2012-2013 Blaze King Performance Thread(everything BK)

[HotCoals]

Not for nothing I have noticed on the realy cold nights that my draft pics up some..for sure when it's windy and end up with a ton of coals.
So I started using the damper.
All the way closed but even then it's not sealing well and of course it has that hole..which is a good thing.
Anyways it really did help on the coaling..slowed the out gassing down so the wood actually burnt down at a more linear rate with the out gassing.
Down side house not as warm.

 

[Highbeam]

I cleaned the stove out last night and had a pile of coals about the size of a 6" cube. That small pile of coals just would not stop pumping smoke into the house. The bypass had been open for many minutes, stat wide open, two exterior house doors wide open, 40 degrees outside, etc. The chimney should have sucked it up but no, the smoke would rather pour out the door opening.

I think the engineers screwed up on the height of the bypass opening relative to the top of the door opening. The path of least resistance is the front door.

Unbeatable performance when the door is shut.

 

[HotCoals]

I must have a lot of draft because I never have smoke come out the door unless I forget to open the by pass..even then there is sometimes no smoke or just a little.
I'm straight up through two floors and I'm on a hill.
With the air on 3 I can hear the draft big time!


One thing though.
Next time you have your pipe out look inside and move the by pass lever.
Before the weld broke on mine completely i don't think it was opening right.
I had to re weld the little bracket the arm catches to open it.
Alll seems fine now.

I have some pics of the ordeal if you would like to see them let me know and I'll dig them up.

 

[tekguy]

I must have a lot of draft because I never have smoke come out the door unless I forget to open the by pass..even then there is sometimes no smoke or just a little.
I'm straight up through two floors and I'm on a hill.
With the air on 3 I can hear the draft big time!


One thing though.
Next time you have your pipe out look inside and move the by pass lever.
Before the weld broke on mine completely i don't think it was opening right.
I had to re weld the little bracket the arm catches to open it.
Alll seems fine now.

I have some pics of the ordeal if you would like to see them let me know and I'll dig them up.

i will agree your full of hot air....

lol couldnt resist

 

[HotCoals]

i will agree your full of hot air....

lol couldnt resist

Hey Mikey!
Make a decision yet?
More action on here then the sled sites today! lol

 

[regalflyer]

I cleaned the stove out last night and had a pile of coals about the size of a 6" cube. That small pile of coals just would not stop pumping smoke into the house. The bypass had been open for many minutes, stat wide open, two exterior house doors wide open, 40 degrees outside, etc. The chimney should have sucked it up but no, the smoke would rather pour out the door opening.

I think the engineers screwed up on the height of the bypass opening relative to the top of the door opening. The path of least resistance is the front door.

Unbeatable performance when the door is shut.

I agree there must be something in the heat flow that could be changed to stop the smoke from escaping -
There are too many times when every trick I have tried still coughs smoke out the front door - very frustrating. I hate smoking the house when I load and I still cannot ascertain what conditions create reduced smoke output. Still experimenting but out of ideas.

I have a tall chimney and lots of draft, so - not the issue either.

 

[tekguy]

Hey Mikey!
Make a decision yet?
More action on here then the sled sites today! lol

whatever one I get the smoking deal on! i learned form the best

 

[HotCoals]

whatever one I get the smoking deal on! i learned form the best

Lol
Well in wood stoves the "smoking" deal might not be the best deal.
Go cat young man!

 

[HotCoals]

I agree there must be something in the heat flow that could be changed to stop the smoke from escaping -
There are too many times when every trick I have tried still coughs smoke out the front door - very frustrating. I hate smoking the house when I load and I still cannot ascertain what conditions create reduced smoke output. Still experimenting but out of ideas.

I have a tall chimney and lots of draft, so - not the issue either.

Well I'm sure you open the air all the way for a min or so before opening right?
Do it with the by pass open of course.
Needs time to shift smoke stream.

 

[rdust]

I must have a lot of draft because I never have smoke come out the door unless I forget to open the by pass.

From what I read here I believe it's more of a Princess issue than a King issue.

 

[HotCoals]

From what I read here I believe it's more of a Princess issue than a King issue.

Ah!
Can't comment then. cheers!

 

[jeff_t]

From what I read here I believe it's more of a Princess issue than a King issue.

I was having the same thought. They must be different enough. I never have any issues, and I only have 16' of pipe.

 

[Highbeam]

Before the weld broke on mine completely i don't think it was opening right. I had to re weld the little bracket the arm catches to open it. Alll seems fine now. I have some pics of the ordeal if you would like to see them let me know and I'll dig them up.

When I had the pipe apart I checked the welds and all seem quite good. The bottom of this stove is covered with weld spatter but the welds seem to be well done.

 

[HotCoals]

When I had the pipe apart I checked the welds and all seem quite good. The bottom of this stove is covered with weld spatter but the welds seem to be well done.

Mine was prolly done on a Monday..or is Friday the worse day...lol.

 

[Brutus]

Lots of very helpful information on this site. I’m a first-time woodstove owner - only burning for a week now, so a lot still to learn. I wanted to heat a 1983 well insulated, 2,400sf raised ranch - downstairs is 50% full basement, 50% daylight basement - with equal square footage on each floor, and decided on the Princess after reading several threads on this site.

I had the stove installed in the NW corner of the basement, exiting out an existing daylight basement window – finish work still pending on the two new windows. My stove pipe is double-wall Metalbestos with a little more than a 4’ vertical run off the stove before two 45s, 3’ of horizontal run and then about 19’ straight up to the chimney – all stainless on the outside. The chimney and anchoring are for the high winds that we get in Palmer routinely in the winter - 60+mph gusts. No blowers on the stove.

Very impressed with the consistency of the temps through the burn. My first few burns, I was dialing it down to the bottom of the normal zone around 1.75 and getting temps of 75 downstairs and 70 upstairs – the wife keeps a window open in the bedroom upstairs or the variance between up and down would probably be less. When I dialed it down to 1, I got temps of 73 down and 66 up. I have now started dialing it back to halfway between 0 and 1 and am maintaining 71 downstairs and 65 upstairs with the cat gauge staying at about 2 o’clock until the very end of the burn. Those temps don’t vary throughout the burn. It seems that the woodstove heats the entire house more efficiently than the baseboard heat since 65-66 feels the same as 68 – the temp we previously set the furnace. Temps have been pretty mild this week with highs in the mid 20s, although we did have a cold snap one night with a low of -3 - kept it at 1.5 that night.

I’m sure the insulating factors of my house play a role in my ability to dial my stove down so low. I get a lot of solar gain during the day, so I have been letting the fire die after the night burn and then lighting it again around 7pm. Lit the fire around 7:30 last night, dialed it down in increments to halfway between 0 and 1, and maintained temps of 71 downstairs and 65 upstairs all night until about 9am. At 1:30pm - with the stove out of the active zone for several hours - temps in the house were 70 upstairs and downstairs, so +5 from solar gain upstairs and holding temp decently down without any solar gain or other heat source. It was cloudy and 19 degrees at 1:30pm. The solar gain upstairs is greater on a sunny day. Haven’t used the baseboard heat since cranking up the stove the first time.

The cord of wood I currently have could use another year of seasoning – I need to get a moisture meter - so I am not getting the burn times that others are getting. On the burn last night, I got about 14 hours in the active zone with a 60/40 mix of birch/spruce – probably only get 8-10 at a higher setting. I would expect that to increase significantly when I get better seasoned wood with moisture content in the single digits. I will likely need to buy wood by the cord again next season – maybe Nate can hook me up with a good source for seasoned firewood since he lives in my neck of the woods – but will be working on having my own supply thereafter. The neighbor has about 10 cords split and stacked in the yard for future seasons – my eventual goal.

 

[regalflyer]

Lots of very helpful information on this site. I’m a first-time woodstove owner - only burning for a week now, so a lot still to learn. I wanted to heat a 1983 well insulated, 2,400sf raised ranch - downstairs is 50% full basement, 50% daylight basement - with equal square footage on each floor, and decided on the Princess after reading several threads on this site.

I had the stove installed in the NW corner of the basement, exiting out an existing daylight basement window – finish work still pending on the two new windows. My stove pipe is double-wall Metalbestos with a little more than a 4’ vertical run off the stove before two 45s, 3’ of horizontal run and then about 19’ straight up to the chimney – all stainless on the outside. The chimney and anchoring are for the high winds that we get in Palmer routinely in the winter - 60+mph gusts. No blowers on the stove.

Very impressed with the consistency of the temps through the burn. My first few burns, I was dialing it down to the bottom of the normal zone around 1.75 and getting temps of 75 downstairs and 70 upstairs – the wife keeps a window open in the bedroom upstairs or the variance between up and down would probably be less. When I dialed it down to 1, I got temps of 73 down and 66 up. I have now started dialing it back to halfway between 0 and 1 and am maintaining 71 downstairs and 65 upstairs with the cat gauge staying at about 2 o’clock until the very end of the burn. Those temps don’t vary throughout the burn. It seems that the woodstove heats the entire house more efficiently than the baseboard heat since 65-66 feels the same as 68 – the temp we previously set the furnace. Temps have been pretty mild this week with highs in the mid 20s, although we did have a cold snap one night with a low of -3 - kept it at 1.5 that night.

I’m sure the insulating factors of my house play a role in my ability to dial my stove down so low. I get a lot of solar gain during the day, so I have been letting the fire die after the night burn and then lighting it again around 7pm. Lit the fire around 7:30 last night, dialed it down in increments to halfway between 0 and 1, and maintained temps of 71 downstairs and 65 upstairs all night until about 9am. At 1:30pm - with the stove out of the active zone for several hours - temps in the house were 70 upstairs and downstairs, so +5 from solar gain upstairs and holding temp decently down without any solar gain or other heat source. It was cloudy and 19 degrees at 1:30pm. The solar gain upstairs is greater on a sunny day. Haven’t used the baseboard heat since cranking up the stove the first time.

The cord of wood I currently have could use another year of seasoning – I need to get a moisture meter - so I am not getting the burn times that others are getting. On the burn last night, I got about 14 hours in the active zone with a 60/40 mix of birch/spruce – probably only get 8-10 at a higher setting. I would expect that to increase significantly when I get better seasoned wood with moisture content in the single digits. I will likely need to buy wood by the cord again next season – maybe Nate can hook me up with a good source for seasoned firewood since he lives in my neck of the woods – but will be working on having my own supply thereafter. The neighbor has about 10 cords split and stacked in the yard for future seasons – my eventual goal.

View attachment 94643View attachment 94646 View attachment 94644View attachment 94647

We have a lot of high winds here also, and it took the Vacuustack before the occasional backdraft was solved. One caveat: We had to add the circular collar for the base of the Vacustack to keep water from running down the inside of the chimney pipe. Some of the Vacuustacks have it built in but I could not tell from the picture if that is the case with yours -

The device cured all our downdraft burst problems.

 

[rdust]

22 hours out of last nights load, the stove top was 285 when I reloaded. Second full season with this stove and I still marvel at it's ability. Last night lows were in the mid-upper 20's and low 30's for the high today. The shoulder season and 24 hour loads aren't far off.

 

[SolarAndWood]

Second full season with this stove and I still marvel at it's ability

Season 4 for me and I feel the same way. Pretty cool steel box.

 

[Brutus]

Rdust, looking forward to those kind of burn times with better seasoned wood. What setting do you have it on?

Stove is working great so far. Good consistent temps. Turned it up a 1/2 click last night, waited a few minutes, and then watched a small blue flame come off the coals and dance around the cat for awhile.

Currently sitting on #1 at 9pm with 72 downstairs and 67 upstairs. I will turn it down another 1/2 click before hitting the sack to maximize the burn time. Got 14.5 hours last night with this wood. I turned it up to #1 or the last few hours of the burn.

 

[RustyShackleford]

Well I'm sure you open the air all the way for a min or so before opening right?
Do it with the by pass open of course.
Needs time to shift smoke stream.

Maybe this is obvious ... but it also helps not to jerk the door open with gusto, as I sometimes stupidly do. The vacuum effect kinda sucks the smoke stream out the door and it keeps going.

Sometimes too, I'll have the problem if the stove is turned way down low and has been many hours, so it's kinda smoldering with the cat inactive. So in addition to opening the bypass of course, I'll turn up the thermostat, and that seems to help.

But mostly, smoke out the door is a non-issue for me - and, I have a single-wall connector !

 

[rdust]

Rdust, looking forward to those kind of burn times with better seasoned wood. What setting do you have it on?

Our wood down here is probably a little better so that probably plays into it. The T-stat setting along with my fans being on or off play a big part in my burn times. When it's in the heart of winter I'm usually around 1 3/4 which gives me a 15-18 hour burn time if I load it up. I usually back off full loads so I can load in 12 hour intervals during the week, on the weekends I'll load it full. When it's warm enough to dial it down to 1.5-1 without the blowers running I can get 24+ hours pretty easy. Usually that's when our over night lows are somewhere in the 30's.

 

[Todd]

I don't like the door handle bolt! Today was the 3rd time this year I had to tighten it because its failing the dollar bill test. I ended up stripping the bolt and had to take it off and stick some washers on the inside to get it to tighten back down. I think BK can do better.

 

[rdust]

I don't like the door handle bolt! Today was the 3rd time this year I had to tighten it because its failing the dollar bill test. I ended up stripping the bolt and had to take it off and stick some washers on the inside to get it to tighten back down. I think BK can do better.

I've complained about it since I've owned it. I love how simple it is but it can be better. I think anytime I let the stove go cold I should spin it out and put more anti seize on it. Mine needs to be replaced right now due to some galling on the threads but I'll be able to finish off the season the way it is.

 

[rdust]

Here are some pictures of a door mod I'm trying out. I noticed my door frame edge on the top and bottom were at the very top of the door gasket so I cut some bushings to lift the door up so the door frame edge would be in the middle of the gasket instead of the very top. I wasn't experiencing any issues with leaking(that I know of) but still felt it could be better. If it works out I'll figure out a better solution for the bushings moving forward. The red in the gasket picture is highlighting where the door frame was hitting and where it hits now. You can see a faint chalk line on the gasket in the new location where I checked the contact points.

I was getting a slight smoke smell when I turned the air down which seems to be gone but I'm also pretty congested right now. I was thinking it was the pipe but maybe it was the door? Who knows! Maybe some others are having similar "issues" and this may help.

 

[Highbeam]

You're a genius Rdust. I thought I was just being obsessive but I have the same problem. I thought maybe that the gasket rope was a bit too short and that they had to stretch it a bit on top which made it ride inside the door frame when the door is shut. Anyway, same problem, the knife edge of the door frame does not hit the middle of the gasket. Raising the door would solve it since the bottom appears to be too low but still okay.

I started massaging the gasket up towards the top of the door in hopes of getting better contact and this results in a tighter latch which means to me that the gasket was too low to be effective with the knife edge system. I thought of just adding washers to the hinge pins.