Another question for you guys

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ggans

New Member
Hearth Supporter
Oct 11, 2009
173
Michigan
Do you think there would be any problem burning coal in my old stove? I am worried about excessive heat causing damage to the cast iron parts.Mainly where the fire bowl meets the base of the stove, where the great is.. Shes 93 years old so there are no replacement parts to be had...hehe . I have no experience burning coal.
 

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I would guess either no one knows or no one wants the liability of telling you it's fine
 
Ummmmm.. " I have no experience burning coal"... " there are no replacement parts"... "93 years old"... Sure, no problem, fire it up!! Use gasoline as kindling, light with a propane torch, no problem. But seriously, reaally???????
 
Gee you really know how to make one feel welcome ! Yes I am serious, And it doesn't hurt to ask questions. Coal was used all the time in many stoves of that period. I am simply asking if coal burns hotter that coals of a hard wood.

And yes I start all my fires with a propane torch..really I do...

%$#$$ very much
 
Probably nobody here can tell ya. Mostly wood burners on this forum. These guys are hardcore coal burners that could probably advise you.

http://nepacrossroads.com/
 
Well, I know next to squat about coal. My gut feeling on the matter is I wouldn't for the reasons you listed above. Like BB said, maybe try asking the experts.
 
Coal requires a lot more air than wood, usually coal stoves have a blower to push air into the burning coal bed. Do you think coal will burn OK in the stove?
 
Does it have a grate? My understanding is that coal burning stoves have to have a grate for the ashes to fall through and get air in underneath the coal. I believe you also need a way to shake the ash out of the coal in the grate. My uncle has a 30 year old Jotul coal stove and it has a crank in the front he turns to shake the ash down into the ash pan. He does it twice a day. If your stove has a grate, I suppose you could buy a bag of coal and try it. It takes a while to get coal going (thought it would be faster with a propane torch!).
 
lol, Yes it has a grate, I think its called a dump grate. The center pulls out and the ash falls.. Thanks for your reply.
 
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