Finished hearth for Progress Hybrid

[NectarNook]

We got our stove installed back in November, I believe. It's the only heat source in our home. I have to say, this is probably the single best investment we've made since we started building this house. It is very efficient, only burning about 1/4th what I'm used to burning. The coals last forever. I normally load 2-3 times during daylight hours to keep it burning above 400 degrees surface temperature, but when I damper it down for the night I've gone as long as 26 hours between reloads... and still had coals. I haven't had to use my lighter once since the first time I started it up back in November.

I am so in love with this stove! We have broken the record for the coldest winter here in northern Wisconsin. We passed our 50th day below zero last week, and it doesn't look like it'll be warming up any time soon. But we'll be roasty toasty in our house thanks to this stove. Love, love, LOVE it!

 

[toddnic]

Looks great! Glad you are enjoying that PH. We really love ours also.

 

[firefighterjake]

Great looking
hearth.

 

[HollowHill]

That looks fantastic! Very nice job for a very nice stove

 

[cableman]

That is sharp looking

 

[Bobbin]

That looks great. Functional, clean, and "tastefully accessorized". I like the quiet choice of tile color and texture in combination with the soapstone.

 

[BobUrban]

Very nice looking set up an stove. I really like the tools and hooks

 

[smokedragon]

We got our stove installed back in November, I believe. It's the only heat source in our home. I have to say, this is probably the single best investment we've made since we started building this house. It is very efficient, only burning about 1/4th what I'm used to burning. The coals last forever. I normally load 2-3 times during daylight hours to keep it burning above 400 degrees surface temperature, but when I damper it down for the night I've gone as long as 26 hours between reloads... and still had coals. I haven't had to use my lighter once since the first time I started it up back in November.

I am so in love with this stove! We have broken the record for the coldest winter here in northern Wisconsin. We passed our 50th day below zero last week, and it doesn't look like it'll be warming up any time soon. But we'll be roasty toasty in our house thanks to this stove. Love, love, LOVE it!

That is really awesome, love the hearth, the tools, just looks great.

Two questions:

1 - where did you get the tile from (I am considering a PH, and would love to retile my hearth.....think my wife will LOVE what you've done).

2 - Can you actually read that stove pipe thermometer where it is at?

 

[logger]

Looks great. How many sq ft total are you heating? I'm looking to upgrade from my Jotul Oslo (been a great stove) to something that will give us a little more heat and longer burn times. This winters been colder than most. We are heating roughly 2000 sq ft. I'm also wondering how old your split wood is, as I've heard the cats need very seasoned wood.

 

[Bobbin]

I was thinking about this hearth set up while I was "pickling" the ship lap paneling we're using as the ceiling on our porch. It occurred to me that if you didn't want to leave the bead board and the trim work in the natural "blonde" state, a pickled finish would look fabulous above and behind that handsome stove!

 

[NectarNook]

That is really awesome, love the hearth, the tools, just looks great.

Two questions:

1 - where did you get the tile from (I am considering a PH, and would love to retile my hearth.....think my wife will LOVE what you've done).

2 - Can you actually read that stove pipe thermometer where it is at?

1. I got the tile at Menards here in Wisconsin. http://www.menards.com/main/floorin...zed-porcelain-tile-12x12/p-1928433-c-6557.htm

2. Yes. I found it gave me a more accurate temperature there. That side of the stove is exposed to the hall, so I just walk to the side to see it. I'm pretty good at telling what the temperature is without looking, though, just by standing near it. This stove is very easy to operate.

 

[DIrtyJersey]

Beautiful!

 

[NectarNook]

Looks great. How many sq ft total are you heating? I'm looking to upgrade from my Jotul Oslo (been a great stove) to something that will give us a little more heat and longer burn times. This winters been colder than most. We are heating roughly 2000 sq ft. I'm also wondering how old your split wood is, as I've heard the cats need very seasoned wood.

Our floor plan is about 900 sq ft. Half of the house has 18' ceilings. The other half is covered by an 18'x22' open attic. So essentially it's about the same cubic area as a 2000 sq ft house. It's new construction, so it's well insulated. We have a ceiling fan over the great room that goes constantly to keep the air moving - seems to help stir the heat around.

The longest I've gone between reloads was 26 hours. And there were still enough coals that I didn't need a lighter. Tossed some logs and newspaper in and POOF! When I need to empty the ashes (because I opted not to get an ash pan), I load the stove before bed, then wait until the next evening to empty the ashes. It gets to where I have to wear a shawl around the house while I wait for the coals to burn down, but compared to the -20 outside it's still toasty. If I could find a longer-handled shovel I wouldn't need to wait so long. My shovel is dinky.

My wood is 2-3 years old. We had about 7 full cords stacked, and I estimate I'll go through 1/3rd of it this winter. We have about 13-15 acres of hardwoods on our land, so we'll easily be able to keep a few years ahead of the game. I noticed when I put a chunk of wood that has ice on it into the fire, it doesn't get as hot. The older wood burns REALLY well. So if you plan on getting a stove with a cat, might want to start stocking up on wood asap.

 

[rideau]

Delighted you've enjoyed the PH all winter. The high heat output potential of this stove is impressive, as is the ease of operation. Very attractive (and clean!) hearth. Notice you don't have the ashpan. How tall is your stack, and does your cat need regular brushing?

 

[rideau]

Looks great. How many sq ft total are you heating? I'm looking to upgrade from my Jotul Oslo (been a great stove) to something that will give us a little more heat and longer burn times. This winters been colder than most. We are heating roughly 2000 sq ft. I'm also wondering how old your split wood is, as I've heard the cats need very seasoned wood.

Look at the Woodstock website.They tested the PH with wet wood (close to 40% moisture content) and it burned just fine. Not that they recommend wet wood, but the stove can handle it very well indeed.

 

[NectarNook]

Delighted you've enjoyed the PH all winter. The high heat output potential of this stove is impressive, as is the ease of operation. Very attractive (and clean!) hearth. Notice you don't have the ashpan. How tall is your stack, and does your cat need regular brushing?

The stack is ~18' straight up. We get a good draft on most days. There have been a couple low pressure days where the fire was a bit slow, but nothing terrible. No, we didn't opt for the ash pan. I grew up heating with wood, so I'm used to cleaning it out with a shovel. I have to let it burn down every 10-14 days to get the ashes out. While I'm cleaning it out, I usually give the window a little rub down and vacuum out the cat. The cast iron cook top lifts up to give easy access. Here's a picture of what it looks like with the cook top all the way off. The cat pops right out. There's never much there, but I clean it anyway.

 

[smokedragon]

1. I got the tile at Menards here in Wisconsin. http://www.menards.com/main/floorin...zed-porcelain-tile-12x12/p-1928433-c-6557.htm

2. Yes. I found it gave me a more accurate temperature there. That side of the stove is exposed to the hall, so I just walk to the side to see it. I'm pretty good at telling what the temperature is without looking, though, just by standing near it. This stove is very easy to operate.

Thank you for your post, and your details. I am upgrading to a CAT stove, and the progress hybrid is my most likely candidate (I would have already ordered one if they weren't so expensive). Seeing reports like yours only makes me want it more.

With all the detail you have given, can you tell me one more thing. What is the temperature in the stove room and the furthest room (in the morning before reload and highest it gets).

Thanks,

Chris

 

[logger]

Look at the Woodstock website.They tested the PH with wet wood (close to 40% moisture content) and it burned just fine. Not that they recommend wet wood, but the stove can handle it very well indeed.

I was on their site quite a bit lately but will have to go back and check that out, very impressive, but like you said, not good or recommended. I'm pretty much sold on the PH and want to take a ride up there in the next month. My Oslo has been so good to us but If next winters anything like this one I'm gonna need some more horse power. I'm just wondering if the expensive move from the Oslo to PH is a good jump or more of a horizontal move as far as heat output goes.

 

[logger]

Our floor plan is about 900 sq ft. Half of the house has 18' ceilings. The other half is covered by an 18'x22' open attic. So essentially it's about the same cubic area as a 2000 sq ft house.
Tossed some logs and newspaper in and POOF.

Sounds like we have a similar setup. We have 18 ft of pipe up our cathedral ceiling but our masters up in the loft area. I'd be mindful burning newspaper in that nice stove. I've sworn by paper as a great and free starter my whole life until a few years back I found it was clogging my cap. Who knows if it could get caught in the cat. It's fat wood n super cedars for now on over here. Thanks for all your info, def helpful.

 

[NectarNook]

Thank you for your post, and your details. I am upgrading to a CAT stove, and the progress hybrid is my most likely candidate (I would have already ordered one if they weren't so expensive). Seeing reports like yours only makes me want it more.

With all the detail you have given, can you tell me one more thing. What is the temperature in the stove room and the furthest room (in the morning before reload and highest it gets).

Thanks,

Chris

During the day I burn around 400. There have only been a couple days (when it was like -40F outside!) that I burned at 500+. I honestly have no clue what the ambient temperature of the stove room or bedrooms are at any given time. During the day, it's cozy enough that I walk around in workout pants and a tank top. In the morning, we put on sweaters. I'd say it's probably 60 in the mornings, and the stove top temp is usually around 200 after burning down all night. I stir the coals, add new logs (haven't needed kindling), and leave the door cracked to get good air flow. It takes off within a couple minutes. I close the door when I feel like it won't snuff right out. Then it takes about 20-30 minutes to get up to 300, where I engage the catalyst. I don't damper it until it hits 400, then I put it at 1/2 closed.

It is very easy to get this stove hotter, but our home is on the small size for the range of this stove so we don't need to run it full tilt. My mom likes a HOT house, so when she stayed once she had it roaring all day long. I kid you not - she had it so hot in here that it melted all the snow off of our metal roof and the roof was steaming. It was like a sauna in here for a good 24 hours after I got home and killed the fire.

Oh, and at 400F surface temp, it takes about 12 minutes to bring 4 quarts of water to a rolling boil. In case you were curious.Someone else PM'd me about that.

 

[NectarNook]

That is our floor plan. Plus the open attic above the bedrooms/bathroom/stairs. The stove is almost perfectly central to the entire house. We only have the one ceiling fan in the great room that goes all the time. We get good air flow to the bedrooms so long as we keep the doors open during the day. We pulled the hearth about a foot into the hall to get proper clearances. Had toilet paper taped to the ceiling in the hall for the first couple months to see how the air was flowing, and it was constantly heading toward the bedrooms without the help of any fans. I keep a box fan near the stove to blow smoke away when I'm an idiot and forget to open the damper before I open the door. My kids think it's hilarious when mommy sets off the smoke alarm. Twice so far.

We have no duct work. No alternative main heat source. We have a kerosene heater that heats the entire house just fine in case of emergency. I was using it before the stove was installed, so I know it'll do in a pinch.

If you do go with the PH, wait until they have a sale. They knock $400 off and give free shipping. Plus, you can get $400 (I think) tax credit. That kind of savings is nothing to sneeze at. Might help.

 

[osagebow]

Snaaazzzy! Would love to have a stove closer to the kitchen.

 

[Nick Mystic]

Very nice looking setup . The old Woodstock Classic we have in the lower level of our home is the same color soap stone.

 

[logger]

forget to open the damper before I open the door.

So u guys had to put a key damper in? I have the same amount of pipe as you (18 ft) running up the cathedral ceiling and it's been great at giving our Oslo a perfect draft. I'm not sure why a damper would be needed w that amount of pipe. I'm only curious because I think we def decided on upgrading to the PH

 

[NectarNook]

So u guys had to put a key damper in? I have the same amount of pipe as you (18 ft) running up the cathedral ceiling and it's been great at giving our Oslo a perfect draft. I'm not sure why a damper would be needed w that amount of pipe. I'm only curious because I think we def decided on upgrading to the PH

Nope. The stove comes with the catalyst bypass lever in the front and a damper lever in the back. We didn't need an additional damper in the flue.

Maybe I'm calling it the wrong name? My parents always called it the damper.