So I’m about 20 days in to my new VC Dauntless, and I must say I’m very happy with our purchase. It’s been burning about 24/7 since the install, with maybe 3-4 days where we let it burn out due to warm weather.
We had the stove installed into a new addition that we had competed this past fall. The new room was our former 2 car garage that was converted into a approx 450 sq ft family room. The room has a 12 ft peaked ceiling with 4 very large windows and a 6’ glass sliding door. Spray foam insulation on the floors, ceiling and exterior walls. Besides the stove, we have a Mitsubishi mini split that we have not had to run at all while the stove has been in operation.
The stove was professional installed by the dealer (good reputation) with a approx 15’ straight vertical flue. Starting a fire is incredibly easy, which I attribute to the straight flue. I usually add a few pieces of paper with about 4 small kindling splits on top. I warm the flue by holding a lit piece of paper in it, then use that paper to light the remaining pieces in the fire box. No matter the outside temp, I’ve always been able to get a fire going very easily with that set up.
Once going I’ve found the temp very easy to control. I’ve been getting overnight burns with no problem, with enough coals in the firebox to toss some small splits on to get the fire going again.
Some of the negatives-
1)The air control lever is loose, and is only tightened by a small allen wrench screw that applies pressure to keep the handle attached to a small metal knob on the stove. Not a huge issue, but not sure why it’s not a better design.
2)On my first few small break in fires, I noticed a small amount of black colored “water stains” on my floor. Not sure if this was extra enamel dripping off or what. Luckily it did clean right up with a wet rag, and hasn’t happened since.
Overall, very happy. Feel free to ask any questions and I’ll answer them honestly.
We had the stove installed into a new addition that we had competed this past fall. The new room was our former 2 car garage that was converted into a approx 450 sq ft family room. The room has a 12 ft peaked ceiling with 4 very large windows and a 6’ glass sliding door. Spray foam insulation on the floors, ceiling and exterior walls. Besides the stove, we have a Mitsubishi mini split that we have not had to run at all while the stove has been in operation.
The stove was professional installed by the dealer (good reputation) with a approx 15’ straight vertical flue. Starting a fire is incredibly easy, which I attribute to the straight flue. I usually add a few pieces of paper with about 4 small kindling splits on top. I warm the flue by holding a lit piece of paper in it, then use that paper to light the remaining pieces in the fire box. No matter the outside temp, I’ve always been able to get a fire going very easily with that set up.
Once going I’ve found the temp very easy to control. I’ve been getting overnight burns with no problem, with enough coals in the firebox to toss some small splits on to get the fire going again.
Some of the negatives-
1)The air control lever is loose, and is only tightened by a small allen wrench screw that applies pressure to keep the handle attached to a small metal knob on the stove. Not a huge issue, but not sure why it’s not a better design.
2)On my first few small break in fires, I noticed a small amount of black colored “water stains” on my floor. Not sure if this was extra enamel dripping off or what. Luckily it did clean right up with a wet rag, and hasn’t happened since.
Overall, very happy. Feel free to ask any questions and I’ll answer them honestly.
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