Advice on old potbelly

[Vg3200p]

Hey guys looking for advice on my old potbelly. Ran it harder than I ever have tonight. Got stove top temp to 550 which I thought was good. But the cast iron at the bottom was glowing for about 20 min. 1 is this safe for old cast iron or a sign of overfiring? 2 would putting firebrick on the coal grate help any with this? Or should I just keep my fires smaller down in the stovetop temp of 3 to400?

 

[bholler]

That is absolutely over firing

 

[Vg3200p]

Would lining this area with firebrick be acceptable? Or are stoves like this just not capable of high temps?

 

[coaly]

It is designed to burn coal. You will get more heat out of coal, a steady output, and constant burn. Wood gets too much air burning too fast. You’re getting all the BTU from it all at once.

Flue temps with wood are quite high. That shows heat waste. Firing with coal drops flue temp down to 100 or 150*f, with the stove getting hotter. That is the efficiency difference. Learn how to burn coal, use a barometric damper, and you won’t have to relight the stove until you let it go out in spring.

If you must burn wood, are you closing the flue damper to slow the fire?

 

[Vg3200p]

It is designed to burn coal. You will get more heat out of coal, a steady output, and constant burn. Wood gets too much air burning too fast. You’re getting all the BTU from it all at once.

Flue temps with wood are quite high. That shows heat waste. Firing with coal drops flue temp down to 100 or 150*f, with the stove getting hotter. That is the efficiency difference. Learn how to burn coal, use a barometric damper, and you won’t have to relight the stove until you let it go out in spring.

If you must burn wood, are you closing the flue damper to slow the fire?

I have access to alot of free wood. So would hate to pay for coal. I know this isn't an ideal setup but it's what we have for now. I don't have a damper but I made a baffle out of sheet metal that has slowed it down some.

 

[bholler]

Would lining this area with firebrick be acceptable? Or are stoves like this just not capable of high temps?

Like coaly said burning the fuel it was designed for would make it work properly. Many stoves like these have been destroyed by burning wood in them

 

[fbelec]

that spot glowing also looks to be a air leak. air leaking in from there make it do this. i had a air leak in my defiant on the secondary side of the burn and the bottom of the right side of the stove would glow. after a rebuild it stopped

 

[begreen]

Goo point, an air leak in a stove this age would not be uncommon.
If the only air control is for underneath the grate then this could be a regular problem. A coal stove needs air under the coals, but not a wood stove.

 

[Vg3200p]

Goo point, an air leak in a stove this age would not be uncommon.
If the only air control is for underneath the grate then this could be a regular problem. A coal stove needs air under the coals, but not a wood stove.

Yeah. Think once we save up money we're gonna get a newer stove. I love this old stove and may use it as a secondary. But it's not practical as our main burner