honestly it is only a bonus if it did... I expected we would replace it when we bought the house and my wife doesn't like the style of it anyway... Oh well at least I can get something new that will work great. I'm going to go shopping next week.

Question now is cat vs. non-cat - this stove obviously put a ton of gunk into this chimney... Maybe a non-cat would burn better with my draft?

Or maybe it was the operator. I'm not sure if this guy was burning wet wood or what... he was a logger, maybe brought the heating come with him from work every week?

Do some searches on this question. You'll find dozens of threads on this topic and many more on specific stove options. There is no one, best stove. There are good stoves in both cat and non-cat variety and there are several things to consider like draft strength, aesthetics, fire view, radiant vs convective, clearance requirements, stove location, size of area to be heated, home insulation, maintainance requirements, etc. The best stove is one that fits the space, one's lifestyle, and one's budget.

 

[BKVP]

The most likely reason for all the creosote buildup was burning wet wood. Get your wood stacked yesterday or your going to have the same issue. And don't believe the dealer that tells you his wood is fully seasoned because it rarely is.

Spot on! Burning wet wood, can't get enough heat, so crack the door open. That will turn the stove into a blast furnace. The dome guard would need replacing, probably bypass gasket retainers, new combustor, new bricks, and cross support rod is also sagging.

I hate to say it, but that unit would need some grinding and light welding.

BKVP

 

[M1SF1T]

Thanks for the comments.

I'm think I'm going with a new PE Summit LE and am getting quotes now. I also considered the the Drolet stoves, but PE is right down the highway from me on the Island so I like to support that.

I'm going to rehab this Princess though. I have a welder and I'll hit those cracks and grind it smooth before a fresh paint. Replace some bricks, put in a new catalyst, she'll be off to the races.

I'll run it in my shop to replace the old stove currently in there. Low slow burn in there will be good to keep the edge off when I'm out there and stop things from freezing on the coldest days.

 

[BKVP]

Thanks for the comments.

I'm think I'm going with a new PE Summit LE and am getting quotes now. I also considered the the Drolet stoves, but PE is right down the highway from me on the Island so I like to support that.

I'm going to rehab this Princess though. I have a welder and I'll hit those cracks and grind it smooth before a fresh paint. Replace some bricks, put in a new catalyst, she'll be off to the races.

I'll run it in my shop to replace the old stove currently in there. Low slow burn in there will be good to keep the edge off when I'm out there and stop things from freezing on the coldest days.

Sounds good. Drill a 1/8" hole at the end of each crack and then back to the opposite hole.

The dome guard is a piece of "C" channel and needs replacing. If the bypass gasket retainer a shot (likely) and you are in Canada, you can have a Blaze King dealer order them for you.

BKVP

 

[Tron]

Well, I have this BK Princess, but I'm going to get something new. Not sure yet...

As you intend to use the new stove for main house heat, and not just for some flames to look at in the evening, I'd say get a cat stove, ideally one with a thermostat (like your BK once was).
The wide range these can be run in is crucial to maintaining a steady temperature throughout the burn, and to be able to adjust stove output to outside conditions. We don't live in a typical wood-fired-stove-area, but it's still doing a great job keeping the house warm in the winter.

 

[Highbeam]

It’s sad to see an abused princess. At 11 years old it’s probably not worth paying to have fixed but if you’re a welder then anything is possible.

Just using the crap out of a princess for 11 years won’t do that damage. I know, mine is 12. This was abuse.

 

[M1SF1T]

Well chit happens. I'm sure this princess will be an easy enough fix up and make a great stove for my shop.

I'm excited to get a Summit for the house though... talked with a dealer today and am going to visit another tomorrow. I want to get something sooner than later.

 

[M1SF1T]

I wanted to update this thread.

We ended up getting a PE Alderlea T6 to replace the tired BK.

Got the stove home about 2 weeks ago and have been enjoying burning it. It warms the whole house fairly well even with small shoulder season loads. I find I can turn it down overnight and still have a warm stove with coals in the morning to add another log to. I run the fan in the entry area which seems to help circulate the air between the upstairs and downstairs.

Before the installation I had a sweep give me a run down on my chimney situation, it was serviceable but had some issues that needed to be dealt with at some point sooner than later. The 5" steel liner inside the masonry chimney hadn't been secured properly, and was sagging, this had caused a downhill effect through my wall connector and essentially choked me down to 4" at that connection affecting draft. There also wasn't access into the liner from the cleanout and cleaning from the top was precarious.

So I decided to address the chimney rehabilitation. I reached out to a retired mason that was recommended to me, experienced with chimneys and managed to pull him out for one more job. The mission being the removal of the existing steel liner, demo of the clay liner, repair of weathered masonry, new cement chimney cap, and installation of a new 6" stainless liner and 7" through wall connector.

I was thinking next spring or summer, after the burning season we could get to it but he was ready to go now... Even better.

First day of work completed today and aa we get further into what I had, I'm really glad that we're getting it done. All the old liner and ceramic liner has been removed, The old steel liner was in bad shape and even after having been just cleaned by the sweep a few weeks ago was still super duty and we found that sections hadn't been connected together or riveted correctly. The through wall connector had also completely let loose from the liner connection.

New chimney cap and masonry repairs up top have been completed, new stainless liner from top to cleanout and through wall connector is in place.

A couple more masonry repairs lower down, a bit of drywall patching, and tying into the new liner from my stove and I'll be back in business... just in time too as it's cooling down significantly on the North Island overnight and noticably cooler in the house without the stove. Even with the heat pump running we had to turn up a few baseboard thermostats.

I'm interested to see how this new chimney will draft and affect the performance of the Alderlea. I wasn't unhappy with the last couple weeks of burning this stove in my dilapidated chimney, but I'm guessing it will draft better, and need the air turned down sooner.

 

[ratsrepus]

Thats stove looks rode hard and put away wet, serious over firing going on there

 

[M1SF1T]

I'm sure you're right. Over fired, wet wood, burnt dirty... not ran well at all.

Anyway, here's the new stove.

I've been happy with it so far. Especially so after the new 6" chimney and 7" connector went in this past week. With a loose load it will do a 10 hour overnight burn pretty easy. It seems to like to cruise with the air dialed right back at 550-600° STT as measured with my cheap magnet thermometer. I may have to cover the extended burn hole or whatever it's called so I can dial this back a bit further when required.

We had a warm front move in overnight and it was a little too warm in the house when I came downstairs this morning at 5:30.

My only real criticism so far is a few loose nuts and bolts that I discovered in the legs and the brackets holding the cast iron sides on... and this thing is heavy AF, but hopefully no need to move it again.