2017-18 Blaze King Performance Thread PART 2 (Everything BK)

[shoot-straight]

Decibels are funny. Stay the same distance from the source.

Yep. Will do. It's a phone app too so take that into account too. Will try to keep it as consistent as possible.

 

[becasunshine]

And 1k cheaper in my neck of woods!

Exactly. One of the shop owners was convinced that the Ashford 30 would be enough for our house in our situation. We looked at the specs and opted for the larger Princess with the higher BTU output, higher efficiency and larger fire box. Admittedly, the difference between the two models aren't huge but they do exist. And, as Diabel says up there, the Princess was $1000 less expensive.

A larger stove for $1k less? SOLD.

I honestly don't think the Princess is ugly. She's plain, and she looks exactly like what she is- a steel wood stove. I'll agree with "utilitarian" if pressed on it (although she's not as utilitarian looking as, say, a gas furnace) but ugly? Seriously?

On the other hand, our propane bill is quite beautiful.

P.S. If I had to choose between the next smaller stoves, I'd probably choose the Chinook first, the the Sirocco, then the Ashford. I like cleaner lines. So, that's a factor too.

 

[Niko]

So guys id like to ask for help please. I was thinking my cat was on its way out but Fransico from BK gave me some advice to check on some things before I put in a claim. I made some videos for everyone to see and to help me out and tell me what's going on cause this is my first time opening my t stat up.

 

[becasunshine]

It really does grow on you and the ultra model is a large step more normal looking than the parlor/classic.

Pffbt. I like my parlor Princess. Your Ultra Princess reminds me of *gasp!* A PELLET STOVE.

LOL, I gotta be startin' somethin'...

(Waiting for Highbeam to show up and insult my truck, or my husband's chain saw, or *something.* LOL. )

 

[AlbergSteve]

This looks mighty dark for the wood stove industry, BK will do fine though. The Ashford at .8 G/Hr is still well below specs.

https://mffire.com/4-facts-future-modern-wood-stoves/

"Modern" man has been controlling fire for about 125 millennia. Why in the name of Hephaestus would I need an app to control my wood stove?

 

[AlbergSteve]

I sure would like to see an ashford 30 in action. Anyone here in Michigan have one going? ILL show you mine if you show me yours?

I'll start...first fire.

 

[becasunshine]

"Modern" man has been controlling fire for about 125 millennia. Why in the name of Hephaestus would I need an app to control my wood stove?

Going all conspiracy theorist on you, but perhaps to provide for the eventuality when someone else (like a government agency) controls your stove.

There are pretty stringent burn limitations and burn bans in certain parts of the country. Is it too big of a leap to envision a future where wood stoves are "locked down" for periods of time when monitors indicate air particulate concentrations above a certain level?

If there's an app for that, i.e. a wood stove can be remotely controlled, then it can be remotely controlled by those other than you, too. Although I will readily admit, my knowledge of this app is scant to non-existent.

 

[AlbergSteve]

You're probably right, my brain just couldn't go there...

 

[begreen]

A more likely scenario will be Ashful calling out - Alexa, turn up the stove to 74º.

 

[AlbergSteve]

A more likely scenario will be Ashful calling out - Alexa, turn up the stove to 74º.

Years ago when my dad bought us our first tv, big ol' RCA console/floor model, the salesman asked him if he'd like the model with a remote. His response, " We only get two channels, I'm not beyond gettin' off my a$$ the change the channel!"

 

[kennyp2339]

You would have used 50% more wood by now??

yup no doubt in my mind, I ran an air tube stove in this house for 3 seasons, loaded it 4-5 times a day, load the princess 2 times a day under normal temps in the teens and 20's, 3 times when we were near zero for that week.

 

[kf6hap]

Combustion blower, room air blower, inverters, microprocessor, damper servo motor and associated feedback, temperature sensors wireless remote control and internet connectivity- Hmmmm. A huge number of things to fail here in a hot electronics unfriendly environment. If just one thing fails the stove could rage out of control while you are taking a bath. Yikes.

I worked in HVAC for may years. The number one problem with electronics is after a production run of "circuit cards" that is it. Twenty years later the replacement circuit card (a one-off) you buy is 20 years old and very costly, possibly unobtainable. Now you have a pile of cast iron junk. Ever seen a 20 year old computer? They do exist, mainly in museums.

Nothing- nothing- beats the elegant highly effective thermostatic control of a BK.

This is the very reason why I bought a Blue Star oven for my wife. No electronics at all. %100 mechanical and the performance is excellent.

Lastly, look at the grams/hour specs on these "high tech" stoves. No better than a BK.

End of rant

 

[MtnBURN]

Even more disturbing.....that talking/connected Kohler bathroom. I'll leave your mind to wander on the possibilities of a mishap. Oh, my.

 

[Ashful]

No. The ashfords weakness is its looks- the clad of iron. It "softens" the heat. Straight steel just pushes it out.

If “pushes it out” means “wastes it” then you’re right. That cladding is what makes the stove work in a masonry fireplace, where any radiated heat is just sucked up by the masonry and transferred to outside.

Not all heating envelopes are the same, but around here, old stone houses are very common. My house is far from unique, in this old part of the country.

 

[Ashful]

In terms of decibels, how do you rate low and high.
One of the members compared:
Low - a fridge
High - a hair blow dryer

Would you agreed?

I would agree, but add that I’ve never found any reason to run them above medium. While they move more air, I suspect the actual heating work done is a logarithmic function (hey, you were the one that brought up dB) of fan speed, not linear.

Edit: I should say volume level on high is similar to hair dryer, but pitch is quite a bit lower. Think Chris’s 540 cid V8 vs a teenagers rice burner.

 

[Ashful]

Going all conspiracy theorist on you, but perhaps to provide for the eventuality when someone else (like a government agency) controls your stove.

Control is of less interest than fines. Why would they want to lock down your stove, when simply monitoring and fining you are so much easier and more lucrative?

Highbeam’s days of stealth burning thru burn bans would be over.

 

[MissMac]

They didn't have one to look at- it does look much nicer than a princess in my opinion.

My thoughts exactly - love the look of the Sirocco, which is part of the reason there’s one sitting in my living room!

 

[MissMac]

Was up on the roof a few days ago, and think i’m gonna take my first crack at sweeping my chimney. Got some nice flex-pipe stuff from the city, but since it’s my first go, i thought i’d ask you all for any tips or tricks that you can share with me for my maiden voyage. I’ll be sweeping from the top down. Thanks in advance!

 

[showrguy]

So guys id like to ask for help please. I was thinking my cat was on its way out but Fransico from BK gave me some advice to check on some things before I put in a claim. I made some videos for everyone to see and to help me out and tell me what's going on cause this is my first time opening my t stat up.

Niko,
That looks normal to me, it's just about exactly the way mine works, it'll be slightly different with a warm stove..
There's a pin in the cover so the flapper can't open as far as you pushed it..
Make sure the flapper is completely closed when you put the cover back on, otherwise the pin could prevent the flapper from closing, and you'd have a runaway fire..

 

[becasunshine]

I don't even understand all the 'ugly princess' stuff. What does it need to be beautiful? A star-shaped window? Chrome racing stripes? Sparkly crud glued all over it?

Then again, I get 'normal' aesthetics backwards in almost any context, though my wife does make occasional doomed efforts to train me.

LOLOL, "chrome racing stripes."

BKVP, I think a challenge has been thrown down! CHROME RACING STRIPES ON THE PRINCESS! :D

 

[Niko]

Niko,
That looks normal to me, it's just about exactly the way mine works, it'll be slightly different with a warm stove..
There's a pin in the cover so the flapper can't open as far as you pushed it..
Make sure the flapper is completely closed when you put the cover back on, otherwise the pin could prevent the flapper from closing, and you'd have a runaway fire..

Yea I didnt touch that long screw thats on the top you take off. Did you see the flap actually closing down after it opened slightly? Is that what you mean about the stove being warm? I put it all back together good and its not as looses side to side as it was before. My next move is to order a new cst probe and take it from their.

 

[shoot-straight]

I would

If “pushes it out” means “wastes it” then you’re right. That cladding is what makes the stove work in a masonry fireplace, where any radiated heat is just sucked up by the masonry and transferred to outside.
.

Absolutely not. My pushing out comment is related that there is nothing between he stove and the outside than a single piece of metal. That thin steel alone conducts the heat very well to the outside- better than steel, then an air gap, then cast iron. The air gap makes it "soften". Air is an insulater. Heck, the side panels on my ashford don't even get really hot. In a relative sense of course. If they were flush with no air gap I think it would be quite different.

Not going to say what you should or shouldn't run in your house. Just speaking in logical terms.

 

[becasunshine]

I don't even understand all the 'ugly princess' stuff. What does it need to be beautiful? A star-shaped window? Chrome racing stripes? Sparkly crud glued all over it?

Then again, I get 'normal' aesthetics backwards in almost any context, though my wife does make occasional doomed efforts to train me.

There ya go, Jetsam! I "beautified" our Princess.

 

[begreen]

There ya go, Jetsam! I "beautified" our Princess.

Note that by mechanical code the return intake grille is supposed to be at least 10ft away from the stove.

 

[showrguy]

Yea I didnt touch that long screw thats on the top you take off. Did you see the flap actually closing down after it opened slightly? Is that what you mean about the stove being warm? I put it all back together good and its not as looses side to side as it was before. My next move is to order a new cst probe and take it from their.

With a warm stove that flapper will open and close at a slightly higher setting on your t-stat..
How long have you been running with your current CAT ??