Big Buck 28000 questions

[StevenAment]

Hi all,

My wife and I purchased a house a few years back and it came equipped with a Big Buck 28000. Growing up in a house that didn't have fireplaces I really paid it no mind. Last year a $500 heating bill for the month of January got me rethinking some supplemental heat for this house. I am a complete novice with fire starting. I just burned a Duraflame log (please don't make fun of me) in our other standard fireplace on the other side of the house and that scared me! Of note; I just had both chimneys professionally swept and checked for soundness.

Sorry for the rambling intro; right down to the questions. When burning wood in a stove do you place the wood directly on the stove floor or do you use a grate/firedogs? Secondly, when I plug the stove in the fan runs fast on either way I move the switch? Is my thermostat shot? This happens when the stove is cold as I have never burned a fire in the stove.

Please help out a rookie!

Sincerely,

Steve

 

[rox3406]

Fire right on the floor of the stove. Something is wrong with your fan wiring. On position should be high speed. The other starts off as no fan then goes through a three speed thermostat as the stove heats up. In the position the fan is off when stove is cold.
Here is the place to go for a manual and parts for the buck.
(broken link removed)

Also here is a great thread about your stove
https://www.hearth.com/talk/threads/old-buck-stove-information-one-stop-resource.125611/

 

[rox3406]

Also if that buck is installed as a slammer like most are it’s not safe to run it like that. She needs to be hooked to a liner to be safe.

 

[StevenAment]

Hi Rox, thanks for the info. I would assume it's a slammer as it can be pulled right out of the fireplace without disconnecting anything. I've been using the Buck as a traditional fireplace for the time being as I've mentioned before about the thermostat/fan malfunction. What about the slammer install makes it unsafe?

 

[rox3406]

Without a direct connection to a liner a few things make it unsafe. One it’s a creosote factory and depending on your wood you’d be surprised how fast it can build up and risk chimney fire. Two it’s easy to get a reverse draft especially at the end of the fire. This risks CO entering the house through the trim around the fire box.
It’s true these units were designed to run like this back in the 70s. But now we know better. Unfortunately this was learned through many accidents.
So a search on this site for slammer. You will learn a lot.