Pros and Cons of your stove

[Mrs. Krabappel]

Like any major purchase, you don't truly know the ins and outs of the item until you have put it through it's paces many times. I was in the stove shop yesterday coveting other stoves and thinking about what I might have done differently if I had a do-over. I've learned quite a bit about different stoves over the past year here at hearth.com, and would be interested to read this kind of feedback from y'all. What would you do differently, if you could, regarding your stove? What really works well about your stove?

Mine was a great value for a solid little stove. My install was more pricey than I had anticipated, and in the end I could not have purchased a more expensive stove. I love the big window!

On the other hand, as soon as I can swing a bigger stove I probably will. I hate getting up in the night, re-loading, and waiting ,sleepy-eyed, for the right time to shut down the air. Last night I was so tired that I fell asleep with the air open despite the alarm I set just in case. I hate it when I decide not to get up in the night and I hear that furnace kick on. Back 20 years ago when I heated with wood in blissful ignorance, I just got up, threw some more wood in, shut the door, and went back to bed.

I hate trying to maneuver splits in that little space. (1.7 cu.ft)

I don't love the look of the steel stove. I look at my stove more than any other inanimate object in my house. I've decided that the extra look is worth the extra money for cast iron. (Sorry BB!) Blue-black enamel would be dreamy.

I wish I loaded at a different angle or there was a bigger lip, so that ashes, coals, and fiery splits would stay put instead of trying to fall out. I like the shape and access of the BK in this regard. But the BK's don't meet my attractiveness standard (see above :lol

Hearth-wise I'd like to pull the stove out into the room a bit further. I also wish I'd re-done the bricks before the install.

Of course I wish I had started hoarding wood since the Reagan era

 

[joshlaugh]

I am not sure if soapstone was the best option for me. I wonder if I had got a big cast iron stove Jotul 600 if I would have a warmer house. But my wife and I both do like the look of it. Also wonder if I should have looker harder at Woodstock. As for my little 3cb I should NEVER has listened to the dealer and gone with the bigger Castine. He told me I would be burned out of the room I put it in. I should have known better. I think someday I will convince my wife to let me put a bigger stove in.

 

[Mrs. Krabappel]

Blue-black enamel would be dreamy.

Scratch that. I'm going for porcilen!

(broken link removed to http://asheville.craigslist.org/for/2175861642.html)

 

[krex1010]

Overall I have been very happy with my stove. There hasn't been one time I wished I had gone with a different one.

Here is what I love about it; I love that it is a north/south loading stoves, loading is super easy and stuff never rolls out. I am really happy with the burn times I am getting. Heat output has been excellent, my oil furnace has barely run so far this winter.

The only thing negative I have to say about this stove is that the blower can cause some noisy rattles and vibrations on the surround, but if I tap or adjust the surround it stops.

 

[EatenByLimestone]

I suppose I'd like a solid plate or brick rather than a ceramic baffle. A bit better airwash with the 30. An actual ash drawer. I wish I could put it up in the living area vs. in the basement where it's installed.

The thing I like most about the 30 is the one match/year feature. If I wanted to I could go all season without relighting it. The stove will hold enough hot coals to restart a pretty cold stove. It takes a while to heat up though. It seems like it takes 3/4 of the first load.

The Century is in storage and will be installed in the family cabin this summer. I tweaked the stove on the exhaust side and it now burns more efficiently. What its main limitation is would have to be firebox size. It's just physically small. It was only made to put out 25K btu. It had to be re-lit every day.

But it has a heck of a lot going for it. It has a huge ash pan. I'd let the ashes cool in the pedestal and add thermal mass to the stove. It heated up fast since it was so small. I could cut back with secondaries after 20 minutes and the top showing 250 degrees. Because of the small firebox I had trouble overfiring it. It just didn't happen with my setup. I liked the brick ceiling. It could withstand some heavy blows.

Matt

 

[pen]

Englander 30

Pro's: It's a solid steel stove that if it breaks either needs welding or to be replaced. I am currently doing a tear down on an old whooped soapstone stove and have been convinced that I will never own a soapstone or cast stove that may periodically need to be rebuilt. I also like the fact that I can go 14hr's between easy reloads. I like the big viewing window.

Cons: Pitiful ash pan setup. The stove would be more attractive if the ash pan were simply missing and it had a nice set of legs on it. Although I've been very careful and my stove is on it's 3rd season w/ the original baffle boards, I wish they were a bit tougher so i didn't always have to be so careful loading and maneuvering splits. I also wish the stove had a thermostatic feature. While it will go 14 hrs between loads, when I want the stove to go 6hrs between loads I need to be babysitting it to open the air control up to burn the coals down as in weather like we are having tonight (-10F) the stove is barely big enough for us.

pen

 

[begreen]

Blue-black enamel would be dreamy.

Scratch that. I'm going for porcilen!

(broken link removed to http://asheville.craigslist.org/for/2175861642.html)

(SP) teach. That's porcelain, majolica enamel. The blue black is porcelain enamel too, but it is a different process and tougher IMHO. I like the blue black a lot, but that's not a bad price if the stove is in good condition including the cat.

 

[daveswoodhauler]

I dont care what it looks like....goin Blaze King in my next home....No offense to you BK owners
With my floorplan, I really can't go with a big stove as my living room would be a kiln...just wish I didn't have to reload this sucker every 3-4 hours. I do love my little Lopi though

 

[begreen]

We have a big 3 cu ft beast sitting in a very modest sized livingroom. It's not overwhelming even on mild days like today (46 right now). We just run 3 split loads all day.

 

[remkel]

Well, I have never run anything built after 1978, so I cannot comment about these new fangled catalytics and such. All I can share is this:

1- I would not buy anything but cast iron in the future. Just like the look and the heat too much
2- The Vigilant is a great heater, but it is a creosote monster.
3- Really wish I was running an old Defiant in my basement- the extra cu ft in the firebox and sideloading is preferred
4- I could second guess all I want, but for the price I paid (inhereted the vigilant from Pepere), this puppy is a great stove.

All that said, I still find myself paying close attention to everything posted here in the event I get the urge to find something new.

 

[BrotherBart]

Wouldn't do a thing different. Including marrying the gal that thinks that big brown 30-NC is gorgeous. Looked at all of them. Found the perfect fit for what I needed to get done. Talking about the stove now. :coolsmile:

Big honkin steel stoves rule!

 

[Mrs. Krabappel]

(SP) teach.

I was being obnoxious cracking on their spelling. I am a great speller thanks to firefox automatic spell check. It is a beautiful stove though. Maybe they'll still have it when my tax return arrives. Good to know about the price.

 

[Mrs. Krabappel]

Including marrying the gal that thinks that big brown 30-NC is gorgeous. !

brown??

 

[pen]

I dont care what it looks like....goin Blaze King in my next home....No offense to you BK owners
With my floorplan, I really can't go with a big stove as my living room would be a kiln...just wish I didn't have to reload this sucker every 3-4 hours. I do love my little Lopi though

I hear you there. My home begs for a blaze king but I can't do an 8in flue and I'm not sure if the princess would out perform the 30 or not.

pen

 

[BrowningBAR]

Vigilant: Throws a ton of heat, but chews through wood like Kirstie Alley at an all-you-can eat Vegas buffet. For the amount of wood I load into the stove I would prefer a longer burn time... by about 2-4 hours.

Intrepid: Sips wood. For as small as it is, when it is burning right, it is remarkable efficient. But it does not throw nearly enough heat, even for it's size.

Heritage: Efficient, not as efficient as the Intrepid (not a fair comparison), but far more efficient than the Vigilant. I love how consistent the temperatures are. I can lock in a temp and it will just stay there for a few hours. Not as powerful as the vigilant, but it does seem to move heat around quite well.

What would be my perfect setup?
Probably three large cat stoves. Ideally it would be something along the lines of either two VC Encores (or an Encore and a Defiant) along with an insert. Right now the only inserts that would fit my format/needs would be a Lopi Declaration or a VC Merrimack. I would prefer a cat insert, but there aren't many out there. But, before I purchase a VC I need to see some long term reports on the three stoves I listed. I would like to see the new Woodstock stove, but clearances are a concern.

Reasons?
-My layout will never allow me to heat with one stove.
-I need longer burn times. During this most recent cold spell stove monitoring is taking up way too much time.
-I need cat stoves for when it is not as cold but still need whole house heating.
-I like it warm. I like it when the whole house is 80. I may not want it to always be 80, but I like to always have that option.
-I need at least two stoves with 8-10 hours of actual heat production. Not burn time. Actual heat production.

 

[EatenByLimestone]

Maybe not all out, but as far as choking it down for warm weather I bet the Princess would win.

Matt

 

[BrotherBart]

Including marrying the gal that thinks that big brown 30-NC is gorgeous. !

brown??

Yeah. Five coats of Stove Brite Goldenfire Brown. With black door and legs. I have never been able to get a pic of it with the lighting in that room that does it justice. Deep rich brown.

Same color as was factory original on our old insert.

 

[rdust]

My Endeavor works as advertised or slightly better. I'm heating the max recommended sq' and it's doing a fine job.

Pro's:
square firebox, 18" n/s or e/w
brick baffle
bypass
awesome fire
low clearance to combustibles
nice looking steel stove
great heat transfer, convects heat around the house really well

Con's:
Wish more depth was below the loading door, ash tends to spill over
Not a cat stove

My next stove will be a little bigger and a cat stove. I hate the unregulated air on a non cat, I may modify the secondary air on this stove in the meantime to help control the temps a little. 750+ with the air shut down on a fresh load sucks when you don't need it.

 

[BrotherBart]

Ya got heat at a good price stove wise and the rest, liner etc. will get it done for whatever you decide later to replace it with.

 

[Todd]

I Don't think I could be set up any better but there sure are some other stoves I'd like to try out like the new Jotul top loader, Blaze King or new Woodstock.

 

[yooperdave]

i also have a pre epa stove that i am very satisfied with. i have absolutely no experience with "cat" stoves nor have i ever made enough wood in advance to satisfy the norm for a cat stove. what i've learned from the site, make about 3 years of wood to make sure it is dry enough for when you burn in the cat stove. also sounds like cat stoves don't last anywhere near as long as regular steel stoves. i was looking for a colored stove but am glad i didn't go with it as the stove i have performs great and cost only $125 when i bought it used. my big steel stove is black and in the middle of the place (cottage). Yes kathleen, a green one would be a lot better since it is on "display" but i have to side with bart on this one.
at some point, i will probably have a basement installed and maybe then i'll put the steel down below and a used one (colored) up on the main level. until then, i have plenty of time to learn about the cat stoves...which i'm still not convinced about their longevity or cost justification or reliability-with all the air adjustments i read about.

 

[BrowningBAR]

i also have a pre epa stove that i am very satisfied with. i have absolutely no experience with "cat" stoves nor have i ever made enough wood in advance to satisfy the norm for a cat stove. what i've learned from the site, make about 3 years of wood to make sure it is dry enough for when you burn in the cat stove. also sounds like cat stoves don't last anywhere near as long as regular steel stoves. i was looking for a colored stove but am glad i didn't go with it as the stove i have performs great and cost only $125 when i bought it used. my big steel stove is black and in the middle of the place (cottage). Yes kathleen, a green one would be a lot better since it is on "display" but i have to side with bart on this one.
at some point, i will probably have a basement installed and maybe then i'll put the steel down below and a used one (colored) up on the main level. until then, i have plenty of time to learn about the cat stoves...which i'm still not convinced about their longevity or cost justification or reliability-with all the air adjustments i read about.

Not sure how you got that from reading this site.

 

[Don2222]

Hello

Well I actually did have another chance after having my Consolidated Dutch West Federal Design Vermont Castings Wood/Coal Cat stove for 19 years and really only using it for 3 seasons! I really do not think this Cast Iron Stove gave off enough heat to heat the house.

I purchased an Avalon Astoria pellet stove! This is my second year and just dumping 2 40 lbs bags of wood pellets into the 115 lb hopper for 48 hours is well worth the trouble of selling the DW wood stove for only $400 and building a new hearth for the pellets stove. The heat is great and the work is ALOT less!!

 

[bboulier]

I would have liked a stove that extended out of the fireplace, so I could use it for cooking and for providing heat when the power fails. But, my wife wanted one that fit snugly in the fireplace, and I can't say it was a bad choice. Took me while how to really run it, but I have been very happy with the Jotul 550. (I have batteries and an inverter if the power fails. And, my gas and charcoal grill will cover any cooking needs.)

 

[Green Energy]

I am on my second season with my black-blue Oslo after having a CDW cast iron cat 3+ CF beast for 18 years. I am very happy with it, but there are some minor issues that I have learned. If I buy another stove, I would consider going back to a cat stove in order to get the 10 - 12+ hour burn times (if I could find one with the attributes of the Oslo).

For my Jotul F500 Oslo, here are my ratings on a 1-5 scale:

Construction/quality - 5
Appearance - 5
Heat output - 5
Long burn/low outpt - 3
View of fire - 5
Tolerance of 25+% wood - 2
Ability to fit on a fireplace hearth - 5
Efficiency/wood consumption - 4

So I am very happy with the Oslo. The one issue for me is I would like to have a few more hours of burn time. However, I have learn how to get a good restart with low or no coals. So this is not as big of a deal as I thought it would be after my initial impression last year. I am attracted to the burn times of the BK, however the BK with any of the pedestal stands would have too high of a discharge to fit in my fireplace hearth. Also, my wife probably would veto a stove that doesn't look as nice as the Oslo because this is the focal point of our family room..

When the new hybrid comes out I might be tempted to consider it in a few years if the reviews are stellar and if it will fit on my hearth/fireplace. Otherwise, I am quite content and happy with my Oslo even with the somewhat less than ideal burn time. It is saving me some wood.