Older Blaze King Princess? Or newer stove

[Generalminor]

Hello, I am planning on putting a wood stove in my house I saw my first "winter weather" bill with my electric furnace and my mind was made up. My budget means that I either have to buy a used stove or a budget minded new stove (around $1500 maybe) to keep the cost down because I need to install hearth and chimney/stovepipe as well which brings up the total cost of installation significantly. I found someone selling a 1994 Blaze King Princess pej1003. It looks like it's in good condition the cat, glass door, and door seal were replaced 2 years ago. The seller is asking $1200 for it. My question is would I be better going off with this stove or should I try to find a newer/new stove in my price range. Also is this price a little high for a 25yr old stove? Is this model as efficient as the burn times I read about on newer blaze kings? Thank you for any help!

My house is a 1978 manufactured home that is around 1400 sq ft. It has new overhead insulation but the wall/floor insulation is mediocre. Also it has a LOT of large windows the living room alone has 11 windows, so it is quite drafty.

 

[jetsam]

Get as many clear photos of the stove as you can, especially inside the firebox. Post 'em here!

Just like buying a 1994 car, that could be a good deal or a terrible deal.

The Princess is one of the best stoves available if you need long burns or low heat, but if you're always burning it on high it's not a lot better than a cheap tube stove. Since it sounds like you will need a very large amount of heat, you might be better served by a new $1000 NC30 unless the Princess is in fantastic shape.

Will you burn the stove in the mild fall and spring weather, using it as the main heat source? (Yes is another point for the Princess, no is another point for the tube stove.)

 

[SpaceBus]

You can heat year round with a "tube stove" (neither of my non cats have tubes) as well. As with everything preparation is key which means research and sizing the stove properly. For sure the ability to run long and low is a Blaze King specialty, but it is not a necessity for heating in the shoulder season. It all depends on lifestyle and budget.

 

[jetsam]

You can heat year round with a "tube stove" (neither of my non cats have tubes) as well. As with everything preparation is key which means research and sizing the stove properly. For sure the ability to run long and low is a Blaze King specialty, but it is not a necessity for heating in the shoulder season. It all depends on lifestyle and budget.

Yeah, if you need to be out of the house (or would like to be in bed) for 12 hours at a clip regularly, that is big points for the BK. Never going back to regular stoves, myself.

Might be a moot point if the stove is in bad shape, though.

And yes, you can use any stove to heat with, you just need to accept more reloads or more temperature swings with a non-BK. In my grandmother's house, water would freeze in a glass by the bed upstairs overnight, and that was okay. (For those who have never slept in these conditions, it is very pleasant to sleep in given sufficient blankets, but it is hard to get out of the bed. )

 

[SpaceBus]

Yeah, if you need to be out of the house (or would like to be in bed) for 12 hours at a clip regularly, that is big points for the BK. Never going back to regular stoves, myself.

Might be a moot point if the stove is in bad shape, though.

And yes, you can use any stove to heat with, you just need to accept more reloads or more temperature swings with a non-BK. In my grandmother's house, water would freeze in a glass by the bed upstairs overnight, and that was okay. (For those who have never slept in these conditions, it is very pleasant to sleep in given sufficient blankets, but it is hard to get out of the bed. )

Indeed, if my lifestyle did not permit me to load on eight hour cycles, then I would have a different stove. With my tiny house I would need a tiny blaze king, but I find them all to be ugly anyway. I'm hoping the new Vermont Castings baby stove is a solid performer as it would be one of the only other stoves that would fit the space, in my opinion anyway since I have to look at it year round and any stove dominates the space. Really though I don't forsee a future where I would need to replace the squirrel stove unless we expand the house footprint. Anyway, off topic, but just trying to point out to keep an open mind. This forum was a huge help to me when stove shopping.

 

[ratsrepus]

I hope for your sake vermont castings is a better stove then they were. Mine was a POS

 

[EatenByLimestone]

I'm going to go against the grain and suggest you spend the 1st winter air sealing and insulating.

Put your wood up. Its impossible to buy wood dry enough to run a cat stove correctly at this time of year. Trying to burn that wood will be frustrating. Let nature dry it and spend the effort making the house better.

It's not as fun as buying a new stove, but will give you the time to make a decision you won't regret.

 

[Highbeam]

I'm going to go against the grain and suggest you spend the 1st winter air sealing and insulating.

Put your wood up. Its impossible to buy wood dry enough to run a cat stove correctly at this time of year. Trying to burn that wood will be frustrating. Let nature dry it and spend the effort making the house better.

It's not as fun as buying a new stove, but will give you the time to make a decision you won't regret.

It is not impossible to buy good fuel. You just buy compressed wood blocks. NEIL logs are one option by the pallet. Done.

Or you come to my house and offer me so much money for my seasoned wood that it’s worth it for me to buy compressed wood to replace it.

Sure, it’s more expensive but not impossible to get wood fuel at any time of year.

I would prefer a good, cheap, noncat over an old clapped out cat stove. That 1994 may have sat unused for decades like many stoves in many homes. Not many folks really burn wood full time. Just need to check it out.

 

[SpaceBus]

It is not impossible to buy good fuel. You just buy compressed wood blocks. NEIL logs are one option by the pallet. Done.

Or you come to my house and offer me so much money for my seasoned wood that it’s worth it for me to buy compressed wood to replace it.

Sure, it’s more expensive but not impossible to get wood fuel at any time of year.

I would prefer a good, cheap, noncat over an old clapped out cat stove. That 1994 may have sat unused for decades like many stoves in many homes. Not many folks really burn wood full time. Just need to check it out.

We got by on bio bricks last winter! Compressed wood products probably save many novice wood burners.

 

[jetsam]

The bit about insulating is so important, though. If you spend your $1500 on vinyl replacement windows instead of a stove this year, it could change your BTU requirements by a lot.

Most of the money most people spend on windows is labor, and there's very little reason to pay someone else to do that. Replacement windows are custom made to size anyway, and you can learn to do the work in 30 minutes on youtube.

When you charactarize your house as "quite drafty", in zero degree weather it might mean that no stove will keep up well.

 

[SpaceBus]

I've never done replacement windows, but installing a window like new construction is not bad. After installing our first window my wife looks at me and says "why doesn't everyone do this themselves?'

 

[moresnow]

Replacement windows made a huge difference in our home. DIY install. Not exactly a early December activity here!

 

[jetsam]

I've never done replacement windows, but installing a window like new construction is not bad. After installing our first window my wife looks at me and says "why doesn't everyone do this themselves?'

Replacement windows are much like that but there is no nailing fin.

Instead of framing to fit the window, you have the window made to fit the framing (or in certain cases, the old jamb).

Because you are using the existing opening, you don't have to screw with finishing and trimming, either.

If you don't want to mess with an install, you my be able to get replacement sashes for old single and doublehungs, but the cost is often equal or greater than new windows, and the results may not be as good.

 

[BKVP]

A PE1003 is 20+ years of age. The label on the back will have production month and year. The bypass on the 1003 was a steel sliding plate, no gasket.

Get lots of pictures...

 

[Woody Stover]

A PE1003 is 20+ years of age...bypass on the 1003 was a steel sliding plate, no gasket.

I liked that feature about the Buck 91 we had..no bypass gasket to ever mess with.
But yeah, with a stove that old he'll have to check it over carefully. If it had a thermostat, maybe there's less chance that it was over-fired once the burn was established. OTOH firing up a new load too hot could still do damage, I'd imagine.