1st night with the Intrepid, learning a lot...

[moondoggy]

EDIT: 10/26..LOVE MY STOVE. LOT OF INFO HERE though so you may want to read on.

maybe expecting too much. I dont know, we're just totally bummed.


Finally all set up....
did 2 breakin fires and then let the 3rd run. after 4+ hours it could not raise the temp in the room 1 degree. (10x16 roomwith 12ft cathedral, all other rooms extend off that. my entire home is 1 level, 970 sq. feet and then less cause i had bedrooms doors closed.
I kept it at 400-500 and was amazed that you only felt heat when I'm almost on top of the stove. unfortunatly really feel like i wasted money...i was worried about my mantel getting hot. at 16 inches away it isnt even warm after 5 hours @ 400+

It seems to give off more heat if i leave the doors open w/screeen on.
IS this a better idea for more heat?
Did i undersize my stove?

looks like I'm selling this next year

I was not wow'd, the wife thinks I wasted 2grand, and we are just as cold.

 

[BrotherBart]

The cat stove guys will show up here soon but it sounds to me like you aren't getting the stove hot enough to light off the cat.

 

[moondoggy]

ok, yes i have not turned the cat on yet, I do that around 400-500 degrees correct? isnt htat so it runs more efficenty..like less wood used for same heat.
but the stove shoudl never go over 500 right? thats what the stupid therm. says.

when do i kick the Cat on? is that really going to blast that much of a difference?
and i leave it on until I add wood again right.


forgive the type errors, my 5yr old girl is begging me for attention .

 

[Corie]

Did you even activate the catalytic combustor?


Can you describe your burning process to us? The stove has the ability to do a lot more than it did last night, I think the problem might be in your operating procedure.

 

[babalu87]

What is the moisture content of your wood?

 

[moondoggy]

No i did not activate the CAT.
start the fire no problem, close doors and walk away.
add another pc of larger wood about 5 minutes later. close doors
its to 400-500 in about 15-20 minutes.
then i cut the damper down a little not to go over 500.
then i sit 1ft in front of it trying to get warm while my back freezes. (i keep the house @ 65)


the wood seems well seasoned, nice looking, light, not moist had a tree guy drop it yesterday. blazes up quick.

 

[babalu87]

Are you filling the firebox?

 

[moondoggy]

Are you filling the firebox?

well, not filling it. once its running i put 2 logs in.
i dont overstuff, just enough to maintain 400+.
if i pack it full it'll go out right?

 

[babalu87]

Get that thing filled up and leave the draft open until all the wood is charred up, then bank it down. I dont know much about CATs stoves but I would imagine that stack needs to be around 500 to engage the CAT.

Dont tippy toe around with the stove, load her up and let it rip

 

[Corie]

If you're not activating the catalytic combustor, no offense, but obviously you're not going to get much heat out of the stove. You're sending most of the heat straight up the flue, because with the damper open, the hot gases of the fire have no residence time in the firebox to allow heat transfer to the room.

Once you start the fire, and the stove gets to 500 degrees on the stove-top thermometer (hopefully on the center of the griddle), close the the bypass damper but keep the air control wide open. Once the cat is activated you can start to close the air control.

Before going with what i say though, you should really read the section in your manual that describes operation of the stove in conjunction with the catalytic combustor. That's catalyst is crucial to both the clean burning function of your stove, as well as crucial to getting HEAT out of the unit. Without activating it, you're operating like an old smoke dragon, sending tons of heat right up the chimney.

 

[moondoggy]

thanks corie.
i dont get offended, no worries.
i did read the book, a few times.
i didnt start the cat last night simply because it was the first run. and since the stove was at 500, i didnt see what more heat it
could but out without being in danger range. 500-650 according to bookis ok. 500 according to therm(yes therm is centered on griddle)

sorry for not seeing the obvious, but I dont understand how if the stove is already 500+ the cat will put more heat inthe room if i cant go over 500.
but thats why i'm lucky to have you guys.

its burning now. once i'm up to speed I will follow your instrucitons.

 

[wahoowad]

moondog,

Do you have your ceiling fan turned on? Mine makes a HUGE difference in my stove room with the cathedral ceiling. The room warms up much faster and it helps distribute the heat into other rooms as well.

 

[Backwoods Savage]

Although our stove is not a VC, it does have a cat. When the internal reaches 500 degrees we engage the cat. and it is amazing how quickly the temperature goes up and the heat goes into the room instead of into the flue. You should be amazed also. Please try that cat. today or tonight and enjoy that stove instead of being disappointed.

 

[moondoggy]

i engaged the cat, i'm up 2 degrees... still dont grasp.... 500 is 500 but it does seem to heat more w/cat.
as for the ceiling fan.... thats my next buy... like this week.
I just stood up on the couch... nice and warm up there.

 

[JohnCusick]

Interesting. I'm using an older non cat Intrepid to heat my office which is a former single car garage; the dimensions are approx. 13x20 with a cathedral ceiling line that goes from 8' on the low end to 16' on the high side.
I have to be VERY CAREFUL not to heat myself out of the room with that little bugger. Forget loading it and walking away. Even when it was 17 here on Fri eve. I couldn't just pact it up. Considering a SMALLER unit and moving this one out to the larger Studio building.

GREAT STOVE so don't be dismayed..

John

 

[North of 60]

Hey md relax, not using or engaging your cat in your stove is like leaving your attic hatch open to your house. The cat is the heartbeat of that stove.
Yeah 500 is 500 but stove top though. That cat will help punch heat out the sides front ect... Increasing your radiant and convection heat. I think your gonna be OK. Get that V-8 runnin on all cylinders. Your only runnin it on 3 without the CAT. Take it easy and dont get bumed. Good luck and report back. :coolsmile:

 

[misterpat]

as for the ceiling fan.... thats my next buy... like this week.
I just stood up on the couch... nice and warm up there.

Once you get ceiling fans in there,it should make a huge difference. Without mine running here, my stove would do no where near what it does with the fans on.

Good luck.

 

[kwburn]

i run mine up to 600 and am sure to smash the logs around a couple times to get a good bed of coals before engaging the cat. you may get lucky engaging at 500 but i say 600, especially if you are looking for heat. 600-650 temps are well within the normal operating limits of the stove.

there is a bit of science to it, but not rocket science so try not to get discouraged. our Intrepid now runs pretty much on auto pilot because we understand her. on the flip side, i just installed a defiant encore (similar stove but much bigger) in our other fireplace and we're trying to get to know eachother so i have similar issues (see my overfire thread). like it says in the manual, it may take a couple weeks of burning fully understand the process.

good luck!

 

[moondoggy]

ok i ordered a ceiling fan.
and the cat does seem to be putting more out now.
like you allsaid, think i just need to 'learn' from my stove. and not expect it to heat my house in minutes.

 

[Todd]

You said your mantel doesn't even get hot? Is this stove sitting in a fireplace? If so, did you install a block off plate where your pipe goes into the chimney? If not you may be sending heat up your chimney instead or the room.

 

[jqgs214]

Moon,

From reading the posts seems you warmed up the room 2 deg in one hour one you had the CAT engaged. Thats not bad at all. Lets rip for 5-6 hours and you'll be nice and toasty.

 

[begreen]

Do you have any sort of fan? Even a 12" table fan will work. The problem you are seeing is heat stratification. It's being trapped at the cathedral ceiling. If you do have a table fan try putting it near the stove and point it straight up toward the ceiling. Run it on medium speed and see if that helps. Or put the fan on the opposite side of the room pointing - towards - the stove. Run it on low and see how that works. Once you get the air circulating, the room temp at people level should go up and equalize.

When you get the ceiling fan, be sure it has a reverse switch on the side. In the winter, when the stove is going run the fan in reverse, blowing air up toward the ceiling. That will force the warm ceiling air to return down the outside walls and then up the center of the room towards the fan again. This is a good way to circulate the warm air, yet not feel cooling drafts from the fan. It also puts the warm air where it's most needed, at the cold outside walls.

 

[moondoggy]

thanks everyone. i appreciate the info.
so far, not doing too bad. since i've put the cat on, the stove is up 50 degrees but it is really putting out more heat when your near it.
house thermo is up to another degree which is in the same room/ 10ft away .but it is warmer out.

Todd, no worries, I did a full/complete self install. (thanks to learning it all hear)
insulated liner, block off plate, hearth of steel/2 layers durock. 18" from face of stove.
stove is sitting outside the fireplace from the flue collar forward.
I will post pics probably tomorrow.
STILL have like 10ft of flex if anyone is interested. not sure what to do with it.

think i just expected it to turn on and my house be 70 degrees.
i need to let it rip for the afternoon and night.
I need to learn how to use the stove over time, the more i use it.
I wish I was off tomorrow. just want to burn wood...

 

[G-rott]

Moondoggy,

Glad to hear your getting the hang of running your stove. Remember wood stoves heat both objects (radiant) and air (convection).

Your furnace warms the house quickly because it is heating by convection in turn the house also cools down equaly fast, resulting in the cycling of the furnace.

Wood stoves heat the mass of the room itself(thats why your mantle will get hoter than the air around it) as well as the air, the temperature increase is slower but longer lasting.

Enjoy the stove and the heat that goes with it.

Garett

 

[JimWalshin845]

If your home was cold to begin with it take a long time to heat it up, remember you are not only heating the air but also all the contents. Sometimes it is worthwhile to kick in your heating system to bring the house up to temp that you desire and then let the stove maintain that temp.

Good luck with the new stove,
Jim