It was on the reload in warm weather with a minimal length chimney that he was having a problem with smoke coming out the top of the door while reloading. Note that Woodstock has always had a hinged piece of metal at the top of the door that allows you to load wood (because it flaps back on its hinge when you encounter it) right to the top opening, but prevents smoke from coming into the room. He had removed this baffle because he found it a nuisance. I have a tall chimney, good draft, and have never had smoke leak out the door if I have the bypass and air fully open upon reload (which you are supposed to do). Also, if you allow your wood to burn through a full cycle (wood to coals) you should never have a problem with smoke upon reload, because there should be no smoke coming off the coals.
The original steep discount on the stoves was given to the first purchasers because Woodstock was anxious to get a lot of the stoves into homes quickly so they could assess performance in lots of varied settings, see if there were any improvements or modifications necessary. So, for being guinea pigs, we got a great price. There were some early bumps, but theyhad nothing to do with the basic design of the stove, and Woodstock was both eager and impressive in their response to issues.
This company is always just a phone call away. They graciously and comprehensively deal with any request you make, They stand behind their stoves forever, and are just as concerned as your are to have your stove running properly. They never make you feel as if you are bothering them too much. They are amazingly responsive.
The original stovetop was redesigned because it proved impossible to get the large thick pieces of soapstone of the original top in a piece with no imperfections (if that is the right term). Upon repeated heating, a few of the stovetops cracked. They are still usable, but Woodstock doesn't want you to use them. (The crack closes once the soapstone is warm). So Woodstock redesigned the top to be several pieces that together are the same size as the original. The smaller pieces to not have a problem wth cracking on expansion and contraction.
Woodstock also designed a subsequent top that permits comprehensive cooking on the stove. There is a cast iron grill that sits on the interior cast iron frame, which has a channel and gasket. The grill extends beyond and compresses the gasket, for a positive seal. There is no question of smoke leaking out the top. Then, there three soapstone slabs, somewhat thinner than the original design tops, that sit on top of the grill. It is nicely designed. The soapstone is easy to lift and rests in a track at the back of the stove when you are cooking. You can life as many or few slabs as you wish. There are three elements on the cooktop, each 50 degrees hotter than the one below. If the soapstone registers 300, the elements are about 500,550 and 600, I believe. They heat and cook very quickly and well, I do all my stovetop cooking, all my roasting, and some of my baking on the stove. You have the additional flexibility of cooking on top of the soapstone, when you want gentler heat, so you relly have great range of heat. Either (or, if you wish, both) of these last two tops are available. They are easily interchangable...takes about 5 minutes max.
Woodstock stoves are beautifully built. You need have no concern about their safety, or ease of maintenance. They are beautiful, and built to last for your lifetime. They do not leak gases. The PH burns incredibly cleanly and efficiently. It is 20 degree out here at the moment. I have about 12 pounds of wood in the stove, cat engaged and the air completely down. There are some flames in the firebox, and the 1400 square foot first floor is 70 degrees. I've been working outside all day, so am quite comfortable. A little later this evening I'll fill the firebox about 2/3 full, and will get way more than a 12 hour burn. The night before last I started a fire at about 9:30 and still had a good fire going at 2:30 the next afternoon. I was going out again, so put a split on at that time.
You won't burn this stove very much with the air open to any appreciable extent. It is open completely on start up and reloads, but with a decently drafting chimney and dry wood, one quickly closes down to at least 50% within about 5-15 minutes, shortly therafter has the cat engaged, and very soon closes the air almost completely, unless it is bitterly cold out. This stove produces a truely impressive amount of heat out its glass front very quickly, warms quickly and with a very soft, comfortable heat, and is almost unbelievably efficient. It puts out significantly more heat from the same amount of wood than the very efficient Woodstock FIreview.
Those of us who are complaining about the stove being loud are spoiled because we previously had other Woodstock stoves and have upgraded to the larger Progress Hybrid. Woodstock's other stoves are cast iron and soapstone. This stove is cat iron, steel and soapstone. The steel makes pinging noises as it expands and contracts with heating and cooling. The noise is not offensive or loud, and you likely won't even think about it. It is just a bit startling to long time Woodstock users, whose previous stoves were completely silent. Any stove with steel makes these noises.
The stove is beautiful, well designed, and well built. It is extremely easy to control and very responsive to air adjustments. It gets to operating temperature quickly, and stays at a very consistent termperature for hours upon hours throughout the burn. It burns and heats equally well with a quite small load for a warmer day, or a significant load on a bitterly cold day. For increased output simply increase load size and, when minus twenty weather, air supply. Once the cat is engaged on the stove, no further attention is required until the fire is down to coals and you are ready to relaod, although you may wish to open the air supply to about 1/2 when the fire has burned down to a moderate coal bed, to more quickly burn the coals to get a bit more heat per hour at the tail end of the burn, and to reduce the coal bed before reloading. This would normally be many, many hours after engaging the cat.
It is pretty obvious I love my stove. I previously had a Fireview, which I also loved, but this stove is something else again. ( I still have my Fireview, sitting unused and pretty in a corner in the family room...can't part with it). If you have a larger home in the Pacific NW, you will find this stove keeps you very comfortable just cruising alone on a low burn.
Some threads seem to indicate there being a possible smoke/smell leak on it. I have a strong sense of smell & this would drive me crazy if it were true. Is this something they fixed or that's easy to fix? Did anyone ever figure out why people were complaining about this?
