As I said in another post, I'm looking at a 1980's model Appalachain freestanding/insert for $500 (comes w/ a huge hearth pad thing). I was wondering about how stoves "age." What about a stove would likely be in disrepair after two decades? How big a deal is replacing any of these parts? The cast iron (I believe it's cast iron) is sound with a little surface rust so I was wondering what else to look at that might be serious. It's located in a storage building w/ no electric, so we can't try the blower but I figure at worst we could repair/buy a new one if we need it. In my simple little mind I see it about like cars - the earlier models are still simple and easy to fix. The newer, high tech models don't age as gracefully, though they may be more effecient. Any thoughts??
Newbie question about older stoves
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"the earlier models are still simple and easy to fix. The newer, high tech models don’t age as gracefully, though they may be more effecient. Any thoughts?? "
In general, I disagree. The non catalytic new stoves are no more complex than old stoves. They generate more heat with less wood, are safer, produce less smoke, and less creosote in the chimney. They are not "high tech"- they are metal boxes lined with brick- just now they have a few tubes that let in a bit of air at the top- and those don't require maintenance.
You can get a freestanding stove for not much more than $500 now that will outperform an old stove in every department. The reason there have been a lot of the old stoves on Craigslist recently is mostly that people are upgrading to the better EPA rated stoves. I'm not saying the one you're looking at is useless- but if someone in my family asked me- I'd tell them they'll save a lot of money over the next year by investing a couple/few hundred more on a better stove now.
In general, I disagree. The non catalytic new stoves are no more complex than old stoves. They generate more heat with less wood, are safer, produce less smoke, and less creosote in the chimney. They are not "high tech"- they are metal boxes lined with brick- just now they have a few tubes that let in a bit of air at the top- and those don't require maintenance.
You can get a freestanding stove for not much more than $500 now that will outperform an old stove in every department. The reason there have been a lot of the old stoves on Craigslist recently is mostly that people are upgrading to the better EPA rated stoves. I'm not saying the one you're looking at is useless- but if someone in my family asked me- I'd tell them they'll save a lot of money over the next year by investing a couple/few hundred more on a better stove now.
Woodstoves don't "age gracefully"...they just get old. They're metal boxes made to build fires inside. They don't "ripen", they deteriorate. EPA rated doesn't mean "high tech", just newer designs in combustion airflow that provide for a more efficient, cleaner burning stove. Rick
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Daisy - the actual build quality of that stove MAY be just fine. Some of those old stove were very durable. But.....that being said, that stove is in the family of old pre-epa smoke dragons. They just LOVE to chew up perfectly good fire wood and spit it out the smoke stack. They also love to deposit black goo on the inside of a perfectly good stainless steel liner (this can be minimized with burning habits). One of their other habits is getting on the bad side of code inspectors, these inspectors will often deny them a home when trying to be a “new install”.
I’m also not sure, but is that an 8” exhaust? If so, you may want to price the pipe that would be required for this stove.
Getting to the point, you may find that for not a whole lotta more bucks, you could place an epa certified wood stove in your home. This has the advantage of consuming about 33% less wood (more in some cases), it will minimize the belching smoke (and fuel) coming from your stack, it is a safer appliance in every way, and most inspectors will smile at it (and maybe even give it a little pat) assuming that the install is up to code.
It doesn’t have to be new, but I would HIGHLY recommend an EPA cert. stove.
Daisy - the actual build quality of that stove MAY be just fine. Some of those old stove were very durable. But.....that being said, that stove is in the family of old pre-epa smoke dragons. They just LOVE to chew up perfectly good fire wood and spit it out the smoke stack. They also love to deposit black goo on the inside of a perfectly good stainless steel liner (this can be minimized with burning habits). One of their other habits is getting on the bad side of code inspectors, these inspectors will often deny them a home when trying to be a “new install”.
I’m also not sure, but is that an 8” exhaust? If so, you may want to price the pipe that would be required for this stove.
Getting to the point, you may find that for not a whole lotta more bucks, you could place an epa certified wood stove in your home. This has the advantage of consuming about 33% less wood (more in some cases), it will minimize the belching smoke (and fuel) coming from your stack, it is a safer appliance in every way, and most inspectors will smile at it (and maybe even give it a little pat) assuming that the install is up to code.
It doesn’t have to be new, but I would HIGHLY recommend an EPA cert. stove.
Check with your county before buying a used, non-EPA compliant stove to find out if you can legally install a non-EPA compliant stove. (The areas that aren't in compliance with the most recently-issued EPA emissions standards under the Clean Air Act is growing. Some areas are now having to implement bans on installing non-compliant wood stoves either due to EPA regulations or state laws. Ultimately, I expect to see a country-wide ban on burning non-compliant stoves, but that's probably a few years off.)
I just installed a new, EPA-compliant stove and am amazed at how much more quickly it begins throwing out heat. I'm expecting it to use much less wood, too. I had concerns about the technology in the new stoves, having read some negative comments online. Fortunately, my experience has all been good. Fires have been relatively easy to start and keep going. Granted, we're just in shoulder season and the real test will be winter temps. All-in-all, I don't regret getting the new stove. I got a relatively inexpensive model, the optional blower kit and new pipe (I feed in to a masonry chimney so I didn't need a lot of single-walled pipe)--my total cost was right under $900, doing the install myself. I would urge that you price out new stoves and not just focus on older stove. Don't be afraid of the new technology. It actually works well to deliver heat to you faster. Make sure you get the right size for your application.
I just installed a new, EPA-compliant stove and am amazed at how much more quickly it begins throwing out heat. I'm expecting it to use much less wood, too. I had concerns about the technology in the new stoves, having read some negative comments online. Fortunately, my experience has all been good. Fires have been relatively easy to start and keep going. Granted, we're just in shoulder season and the real test will be winter temps. All-in-all, I don't regret getting the new stove. I got a relatively inexpensive model, the optional blower kit and new pipe (I feed in to a masonry chimney so I didn't need a lot of single-walled pipe)--my total cost was right under $900, doing the install myself. I would urge that you price out new stoves and not just focus on older stove. Don't be afraid of the new technology. It actually works well to deliver heat to you faster. Make sure you get the right size for your application.
In Oregon, it's illegal to install a non-EPA approved woodburning appliance. Older stoves already in use are OK, but once a stove is taken out of service, it cannot be reinstalled, it must be scrapped. Now, I'm quite sure this law is ignored in some cases, but then so is every other law from time to time. Nonetheless, it's the law. I had originally planned to move our 30 y/o Lopi M530 from one end of the great room to the other. After participating on this forum for a while, and learning scads of good info, I dropped that idea and had a brand new Lopi Liberty installed. It was the right way to go on a number of levels. The old M530 went to one of my firewood suppliers who's also into collecting, processing & selling scrap metal. Rick
Daisy, did you get a chance to look at these two videos comparing old to new stoves?
https://www.hearth.com/talk/threads/24034/
https://www.hearth.com/talk/threads/24034/
Okay, I'm convinced! =) Thank you sooooo much for all the shared experience and knowledge. We have to get a wood burning SOMEthing to use this winter, but we have some time yet and will take it to shop for something more suitable and effecient.
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