Todd said:I have no problem getting up to 600. It takes good seasoned hardwood on top of a good bed of coals. If you have a good bed of coals, reload with a full load, get it going on the 2-4 setting for about 10-20 minutes or when the wood is good and charred, bring the air down to 1 and engage the cat, leave it there for about 10 minutes and watch the temp rise, then bring the air down to your lowest setting to maintain a flame. If you get down and look up at the cat you should see it glow orange.
cozy heat said:Maybe some smaller splits would increase the surface area burning and get your temp up a little. I had my ol stove up to 640F last night burning up some sticks, leaves, and a few scraps of pine pallet wood. I didn't keep it there long - half an hour of that was enough to keep the house warm through the night. It's just not very cold here yet!
I find when I'm going back and forth between flames and no flames, I'm subject to back puffing as gasses build up in the stove and then ignite. Its cool to watch but gets smoke in my house. I either keep the damper open just a hair more than that point, or at this time of year, Once the stove is good and hot, shut it down even further, so it stops reigniting and let it smolder its way through a long burn. The cat is happily glowing away chewing up the smolderings and I have no smoke from my chimney. Its not pretty to watch but effective when you need some heat but not too much. My stove top will then stay in the 400-500 range for quite a while though this time of year I too am burning old elm, hemlock, small red maple, poplar. I throw the stove a small bone of oak, hickory, mixed in here or there, especially if a need coals 8-9 hours down the road.Right now, my ideal setting is right at 1. The flames may go out from time to time, but as long as that cat is glowing, you’re in business.