Recommendation on resources for stove use- new VC intrepid 2 flexburn owner

[VCnewbe]

I am new to stoves(I have used open masonry fireplace for years). I recently purchased a VC intrepid 2 flexburn and am awaiting install into my masonry firebox. I have read a fair number of negative reviews on VC which now makes me a little concerned. Any words of wisdom on use and advice on resources for using a wood stove in general would be greatly appreciated. Thanks

 

[Woodsplitter67]

The 2 most important things .. the first one being the most important is draft. You need good draft to operate the stove. Draft is the engine that makes the stove work. Id look hard at the installation instructions regarding stove pipe height. Make sure the installer follows it. Installing 90s will reduce the draft some and the more 90s you have the more draft is reduced

The 2nd is Dry wood. You need a moisture meter and make sure what ever wood you have is seasoned because wet wood doesn't burn. It makes creosote. If your wood is subpar look into bio bricks and get them now, because winters coming and soon enough there will be a short supply.
My stove does all the heating in my home all winter..
Burn with the catalyst.. life will be easier

 

[VCnewbe]

The 2 most important things .. the first one being the most important is draft. You need good draft to operate the stove. Draft is the engine that makes the stove work. Id look hard at the installation instructions regarding stove pipe height. Make sure the installer follows it. Installing 90s will reduce the draft some and the more 90s you have the more draft is reduced

The 2nd is Dry wood. You need a moisture meter and make sure what ever wood you have is seasoned because wet wood doesn't burn. It makes creosote. If your wood is subpar look into bio bricks and get them now, because winters coming and soon enough there will be a short supply.
My stove does all the heating in my home all winter..
Burn with the catalyst.. life will be easier

Ty much!!

 

[Woodsplitter67]

Ty much!!

Dont be afraid to ask questions.. The more you know the easier it goes.

your stove is the 2nd smalles with a 1.3 cuft box.. im pretty sure thats the size.. Your going to need to make sure you have a wood supply small enough to fit in there

What kind of wood do you have, how much?

 

[VCnewbe]

I have mostly oak/maple/cherry. Has been seasoned for a couple years. Some logs may be a little long and may need cut some. We will be using more for aesthetics and some heat but not using to use as a significant heat source for our home. I have about 4 cords but again not using it so much to heat the home. Ty

 

[VCnewbe]

Is there a certain temperature I absolutely don't want stove or cat to get to? I have read an older owners manual and I didn't clearly see that they talk about that. If it does get too hot I assume I shut down the air intake? I had read someone else talk about putting cold water in pots on stove? If you know of any good resources for me to refer to please let me know. I am going to order a stove top thermometer and the catalytic thermometer.

 

[JohnDaileyNH]

I am new to stoves(I have used open masonry fireplace for years). I recently purchased a VC intrepid 2 flexburn and am awaiting install into my masonry firebox. I have read a fair number of negative reviews on VC which now makes me a little concerned. Any words of wisdom on use and advice on resources for using a wood stove in general would be greatly appreciated. Thanks

Never burned a wood stove before in my life and shoved my Encore in the masonry fireplace and committed to using the stove as primary heat. Definitely a learning curve, but it heats my whole house very effectively.

I think the key with the VC, from my experience, is that every setup is slightly different. So the method that works for one may not work for another. You learn the general concepts and get a feel for your stove and I think you can do it with minimal issues. Definitely ask questions and read. Lots of great info in these threads and it's more than doable.

 

[VCnewbe]

Thanks!!

 

[Woodsplitter67]

Never burned a wood stove before in my life and shoved my Encore in the masonry fireplace and committed to using the stove as primary heat. Definitely a learning curve, but it heats my whole house very effectively.

I think the key with the VC, from my experience, is that every setup is slightly different. So the method that works for one may not work for another. You learn the general concepts and get a feel for your stove and I think you can do it with minimal issues. Definitely ask questions and read. Lots of great info in these threads and it's more than doable.

View attachment 317142

I dont think I've seen your setup before.. looks pretty good.. The encore is a good heater..

 

[Woodsplitter67]

Is there a certain temperature I absolutely don't want stove or cat to get to? I have read an older owners manual and I didn't clearly see that they talk about that. If it does get too hot I assume I shut down the air intake? I had read someone else talk about putting cold water in pots on stove? If you know of any good resources for me to refer to please let me know. I am going to order a stove top thermometer and the catalytic thermometer.

You should download the current manual for your stove. Im pretty sure it specifically says wht temperature not to exceed. also Id order a magnetic stovepipe thermometer. I have one and use it to guage when I have enough draft to close the bypass..

I know you say you only intend to burn here and there. I thought was the same, I thought I'd just be burning on the weekends and here and there. It quickly became my primary heat source. The heat was just that good. You'll under when you get it installed and start burning. It warms the bones. There's a reason why people are cozied up to the woodstove. You never hear people say. lets all hang out at the baseboard heat.. Just saying...

 

[VCnewbe]

👍🏼😊. Ty

 

[AsylumResident]

I’m new to the VC stoves as well, I have the Defiant. It is very easy in this forum to find negative comments and people frustrated with their VC stoves. After I got mine installed I found this forum and it definitely didn’t make me feel warm and fuzzy about my purchase. However, you probably don’t hear much from the majority of people who have VC stoves, figured them out, and it’s mostly smooth sailing for them. Squeaky wheel gets the grease kind of thing. Plenty of loud squeaky wheels around here. But that’s also the point of this forum. I’ve been grateful for the input and knowledge of @Woodsplitter67 and @JohnDaileyNH as well as others for helping me get this thing down so far. It’s a great stove and it looks fantastic.

 

[NewGuy132]

I am new to stoves(I have used open masonry fireplace for years). I recently purchased a VC intrepid 2 flexburn and am awaiting install into my masonry firebox. I have read a fair number of negative reviews on VC which now makes me a little concerned. Any words of wisdom on use and advice on resources for using a wood stove in general would be greatly appreciated. Thanks

This will be my 3rd year running my Intrepid Flexburn. The first year was kind of rocky, last year was better, This year should be better than last year. Mine is a decent little heater. It will heat almost my entire 1st floor (about 1500sqft) even though the layout isn't great for it. Unless it is shoulder season no heat gets upstairs. I should have went larger, but oh well there's always next time. So far it has been reliable and I can't really find any faults in the stove itself. The issues I had were mainly user error and I think I have some issues due to a bad install.

I know that @Woodsplitter67 recommended looking in the manual for temperatures not to exceed. I have not found that information anywhere online or in the manual. That being said you should absolutely download and read the manual a few times. I will typically reread it before the season. If you are going to use the Cat then I'd suggest that you get an Auber thermometer. A bunch of people on here use then and mine helped me run better last year. There are threads on that somewhere.

Overall I think that a lot of the negativity towards VC stoves isn't necessarily warranted. Sure I have some minor gripes about the stove, but my wife that hasn't exposed herself to all of the internet hate or worries or overfiring or anything like that loves our stove and runs it just fine.

 

[Woodsplitter67]

This will be my 3rd year running my Intrepid Flexburn. The first year was kind of rocky, last year was better, This year should be better than last year. Mine is a decent little heater. It will heat almost my entire 1st floor (about 1500sqft) even though the layout isn't great for it. Unless it is shoulder season no heat gets upstairs. I should have went larger, but oh well there's always next time. So far it has been reliable and I can't really find any faults in the stove itself. The issues I had were mainly user error and I think I have some issues due to a bad install.

I know that @Woodsplitter67 recommended looking in the manual for temperatures not to exceed. I have not found that information anywhere online or in the manual. That being said you should absolutely download and read the manual a few times. I will typically reread it before the season. If you are going to use the Cat then I'd suggest that you get an Auber thermometer. A bunch of people on here use then and mine helped me run better last year. There are threads on that somewhere.

Overall I think that a lot of the negativity towards VC stoves isn't necessarily warranted. Sure I have some minor gripes about the stove, but my wife that hasn't exposed herself to all of the internet hate or worries or overfiring or anything like that loves our stove and runs it just fine.

So unless they have changed the manuals. My manual clearly states it. Id yours doesn't let me know and Ill post mine. Also I believe there are manuals here you can download. Im pretty sure that all of our stoves are not to surpass 650 degrees STT.

The last part is so true. my wife operates the stove during the winter when were doing 24/7. When she was out of work during covid.. she was burning like a champ. my son started running the stove at 10 yrs old.. building the fire to get it started, closing the damper.. Its pretty easy.. when the thermometer on the pipe gets here close the damper.. the thermometer on the stove.. dont let it go past this.. while the stoves heating up.. dont walk away from it..

 

[NewGuy132]

So unless they have changed the manuals. My manual clearly states it. Id yours doesn't let me know and Ill post mine. Also I believe there are manuals here you can download. Im pretty sure that all of our stoves are not to surpass 650 degrees STT.

The last part is so true. my wife operates the stove during the winter when were doing 24/7. When she was out of work during covid.. she was burning like a champ. my son started running the stove at 10 yrs old.. building the fire to get it started, closing the damper.. Its pretty easy.. when the thermometer on the pipe gets here close the damper.. the thermometer on the stove.. dont let it go past this.. while the stoves heating up.. dont walk away from it..

Went poking though the manual again and found this.

"Use the following temperature ranges as a guide:• Readings in the 350°-500°F. (175°-260°C) range indicate low to medium heat output.• 500°-600°F. (260°-315°C) readings indicate medium heat output.• Readings of 600°-650°F. (315-340°C) indicate high heat output. Operating your Intrepid FlexBurn® continuously at griddle temperatures higher than 650° F (340°C) may damage the cast iron or enamel finish."

I remember finding this last year now that I think about it. I'm not sure what I was thinking about. I have always aimed to keep my STT below 650.

 

[JohnDaileyNH]

You should download the current manual for your stove. Im pretty sure it specifically says wht temperature not to exceed. also Id order a magnetic stovepipe thermometer. I have one and use it to guage when I have enough draft to close the bypass..

I know you say you only intend to burn here and there. I thought was the same, I thought I'd just be burning on the weekends and here and there. It quickly became my primary heat source. The heat was just that good. You'll under when you get it installed and start burning. It warms the bones. There's a reason why people are cozied up to the woodstove. You never hear people say. lets all hang out at the baseboard heat.. Just saying...

So for my stove there are 2 manuals. I've read both and they have slightly different info thats helpful. One is the Owners Manual. The other is the Installation and Operating manual.

I don't use the stovepipe thermometer on my setup because it's in my fireplace so I wouldn't be able to see it. I could go digital I guess but that's a lot of work

 

[VCnewbe]

Thanks to everyone for response. Would the Auber digital probe be used in the cat probe hole? If so I think I’ve read temps there get about 1000-1600?

 

[Woodsplitter67]

Thanks to everyone for response. Would the Auber digital probe be used in the cat probe hole? If so I think I’ve read temps there get about 1000-1600?

Yes you remove the bimetal thermometer and that K type thermocoupler goes in the same hole. Your looking for the K type 6inch 2k degree one.. I got mine from thermoworks

 

[JohnDaileyNH]

I got mine directly from Auber. Make sure to get the high temp probe. Took me longer to set the unit itself than install the probe in the stove. The instructions are not the best

 

[AsylumResident]

How do you reset the alarm on the Auber? I spent some time messing around with it and trying to look up the manual but haven't successfully reset the alarm.

 

[JohnDaileyNH]

You have to enter a code. I forget the number maybe 0001. Then set the limits on it

 

[Woodsplitter67]

I turned the alarm off on mine.. or have it set to a super high number like 1680..

 

[JohnDaileyNH]

I turned the alarm off on mine.. or have it set to a super high number like 1680..

Likewise mine is set very high I think 1700

 

[Woodsplitter67]

Yeah.. if mine does off.. its time to call the fire department..lol

 

[JohnDaileyNH]

Dump the ash bucket on it