Ideal Steel Bragging

[Dillier23]

No real info here, but I just passed 16 hours of 400+ degree heat out of my Ideal Steel. 15-25 degrees outside, 75 inside 3600 sq.ft installed in the basement.

Edited: Turns out there ended up being a good bit of information. Enjoy

 

[Babaganoosh]

Shhhhh be very very quiet before the blaze king fanboys see this.

 

[drz1050]

Nice! What type of wood? Large splits, or small ones stacked tight?

I like my Ashford, but the IS is definitely a kickass stove.

 

[SCOTT S.]

Shhhhh be very very quiet before the blaze king fanboys see this.

Not sure of other fanboys but to my way of thinking competition breeds innovation. I have heard many great things about the IS. And Woodstock in general. This can only make BK work harder to stay with the pack.Diller that is an awesome burn ,it's great to pick a product and have it exceed expectations.

 

[drz1050]

Not sure of other fanboys but to my way of thinking competition breeds innovation...

My thoughts exactly. Woodstock is coming out with the 211 Absolute Steel soon, and from preliminary reports that's also a very high performer. Slightly lower emissions than BK, and similar efficiency %'s.

Perhaps the Ashford/ Sirocco/ Chinook 40 is not too far away

 

[Dillier23]

Medium Red Oak splits and I started cold burning from the top. It's been 22 hours now and I just popped the air open to try and get it cool enough to reload. Most of the time it's been set at just under 1/4 open. Still at 350 degrees.

 

[freeburn]

No real info here, but I just passed 16 hours of 400+ degree heat out of my Ideal Steel. 15-25 degrees outside, 75 inside 3600 sq.ft installed in the basement.

Thanks for the info. This is Waiting for the right time to pull the trigger.

Medium Red Oak splits and I started cold burning from the top. It's been 22 hours now and I just popped the air open to try and get it cool enough to reload. Most of the time it's been set at just under 1/4 open. Still at 350 degrees.

I'm thrilled at your results since I've got this stove in my sights when they run their next sale. What is your chimney height age of house, insulation, etc?

 

[Babaganoosh]

I don't think Woodstock is trying to get the long burns that BK is known for, I think their real mission is to have the lowest emissions.

 

[Aranyic]

How many air adjustments do you need to keep the stovetop above 400 for say 12 hours? As the fuel burns down do you need to adjust it at all or is it pretty much set and forget from 7am to 7pm or whatever your loading schedule is?

Also how long of a split can you fit n/s comfortably.

 

[drz1050]

Well it seems the two things are correlated. The less nasties going up the flue means more of them are getting burned. Complete burning translates into higher efficiency. Higher efficiency translates into more BTUs out of one load, which = longer burn times.

There's obviously more to it than just this, as the Princess has a higher rated efficiency than the IS, yet also higher emissions.. does the EPA just take an average efficiency % between low & high burn, or is one weighed more heavily than the other? Woodstock has posted a table showing the different % between cold start/ high burns, but I haven't seen one of those from BK.

Not really sure how the EPA runs their tests either. Do they only run 2 burns? That seems like a very small sample... would be nice if they listed both high burn and low burn efficiency #'s.

 

[Dillier23]

Thanks for the info. This is Waiting for the right time to pull the trigger.

I'm thrilled at your results since I've got this stove in my sights when they run their next sale. What is your chimney height age of house, insulation, etc?

The house was built in 1979 with 2x4 walls, pretty good windows and decent insulation in the attic. From the stove to the top of the chimney is about 21 feet.

The air adjustments were minimal. After lighting last night and getting it going I left it just under a 1/4 open. When the wood starts to gas the temps will rise to 700-750 then fall and stay steady. This is where the BK's auto dampener would be nice, but it's right before bed and no one is in the basement to complain about being too hot. Lasts about an hour or so.

I've not loaded north south, but it seems 16 to 18 inches would be it. The top of the stove is tapered down toward the back, it would likely be a bit of a pain going that way.

 

[tarzan]

Not to take away from your stove but I think I'm even more impressed by your insulation!

 

[webby3650]

Not sure of other fanboys but to my way of thinking competition breeds innovation. I have heard many great things about the IS. And Woodstock in general. This can only make BK work harder to stay with the pack.Diller that is an awesome burn ,it's great to pick a product and have it exceed expectations.

I don't think BK is trying to stay with the "pack". They are a big player in the stove market, Woodstock only sells a fraction of the stoves annually.
That being said, being a small company is what makes them so appealing to many people.

 

[Babaganoosh]

I don't think BK is trying to stay with the "pack". They are a big player in the stove market, Woodstock only sells a fraction of the stoves annually.
That being said, being a small company is what makes them so appealing to many people.

That's ties into what I was saying about Woodstock. People keep comparing the two but the two companies aren't trying to be like each other. If they were then compare away, but they aren't so people should drop the apples to apples comparison when it's really an apples to oranges situation. But this being the internet common sense rarely prevails.

 

[webby3650]

That's ties into what I was saying about Woodstock. People keep comparing the two but the two companies aren't trying to be like each other. If they were then compare away, but they aren't so people should drop the apples to apples comparison when it's really an apples to oranges situation. But this being the internet common sense rarely prevails.

I agree. They are 2 totally different companies, with rock solid products! They are actually pretty good friends and do a bit of clean burning catalytic technology collaboration.

 

[Aranyic]

I agree. They are 2 totally different companies, with rock solid products! They are actually pretty good friends and do a bit of clean burning catalytic technology collaboration.

I think that's part of what makes it so tough to pick between the two. They both seem to do what they do very well. However then you've got to pick which points are more important to you. I'm probably going to be looking to upgrade over the spring/summer sometime if I see things go on sale. I love the deep firebox and the thermostat on the princess. Being able to load it up; set it and not have to worry about the kids needing to mess with it. It just produces heat.

Realistically I want to be on a 12 hr loading cycle 95% of the time. There may be a point when long would be nice but it'll be rare. And there might be times when I'm burning hot because it's extremely cold so those would be the minority also. That means the 12-14hr burn times on the IS are just fine for my purposes and I like the ash grate design. The wife likest he look of the IS better but it more concerned with function over looks if it's a significant difference. I'm not sure when you are looking at 12hr segments it takes all that much more to run an IS than it does a princess.

 

[DougA]

1. Another difference between the companies, Woodstock has chosen to NOT have any of their stoves CSA tested for the Canadian market. So any Canadians who might be thinking of buying should carefully check setbacks since you will have to use the 'uncertified stove' setbacks (a huge problem for most installations). I spoke to Woodstock about this a year ago and they said it was too expensive and not worth the cost. There are some disadvantages to bring a small company! I wish I could have bought one.

 

[Highbeam]

I don't think Woodstock is trying to get the long burns that BK is known for, I think their real mission is to have the lowest emissions.

I agree. They appear to be most interested in smaller stoves with low emissions and high efficiency.

Well it seems the two things are correlated. The less nasties going up the flue means more of them are getting burned. Complete burning translates into higher efficiency. Higher efficiency translates into more BTUs out of one load, which = longer burn times.

You would think so but look at the non-cat world, very low efficiency but also very low emissions. I recall my NC30 is about 1.6 gph which is way lower than my princess. Then the turn down rate for longer burns in unrelated to any of these. The old smoke dragons could be idled down to very low burn rates at very low efficiency, also my BK is pretty dirty but highly efficient with long burn times. It's a mishmash.

They both seem to do what they do very well. However then you've got to pick which points are more important to you.

For the love of god, don't make a list. The Woodstock fanboys will cry like little babies!

 

[Highbeam]

No real info here, but I just passed 16 hours of 400+ degree heat out of my Ideal Steel. 15-25 degrees outside, 75 inside 3600 sq.ft installed in the basement.

That's a solid accomplishment. You should be proud.

 

[SCOTT S.]

I agree. They are 2 totally different companies, with rock solid products! They are actually pretty good friends and do a bit of clean burning catalytic technology collaboration.

My point wasn't to directly compare the two products but rather in any business if you see another player in the game doing innovative things it can't help but get your creative juices flowing.If Chevy didn't come along would we all be driving model t's remember Chevy was a small boutique car company, If Toyota didn't come along would we still be driving the 100,000 mile and throw away cars of the 80s.Innovation and competition are great for the consumers. I was going to say keep BK ahead of the pack but didn't want to seem to seem to much like a fanboy.

 

[Hogwildz]

3600sf heated from the basement, with 2x4 walls, and running at 400+. Something just doesn't seem right.
Those ingredients just don't add up. Is there a furnace or other heat source helping out there?
Great results, but never heard anyone getting a place that large heated with thin walls and lower stove temps?
House must be super tight somehow. Congrats

 

[Dillier23]

3600sf heated from the basement, with 2x4 walls, and running at 400+. Something just doesn't seem right.
Those ingredients just don't add up. Is there a furnace or other heat source helping out there?
Great results, but never heard anyone getting a place that large heated with thin walls and lower stove temps?
House must be super tight somehow. Congrats

You are correct sir. During the night I heard the furnace kick on 4 or five times to supplement the upstairs, but during the day the furnace was quiet. I've got a large open stair case next to and above the stove with a fan circulating the cool air upstairs into the basement. There is a column of warm air that gets pulled up the opening that keeps the upstairs at 68 typically.

The point of the thread was to give first hand experience with just how long this stove will put out good heat. Useful info for someone wanting to supplement in a larger home or as a primary heater in a smaller home.

 

[JA600L]

You know a picture would help set the scene for this thread. .

 

[Dillier23]

Here you go.

https://www.hearth.com/talk/threads/ideal-steel-finally-finished-pic-heavy.145906/#post-1965898

 

[LocustBurner]

You are correct sir. During the night I heard the furnace kick on 4 or five times to supplement the upstairs, but during the day the furnace was quiet.
The point of the thread was to give first hand experience with just how long this stove will put out good heat. Useful info for someone wanting to supplement in a larger home or as a primary heater in a smaller home.

We are doing the same thing at our house. The heat pump usually runs in the early morning.