F 500 V3 Oslo CF

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Sailrmike

Feeling the Heat
Sep 20, 2017
296
06371
I pulled the trigger on a new Oslo last night!!! The good folks at Preston Trading Post will be delivering a week from Friday, and I can't wait to get that baby onto my hearth. I had a great conversation with the owner about Jotul's combustor r&d, as well as some of their manufacturing processes- he and his hearth manager have done training on Jotul's production line in Maine. I was little apprehensive about going with a fully cast iron constructed stove, but after discussing this with the pros at Preston Trading, I am convinced that this stove is very robust. Jotul has been working with cast iron for well over 100 yrs, I think they have it pretty well figured out lol.

As Tim from Jotul North America says:

" May your wood be dry, and your draft be strong "
 
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I pulled the trigger on a new Oslo last night!!! The good folks at Preston Trading Post will be delivering a week from Friday, and I can't wait to get that baby onto my hearth. I had a great conversation with the owner about Jotul's combustor r&d, as well as some of their manufacturing processes- he and his hearth manager have done training on Jotul's production line in Maine. I was little apprehensive about going with a fully cast iron constructed stove, but after discussing this with the pros at Preston Trading, I am convinced that this stove is very robust. Jotul has been working with cast iron for well over 100 yrs, I think they have it pretty well figured out lol.

As Tim from Jotul North America says:

" May your wood be dry, and your draft be strong "
Yeah I have absolutely zero concerns about jotuls castings. They have always been fantastic. It is the design of the new v3 combustion system that concerns me. I hope it works well for you and turns out to be durable
 
Yeah I have absolutely zero concerns about jotuls castings. They have always been fantastic. It is the design of the new v3 combustion system that concerns me. I hope it works well for you and turns out to be durable
Thanks very much. I'm hoping that the non-cat portion of the v3 will perform like the pre-2020 stoves. The catalyst and surrounding components (insulation panels, expansion gasket, etc.) are new and unproven in this stove. My plan is to operate the stove just like a non-cat, having the secondaries do most of the work. I want to avoid overwhelming the cat with too much smoke, and see if that keeps the v3 happy.
 
Thanks very much. I'm hoping that the non-cat portion of the v3 will perform like the pre-2020 stoves. The catalyst and surrounding components (insulation panels, expansion gasket, etc.) are new and unproven in this stove. My plan is to operate the stove just like a non-cat, having the secondaries do most of the work. I want to avoid overwhelming the cat with too much smoke, and see if that keeps the v3 happy.
The issue I have is you can't operate it like a noncat. There is no bypass the cat is always in play
 
The issue I have is you can't operate it like a noncat. There is no bypass the cat is always in play
I see your perspective. Imagine a scenario where there is no combustor present in the v3. I would build an efficient, hot fire in the box. The secondary air would light off and burn most of the remaining particulants under the baffle, creating hot and relatively clean exhaust. Without a combustor present, the exhaust would flow above the baffle and exit the stove. That same scenario, but with a combustor present above the baffle, i would estimate that there is not very much fuel remaining in the exhaust to cause the combustor's internal temperature to rise to damaging levels. That's just my theory, I'm curious as to what you all think.
 
I see your perspective. Imagine a scenario where there is no combustor present in the v3. I would build an efficient, hot fire in the box. The secondary air would light off and burn most of the remaining particulants under the baffle, creating hot and relatively clean exhaust. Without a combustor present, the exhaust would flow above the baffle and exit the stove. That same scenario, but with a combustor present above the baffle, i would estimate that there is not very much fuel remaining in the exhaust to cause the combustor's internal temperature to rise to damaging levels. That's just my theory, I'm curious as to what you all think.
Congratulations. Preston has good folks and they know Jotul well. You will be teaching us about the new stove. I look forward to hearing about your experiences with the v3. And of course some pics please.
 
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Thanks very much. I'm hoping that the non-cat portion of the v3 will perform like the pre-2020 stoves. The catalyst and surrounding components (insulation panels, expansion gasket, etc.) are new and unproven in this stove. My plan is to operate the stove just like a non-cat, having the secondaries do most of the work. I want to avoid overwhelming the cat with too much smoke, and see if that keeps the v3 happy.
What did you do with your F55? That would have been a stove to snatch up.
 
Congratulations. Preston has good folks and they know Jotul well. You will be teaching us about the new stove. I look forward to hearing about your experiences with the v3. And of course some pics please.
Thanks begreen!
 
My F55 will be picked up by Preston Trading, they will be adding it to their used stove dept. Should be a great deal for someone looking for pre-2020. I ran about 10 cords of oak thru it and all my sweep found was white powder, cap didn't have any buildup.
Is this in the US?
 
Preston Trading Post is in Preston, Ct. a couple miles west of the Foxwoods Casino.
They may not appreciate giving their name and location out considering they are in violation of federal law by selling pre 2020 stoves
 
My F55 will be picked up by Preston Trading, they will be adding it to their used stove dept. Should be a great deal for someone looking for pre-2020. I ran about 10 cords of oak thru it and all my sweep found was white powder, cap didn't have any buildup.
They may not appreciate giving their name and location out considering they are in violation of federal law by selling pre 2020 stoves
To clarify. It is not illegal for a stove shop to sell a used, EPA certified wood stove as long as it meets state requirements.

Can retailers resell used appliances under the NSPS? Yes. The NSPS is a “new source performance standard,” which means it does not set standards for existing sources. ...
 
Closer to 200 years than 100.

I like how this stove functions, if it works as claimed. Run it just like an old stove....easy. I like the CAT’s open design. Let’s hope this design is a success.

One thing you might ask your dealer about though, just so you know. Find out what the maximum operating temperature is and then find out what the over-fire temperature is. You might be surprised how close those numbers are together. I’d be really careful of runningany modern stove to maximum just if solely for warranty purposes. Too many stoves today have those numbers too close together in my opinion and that places far too much emphasis on user error for my liking and takes the responsibility away from manufacturer design responsibility.
 
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To clarify. It is not illegal for a stove shop to sell a used, EPA certified wood stove as long as it meets state requirements.

Can retailers resell used appliances under the NSPS? Yes. The NSPS is a “new source performance standard,” which means it does not set standards for existing sources. ...
Really? We were given inaccurate info then. Disregard my previous statement in that case.
 
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Closer to 200 years than 100.

I like how this stove functions, if it works as claimed. Run it just like an old stove....easy. I like the CAT’s open design. Let’s hope this design is a success.

One thing you might ask your dealer about though, just so you know. Find out what the maximum operating temperature is and then find out what the over-fire temperature is. You might be surprised how close those numbers are together. I’d be really careful of runningany modern stove to maximum just if solely for warranty purposes. Too many stoves today have those numbers too close together in my opinion and that places far too much emphasis on user error for my liking and takes the responsibility away from manufacturer design responsibility.
Oh yes, I don't let any stove run on high setting very long. And I use stove top and double wall probe thermometers to try and stay ahead of any overfire conditions. My F55 had a max operation temp of 700F on the cooktop. I never needed to pysh it that hard, 600-650F makes plenty of heat. With the new Oslo, I'm just going to put 3-4 splits in at a time and run it on a medium to medium-low setting. Give it a good long break in period before loading up full.
 
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The only potential problems with the Jotul V3 that I can see are:
  • A malfunction of the thermostatic secondary air adjustment mechanism
  • Clogging of the catalyst. Since air passes through it horizontally I'm not sure what would keep ash from accumulating there. It looks easy enough to clean out though, especially if you leave your stove top loose as I do.
 
Any properly designed thermostat device should be designed to close in a failure situation. If it’s not designed that way I would really be skeptical of the stove itself.
 
The only potential problems with the Jotul V3 that I can see are:
  • A malfunction of the thermostatic secondary air adjustment mechanism
  • Clogging of the catalyst. Since air passes through it horizontally I'm not sure what would keep ash from accumulating there. It looks easy enough to clean out though, especially if you leave your stove top loose as I do.
Also thermal shock to the cat because of the lack of a bypass. And smoke going through the cat before it is active every time could cause issues as well. Or warping because of the size of the cat.

I really hope it works it is a nice simple design. If it holds up.
 
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Any properly designed thermostat device should be designed to close in a failure situation. If it’s not designed that way I would really be skeptical of the stove itself.
I think how this thermostat works is by restricting a good portion of secondary air until the stove gets up to operating temp, then it starts to open to give appropriate amount of secondary and catalyst air. It's for pollution control, not stove control if that makes any sense lol
 
Any properly designed thermostat device should be designed to close in a failure situation. If it’s not designed that way I would really be skeptical of the stove itself.
Even if it stayed open it might not harm things greatly. Most stoves outside of some PEs and this Jotul have an unregulated, open secondary feed.
 
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And now it's time for the big reveal!
But first, some stove chow:
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Built 7/22/2020, my Oslo :

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This is the ash house. There's a small hole on the left side, and a somewhat larger hole on the right side. I'm assuming these supply the tiny bit of under-fire air noted in the manual.
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This is the ash house door, notice the spring located in the door handle assembly. As the door gasket compresses, this spring will expand and keep the door tight and leak free, with no adjustments required! Front and side load doors are set up similarly.


Thanks to Preston Trading Post for an easy stove swap.
 
Man that’s a great looking stove! I hope it performs flawlessly for you. I wish they offered that side load door on the other side as well.
 
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Great looking stove! I just pulled the trigger on one yesterday. I noticed that there is what looks like caulking on the lower corners of the inside of the right wall. Did I see that wrong?

When is the baptism of fire?
 
Great looking stove! I just pulled the trigger on one yesterday. I noticed that there is what looks like caulking on the lower corners of the inside of the right wall. Did I see that wrong?

When is the baptism of fire?
Thanks. I think what you're seeing is the furnace cement that is used to seal cast iron components together. In the manufacturing process, excess cement is pushed out of the joints. Congrats on your new stove! First fire won't be for a while, have to file building permit, attach connector, do something about floor protection for my side load door . I'm thinking I'll be ready some time in October lol