Princess 29 reloading wood mid-load question

[WoodstovinCT]

I am in my 2nd month with a Princess 29 insert and everything is going great. I am very pleased with the unit and have the same experience as others report in many of the threads here. My one question has to do with reloading mid way through a load as a top off. Let’s say I miscalculated the prior load and there is 1/3 load left in the firebox burning hot when I am getting ready for bed. With my temp setting this load won’t last till the morning. Or say, all the sudden I am leaving the house for an extended amount of time. Am I able to open the bypass for 5 minutes to cool the catalyst and then top this load off? I think myself and others are worried about the potential thermal cracking described in the manual from the rush of room temperature air.

Any insight on this topic would be appreciated. Thanks!

 

[RustyShackleford]

I do it. Seems like when you open the bypass, that room-temperature air goes straight up the flue, not into the cat. I have a steel cat now, and originally a diesel foil, so maybe a ceramic would've cracked, I dunno.

I still try to avoid it. I have a single-wall connector pipe. If there's still lots of active flames in there when I re-load, I can get some smoke (out the door opening). Much nicer to have a bed of coals which I can rake out flat and then load lots of logs tetris style.

 

[Dieselhead]

I’ve done it tons of times with no issue. Just watch for flames ripping up the bypass when the door is open. Work quickly!

 

[WoodstovinCT]

I’ve done it tons of times with no issue. Just watch for flames ripping up the bypass when the door is open. Work quickly!

Excellent! Good to know.

 

[stoveliker]

I do it sometimes. Maybe nothing happens (surely more air goes up the flue than thru the cat.)
But Maybe it does affect the cat.
So I do open the bypass and wait a few minutes.
And I try to avoid doing it in case it does affect the cat wash coating lifetime.
But sometimes you can't avoid it due to timing issues. It is what it is.

 

[RustyShackleford]

So I do open the bypass and wait a few minutes.

Yep, like before you head out to get the new wood load. Also helps reduce any smoking.

 

[m37charlie]

I second the “work quickly”.
It drives me nuts watching these YouTubes seeing people reloading hot stoves WITHOUT GLOVES.
Invest in several pairs of rough-outer leather gloves. I wear somewhat insulated with fleece “Tillman 1450 split cowhide” gloves outdoors in the winter. When gloves like these have been used for a while, the insulation gets thin but they’re still perfect for hand protection when handling wood or working with a hot stove.
I’ve got a pair of leather gloves with gauntlets but never use them.

 

[RustyShackleford]

Invest in several pairs of rough-outer leather gloves.

I find these perfect ... https://www.zoro.com/lincoln-electr...4lgwQPkNTRw1zsxZ3Mlvn4nWvV-L9LHAaAv8YEALw_wcB

 

[MRD1985]

I also use welding gloves for reloads

 

[bigealta]

Ha yeah, i'm a bare hander. Sometimes we almost get burned.

I do use an "ov glove" from the kitchen to pull the ashpan if i have to do a hot dump.

Welders gloves would be much smarter.

Blacksmiths don't usually use gloves so that might have promoted that questionable habit.

 

[spudman99]

I do it every day on my PI29. This morning the cat was nearly pinned, 1/4 box of hot coals and some charred wood. Opened cat for 5 min or so. Then opened door slowly to allow air to stabilize. Really hot box. Tossed in 3 splits to get me thru the day. Close door, close cat (sometimes I will leave cat open while wood catches fire). Walk away and get ready for work. 20 min later with thermostat on high, wood is burning, I lower thermo, lower fan and im done.