new vc dw2500 ?? and a few other ?? on breaking it in.

[jqgs214]

New member here! Love the wealth of knowledge you guys spew out on a daily basis. I'm having a new VC DW2500 being installed on thursday. Want to know what you guys think of that unit (value your opinion) I am heating a 1200 sq 1st floor and 400 sqft 2nd floor (main floor is the priority) Was curious about break in on the paint and how crucial the temps were. is says 250* for 20min 2x and 500* for 45min+. Do i really need a stove thermometer for this break in or is there a rough guideline I can go buy.

Wxman

(stands for weather man)
yes, i'm a weatherman, well at least that is what my degree tells me.

 

[Harley]

No matter what you do, you are probably not going to hit the exact temp. desired for a certain period of time, so I'd say, generally, they are not crucial. Yeah, you can take an educated guess, and the stove should be perfectly fine..... BUT.....

Why take a chance??? I'd get the thermometer, and follow the break in procedures, and do it right, then you don't have to worry.

Welcome, BTW, and what the heck is going on with this funky weather we're having here in the Northeast??????? We should have snow on the ground!

 

[jqgs214]

It doesnt snow when its warm!! Man I thought you guys in this forum were smart

 

[Gooserider]

The new VC stoves are quite impressive, look for some of the other threads where Elk and I talk about our recent trip up to the factory.

You should be running a stove thermometer at ALL times, new EPA stoves need to be operated at the correct temperatures to avoid problems and get the desired burn times, lowered pollution, and cleaner stacks. So go ahead and get the thermometer now, you will need it anyways.

The main thing on the break in is to do roughly what they tell you. I doubt that fifty degrees either way is going to hurt anything, but you do want to make your first fires small, short, and fairly cool. Gradually build up, don't try to do full power burns until everything is broken in.

This does several things - It burns off the chemical residues from the paint and mineral oil that they "smoke test" the stove with at the plant (NOTE this is smelly and obnoxious, you will want to have some windows open!) It drives any residual moisture out of the stove castings. It also "stress relieves" the castings and helps them work into each other well and so forth. (Note that it is important that the installers get the stove positioned solidly and level, you don't want any "racking" stresses that you can avoid) In the unlikely event that there is a problem, it is also better to spot it when the fire is small and easier to cope with.

Gooserider

 

[Harley]

It doesnt snow when its warm!!

Wow Why didn't I think of that!

*smacks himself on the forehead

 

[Tendencies]

You'll find that a magnetic model on the upper arch of the front door gives halfway decent figures, it's the only real exposed portion of the firebox you can attach a thermometer to. As for break in fires, I followed the directions to a T and didn't see or smell a thing like others have stated, about 2 weeks ago, I loaded up the box and left the door semi hooked and the damper wide open for the char effect that helps me start a good secondary burn, went out side for what I thought was about 5 minutes, turned out to be a half hour and when I walked in it was OH OH time, temps on the mag gauge were above 700 and we definately had some paint curing action going on, I shut the door and dampered her down and temps went to 500 or so in about 15 minutes. Man did it stink for cured paint!! Took 2 days to get it outta the air.. I let the fire go out and did a very careful visual inspection and found no harm to be done but I was really worried about over firing and the damage I might have caused. (would of looked bad also as I'm on the local FD as well !!) Fired it back up and no problems and still running good!! I'm heating 2000 sqft+ so your gonna roast if you have halfway decent insulation!!

T

 

[jqgs214]

Thanks for the great info. Where do I get a thermometer (i'm a real newbie here). Plus its great to hear from an owner that heats 2000sqft that i'm gonna roast cause my wife is always cold! I JUST TELL HER TO PUT ON A SWEATSHIRT!

 

[Tendencies]

I got mine at the local Ace Hardware Store, they have a stove/assy isle with all kinds of goodies..

T

 

[jqgs214]

Tendencies,

Thanks for the tips, btw when do I know if the secondary burn has kicked in? Man, so much to learn so little heat (until thursday !)

 

[Tendencies]

You will know as flames will gently come outta the top burn tubes and roll slowly across the front glass going to the bottom in all kinds of wierd shapes and colors..

T

 

[PaulyV]

Tendencies..
Interesting..your a fireman?..How close is that "stick thing" to the top of your stove? Unless thats kindling your waiting to burn? :ahhh: ...yikes

 

[BurningIsLove]

Trust me....if you have DW/VC stove....you're not going to need a sweatshirt....you're going to have to buy more fashionable underwear since that's all you;re going to need.

But as others have posted, the break-in fires are going to STINK horribly. So right now when its warm, this is a great time to have an under-control, break in fire with lots of open doors/windows to vent the stench. It really is quite impressive how bad it smells....but this it totally outweighed by how nice it will smell once the stove is cured.

 

[BrotherBart]

Doesn't smell bad at all if you light'em off in the front yard before you bring'em in the house.

 

[Andre B.]

But as others have posted, the break-in fires are going to STINK horribly. So right now when its warm, this is a great time to have an under-control, break in fire with lots of open doors/windows to vent the stench. It really is quite impressive how bad it smells....but this it totally outweighed by how nice it will smell once the stove is cured.

I just did a new stove and did not think the smell was all that bad. Certainly nothing like burning the paint off a new barrel stove.

 

[Tendencies]

Andre, thats exactly what mine smelt like when it got around 700 degree's!! Otherwise I don't honestly think it ever got cured with the smaller fires, maybe being a steel box vice cast has something to do with it???? Fist- that vine wreath lookin thing was my wifes decorations for the past summer, rest assured it was removed shortly after the stove was installed, infact the hood is now a cranberry color and looks pretty good! BIS-yes the uniform of the day around here is definately underwear as anything else is just too much!! lol

T

 

[Gooserider]

Fist- that vine wreath lookin thing was my wifes decorations for the past summer, rest assured it was removed shortly after the stove was installed, infact the hood is now a cranberry color and looks pretty good! BIS-yes the uniform of the day around here is definately underwear as anything else is just too much!! lol

T

If it's now a cranberry color, I'm really glad you removed it - hasn't anyone warned you about the hazards of over-firing?

Gooserider

 

[PaulyV]

Thanks tendencies...lol goose..after 15 years married here, I am always looking for an edge..cant wait to get that Lopi installed and watch the clothes come off... :coolsmirk: