Ok so now I have got a dilemma on my hands here. Surfing these posts it seems so many are happy with their BK's that now I want one but.....I don't have the room for 3 seasons of wood heck I got room for 1 cord at a time for storage. I don't plan on burning in the shoulder seasons but I love how efficient the BK is and that I can dial it down and keep it going while I am at work and sleeping. So is this the right stove for me? Will this burn less than ideal moisture content wood without snuffing out? Or can I get 12 hour burns with a tube stove? I am at a fork in the road here and since this is a fairly large purchase at 3.5-5 grand I need to make the right one. I am able to get that Princess for $3300 but I was first considering the Osburn 2400 insert.
BK Princess unripe wood
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Are you looking at inserts only? How long are you gone to work, 12 hrs? How many sq.ft. do you need the stove to heat? How tall will your chimney be? How long the heat will last in your house will also be dependent on how well it is insulated and air-sealed. The PE Super 27 is supposed to burn long for a tube stove..would cost about half as much as that BK. Chimney ain't cheap either. I think you will find many happy Super 27 owners here as well. With it, you'll also be able to see into the firebox without opening the door. 
You need to come up with a nearby place where you can stack more wood. You'll need at least two years split and stacked for Oak. Soft Maple will dry if split and stacked for a year or even less, but won't give you the longer heat output of a load of Oak.
You need to come up with a nearby place where you can stack more wood. You'll need at least two years split and stacked for Oak. Soft Maple will dry if split and stacked for a year or even less, but won't give you the longer heat output of a load of Oak.
If you can go stove or insert and would prefer a cat, check out the Woodstock Absolute..hybrid (cat/tube) steel stove at about 2/3 the price of the BK. Plenty long burns, nice grated ash system, front or rear vent...too many advantages to mention them all here.
kennyp2339
Minister of Fire
Sounds like your doing your research... and the answer is no, a bk will fight you if you burn wood that has moisture content >20%, in fact the manual recommends using wood that is near 15% moisture content.
Also lets not loose focus on whether the Bk is better or worse than any other stove, all new stoves in order to operate correctly need dry 20% or less moisture in wood, most stoves will fight the user with creosote build up, smoke, and clogged chimneys if you try to burn wet wood.
For your application I don't think a BK is the right stove for you, you want to only burn in the middle of the winter (no shoulder season) so essentially you would be burning the BK at a higher rate and get almost the same effect as a cheaper tube stove. BK's are awesome heaters (I love mine) but I use it for burning in all types of weather, I start in the fall and cash in on the long burn times by keeping the t-stat turned down (24hr loads) and get about 14k btu's per hour, when the severe cold weather hits like now (temps in the low teens) I turn my stove high and get 40k btu an hour on 10hr reload schedule (works like a normal wood stove, although it has less top out btu's per hour than other brands) So in short I don't think a BK would be good for your type of application if your on a tight budget, not guaranteed wood supply, and only using the stove during the heart of winter.
Also lets not loose focus on whether the Bk is better or worse than any other stove, all new stoves in order to operate correctly need dry 20% or less moisture in wood, most stoves will fight the user with creosote build up, smoke, and clogged chimneys if you try to burn wet wood.
For your application I don't think a BK is the right stove for you, you want to only burn in the middle of the winter (no shoulder season) so essentially you would be burning the BK at a higher rate and get almost the same effect as a cheaper tube stove. BK's are awesome heaters (I love mine) but I use it for burning in all types of weather, I start in the fall and cash in on the long burn times by keeping the t-stat turned down (24hr loads) and get about 14k btu's per hour, when the severe cold weather hits like now (temps in the low teens) I turn my stove high and get 40k btu an hour on 10hr reload schedule (works like a normal wood stove, although it has less top out btu's per hour than other brands) So in short I don't think a BK would be good for your type of application if your on a tight budget, not guaranteed wood supply, and only using the stove during the heart of winter.
Ok thank you guys for the input, I am still not sure about a new tube stove though. You guys are saying they will not react well to damper wood as well. I currently have an old Timberline insert w/huge firebox it has no tubes inside it. It was installed as a "slammer" in a mason chimney w/ terra cotta liner and steel damper. With the front air intake it is very adjustable and I can adjust for any dampness of wood. I could just run a 8" liner to it but I am going to have to cut that damper.....or just buy a new stove w/6" outlet like Osburn 2400. But not if it won't burn less than ideal wood....hmm.
SuperJ
Feeling the Heat
Are you looking at inserts only? How long are you gone to work, 12 hrs? How many sq.ft. do you need the stove to heat? How tall will your chimney be? How long the heat will last in your house will also be dependent on how well it is insulated and air-sealed. The PE Super 27 is supposed to burn long for a tube stove..would cost about half as much as that BK. Chimney ain't cheap either. I think you will find many happy Super 27 owners here as well. With it, you'll also be able to see into the firebox without opening the door.
You need to come up with a nearby place where you can stack more wood. You'll need at least two years split and stacked for Oak. Soft Maple will dry if split and stacked for a year or even less, but won't give you the longer heat output of a load of Oak.
I second the PE Summit/Alderlea T6 sounds like a good stove for you (the Summit should burn quite a bit longer than the Super 27 since it's a 3cuft firebox). However, if you're a stove guy (burning wood more than a necessity, it's a hobby!) than a Woodstock option might be more interesting to you. That being said, I haven't burnt horrible wood, but have some marginal wood that I've burnt in my BK. It seems to work out alright as long as you don't combine super low burns with wet wood.
IMHO, keep it turned up to tube stove burn rates and I'd wager it handles wet wood as good, or maybe better than a tube, since the still steel cat will reduce creosote causing particulates (below what a tube stove could do) at lower temps than a tube stove would need to do the same thru secondary burn.
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A catalyst does achieve secondary burn at a lower temp, but temp is not the only factor. Too much steam is the firebox from wet wood will crowd out oxygen, and the cat may not light off. If your entire supply of wood is unseasoned, you will probably have a gunked-up cat in short order. Between a tube stove and a stove with a perpetually gunked-up cat, I’d probably go with a tube stove. . .or an old 5-cu-ft smoke dragon, because they’re all probably going to burn wet wood similarly, with little to no secondary combustion.
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Why don’t you buy seasoned wood? Ha! Seriously if you only have room for a cord of wood outside then you may want to consider buying manufactured firewood as needed in the form of logs or pellets for a pellet stove.
What kind of yard only leaves you with room for one cord? Is this an inner city home? Wood might not be your best choice.
What kind of yard only leaves you with room for one cord? Is this an inner city home? Wood might not be your best choice.
No it is a suburban home with a 1/4 acre lot, I can buy seasoned wood but seasoned wood around here hasn't been downed for 2 and 3 years like everyone on these boards talk about. A cord can last me a season as I don't burn everyday. I am just looking for higher efficiency stove so it doesn't eat as much wood.
edyit
Minister of Fire
General consensus here is that a tuber will handle wet wood better, but I've never burned a tuber. I hope to have one as a backup stove at some point. I DO know that I started getting higher stove top temps once my wood was dry...600+ as opposed to 450 when the wood was 20+%. Now, @webby3650 says his BK will handle wood higher than the 15-20% recommended in the manual..probably not optimal heat output though. A tuber might sacrifice less stove top temp with damper wood, I don't know..
Those tiny-lot/big-house subdivisions usually have high fences, don't they? I would stack it high and let it dry.
The neighbors probably don't look out the windows much anyway. We aren't talking about wood that has been "down," we're talking wood that has been split and stacked for 2-3 yrs. If you can get access to a woodlot you can find small dead trees 6-8" with all the bark fallen off, and those will be well on their way to being burnable. For a wood-sipping stove, you are talking cat..
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1/4 lot is plenty for 3years cords to store if you're serious about having dry wood. It can be stacked and/or covered in a manner that is not so unsightly.
That is crazy talk, don't get me wrong I like burning wood but you guys are talking at least 2-3 years of wood on hand? As much wood as you guys burn you must have like 20 cords in your yards. My back yard would look like a farm stand. Anyways why couldn't you just open the bypass and get a ripper fire going to steam out most of the water and get a coal base and then switch over to the cat? That has worked well for me in the "smoke dragon".
![[Hearth.com] BK Princess unripe wood](/talk/data/attachments/217/217891-529b8d7100d09c8856856bc98b2d1c0a.jpg?hash=9aHVe9KBAN)
edyit
Minister of Fire
I have 15 full cords up right now. its better than money in the bank
Jan Pijpelink
Minister of Fire
We live on 1/3 acre. Back yard is 35 x 25 yards. I have 6 cords stacked and drying. A little imagination and organization will do a lot.
Jan Pijpelink
Minister of Fire
Welcome to the club, be aware, it is addictive.
That’s the beauty of a cat stove. The bypass allows you to bake off some of the moisture. I typically run wood around the 20% mark, which is easily doable in 1 full year of drying. Except oak and hickory, they can take longer, but not always. I’ve never burned more than 4 cords in a season in any home we’ve had. That’s with 1 BK and some other stove I’ve drug home, campfires too.
Woodsplitter67
Minister of Fire
To the original poster
you want to purchase a stove that is more efficient you would like to burn less wood but yet you want to burn wood that is not seasoned properly therefore you will the burning more wood. You're purchasing an EPA stove which requires seasoned wood
My suggestion for you is to solve your wood seasoning problem as the others have posted it doesn't take a lot of room to season the wood I would plan on seasoning 2 years worth of wood no more. Given a 3 cord year you would need to sit on 6 cords at any given time which should be plenty to supplement the heat in your house.
Purchas an epa stove and run unseasoned wood in it and your next post will be.. "why dosent my new epa stove run right"
Also, there threads poindexter and myself have put together on solar kilns... read up this may help
If you want to burn wood get creative
you want to purchase a stove that is more efficient you would like to burn less wood but yet you want to burn wood that is not seasoned properly therefore you will the burning more wood. You're purchasing an EPA stove which requires seasoned wood
My suggestion for you is to solve your wood seasoning problem as the others have posted it doesn't take a lot of room to season the wood I would plan on seasoning 2 years worth of wood no more. Given a 3 cord year you would need to sit on 6 cords at any given time which should be plenty to supplement the heat in your house.
Purchas an epa stove and run unseasoned wood in it and your next post will be.. "why dosent my new epa stove run right"
Also, there threads poindexter and myself have put together on solar kilns... read up this may help
If you want to burn wood get creative
I’m going to come steal all your wood! Wow that is organized! I need to party less on the boat in the summer and cut more wood!
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![[Hearth.com] BK Princess unripe wood](/talk/data/attachments/217/217911-64df977056487dbb6ba98eea761bbf53.jpg?hash=1vDC_cnFe6)
![[Hearth.com] BK Princess unripe wood](/talk/data/attachments/217/217912-2c9b0a96d108ee79b2a3be3df3e7149d.jpg?hash=1IWYdmYPDo)
