Blaze king disappointment

[ShawnLiNY]

The gasket is installed on the cat.
I'm not used to having to put dry wood in there as opposed to the Timberline. That's why I came here, to find out what would be causing the low heat output and the wood is less than optimal. I also don't have the means to store wood for a couple years until it's seasoned. It lays uncovered, stacked in the elements. Even with that "wet" wood I could still bury the cat all the way to the end of the active zone.

 

[rdust]

Yesterday I loaded the stove(Princess) around 7am and turned it down to 1.5 on my dial(yes I have a numbered sticker ). Took my son to a baseball clinic then we ran down to Ohio for my MILs 80th birthday. When I got home tonight around 8pm the furnace hadn't run and the house was still 59*. Stove warm with coals but not heating.

Yesterday was 37/26 and today’s high today was 42 with stupid wind.

Long story short the OP should be doing much better on the overnight temp loss.

 

[begreen]

Hopefully with the thermostat fixed, drier wood and maybe a bit more chimney he'll get much stronger performance

 

[ShawnLiNY]

Any update on your replacement thermostat , have you been using stove with a drier fuel supply ? I was pretty happy with the output of compressed logs from Lowe’s they are 7 and change for 30# bundles not as cheap as pallet wood but 3 logs put out nice heat for 3-4 hrs

 

[Woodheat58]

Tstat is being shipped.
Wood is what it is. I'm not getting down to the low teen range.
I've now got 2700 in this thing and after this season is over, it is going on Craigslist/Ebay and I'm starting over.

I miss the heating capability of the Timberline.

 

[maple1]

Low teen range is not needed. I doubt many here are getting that low. A more realistic target would be maybe in the 18-20 range.

 

[Ashful]

Low teen range is not needed. I doubt many here are getting that low. A more realistic target would be maybe in the 18-20 range.

Exactly.

 

[yooper08]

Also, low teens is unrealistic unless you live in the desert or build a kiln. The lowest you can get at 80F and 85% humidity is 17.7% MC. At that point the wood is at equilibrium with the environment.

 

[lsucet]

Also, low teens is unrealistic unless you live in the desert or build a kiln. The lowest you can get at 80F and 85% humidity is 17.7% MC. At that point the wood is at equilibrium with the environment.

Living in New Mexico I can get my wood 7-8 in MC ( softwood ) hardwood, I can get real low too but i have it stacked for years, but if we have a little of raining season than normal like last year MC goes up.

 

[EbS-P]

Also, low teens is unrealistic unless you live in the desert or build a kiln. The lowest you can get at 80F and 85% humidity is 17.7% MC. At that point the wood is at equilibrium with the environment.

That’s the number I’ve been looking for. Thanks.

 

[weatherguy]

Tstat is being shipped.
Wood is what it is. I'm not getting down to the low teen range.
I've now got 2700 in this thing and after this season is over, it is going on Craigslist/Ebay and I'm starting over.

I miss the heating capability of the Timberline.

You may change your mind if the tstat is the problem.

 

[jetsam]

Dude's mind was made up 7 pages ago.

It'll be a good score for whoever he sells it to, though.

 

[yooper08]

That’s the number I’ve been looking for. Thanks.

https://www.woodworkerssource.com/shop/mois.html

 

[ShawnLiNY]

Tstat is being shipped.
Wood is what it is. I'm not getting down to the low teen range.
I've now got 2700 in this thing and after this season is over, it is going on Craigslist/Ebay and I'm starting over.

I miss the heating capability of the Timberline.[/QUOT seems like getting dry wood would be less hassle , good luck

 

[Easy Livin’ 3000]

Tstat is being shipped.
Wood is what it is. I'm not getting down to the low teen range.
I've now got 2700 in this thing and after this season is over, it is going on Craigslist/Ebay and I'm starting over.

I miss the heating capability of the Timberline.

Great.

Thanks for wasting everyone's time by coming here and asking for advice, getting it, whining that tarps to keep the wood dry and insulating your house is too much effort , and then giving up right at the finish line now that you have ordered the thermostat. Go back to burning wet wood in a dirty stove and fouling the neighborhood atmosphere with smoke. Wonderful.

 

[lsucet]

Guys it is what it is. He is used to all that heat as he mentioned from his old stove. That is what he want to feel. When we should burn seasoned wood regardless which stove we use, i am sure that some stoves are more forgiving than other. I think any cat stove is sensitive to unseasoned wood, not just BK. We learned to heat with heat that the cat produced 80-90% of the time till weather gets real bad and possibly we need some flames going on too. To do that we need good wood but sometimes when wood is not that great a longer than normal high burn to drive some moist out, make things happen. Everybody at some point burn wood that is not that great. Last week snow and 40 mph wind overnight got my wood pile screwed up, snow packed against the wood pile and all over my stacks. Nothing to do about it. I just burn on high longer.

 

[2fireplacesinSC]

Sell it and buy an NC-30 by Englander. Just realize you’ll need seasoned wood with whatever modern stove you use today. Selling this one won’t necessarily be a panacea if you replace it with something newer than the “old timberline”.

 

[2fireplacesinSC]

But at least you gained some knowledge and had the chance. Take care and I’m glad for whoever gets the stove next. Sounds like you currently have one of the top of the line models out there.

 

[2fireplacesinSC]

Hello! New guy here so take it easy with the thread title lol. I've searched the web high and low for this topic and have read a lot of threads. But I come to the oracles here for some solid advice!
House is 1800 sq feet with the upstairs door closed off as I don't use it. King is sitting in the middle room. I came from a 70's or 80's model Timberline that came with the house. I really did like it and it would heat the house from 52 after dying out overnight to 76 by 8pm on days when it was in the mid 30s and above. Problem was it would eat wood and would not keep a fire overnight. A LOT of research was done with what to replace it with. I found a used King and jumped on it. It was used because the guy who bought it new hooked it up to a 8 to 6 reducer that didn't have a high enough rise to the 90 and it never would get to temp and made so much creosote that it would not operate properly so he traded it in on a 6in princess. Based on the used condition and knowing it was a catalyst stove I replaced the cat that was pitch black and had cracks with a brand new stainless Condor. This definitely helped the performance of the stove.
Well that was in 2017. I was looking forward to 12 hr burn times on high and being smoked out of the house with being able to get it to 80 based on the "old school" non epa Timberline performance. Now two years later I've about had it with this thing.
Wood is coming in at 21 or less on the meter. A mix of oak, hickory, ash, black locust. Out of the roof is a good 36in. of pipe The house is a poorly insulated 1955 farmhouse yes, but the old Timberline would power through that problem. I really do like it for the overnight burn though, I'll give it that.
Any advice you can give?
I've attached a couple pics of the setup
Many thanks!

Going back to this post #1.

Looking at the paint/wood on that window right at your stove. That looks like a setup for badness. I’d be concerned about a fire hazard developing from years of heat exposure to the wood.

 

[billb3]

Cat stoves aren't for everybody, but buying a used stove that isn't quite right and placing it in a an environment ( not talking about the house ) that isn't quite right isn't exactly a recipe for success.
I bet if it were a new stove and a decent dealer support the OP would be gliding into the 21st century of wood burning a little more enthusiastically.
Maybe in a month or two with some improved performance things will change.

 

[Easy Livin’ 3000]

Guys it is what it is. He is used to all that heat as he mentioned from his old stove. That is what he want to feel. When we should burn seasoned wood regardless which stove we use, i am sure that some stoves are more forgiving than other. I think any cat stove is sensitive to unseasoned wood, not just BK. We learned to heat with heat that the cat produced 80-90% of the time till weather gets real bad and possibly we need some flames going on too. To do that we need good wood but sometimes when wood is not that great a longer than normal high burn to drive some moist out, make things happen. Everybody at some point burn wood that is not that great. Last week snow and 40 mph wind overnight got my wood pile screwed up, snow packed against the wood pile and all over my stacks. Nothing to do about it. I just burn on high longer.

But you aren't just leaving your wood totally open to the elements (I don't think).

Yes, sometimes things happen to thwart our efforts to have dry wood, I completely understand. I was in the same boat much of the season. But it wasn't for complete lack of trying.

Enough people burn dirty, and we'll lose the right to heat with wood. It's already happening.

My point with my intentional rhetoric was to encourage the OP to at least try the thing out with the new thermostat and try harder to get dry wood. Now is not the time to quit. If it doesn't work with the new thermostat (ought to move it away from the wall as well), then, yes, give up on it.

The King is a steel stove, no? It ought to be able to get hot.

 

[ShawnLiNY]

But you aren't just leaving your wood totally open to the elements (I don't think).

Yes, sometimes things happen to thwart our efforts to have dry wood, I completely understand. I was in the same boat much of the season. But it wasn't for complete lack of trying.

Enough people burn dirty, and we'll lose the right to heat with wood. It's already happening.

My point with my intentional rhetoric was to encourage the OP to at least try the thing out with the new thermostat and try harder to get dry wood. Now is not the time to quit. If it doesn't work with the new thermostat (ought to move it away from the wall as well), then, yes, give up on it.

The King is a steel stove, no? It ought to be able to get hot.

Not sure how closely you have followed this thread it appears the poster has decided the stove is the problem and 26% moisture should provide the same heat as 21or below. Maybe there is a physical or financial reason he cant to get dry wood or plan ahead and season properly

 

[Ashful]

But you aren't just leaving your wood totally open to the elements (I don't think).

Yes, sometimes things happen to thwart our efforts to have dry wood, I completely understand. I was in the same boat much of the season. But it wasn't for complete lack of trying.

Enough people burn dirty, and we'll lose the right to heat with wood. It's already happening.

My point with my intentional rhetoric was to encourage the OP to at least try the thing out with the new thermostat and try harder to get dry wood. Now is not the time to quit. If it doesn't work with the new thermostat (ought to move it away from the wall as well), then, yes, give up on it.

The King is a steel stove, no? It ought to be able to get hot.

Let it go, Ed. You can’t save everyone from themselves.

 

[ShawnLiNY]

Let it go, Ed. You can’t save everyone from themselves.

Agreed . Some ask for help but yet are incapable of receiving any

 

[Woodheat58]

Well it seems like I've angered some of you out there, namely this ED 3000 fella. We can go ahead and close this thread, unless some of the AOC green new deal people want to chime in about heating your home with wood is bad for the environment unless you use a cat stove.

I did get good advice and it's not the KING's fault, my set up isnt great for a cat stove, it is what it is. No I'm not spending thousands more to properly insulate. No I don't have the ability to keep the wood dry for years, no I can't get enough wood to dry it out years ahead, hell I don't even know if I'll be living here for the 2019 burning season. I did get some good advice from this thread for the next house I buy, that's for sure!