2019-20 Blaze King Performance Thread Part 1 (Everything BK)

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Ashful said:
You know, I’d tend to think the same. But BKVP reports the no.1 cause of killed cats is a leaky door gasket, and if your stove acting like a forge comes with that, he’s not mentioning it.
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This is a great observation. I would be curious to hear the official opinion on this matter. Does the leaky door gasket have to be noticeable enough to create other performance issues that the user should notice, or can the leak be so subtle as to allow a person to operate the stove as they normally do, with turn-down abilities, and still be enough to kill the cat?
 
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webby3650 said:
There’s no reason to get all bent out of shape. We have just been trying to figure out what could be the source of your cat failures. None of use are there, so it’s anyone best guess. Maybe someone will mention something you haven’t thought of? What you are describing isn’t normal at all...
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yes and i appreciate it, but I'm no rookie here. I've indicated the problem has been solved webby. If folks want to think its something other than the cat thats fine. I know its not normal, thats why I brought it up. Believe me I've e been through the obvious, door gasket, by pass gasket. glass. as I stated, the BK is back to its normal self with a new steel cat. just coming off over 20 hrs active. Thanks for the help. case closed
 
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MissMac said:
This is a great observation. I would be curious to hear the official opinion on this matter. Does the leaky door gasket have to be noticeable enough to create other performance issues that the user should notice, or can the leak be so subtle as to allow a person to operate the stove as they normally do, with turn-down abilities, and still be enough to kill the cat?
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Me too
 
If someone would like me to send them the two ceramic ones i have I will be more than happy, maybe BKVP would like them
 
I would send them back to the factory, and claim my money back...
 
ratsrepus said:
yes and i appreciate it, but I'm no rookie here. I've indicated the problem has been solved webby. If folks want to think its something other than the cat thats fine. I know its not normal, thats why I brought it up. Believe me I've e been through the obvious, door gasket, by pass gasket. glass. as I stated, the BK is back to its normal self with a new steel cat. just coming off over 20 hrs active. Thanks for the help. case closed
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coming in late in the game, what was the solution (please keep in mind that I cant keep a cat for more then 2 seasons)
Just splitballing here, I know @webby3650 left me feeling unaccomplished after I changed my door gasket, he said to check the door glass retainers (which I haven't done) so I have in the back of my head the big elephant in the room, I try to control my draft which I know is high by a pipe damper, I think I remember you saying that you were getting .004" with the stove on low and +++ when running on a high setting, I've read the manual multiple times and the test of .005 expectation needs to occur with the cat engaged and the stove running high (this stage I cant control so I've settled in my head that i will always have issues unless I move the perfectly functioning stove to the upstairs to reduce my chimney run and hopefully lower my draft.) so what was your problem, maybe it can help me, I like seeing when idea's, thoughts, and scientific solutions get bounced around.
 
kennyp2339 said:
coming in late in the game, what was the solution (please keep in mind that I cant keep a cat for more then 2 seasons)
Just splitballing here, I know @webby3650 left me feeling unaccomplished after I changed my door gasket, he said to check the door glass retainers (which I haven't done) so I have in the back of my head the big elephant in the room, I try to control my draft which I know is high by a pipe damper, I think I remember you saying that you were getting .004" with the stove on low and +++ when running on a high setting, I've read the manual multiple times and the test of .005 expectation needs to occur with the cat engaged and the stove running high (this stage I cant control so I've settled in my head that i will always have issues unless I move the perfectly functioning stove to the upstairs to reduce my chimney run and hopefully lower my draft.) so what was your problem, maybe it can help me, I like seeing when idea's, thoughts, and scientific solutions get bounced around.
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I left you feeling unaccomplished?
 
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ratsrepus said:
yes and i appreciate it, but I'm no rookie here. I've indicated the problem has been solved webby. If folks want to think its something other than the cat thats fine. I know its not normal, thats why I brought it up. Believe me I've e been through the obvious, door gasket, by pass gasket. glass. as I stated, the BK is back to its normal self with a new steel cat. just coming off over 20 hrs active. Thanks for the help. case closed
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The problem hasn’t been solved... there’s nothing magical about a steel cat. The ceramic cat should perform similar to a steel cat, there’s only a few subtle differences. So you must have gotten 2 cats in a row that weren’t plated? Have you contacted the place you bought them?
 
You know, I just spent the entire day with state air regulators, senior EPA staff, a group hell bent on making it difficult to sell wood stoves. I think that was less difficult than this thread. So the question is; do air leaks damage cats. In short yes. Clearly more dramatically in cordereite substrates but also metal.

Anytime a substrate is heated, it expands, as it cools, it contracts.

The binding agent (washcoat) can develop fractures from rapid expansion and contraction as well as rapid temperature changes (thermal shock).

Try to keep air leaks and rapid temperature changes to a minimum.

Superstar, I'd be happy to accept your combustors and will test them for efficacy. If you send them to me, I'll get them checked out.

Incidentally, I will only be in my office 2 or 3 days each month between now and end of July. So please...don't expect rapid turn around.

Off the Las Vegas for International Builders Show, then MEM, KOP, NOL, MSP, FAI,MCO, ANC, MSP again, BOI and one great bourbon town Louisville. I'll post March and April later....

Be nice to one another...
 
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BKVP said:
You know, I just spent the entire day with state air regulators, senior EPA staff, a group hell bent on making it difficult to sell wood stoves. I think that was less difficult than this thread. So the question is; do air leaks damage cats. In short yes. Clearly more dramatically in cordereite substrates but also metal.

Anytime a substrate is heated, it expands, as it cools, it contracts.

The binding agent (washcoat) can develop fractures from rapid expansion and contraction as well as rapid temperature changes (thermal shock).

Try to keep air leaks and rapid temperature changes to a minimum.

Superstar, I'd be happy to accept your combustors and will test them for efficacy. If you send them to me, I'll get them checked out.

Incidentally, I will only be in my office 2 or 3 days each month between now and end of July. So please...don't expect rapid turn around.

Off the Las Vegas for International Builders Show, then MEM, KOP, NOL, MSP, FAI,MCO, ANC, MSP again, BOI and one great bourbon town Louisville. I'll post March and April later....

Be nice to one another...
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You’re a trooper Chris, thanks for being here ..
 
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LOL it’s unusually warm here too...
 
-4f and -25f windchill at the moment, both stoves burning on high.
the ashford on high with load of hickory and sugar maple has a flue
temp holding steady at about 750, kicking out allot of heat.
 
Bought the princress not for main source of heat. Thought to supplement my ducted heat pump 3200sq ft "side split" home. Put it in basement level. Heats the whole house on low nicely. Heard "furnace " kick in few times last night like i said running on low an slow. Very impressed
 
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We had a daytime high in the minus 30*C range yesterday, and it’s currently -20*C without the windchill. My first year, i pretty much burned loads on high trying to keep the whole house comfortable, which ate a lot of wood, disrupted my sleep, and still left the furthest reaches of the house a bit meh.

Over the last 2 winters, I’ve take up some great advice on this forum, and now run my stove like @Ashful

Whether it’s spring or fall or the deep freeze of winter, i pretty much run the stove at the same dialed down setting, and then let the furnace make up the difference. When it’s bloody-murder cold out, this basically translates into the furnace kicking on a few times in the wee hours of the morning, and about a half hour before its time to get up in the a.m. This makes the whole house happy - me especially, cause i’m not having to get up at an un-Godly hour and get a new load going with enough time to try and warm things up sufficiently before the better half has to get up.

Overall, my house is way more comfortable, and my wood consumption isn’t ridiculous.
 
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People forget that wood stoves are just space heaters in most cases. Unless your living space is 500sqf.
 
Most of the time the Ashford is at the 4 O'clock setting and the F600
does most of the heating with the oil furnace helping out.
I have been running the Ashford harder then usual to try
and keep the creosote under control in the firebox as it
is starting to cause some corrosion.
I will probably be selling it soon to try another stove.
 
Heating a 3200sqft house from the basement with the stove on low
in -17c weather is impressive indeed, house has to be super insulated,
add a bit more insulation and you should be able to heat with a couple
of candles;)
If I tried to heat this place from the basement, I would have to add that
square footage as heated floor space, so total of around 4350sqft,
I would have to run 2 king's and a princess.
 
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