Cape Cod or Blaze King Ashford 30?

[Heftiger]

Does the fire show change (bigger or smaller) based on the inside or outside temp?

Sort of. I have the thermostat turned up a little more since it's cold, so we got some nice flames. You'll get a fire show after each reload, then it'll calm down.

 

[koconnor]

Sort of. I have the thermostat turned up a little more since it's cold, so we got some nice flames. You'll get a fire show after each reload, then it'll calm down.

Very nice. I do like a nice fire show to watch while sitting on the couch. I find it very relaxing. How do you adjust the thermostat? Is that the knob on the right side?

 

[Heftiger]

Very nice. I do like a nice fire show to watch while sitting on the couch. I find it very relaxing. How do you adjust the thermostat? Is that the knob on the right side?

Yes, just the knob. It's so easy the wife even likes it.

 

[begreen]

The flue is 15' from where it connects at the ceiling. Just replaced the original pipe. 6" class A pipe

That's plenty.

 

[begreen]

Does the fire show change (bigger or smaller) based on the inside or outside temp?

What are your normal winter temps? What is your current temp?

 

[webby3650]

The Cape Cod did not stand up well for webby3650 . Of course that is only one data point and it was an early model, but something to consider. Check to see if they now have a flameshield for the cat.

They are not shielding the cat, nor do they have any plans to...

 

[webby3650]

I have read how the heat shield has warped due to high heat and that was the only downside to the cape cod. I like that it has a nice fire show though vs The BK. How does the thermostat work on the BK on top though and does it open and close on its own or do you have to do it manually?

My baffle continually warped, as well as the bracket that holds the andirons. Lopi would do nothing to help me! When I took the tubes out so I could "smash the baffle flat with a hammer" per Lopi instructions, the screws that hold the tubes broke! So not only was I hammering out a baffle on a $3,500 stove, I also get to drill and tap the secondary air manifold. I decided to sell the thing, while I was cleaning it out I found that the stove itself had cracked behind the firebrick. In an area that the average person would never look.

I took great satisfaction sending the Cape Cod back to Travis Industries in a Blaze King Ashford crate!

 

[Woody Stover]

What are your normal winter temps?

Maybe four months of burning per year, lotta shoulder action. Low-draft city. Wouldn't necessarily need a big stove, depending on how tight the house is.

 

[Woody Stover]

Lopi would do nothing to help me!

Hey, they gave you the solution; Smash it flat.
They did give you a full refund though, right?

 

[webby3650]

Hey, they gave you the solution; Smash it flat.
They did give you a full refund though, right?

I did get a refund. But I feel like it's only because I work for a hearth store that's sold Lopi from day 1. They were reluctant, and blamed user error the whole time.

 

[Ashful]

I have a 3 story house and the wood stove is on the main floor. Total sq ft for the main floor and 2 bedrooms upstairs is 1800. I like the look of both the cape cod and the BK Ashford 30, trying to figure out which one would work best. My vent us double wall class 'A' pipe approximately 15 feet long. floor plan is open with 8 foot ceilings. Any advice would help, thank you.

Lopi Cape Cod vs Blaze King? Really? You had to even ask?

How about Chevy Cavalier vs Mercedes E-Class? There is no contest, here.

 

[Woody Stover]

How about Chevy Cavalier vs Mercedes E-Class?

From another thread: "IIRC, the original gasket was held in place by intermittent blobs of what looked like furnace cement - not a continuous bead."
That doesn't sound like German engineering to me. And in an accident, with that thin sheet metal, that thing will crumple up like a Cavalier.

 

[webby3650]

From another thread: "IIRC, the original gasket was held in place by intermittent blobs of what looked like furnace cement - not a continuous bead."
That doesn't sound like German engineering to me.

They've always used black silicone.

 

[blueguy]

They've always used black silicone.

That quote was mine, and I can 100% assure you there wasn't a single bit of black silicone anywhere on my stove. Every gasket, less the glass gasket, was held in with a grey crusty cement that was not continuous and I am the first owner. Don't get me wrong, I'm not hacking on BK, only stating the facts

 

[webby3650]

That quote was mine, and I can 100% assure you there wasn't a single bit of black silicone anywhere on my stove. Every gasket, less the glass gasket, was held in with a grey crusty cement that was not continuous and I am the first owner. Don't get me wrong, I'm not hacking on BK, only stating the facts

I've worked on a few dozen BKs, I've never seen anything but silicone. Strange?

 

[blueguy]

Strange?

Definitely. Strange just like the weirdo flat gasket wrap my door came with.

 

[begreen]

Maybe four months of burning per year, lotta shoulder action. Low-draft city. Wouldn't necessarily need a big stove, depending on how tight the house is.
View attachment 170475

If the stove will be running on it's lowest setting almost all the time there may not be much fire to see at all.

 

[begreen]

I've worked on a few dozen BKs, I've never seen anything but silicone. Strange?

That is strange. Didn't BKVP say to use gasket cement because they were uncertain about the effect of silicone on the cat?

 

[rdust]

That is strange. Didn't BKVP say to use gasket cement because they were uncertain about the effect of silicone on the cat?

This is from the horses mouth. "We use 3M Dow Corning #732.".

 

[begreen]

Hmm, this was a recent thread but haven't found it yet.
some past threads said to use furnace cement
https://www.hearth.com/talk/threads...read-everything-bk.145814/page-3#post-1966021
There are a lot of different types and additives to silicone adhesives so perhaps this was in response to one of the more exotic types?

 

[rdust]

Hmm, this was a recent thread but haven't found it yet.
some past threads said to use furnace cement
https://www.hearth.com/talk/threads...read-everything-bk.145814/page-3#post-1966021
There are a lot of different types and additives to silicone adhesives so perhaps this was in response to one of the more exotic types?

I think the cement is for the bypass gasket, the door gasket uses silicone. I had a "conversation"(pm) with Chris about the door gasket silicone a couple years back.

 

[koconnor]

What are your normal winter temps? What is your current temp?

Lows around 20-30's and day time highs around 45-55 on average

 

[webby3650]

I think the cement is for the bypass gasket, the door gasket uses silicone. I had a "conversation"(pm) with Chris about the door gasket silicone a couple years back.

That's correct. Silicone will not hold up on the bypass. Only on the door.

 

[begreen]

I think the cement is for the bypass gasket, the door gasket uses silicone. I had a "conversation"(pm) with Chris about the door gasket silicone a couple years back.

Thanks I found the thread. My error in that it was not a direct statement from Chris.

kf6ha[ said: ↑
I just had a conversation with Chris (BKVP) about the smoke smell issue...Chris is going to provide me with a more dense gasket in an attempt to stop the lateral movement of smoke. A word of caution - do not remove the door to work on it as it is quite difficult to reattach in good alignment. Hold off on using silicone compounds, the long term effect on the cat is unknown.

 

[Dieselhead]

Mine had not much of what resembled sand when I took it out of the channel. That's was all.