Quadrafire Explorer 3 or Hearthstone Manchester?

[billfred]

We are close to pulling the trigger, but I thought I'd see what you all think.

Here's my set up:
- Gotta be rear vent
- Venting out and up a 25' exterior chase
- 4000 sq ft 2 story house
- Will be sitting in first floor family room (800 sq ft area including kitchen)

- Concerned about cooking us out of the family room.
- Quad is maybe better for controlling heat output?
- Hearthstone is skinnier and won't stick out into the room as much
- Quad has a top load door
- Hearthstone has a side load door

 

[begreen]

They are both good stoves, but have different construction. The primary heating difference between the two stoves is that the Manchester is a true cast iron stove and the Explorer has a steel stove core with a cast iron jacket. The Manchester will radiate heat more strongly from the stove body. The cast iron jacket on the Explorer will soak up much of the directly radiated heat from the steel stove body and then slowly release it to the room as the fire dies down. You can see the difference in the clearance requirements. The Manchester needs larger clearances due to its stronger radiance. Another cast-iron clad steel stove that can be rear-vented is the Jotul F55. The advantage of the F55 is that it has a deeper firebox that can be loaded N/S.

In order to understand how well either stove would heat we need to know more about the space. How open is the family room area to the rest of the house? Is there a staircase in that area? How tall are the ceilings?

 

[billfred]

Good feedback. The main living area is about 800 ft.². Normal ceiling height, 8ft. Stairway is down the hall from the kitchen.
I actually thought the Manchester had less clearance requirements then the Explorer. Manchester looks like it only has to be 6 in from the back wall and only requires ember protection.

 

[begreen]

Good feedback. The main living area is about 800 ft.². Normal ceiling height, 8ft. Stairway is down the hall from the kitchen.

It sounds like a 2 cu ft stove would work well here, especially if the concern is about overheating.

I actually thought the Manchester had less clearance requirements then the Explorer. Manchester looks like it only has to be 6 in from the back wall and only requires ember protection.

If the Manchester is equipped with the close clearance heat shield then it's rear clearance matches the 6" for the Explorer. However, the radiant sides are where the difference is apparent. The Manchester has a 16" clearance on the non-door side (18" door side) and the Explorer III has a 12" clearance for either side.
Why does the stove need to be rear-vented? Is it venting into a liner in a fireplace?

 

[billfred]

Yes we are venting into a liner in a current fireplace.

Someone told me the heat output could be easier to throttle back on the Quad. Any truth to that?

 

[begreen]

Yes, to a certain extent. You could also load less wood into it. But if the stove is always going to be partially loaded then the Explorer II or Shelburne might be a better fit for the area unless cooler air can be blown into the family room from an adjacent area.

 

[billfred]

I also have a dealer near by that has been recommending the VC Encore. Any opinions on that for my set up?

I haven't read great things.

 

[webby3650]

I also have a dealer near by that has been recommending the VC Encore. Any opinions on that for my set up?

I haven't read great things.

I’ll go.. run, don’t walk away from the Encore!

 

[webfish]

I have Explorer 3. 1800 square feet main level. Can heat us out if I want. Keep main living area at 75 or so. Can get it to 80 easily. The back 2 bedrooms are 5 to 10 degrees cooler. Which I prefer. You can control it to a point. I only do full loads overnight. I run it 24/7 .The big firebox is great for longer logs but if I could really get by with smaller stove. The auto air control is nice for startup but then I manually control the air after. The top loader caught my eye too but found I never use it. It is a great looking stove and that sold the wife.

 

[billfred]

So is one benefit of the Manchester over the Explorer the fact that you could cook on the Manchester stove top easier than the Explorer?

 

[Blessed Man]

Hello Webfish,
I have about 1900 sq. ft. and have narrowed my choices to the Explorer III and the Manchester. I really like both of these stoves in the brown. Any thoughts on which is better suited for my ranch style home with 8 ft. ceilings in Southern MO? I work 10 hour shifts and want to have plenty of coals left when I get home in the evenings. Stove will be at the far end of the house.

 

[webfish]

I can't comment on the Manchester. 2nd season running my Explorer 3. I usually fill mine 3/4 full about 10 pm and easily get it started with coals in morning by raking forward and dropping a couple splits on it. I can get it to 80 degrees in the main areas easy with a full load. I burn all day too as I work from home. So I Just add to it during the day. Keeps it about 75 degrees without much effort. Mine is middle of the house. Explorer 3 has a really large fire box so with good dry hardwood it can crank the heat.

 

[Woody Stover]

Yes we are venting into a liner in a current fireplace. Someone told me the heat output could be easier to throttle back on the Quad. Any truth to that?

From what I've read, the Manchester likes to run.

Explorer II or Shelburne might be a better fit for the area unless cooler air can be blown into the family room from an adjacent area.

Yep, you have different sizes to choose from with the Explorer.

I have Explorer 3. 1800 square feet main level...I only do full loads overnight. I run it 24/7 .The big firebox is great for longer logs but if I could really get by with smaller stove.

Yeah, if someone is home during the day that you could train to run the stove, you could go bigger and moderate load size during the day. Then with a big stove, you would have longer overnight burns.

So is one benefit of the Manchester over the Explorer the fact that you could cook on the Manchester stove top easier than the Explorer?

No, because there's a space between the top of the stove and the firebox.

I really like both of these stoves in the brown...Stove will be at the far end of the house.

The bigger stove will get more heat to the other end of the house when the stove isn't centrally located, but you have to work harder to move heat out of the stove room. A small 6" or 8" fan on the floor outside the stove room, blowing cooler dense air in and thereby forcing warm air out the top of the doorway, should work fairly well.
A local stove shop had the Manchester in brown enamel..man, I love the look of that stove. The Explorer looks good too, judging from the pics..

 

[webby3650]

No, because there's a space between the top of the stove and the firebox.

The Manchester has an opening in the top that is directly above its cast iron heat exchanger. Good design that pumps a lot of heat out. I don’t know how good it would be for cooking? If cooking is something you plan to do, then it would likely be a better candidate for the job.

 

[Blessed Man]

It's a tough choice between the two. Probably couldn't go wrong either way. Thanks for the help!

 

[webby3650]

It's a tough choice between the two. Probably couldn't go wrong either way. Thanks for the help!

Too bad you are restricted by a rear exit stove. There would be some many other options that would suit your needs.

 

[Woody Stover]

Too bad you are restricted by a rear exit stove. There would be some many other options that would suit your needs.

Ya, that cuts the options way down for me as well with a 28.75" lintel, especially in welded plate-steel boxes. On the plus side, if you do find a pretty stove that fits, you're not distracted by the elephant in the room, the connector pipe.

 

[webby3650]

Ya, that cuts the options way down for me as well with a 28.75" lintel, especially in welded plate-steel boxes. On the plus side, you're not distracted by the elephant in the room, the connector pipe.

It is a good look.
We run into it pretty often, a lot of flues were setup to come right off the back of a VC Encore. 30 years later, the replacement options are pretty slim...

 

[billfred]

The Jotul Oslo is a good one to compare to also.

 

[begreen]

The Jotul Oslo is a good one to compare to also.

The F600 would be a more direct comparison in size. I'd also recommend looking at the Jotul F55 Carrabassett which can be rear-vented and perhaps the Woodstock Progress Hybrid.

 

[webby3650]

The F600 would be a more direct comparison in size. I'd also recommend looking at the Jotul F55 Carrabassett which can be rear-vented and perhaps the Woodstock Progress Hybrid.

With the : at times cumbersome double doors of the 600, and the messy front door of the 500, I’d prefer the Manchester. I can’t believe I said it, but I might have my last Jotul..

 

[Blessed Man]

With the : at times cumbersome double doors of the 600, and the messy front door of the 500, I’d prefer the Manchester. I can’t believe I said it, but I might have my last Jotul..

 

[Blessed Man]

I agree. Can't speak for the 600, but I had the Oslo 500 for eight years. Ok stove, but really ate the wood. Think I'm leaning towards the Manchester as well. Probably the sharpest looking stove I've seen and a powerful heater.

 

[Woody Stover]

Think I'm leaning towards the Manchester as well. Probably the sharpest looking stove I've seen and a powerful heater.

She's a beauty. OK, let's get that baby installed so you can start posting reports!

 

[billfred]

So in the past couple days I've been to look at both the Manchester and the Explorer 3. Here are my observations/opinions (note, I'm a newbie at wood stoves, had a Quad pellet stove before):
Manchester

• Nice looking, maybe a bit too much scrolling all over the stove. Nice that the back has the same finished look
• Wood handles are a nice touch
• Firebox does seem really narrow. Only E/W loading
• No real good cooking surface, rear vent gives you a 7" circle on top
• Not a real deep stove. Good in that it won't stick out into the room too much
• Only requires ember protection pad
• Ash pan - grate system seems average. Open ended ash drawer could be a pain

Explorer 3

• Looks - Average. There is a big black box sticking out the back of the stove, lots of handles,
  • I would only want it in the black. Any other color would look weird with the black top load door and black on the back of the stove
• Lots of cooking surface
• Firebox is better than Manchester, definite North/South loading
• Combustion timer feature seems like a nice idea. No need to keep the door cracked
• Will stick out into the room about 10" more than Manchester
• Top load feature - Not crazy about this. You first have to put this little handle on the top to open the top door, then move another handle on the side to rotate the heat exchanger tubes out of the way, load the wood, then remember to rotate the heat exchanger back into place, then close the top door, and remove the handle (or just leave it there, looks funny).
• Ash pan - More cumbersome than Manchester. There's another little handle you have to use to remove a plate on the bottom of the fire box, then there a trap door lever.

Ok, that was long. These are just my observations. Don't beat me up too much.