New member- new to wood stoves

[JoeGibs]

Hello forum! I’ve been doing a lot of reading the last few weeks about wood stoves as I’m putting one in my finished pole barn. Every time I googled a question it always directed me to this forum. Excellent source of information!! I’m new to wood stoves and have never owned one before, so forgive me if some questions seem… dumb.. I have much to learn, and priority number one is don’t burn down the barn.

After much research, mostly from lurking on the forum, I chose a blaze king as my stove of choice for the efficiency and slow burn capabilities, and was able to pick up one off of fb marketplace for a good price. It came with some piping that I’m not sure will all work, so I’m in the process of getting all the pieces I need for installation.

My first question is about the collar that connects to the stove. There's a piece that came with that fits to the collar, but logic suggests that it should fit over the outside of the collar, not sit on the inside. But reading the blaze king manual from the interwebs, it says that it should sit inside the collar for any distillates to fall back into the stove. Is this correct?

The stove also came with a couple sections of class A piping that I intend to use, but the problem with that is it's 6" pipe, and the collar coming off of the stove is 8". Is it possible/safe to use a reduction to 6" so I can utilize the 60" of 6" class A piping I have or should I suck it up and purchase 8" class A to run through the ceiling and the roof?

With a metal ceiling and blown in insulation in the attic, how far below the ceiling does the class A need to begin? The ceiling to the roof in my desired stove placement is approximately 26", and i'm assuming class A needs to run all the way to the chimney cap? I'm also guessing the insulation needs to be pushed away from piping? I had intended on getting a larger diameter pipe to set around the pipe to ensure the insulation doesn't touch the pipe.

The stove did not come with a blower. Do I need one to operate the stove, or is it an added luxury that isn't required?

How do I determine if the catalyst is still functional? I understand that they wear out with mileage, but is that another luxury item, or is it required to operate the stove?

My initial plan for a stove was to build a double barrel type stove, with the top barrel being a big heat exchanger. Would I be goofy to build the top barrel portion to attach to this stove? It seems like a good way to capture additional heat that would otherwise be sent out the chimney.

Thank you in advance for sharing your input. I'm excited to get this installed and have a warm barn!

 

[begreen]

It's a very old model. If a non-cat it's going to eat a lot of wood to achieve a long burn. Other than a big metal box, there may not be not a lot in common with the modern catalytic BK. If it's a pre-cat BK, the class A piping, if a good brand and in good condition, is worth more than the stove.

Is there a UL tag with the model number on it? Is the piece that fit on the stove for single-wall or double-wall stove pipe?

 

[JoeGibs]

It's a very old model. If a non-cat it's going to eat a lot of wood to achieve a long burn. Other than a big metal box, there may not be not a lot in common with the modern catalytic BK. If it's a pre-cat BK, the class A piping, if a good brand and in good condition, is worth more than the stove.

Is there a UL tag with the model number on it? Is the piece that fit on the stove for single-wall or double-wall stove pipe?

I will check it out for any ID tags when I’m at the property on Wednesday, but I don’t recall there being any. It does indeed have a cat, just curious to visually see if it’s still good, or if I’ll find out when I run it. The piece of pipe that fits the collar is a double wall, but not insulated like the class A pipe I have. The pipe is at home so I’ll grab a picture when I get home from work

 

[begreen]

That's correct, double-wall stove pipe is not insulated like Class A chimney pipe. Double-wall stove pipe is the right thing to use on catalytic stoves due to the lower flue gas temps.

This is an early unit. With a cat, I am wondering if it is a KEJ1101? @BKVP should be able to identify it. Or hopefully, the UL tag is still on it. If no tag on the back it is considered an unlisted stove which have special clearance and hearth requirements. Make sure the insurance company is ok with that.

 

[BKVP]

Can you post some more pictures? Specifically the full front and the right hand side.

BeGreen, thank you. I think you could be spot on about the KEJ1101. OP can look inside, through the flue collar. If the combustor is oval, BeGreen wins! We only ever made a single model with an oval shaped combustor. More picture will help.

BKVP

 

[JoeGibs]

I knew this would be the right place to come to learn more about the stove I bought! Attached is the only other picture I took of the stove before I left for home, I’ll grab more when I’m there tomorrow. Also attached a link to the first piece of pipe that I mentioned that fits the stove collar. It doesn’t appear I’ll be able to use it unless I do go forward with making a barrel heat exchanger and cut the hole to fit that pipe. Otherwise Menards has an 8” to 6” double wall reducer that should fit the stove collar and get me to the 6” pipe size that I need to utilize the class A pipe that came with the stove. LinkToPipe

 

[BKVP]

In the upper right hand corner of the the door opening is a button. That control controls the bypass plate operation. Early EPA stoves often hand devices to help consumer remember to close their bypass plates.

That feature was only ever used in the the KE1100 and KE1101. The 1100 was a precursor to stoves emissions testing and is not EPA approved. The 1101 was the very first emissions tested and approved wood heater under the 1984 OM-& test method, certificate #0001.

If the combustor is oval, you have an 1101. If the combustor is round, you have an 1100.

BKVP

 

[JoeGibs]

I won't be making a run to the property today so more pictures will have to wait. Question though- what's the deal with the EPA approved or not status? Will insurance require the stove to be EPA approved to be covered?

 

[BKVP]

I won't be making a run to the property today so more pictures will have to wait. Question though- what's the deal with the EPA approved or not status? Will insurance require the stove to be EPA approved to be covered?

Not usually. However, insurance agencies are more concerned about:

1) did you get a permit
2) was a follow-up inspection done
3) did the installation meet the requirements.

In order to confirm all the above, they will likely want to see the safety label which has the model number. On that model, the label is on the lower portion of the back of the stove.

BKVP

 

[JoeGibs]

Thank you so much for all the information sir, it's very much appreciated. I didn't realize this was a permit type operation, but makes sense being it's something that can easily burn down a structure if installed incorrectly. This is something that should have been done over the summer, but other projects kept coming up, and now i'm trying to hurry it along before it gets too cold out.

For the piping to be code compliant, will it need to be double wall all the way until it gets to the class A, or is single wall stove pipe acceptable? Also, in your opinion, is it worth installing this stove or should I dump it back on FB marketplace to find something better? I thought I was getting something decent with the blaze king despite its age, but now you have me second guessing myself.

 

[BKVP]

I won't be making a run to the property today so more pictures will have to wait. Question though- what's the deal with the EPA approved or not status? Will insurance require the stove to be EPA approved to be covered?

Not usually. However, insurance agencies are more concerned about:

1) did you get a permit
2) was a follow-up inspection done
3) did the installation meet the requirements.

In order to confirm all the above, they will likely want to see the safety label which has the model number. On that model, the label is on the lower portion of the back of the stove.

BKV

Thank you so much for all the information sir, it's very much appreciated. I didn't realize this was a permit type operation, but makes sense being it's something that can easily burn down a structure if installed incorrectly. This is something that should have been done over the summer, but other projects kept coming up, and now i'm trying to hurry it along before it gets too cold out.

For the piping to be code compliant, will it need to be double wall all the way until it gets to the class A, or is single wall stove pipe acceptable? Also, in your opinion, is it worth installing this stove or should I dump it back on FB marketplace to find something better? I thought I was getting something decent with the blaze king despite its age, but now you have me second guessing myself.

Wait until you confirm exact model. Post pictures of the inside (under the top) and through flue collar. Then condition will help me and others provide valuable guidance.

BKVP

 

[yooperdave]

Not usually. However, insurance agencies are more concerned about:

1) did you get a permit
2) was a follow-up inspection done
3) did the installation meet the requirements.

In order to confirm all the above, they will likely want to see the safety label which has the model number. On that model, the label is on the lower portion of the back of the stove.

BKV

Wait until you confirm exact model. Post pictures of the inside (under the top) and through flue collar. Then condition will help me and others provide valuable guidance.

BKVP

Probably the way it is in Walla Walla.

Around here, about the only thing the insurance company requires is #3, thankfully!

 

[BKVP]

Probably the way it is in Walla Walla.

Around here, about the only thing the insurance company requires is #3, thankfully!

I'm afraid you're correct about Walla Walla, but I'll also wager I'm correct in more places than not....again, unfortunately.

BKVP

 

[JoeGibs]

Looks like the tag says PEJ-1000 with a round combustor.

 

[BKVP]

Ok, that is rare. We had 8 factories in back then, yours was made in Oklahoma. If you look up inside, you should see some air tubes.

If they are still there...you own the first hybrid wood stove! It was not EPA approved nor Oregon approved. But it's still rare.

You can measure the diameter of the combustor and it's probably 5.66".

After you confirm the diameter, you can order one at www.firecatcombustors.com

You should be able to find a manual on our website, under Archived Manuals.

BKVP

 

[JoeGibs]

Measuring tape was hooked on the outside ring, so inside diameter I’m guessing is just about 5.66. Also there’s a trap door as seen from the top. Is that supposed to be closed?

 

[begreen]

The bypass door is open to start and get the cat and stove up to temperature. Once it is over 500º then the bypass is closed. This is probably a good time to replace the bypass gasket and front door gasket too.

 

[JoeGibs]

Pardon my noob-ish-ness, but does this function on its own, or is this something the user controls? I’ll pick up some new gaskets, I saw them while trolling around in menards picking up chimney goodies.

 

[begreen]

Manual operation. There should be a lever to control it. On the right side?

 

[BKVP]

Pull the knob on the right side forward. When you do this, the bypass plate opens and that little round button should also move outward.

When you close the front door, it makes contact with the button and starts the bypass plate closure. You have to push the handle rearward to finish closing the bypass.

Do not buy gaskets at Menard's. You need 1.25" door rope gasket (dense) and 5/8" bypass gasket (dense). Try local fireplace shops and tell them it has to be dense or you won't get a tight seal.

 

[BKVP]

Read this....