Ashley wood circulator experience?

[sardo_67]

i am looking at getting one of these or one of the various ones that are similar, most are wood/coal and have a blower which are rated at 100K btu or so.

do people like these or are they not a very wise investment?

https://www.northerntool.com/shop/tools/product_200714909_200714909

 

[Tar12]

My buddy HAD one...he was lucky to get 4-5 hours out of it....he is no rookie to wood burning and his wood was all hardwoods and 2-3 year seasoned...should of done some home work like you are...I helped him install it and wasnt impressed with what I thought was a pretty thin fire box...it heated well but just didnt put out long enough...

 

[mellow]

I wouldn't recommend it, for $900 at Home Depot you can get an Englander NCH-30 which is a much cleaner burning wood stove with longer burn times. Of course a lot of this depends on your setup and what you want out of the stove.

 

[jetsam]

In general, stay away from any product that says "wood/coal" unless you are really determined to burn both. Because of the compromises involved it's not likely to be a great wood stove or a great coal stove. You will likely have better results if you pick one fuel and pick a good stove that is designed to burn it efficiently.

 

[sardo_67]

i grew up with an older gibraltar/Glacier Bay wood/coal stove that worked crazy well, after 1.5hr you couldn't comfortably stand closer to it than 6 ft if i had it going right. so i am used to the grate style stoves and after having some others i prefer that as there is no ash to deal with, it just falls down into the pan. stove was in the cellar and heated both levels above it without any real issues, 90-95 where the stove was, 80-75 first floor and then 65-70* on the 3rd floor which worked out very nice. when my brother and i were living there years ago my mom said she'd fill her tank once a year and it would maybe take 175gal. after we left and shes been on her own with it she goes thru about 250-300gal now i think. (see post 10# https://www.hearth.com/talk/threads/glacier-bay-mcc.105383/)

i am not looking for crazy long burn times but rather a lot of heat faster as i have a smaller mo all nighter in my basement that works ok but just doesn't push the heat out enough to get upstairs and into the house. also since its my basement and my house design isn't ideal any stoves have to come in thru the house and down the stairs between the living room/kitchen.

only myself and GF live in the house and when we work are usually away for 12hr if not more sometimes so the plan is to leave the wall thermostat at 60* then only used the stove when we are home as so far the all nighter i light soon as i get home, get it going, stuff it full then go to bed not too soon after. i work 2nd shift and she is a paramedic so we aren't the typical 9-5er types.
plus on top of that i have baseboard heat so i don't want to leave the heat off for extended periods of time to let a pipe burst, my house was built in 59 and has no wall insulation and very lacking in that area.

as for the coal my family on my moms side is selling the farm that goes back to like 1775 and left over from the 70s when her uncle used to burn coal is probably 1,000+ pounds of coal left in one of horse stalls they said i can have, looks like a larger coal type a little smaller than golf balls i think.

so are these really 100k+ BTU stoves and if i add a blower are they a pretty reliable?

oh one more think i have a 8" class A i put up the side of my house, would running this 6" stove into the 8" change how it runs?

 

[begreen]

Haven't seen any reports with this EPA model. I'd also be curious to hear from users that have tried this model.

 

[jetsam]

as for the coal my family on my moms side is selling the farm that goes back to like 1775 and left over from the 70s when her uncle used to burn coal is probably 1,000+ pounds of coal left in one of horse stalls they said i can have, looks like a larger coal type a little smaller than golf balls i think.

You're making a $1000 decision over $100 worth of coal, there. A ton of anthracite is $200-$300 depending where you are, and 1000 pounds of coal isn't likely to get you through one year.

I'm not sneering at $100 worth of free fuel, but I'd rather spend the $1000 on a 30NC personally.

Also interested to hear how that unit works for people, though.

 

[sardo_67]

true, i didn't look at how cheap coal is. however the stove i am looking at is from a friend for $300 not a brand new $900+ from northern tool or TSC.

 

[begreen]

true, i didn't look at how cheap coal is. however the stove i am looking at is from a friend for $300 not a brand new $900+ from northern tool or TSC.

Is it the identical model or their pre-EPA version?

 

[sardo_67]

Is it the identical model or their pre-EPA version?

the door tag says "EC95" and after 30-45min on google and such i can't find if there is any actual difference between the models, they have 4 versions of the "95" stove. from what i can tell is the grates are different between some for coal or wood only or blower from the factory but over all it seems to be the exact same stove.

 

[bholler]

They like pretty much all combo units burnwood hot and fast. They are better coal stoves than wood stoves for sure. But they do put out lots of heat. The problem is they are built out of pretty thin metal and really don't last very long before burning out

 

[sardo_67]

They like pretty much all combo units burnwood hot and fast. They are better coal stoves than wood stoves for sure. But they do put out lots of heat. The problem is they are built out of pretty thin metal and really don't last very long before burning out

what does that mean, the case will warp from the heat cycles or internally erode?

i only plan on using this stove for a year, maybe 2 as i have a wood boiler i was installing however after a few months of working on it following the manufacturers plans he then told me it was all wrong for zone valves and not circs. even though form day one i said i was using zone valves and multiple circulators for the zones so i got pissed off and gave up on the project. going to just use a regular wood stove and when i get around to redoing the entire system will use an indoor woodboiler.

 

[begreen]

Yes, the EC95 is a very basic stove. I'm not sure it even has a baffle. That's why I ask. The BEC95E is indeed a different animal. I just downloaded the manual and see it has secondary air supply and a baffle, plus a timer on the secondary air supply (SAT). Unusual design for sure. I don't think we have seen this stove reported here so far. FWIW I'm not seeing a BEC95E listed as an EPA certified stove in the Oct 2018 listing.

 

[sardo_67]

Yes, the EC95 is a very basic stove. I'm not sure it even has a baffle. That's why I ask. The BEC95E is indeed a different animal. I just downloaded the manual and see it has secondary air supply and a baffle, plus a timer on the secondary air supply (SAT). Unusual design for sure. I don't think we have seen this stove reported here so far. FWIW I'm not seeing a BEC95E listed as an EPA certified stove in the Oct 2018 listing.

could you post the links to that info?
would i be able to add a baffle to this stove to improve it some?

 

[begreen]

Maybe a simple baffle on top of the brick rails would be possible. Not sure how effective it would be.
BEC95E
https://www.northerntool.com/images/downloads/manuals/68856.pdf
EC95 manual
https://www.manualslib.com/manual/884630/Ashley-Ec95.html

 

[bholler]

what does that mean, the case will warp from the heat cycles or internally erode?

i only plan on using this stove for a year, maybe 2 as i have a wood boiler i was installing however after a few months of working on it following the manufacturers plans he then told me it was all wrong for zone valves and not circs. even though form day one i said i was using zone valves and multiple circulators for the zones so i got pissed off and gave up on the project. going to just use a regular wood stove and when i get around to redoing the entire system will use an indoor woodboiler.

If that's all the longer you plan on using it it should work just fine.

 

[sardo_67]

Maybe a simple baffle on top of the brick rails would be possible. Not sure how effective it would be.
BEC95E
https://www.northerntool.com/images/downloads/manuals/68856.pdf
EC95 manual
https://www.manualslib.com/manual/884630/Ashley-Ec95.html

ok i see what you are talking about there, page 23 part #1 is the baffle correct?

does anyone know who actually makes these stoves as it seems like one manufacturer just puts anyone name on them that pays, design looks to go back to the 80s if not more with the "Warm Morning" line of coal stoves i think

If that's all the longer you plan on using it it should work just fine.

yes after my wood boiler system is finally running i'll move this into the garage for once a month use or more likely keep it in the basement as a back up should my main heating system ever fail or need to be shut down in the winter for any reason.

generally speaking though if this stove was burned for an average of 8hr a day for 5 months of the year with good wood and in the correct way what would you say it would last, 10-15yr or like 5?

 

[maple1]

what does that mean, the case will warp from the heat cycles or internally erode?

i only plan on using this stove for a year, maybe 2 as i have a wood boiler i was installing however after a few months of working on it following the manufacturers plans he then told me it was all wrong for zone valves and not circs. even though form day one i said i was using zone valves and multiple circulators for the zones so i got pissed off and gave up on the project. going to just use a regular wood stove and when i get around to redoing the entire system will use an indoor woodboiler.

Not to divert the stove topic but it's usually either zone valves and one circ, or multiple circs and no zone valves.

 

[sardo_67]

Not to divert the stove topic but it's usually either zone valves and one circ, or multiple circs and no zone valves.

yes i just needed a different manifold layout and from the start i thought i needed a 2nd circ to push water for the zone valve manifold but the company guy i got all the stuff from said didn't need that, turns out i was right and my initial plan was what i was supposed to have gone with. i mentioned it a few times after and sent pics/vid but i guess he missed it or something, then last min before i cut my current oil system apart to tie into the new manifold/zone system i asked him to be 200% sure it will work.... "oh, good thing you asking because that wont work how it is now"
well, thank you, i'm glad i spent all this time and money..........

 

[sardo_67]

it seems the "EPA" versions suck since they run almost wide open for a cleaner burn, lots of seemingly good info here surprisingly.

basically they took the air flow regulator baffles off the doors due to the EPA regs, however if you block them up and then rely on the auto damper they'll run for 8+hr on a load of wood

https://www.amazon.com/US-Stove-BEC95-Automatic-Circulator/product-reviews/B001XW86OG

quote.....

"I have had this stove for 5 years now. I couldnt be happier.
So this stove has lots of air holes in the door and ash door as the other reviewers mentioned. The older models do not and worked excellant. Without a DIY modification of this new design the stove burns way too hot and does not hold a fire very long.
Here is what i did..... Ash door - I plugged all but one hole with a bolt, nut and washers. i left one hole open (the elongated hole also remains open) I stick a loose bolt in or take out depending on the wood etc.. The main door, again i plugged all but one hole same way. I never have to plug the remaining open hole.
So with this modification and installing the included inline stove pipe damper I can maintain a fire for 10-12 hours easy and heat (very hot 80 degrees+) an old 1800 sqft house all winter unless it drops below -15 outside.
Just wanted to put this review out there as i saw the negative ones. With the modification you can control your burn rate easily and it also burns cleanly.. very little creosote in my double wall chimney.
One word of advice - start a fire (or two) in the stove outside of your house in the stove prior to installation. You'll thank me when you see all the smoke and stink coming of the unit.
I am no expert this is just what i did to get the stove to preform how i wanted it to"

 

[jetsam]

I can maintain a fire for 10-12 hours easy and heat (very hot 80 degrees+) an old 1800 sqft house all winter unless it drops below -15 outside.

Nobody is heating an old 1800sf house to 80° with a 1.86cf stove while it's -10 outside and getting 12 hour burns. That's ludicrous no matter how many bolts you jam into it.

1.86sf is 1.86sf, and I bet that thing is getting nowhere near the efficiency that a good woodstove would be getting. (I'd look it up, but U.S. Stove appears to be very shy about discussing those numbers.)

 

[sardo_67]

i'm guessing he is adding wood during that time.

i've been looking for more info on these but since so many companies made them it's kind of hard, but from what i can see the non EPA older worked well and the coal/wood ones were the best.

i'm half tempted to just get one and see for myself

 

[bholler]

i'm guessing he is adding wood during that time.

i've been looking for more info on these but since so many companies made them it's kind of hard, but from what i can see the non EPA older worked well and the coal/wood ones were the best.

i'm half tempted to just get one and see for myself

They are atleast a 50 yr old design. Yes they work and make lots of heat. But they go through massive amounts of wood to do it and.they burn out pretty fast.

 

[Texas123]

I have used both a Wonderwood for 19 years and a Wonderluxe Coal-Wood stove for a few months before I bought the Jotul 500.
The Wonderluxe from the United States Stove Company is similar to the Ashley wood circulator. Since it had the more open grates for coal it burned through wood at twice the speed of the Wonderwood. I had to purchase a steel plate to partially cover the bottom grate to slow the air flow. The angled grates on the sides of the firebox provided plenty of combustion air.

Its' steel firebox makes this a fast heating stove so I would recommend this stove. As for the BTU calculations, it calculated at around 55,000.
If you have or are planning kids in the near future the frame which allows circulation makes this the safest stove for them to be around. If USSC had bothered to make their newer models using a Jotul or Vermont Castings type of door with even a small fire-glass window, I would probably be using the stove.
Warning: product recommendation coming: If you are going to buy a coal wood stove, go to Messick Stove and see their line of dual fuel stoves. The only problems are these are top vent and I needed a rear vented stove.

 

[sardo_67]

Texas do you have the one with the built in blower?
No kids and it’s in the basement that I only really plan on running while I’m home so I prefer lots of fast heat even if I have to load it every 4-6hr. I am not relying on this for 24/7 heat wile only using 1 cord a year or something crazy. Just to make the house comfortable while we are home and to burn less oil. I have about 6 cords I paid $500 for 2yr ago and then 9-12 cords of raw cut 20ft-ers at my brothers house he got for free when his neighbor had some tree work done.

I got actual information from the guy and this is the stove I’m going to pick up for $250 or 300.

(broken link removed)