New Member With Questions Re: Lange 6302A Stove

[Windswept]

Good day everyone,

I recently purchased a house that for decades has been heated primarily by a beautiful blue Lange 6302A stove in the living room. The exterior of the stove is in good shape but the interior baffle is badly warped and cracked, the interior rear liner is missing and the damper plate that operates the baffle is curved (and I assume warped). Replacement parts from Woodsmans Parts Plus will cost over $500 with shipping.

I like the fact that this stove can keep a fire going overnight, and that it can take longer logs. I don't like that it will cost such a big chunk of $$ to fix the stove and that the stove does not have a window so that one can see the fire.

So my first question is, is it worth the cost to fix this stove, or is there another model wood stove that I should be looking for used that can be had in this same price range, a stove that can keep a fire overnight and that has a good sized firebox (and that has a window)? I am looking to heat a home of about 1600 square feet.

My second question is, if I decide to repair the Lange, how do I use it properly? I haven't a clue how to make use of the upper chamber feature. Does one close the damper plate when lighting and open it for burning? There are two dampers in the front of the stove, one above the other. How does one use these to best effect?

Thanks very much,

Kevin

 

[begreen]

The Lange is a classic and a decent heater. If the exterior is in good shape then yes, it can be brought back to like new operating condition. I would recommend a complete teardown and rebuild at this age. Whether that is worth it to you or not is your decision. For frame of reference a fully restored one in peak season can go from $800 to $1200. Personally I really like them. If it were my stove I would invest in it for another 25 yrs of life.

 

[Windswept]

Thanks for the information, begreen. It is a beautiful stove so I am leaning in the direction of rebuilding it. Regarding my second question, how does one operate the upper baffle and the lower two dampers to maximize heat and efficiency?

 

[begreen]

I've come close, but have never had the good fortune to own a Lange. It's good to hear you want to restore it.

As far as operation, what do you mean by operating the upper baffle? As far as I recall there are only two air controls on this stove. The lower one can be thought of as the start up control. It puts air down low at the base of the fire. The upper air control provides air for secondary combustion to burn unburnt gases as they make the turn around the baffle. Start the fire with at least the bottom air control open full. Once the fire is going well close down the lower control until it is just a little open and open up the upper control a bit. You'll have to experiment a while to get this right. It depends on the wood and the stage of the burn. Basically you start off feeding air to the base of the fire and gradually switch to feeding much more secondary air than bottom air. You may find with good dry wood that you can almost close off the lower control completely. A stove top thermometer and an eye on the chimney cap for smoke will guide you. To get the best results only burn fully seasoned wood.

 

[Windswept]

Thank you - that helps. What I mean by operating the upper baffle is the pushing or pulling of the threaded rod that controls the opening in the baffle to the upper chamber. The two lower dampers are the two round controls, one above the other, that control air flow to the lower chamber.

 

[begreen]

Cool. Now you are teaching me. I didn't know about that feature. I just looked at the parts diagram and see it has a bypass. That should be open for starting or reloading the stove and closed once it is burning well.

 

[Windswept]

So the baffle to the upper chamber should be open while starting or reloading the stove? Sorry, I'm a bit confused..

 

[begreen]

Yes. This is usually called a bypass because it bypasses the circuitous smokepath around the baffle to a straight up the flue option.

 

[Windswept]

Ah - that makes sense.. Thanks for the clarification.

 

[dbrenn08]

New member here looking for instructions on proper operation of this model lange stove. I just bought a house with a Lange model 6302A black wood stove. I am new to wood stoves and was hoping for step by step instructions on how to light and operate this stove properly. I saw this post and thought I might get some help from someone with the same stove. Thank you.

 

[BeachBumm]

New member here looking for instructions on proper operation of this model lange stove. I just bought a house with a Lange model 6302A black wood stove. I am new to wood stoves and was hoping for step by step instructions on how to light and operate this stove properly. I saw this post and thought I might get some help from someone with the same stove. Thank you.

Did you find the answers for your new stove? I used the same stove for many years, if you need some tips.