Just wanted to give an honest review of my new Nova 2 (Tower). I purchased this unit a few months ago. I've had 6 long burns in it. 3 of those burns were extended where I kept the burn going for a couple days. Seasoned hard wood is being burned and the delta from outside to in was around 35deg.
Pros:
This box is very attractive. That's what initially drew me to it. Viewing glass is very large. Appears to be very well built (build vs design). The steel is very thick in most places (3/16th in some places). Not too concerned with future warping. Circling back to the aesthetics, everyone comments on how good his stove looks.
Cons:
1. Smoke roll out.... It is absolutely terrible. I set my smoke alarm off every time I load this stove. I've done everything they suggested. Crack a window/door, crack the load door for 10mins before loading, bypass engaged, bypass plate removed. The only option you have is to wait until you're completely down to coals, then like a maniac load as fast as you can and quickly shut the door. I ran an old BK for years and never once had issues with smoke rollout. This is primarily due to a poor design of direction air flow. The air flow is directed to the top front of the glass. This is effective for washing the glass, but when you're loading the door is open and there is no benefit.
2. Door latch sticking..... This is huge safety hazard. Once the stove is heated to operating temp, the door requires brut strength to open it. There is an adjustment for the latching of the door, but this is not the issue. I'm able to latch and unlatch, but the door will still not open. This is due to the latch rubbing up against the adjustable plate (once the stove is warm and metals have expanded). The latch will require removal and grinding of material.
3. Fan installation..... The screws that mount the fan to the mounting bracket for the stove are too long. They have to be cut down otherwise mounting bracket will not sit flush between stove and tower. Also the thermo switch for the fan is erratic. After the stove had stopped burning for a few hours, the fan would randomly kick on. Blower fan cordis only 2ft long. It's pretty much useless without an extension cord. Why wouldn't they make this at least 6ft?
4. Bypass ..... The bypass is not labeled. You have to memorize which way is which. After a handful of burns you start to remember that when inline with the flue then it's bypassing the catalyst. The extension rod they provide for the bypass handle is worthless. It's too short and the end is angled at 45deg so it slips off when you go to use it and the bypass slams every time.
5. Glass washing..... The glass washing is not effective at all. After one long burn my glass is completely black. My old BK could get a handful of burns before i had to clean the glass.
6. Fresh air kit ......... The fresh air kit is essentially 4ft of dryer hose for $100. And it doesn't even fit around or in the adapter plate. They claim you sort of thread it on around the outside, but it doesn't work. It tears the material. Best thing to do is to use high temp tape, butt the two together and tape around the circumference. I would add a 3" damper while you're there. This way in case you have a run away fire you can smother it (and also control your air flow if you'd like).
7. Emissions ....... To be honest i'm not sure how this one passed EPA emissions. Doesn't matter if I have a burn that's been going for hours. I always have visible smoke coming out of my flue. With my BK after getting the burn hot and the catalyst engage, my flue would not smoke.
Overall:
I really do like the look of it and it's hard to find good functional modern looking stoves these days. For $5000 dollars I wish I had bought something else. Hopefully this review helps others realize what they're getting into before purchasing. I've posted images below of the stove, latch issue, and added damper.
Latch Issue:
Added damper:
Pros:
This box is very attractive. That's what initially drew me to it. Viewing glass is very large. Appears to be very well built (build vs design). The steel is very thick in most places (3/16th in some places). Not too concerned with future warping. Circling back to the aesthetics, everyone comments on how good his stove looks.
Cons:
1. Smoke roll out.... It is absolutely terrible. I set my smoke alarm off every time I load this stove. I've done everything they suggested. Crack a window/door, crack the load door for 10mins before loading, bypass engaged, bypass plate removed. The only option you have is to wait until you're completely down to coals, then like a maniac load as fast as you can and quickly shut the door. I ran an old BK for years and never once had issues with smoke rollout. This is primarily due to a poor design of direction air flow. The air flow is directed to the top front of the glass. This is effective for washing the glass, but when you're loading the door is open and there is no benefit.
2. Door latch sticking..... This is huge safety hazard. Once the stove is heated to operating temp, the door requires brut strength to open it. There is an adjustment for the latching of the door, but this is not the issue. I'm able to latch and unlatch, but the door will still not open. This is due to the latch rubbing up against the adjustable plate (once the stove is warm and metals have expanded). The latch will require removal and grinding of material.
3. Fan installation..... The screws that mount the fan to the mounting bracket for the stove are too long. They have to be cut down otherwise mounting bracket will not sit flush between stove and tower. Also the thermo switch for the fan is erratic. After the stove had stopped burning for a few hours, the fan would randomly kick on. Blower fan cordis only 2ft long. It's pretty much useless without an extension cord. Why wouldn't they make this at least 6ft?
4. Bypass ..... The bypass is not labeled. You have to memorize which way is which. After a handful of burns you start to remember that when inline with the flue then it's bypassing the catalyst. The extension rod they provide for the bypass handle is worthless. It's too short and the end is angled at 45deg so it slips off when you go to use it and the bypass slams every time.
5. Glass washing..... The glass washing is not effective at all. After one long burn my glass is completely black. My old BK could get a handful of burns before i had to clean the glass.
6. Fresh air kit ......... The fresh air kit is essentially 4ft of dryer hose for $100. And it doesn't even fit around or in the adapter plate. They claim you sort of thread it on around the outside, but it doesn't work. It tears the material. Best thing to do is to use high temp tape, butt the two together and tape around the circumference. I would add a 3" damper while you're there. This way in case you have a run away fire you can smother it (and also control your air flow if you'd like).
7. Emissions ....... To be honest i'm not sure how this one passed EPA emissions. Doesn't matter if I have a burn that's been going for hours. I always have visible smoke coming out of my flue. With my BK after getting the burn hot and the catalyst engage, my flue would not smoke.
Overall:
I really do like the look of it and it's hard to find good functional modern looking stoves these days. For $5000 dollars I wish I had bought something else. Hopefully this review helps others realize what they're getting into before purchasing. I've posted images below of the stove, latch issue, and added damper.
Latch Issue:
Added damper:
