New unknown stove, Please help with type, etc?

[C.H.A.O.S.]

I just purchased a stove today. My husband and I are in an emergent situation where our new place will be without electricity for approximately 6 weeks. We needed a heat source but are very limited on space and budget. I found this stove I guess would be described as a parlor stove? It has no interior pieces and I can’t imagine that wood just sits in the bottom of this thing without some sort of grate. I’m trying to locate an installer now, but I’m worried I bought something that may be inappropriate or inadequate to our needs. Our home is 284 square feet with no interior walls.
Markings on the stove are only the numbers “513” and the words “little Grater” on the front, aluminum? piece. Just need to confirm this is indeed a wood burning stove and not some strange coal stove or simply a decorative piece.

Help Thank you!

 

[bholler]

I just purchased a stove today. My husband and I are in an emergent situation where our new place will be without electricity for approximately 6 weeks. We needed a heat source but are very limited on space and budget. I found this stove I guess would be described as a parlor stove? It has no interior pieces and I can imagine that wood just sits in the bottom of this thing without some sort of grate. I’m trying to locate an installer now, but I’m worried I bought something that may be inappropriate or inadequate to our needs. Our home is 284 square feet with no interior walls.
Markings on the stove are only the numbers “513” and the words “little Grater” on the front, aluminum? piece. Just need to confirm this is indeed a wood burning stove and not some strange coal stove or simply a decorative piece.

Help Thank you!

Link Removed

Looks like a coal stove to me

 

[john26]

That looks like a coal stove should be a round grate on the bottom they are not the best for burning wood especially 24/7. There are people that burn wood in them if you are going to use it I would recommend putting some fire bricks in the bottom and make sure there is nothing combustible with in 3 feet of the stove. Honestly I would highly recommend getting something newer it will be safer and a lot easier to operate also you will need to find or buy some decent dry seasoned wood.

 

[C.H.A.O.S.]

That looks like a coal stove should be a round grate on the bottom they are not the best for burning wood especially 24/7. There are people that burn wood in them if you are going to use it I would recommend putting some fire bricks in the bottom and make sure there is nothing combustible with in 3 feet of the stove. Honestly I would highly recommend getting something newer it will be safer and a lot easier to operate also you will need to find or buy some decent dry seasoned wood.

This thing is like new. It was completely redone per the seller but never hooked up to use. I’m baffled as to manufacturer, type, and age, but it’s one of the few for sale in our area with no cracks, etc that would fit the space. With only 284 square feet, every inch is precious.

 

[C.H.A.O.S.]

Looks like a coal stove to me

I wondered about that. But I would t know the difference although I would assume coal would have to be heavier duty since it burns hotter.

 

[bholler]

I wondered about that. But I would t know the difference although I would assume coal would have to be heavier duty since it burns hotter.

Not true at all wood will burn much hotter in a coal stove than coal typically does

 

[coaly]

I wondered about that. But I would t know the difference although I would assume coal would have to be heavier duty since it burns hotter.

It's called a barrel stove. A design of a parlor stove. A pot belly and many stove models are all cast iron. These were designed to be able to replace the round barrel part easily when they burned through.

You "can" burn wood in any coal stove, but not efficiently. You cannot burn coal in a wood stove. The difference is coal must have all the air coming up through the coal bed. They will have a grate the coal sits on and a burn pot (the round portion at bottom) with a liner of furnace cement or cast iron hopper to hold the coal like a basket. Wood doesn't care where air comes from. Normally wood is burned on a brick or sand bottom so the wood doesn't get too much air under it to make it burn longer. On a grate, it gets far too much air and burns too fast. It will not hold a fire overnight. So burning wood, you leave about an inch of ash on the bottom when cleaning to allow the coals to build up in the ash bed and prolong the fire.

Coal stoves normally have movable grates. That means they rock or swivel with a handle attached to shake the grate. You should see a small hole at the grate level where a handle inserts if it had a movable grate. The ash falls into the ash pan below where the air also comes up from the bottom.

You need to buy a stove to match the heated area as well as chimney you will be using. If you already have a chimney, you need a stove with the same size outlet as the existing flue. Wood stoves will be long and narrow, the shape of wood, or square with a glass door for fire viewing. Burning wood in a coal stove takes very short pieces and won't burn long.

The smallest of stoves are going to heat 1000 sf. This one with coal will heat a larger area than you think. Are you heating a below grade cement block basement, or insulated building? That makes a big difference. Also the chimney you have may or may not make the stove work. The chimney is more important than the stove.

The coal fire in the burn chamber burns hotter, which is why there is a liner, but the stove, pipe and chimney will get much hotter with wood. Coal is an even steady heat. Wood cycles hot and warm with constant variation and loading. When you start a coal fire with wood, the stack temp (pipe surface temperature) will rise to 350* or higher with wood, then as the coal catches it drops to about 150 where it will stay. But the stove radiates more since the heat remains constant for a longer period of time. (normally until you let it go out)

#1 question is do you have dry wood ready to go?

 

[coaly]

If you're looking for a professional installer, they are going to only install it legally. That requires a UL Listed stove with a UL tag. If not in the area pictured with all non-combustible materials, many other restrictions apply as well as not installing in sleeping area. Only very large bedrooms with plenty of cubic feet of fresh air sometimes allow such an installation, or vents through doors into other areas to prevent it from using your breathing oxygen. A sleeping area requires an outdoor air intake for combustion air. It can't use your breathing oxygen. This is any appliance that uses combustion for heat such as an unvented propane appliance. They all have to have an outdoor air supply directly connected to appliance. Your state adopted the International Family of Codes 2015 edition that requires all appliances to be UL Listed. (tested to UL testing criteria) So any stove or appliance has to have a UL tag affixed to be considered UL approved.

 

[C.H.A.O.S.]

#1 question is do you have dry wood ready to go?

Nothing in Oklahoma is dry right now.

Thank you for all of that info. My Mind is blown with how little I actually know about this.
There are no interior pieces inside. Where does one go about finding a shaker grate or any grate or “cast iron hopper” when I can’t even identify the make and model?

 

[coaly]

Dry means seasoned. It takes a year or more to dry, already cut and split wood for burning in a stove.

You likely won't find grates or liners. I collect stoves, and many I have had for years I'm looking for parts. Usually end up making my own, or find someone with the same model with the part I need, make a wood pattern, like the part you need made of wood, and press in sand. I pour molten iron in a mold to make my own.

If you're interested in wood burning, read lots here. The basics are dry wood only. Not meaning dry from rain, an interior moisture content below 20% is required. Looking at cut ends is a way to tell when you see wagon wheel cracks that it is shrinking due to drying, but that is not a sign it is ready to burn. You must split a piece and push the prongs or tester into the wood to take a measurement. Higher than 20% you will have problems, creosote in the chimney, and very little heat output. Years ago they would also knock pieces together and go by the hollow clunk when dry. That's a good indication. Only experience, years of it. Drying, or seasoning does not start when cut down. It starts when split and stacked properly for airflow and top covered. All wood species takes different times. Some species of oak can take up to 2 years. It will rot on the ground before drying if not cut to length and split and stored properly.

 

[brenndatomu]

There are no interior pieces inside. Where does one go about finding a shaker grate or any grate or “cast iron hopper” when I can’t even identify the make and model?

Likely SOL...unless you have one made, or find one that is close and modify to fit...

 

[coaly]

And if you must burn wood in such a thing, close the bottom air intake fully. It looks to be missing the air shutter on the round intake at lower front. For wood, you only open the upper air inlet. This only allows air to the top of fire, none from the bottom to slow the burn.

For coal, you open the bottom intake and just crack the upper one open a very little. The upper then becomes the secondary air inlet to allow oxygen above a coal fire to ignite coal gas with a blue flame. Most of the oxygen is used through the coal bed, so a secondary upper air intake is needed for burning off the gasses escaping from fresh coal. That's another indication it is a coal stove.

 

[C.H.A.O.S.]

And if you must burn wood in such a thing, close the bottom air intake fully. It looks to be missing the air shutter on the round intake at lower front. For wood, you only open the upper air inlet. This only allows air to the top of fire, none from the bottom to slow the burn.

For coal, you open the bottom intake and just crack the upper one open a very little. The upper then becomes the secondary air inlet to allow oxygen above a coal fire to ignite coal gas with a blue flame. Most of the oxygen is used through the coal bed, so a secondary upper air intake is needed for burning off the gasses escaping from fresh coal. That's another indication it is a coal stove.

Shows what I know....I thought that was some place to add a little container of water like a humidifier.

 

[coaly]

Nope, when you know what makes a stove work, you can figure out why they are designed the way they are, and what makes them work.

They all use the hot exhaust gasses that are lighter than outside air to rise up the chimney to make them work. The chimney doesn't just let smoke out. It is the engine that runs the stove.

Hot, rising gasses create a low pressure area, like a vacuum in the chimney, pipe and stove. This allows the higher atmospheric air pressure outside the stove to PUSH air into the stove with oxygen to make it burn. A metal box full of wood can't burn since there is nothing to force oxygen into it for combustion. The chimney does that. So any openings into the stove allows air to rush in making it go. Whatever chimney you have is critical to the stove and must be matched to it.

In your case where it seems you will be sleeping in the small area with a heater, any combustion of fuel needs lots of air. Direct Vent means the appliance will have a air intake and exhaust from the outside. That is what is needed in your case. Without electric, a direct vented gas heater, or direct vented stove is about the only solution. The firebox or any appliance in an area that small needs an outside air source. It can't use your indoor air, and as mentioned above, it needs the atmospheric air pressure to PUSH air into the stove for combustion. You don't have that without leaks to the outside and a larger area.

The finial, or fancy top on the stove probably rotates or removes to expose a round plate. This is a burner plate where a kettle is placed to humidify the air if needed. Removing the plate exposes the bottom of kettle or cooking pans to the direct fire for faster heating or cooking. That is what a lid lifter is for, removing the lid when hot. The model numbers are normally the size of the "burner" and diameter of burn pot. I'm guessing yours is 13 inches across (top of burn pot that gets filled with coal at bottom of barrel) and accepts a #5 cook pan. Hence a 513. The number of an antique pan is not in inches. They were a number designation for size and varied among manufacturers.

 

[john26]

I wouldn't normally recommend one of these stoves but it maybe a consideration if you need something in a hurry and they can be connected to outside air source and have less than 24" clearance to combustibles. Manual says do not install in sleeping room under mobile home instructions
(broken link removed)

https://www.menards.com/main/heating-cooling/fireplaces-stoves/wood-stoves/vogelzang-wood-stove-1-200-sq-ft/vg1120-l/p-1560752892847-c-6884.htm?tid=684452317618121584&ipos=3

This maybe an alternative shows outside air kit not sure how it hooks in, mentions nothing about sleeping room, no electricity needed and it can be connected to 3" or 4" pellet chimney.

(broken link removed)

 

[john26]

this maybe worth a look if you are not too far from it

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[Hoytman]

She said her home was 284 sq ft. If that is the case and that number correct...then all the stoves linked to above are far too big.

Try something like this....has outside air connection as well.

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