Jotul F500 vs Blaze King princess insert

[Todd]

What’s your floor plan look like? The Jotul is more radiant heater and would be better for an open floor plan and high ceilings. An insert is more convective and you really need a blower to move the heat. Lowers can also be noisy.

For a longer burn time in the F500 try filling up the ash pan. There are a couple unrestricted air holes in the ash pan housing that can make this stove run hot. Pipe damper will work as well for your tall chimney.

 

[Erie Snowbelt]

BKVP What is FBV?

Todd It is not an open floor plan. But the family room the stove is in has a opening to the rest of the house at one end and the other end.
Also the one end is right beside the stairs going to the second floor. We get pretty good circulation but I would like more to reach
far rooms upstairs. I did put a fan in the upstairs hallway blowing cold air toward the stairs and stove. Over all it seems to work
pretty well.

 

[stoveliker]

Firebox volume, I presume

 

[Erie Snowbelt]

Ok, that makes sense.

 

[spudman99]

I have a PI29 insert on a 30' exterior brick chimney. I installed a key damper 4" above the insert adapter. Had to drill a hole in the front brick surround to connect a steel rod then clamped to the key damper to make it work. Not the easiest to do so keep that in mind. I have a manometer to measure draft. Prior to damper, the stove would run .20 wc on high in cold weather. With damper it drops to 0.17 wc. Not a real big difference. I have never gotten anywhere close to the 0.08wc recommended by BK. Still, the unit chuggs along just fine and I can get 12 hour burns with ease. Fan is definitely noisy, a constant hum so you have to get used to that. For me the 8am/8pm load cycle trumps my use for fitting into my schedule. Thus the stove compliments me rather than me complimenting the stove.

 

[Erie Snowbelt]

To put in a damper I have to move the stove out away from the fireplace opening. That would not be easy. It is up off the floor on a hearth.
I have not measured the actual length. Close to 30 ft is my guess. Thanks for the info spudman99

 

[bigealta]

For the F500 - If you have the 2 unrestricted air holes in the ashpan housing sides walls, try putting a magnet over each one or a bolt in each one. There is a thread about this somewhere here. It has helped a few others with drafts that were to strong.