Cat vs. Non-Cat

[Hogwildz]

Good dry wood, kindling and a firestarter will work just fine. Don't load the crap out of the starting load. Anything with a firestarter between and kindling over top will start just fine.

 

[bobdog2o02]

Grisu is spot on with the black/white newspaper, wont hurt a thing in any stove. The inks they use for color print however can have some corrosive qualities and lend to premature cat failure....... I have tried both bottom up and top down, i think every stove is unique. My US Stove non-cat was not happy with top down, the BK is.....

 

[bobdog2o02]

I am aware, but it doesn't matter. The top down method works in most anything. Try it, you may like it.

 

[Spletz]

I too prefer bottom up method. Glad to hear b&w newspaper acceptable. The Buck is at the bottom of the post, the Jotul is at the top.

 

[Spletz]

Bob dog, I'll give it a try soon. Can't wait for fall and fires in the new insert!

I didn't mean to resend Grisu's reply to me.

 

[Treacherous]

Wasn't there some discussion in past years about the use of newspaper causing screens on finely meshed caps to clog? I realize most of this is not quite seasoned wood but the newspaper wasn't helping matters either.

 

[Grisu]

Wasn't there some discussion in past years about the use of newspaper causing screens on finely meshed caps to clog? I realize most of this is not quite seasoned wood but the newspaper wasn't helping matters either.

I haven't had a problem yet. Probably also less of an issue with a bottom-up approach. Cardboard is really bad in that regard and should not be burned in a cat stove at all due to the glue in it.

 

[Spletz]

Down right tropical! Got my FPX Large Flush Insert installed a few days ago. After three small fires, I can let it rip today. Crummy pic, but after my boy's soccer practice today, I got to fire it up. Came home at 10a and it was 68 inside, 40 out. Now it's 77 in and 41 out! Even with rains and local low barometric pressure, it seems to be drafting very well. Far, far too soon to give it a proper review, but so far so good. It's attractive, hot, and I love the viewing space. Only complaint is that at full fan speed it's a tad louder then I'd like. At half speed however, it's quite acceptable. I'll take the white noise over seeing the propane truck all winter! I'm looking forward to throttling it down for the eve and enjoying a good book and a better bourbon. Thanks again for all your advice.

 

[Spletz]

Still loving it. Looking forward to winter for once! Excited to reface the brick work and knock some more 1970s out of my home. Still no real gripes out of the FPX. "Too hot in here" is a common comment from my bride. I love throttling it down and watching the aurora borealis in my living room!

 

[Spletz]

Update. I wrote a review in the reviews section. Still love it. Its going full throttle as I type.

However, last spring as fires were coming to a close, I found that the cat was fried - honeycomb collapsed. It was replaced without any argument under warranty - but I'm concerned this maybe a trend. The cat is covered under warranty for 5 years. Anyone else seeing this?

 

[begreen]

I think if I had a Travis cat stove/insert I would be tempted to fabricate a flame shield for the cat out of perforated stainless steel.

 

[snarflemike]

I think if I had a Travis cat stove/insert I would be tempted to fabricate a flame shield for the cat out of perforated stainless steel.

This really gets my attention. I've seen flames lapping the front of the cat in our new FPX 36. Is this (flame shield) something others have done? What would do the trick? For example, online I saw some 4/inch SS mesh, .047 wire. Would that be suitable?

 

[begreen]

I was thinking something like this, but first I would look at what is in other stoves for comparison of hole size and stagger.
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00OHRYMJ2/?tag=hearthamazon-20

 

[BKVP]

Caution. I do not work for Travis and they are an outstanding company with great staff and great products.

However, I would be very careful here guys! First, give Travis a call and discuss your concerns.

Second, flame shield hole size, orientation and placement proximity to the cat are very refined in our products because if you get it wrong, you can and will destroy the cat.

Flame shields serve many purposes (much more than the part name implies). The hole patterns in ours are NOT random and we make ours on turret punches, not from stock materials.

Placement of holes, diameter of the holes and number of holes are critical. Thickness of material, reflective properties and proximity to the face of the catalytic combustor are HUGE engineering decisions.

This, quite honestly, it not a field fix, unless you have deep pockets.

Give Travis a call and start there.

 

[begreen]

Good input Chris, thanks.

 

[snarflemike]

Wish I had read that before I started cutting and welding.

Just kidding (in my own not-funny way)! I'll take some video of the flame impingement and show it to the dealer.

 

[Dmitry]

Caution. I do not work for Travis and they are an outstanding company with great staff and great products.

However, I would be very careful here guys! First, give Travis a call and discuss your concerns.

Second, flame shield hole size, orientation and placement proximity to the cat are very refined in our products because if you get it wrong, you can and will destroy the cat.

Flame shields serve many purposes (much more than the part name implies). The hole patterns in ours are NOT random and we make ours on turret punches, not from stock materials.

Placement of holes, diameter of the holes and number of holes are critical. Thickness of material, reflective properties and proximity to the face of the catalytic combustor are HUGE engineering decisions.

This, quite honestly, it not a field fix, unless you have deep pockets.

Give Travis a call and start there.

BKVP just pissed on my parade. I was going to make the shield this year. Travis is not going to discuss the option of you tinkering with the stove due to liability etc. They going to say :" Its OK, its how it should be. Just like they saying this about their warped baffles"

 

[Woody Stover]

I found that the cat was fried - honeycomb collapsed.

That sounds like classic flame impingement damage.

I was going to make the shield this year. Travis is not going to discuss the option of you tinkering with the stove due to liability etc. They going to say :" Its OK, its how it should be. Just like they saying this about their warped baffles"

Unless just running the stove slower so that flame wouldn't get to the cat wasn't an option, I might try some kind of shielding...something has got to be better than nothing I would think. One thing that would concern me would be what BKVP said about "reflective properties and proximity to the face of the combustor." I think that cat is pretty far forward in the FPX, is it not? Double layer of expanded metal, maybe?
On the Woodstock Fireview, they went from relatively little material (expanded metal) to a stainless screen. Cat pretty much operated the same but with the screen, there was sometimes ignition just inside the screen. I don't think that constitutes flame impingement, however.

 

[mellow]

I can say one thing, not a whole bunch of engineering went into the flame shield on my Appalachian.

Maybe a test piece like this over your cat would atleast give you a start:



@coltfever Do you know if that cat is still working ok with that mod to the flame shield?

 

[Woody Stover]

I can say one thing, not a whole bunch of engineering went into the flame shield on my Appalachian.
Maybe a test piece like this over your cat would atleast give you a start:
@coltfever Do you know if that cat is still working ok with that mod to the flame shield?

That must be a previous stove...or maybe someone else is using it, where he knows how the mod is doing.
He's got a Buck 91 now; They don't have a flame screen as such, they have a large heat shield under the cat that doesn't allow direct flame to hit the cat. Maybe it could if the air was wide open, but if you ran it that way you would have more problems than the cat. Even with a fairly vigorous fire, the flames barely reach the edge of the shield...it would be really hard for them to make a 180 degree turn, then reach in and hit the cat. If you look at the studs in the second pic, you can see there's not much of a gap between the cat frame and the shield when it's in place, on the sides particularly, and the front of the shield is bent up. A simple solution to the problem, but it does eat up some firebox space...
This is the original shield that was on the stove when I bought it. I got a new one but it has warped to some degree...not quite to this extent. Shoulda just beat the old one flat...

 

[Dmitry]

In Travis Flush hybrid it would be very easy to try the shield. There is a space on a baffle in front of the cat.