Trying to choose the perfect stove

[Backwoods Savage]

" Could the soot be vacumed out of the elbow on a FV through the open top?
Angus, I'll check out the Jotuls."

In regards to cleaning the chimney - I haven't ran it yet but we are putting a Jotul F50 into the house we are building. Our chimney is straight up/down. No elbows. The installer that I am purchasing it from told me that the Jotul F50s allow us to clean the chimney into the stove without removing the pipe and then just vacuum the creosote out of the stove. He also sweeps chimneys and though it would be a nice setup to clean. But like I said, I am going on what he's telling me as we haven't ran the stove yet and won't until this winter........

Woodstock sold a pastel of Classics but methinks the Fireview is still the big seller. Not too many want the Classic after seeing the Fireview. Like firecracker stated, we like to see the flame.


Interesting thought about cleaning soot through the open top. I see no reason why you could not do that with a good shop vac. Not sure how well you could make the bend to get down in a tee but with just an elbow, it should be no problem.

 

[firecracker_77]

I had a Classic for a couple of years, it was great. It just didn't hold enough wood to effectively heat the house for a full 12 hours.

I'm not knocking that stove. I'm sure it's nice and very pretty, but seeing the flame helps me manage my fire. I would be operating in the dark without seeing how the burn was going especially when dialing back the air control.

 

[Backwoods Savage]

I'm not knocking that stove. I'm sure it's nice and very pretty, but seeing the flame helps me manage my fire. I would be operating in the dark without seeing how the burn was going especially when dialing back the air control.

I agree it is nice to see the flame but think back not that many years and most folks who heated with wood never saw the flame. But then, just looking at our situation, we purchased the Fireview in 2007 and this is the first stove we've owned that had glass for viewing the flame! None of our other stoves had this and we got along just fine.

 

[firecracker_77]

I agree it is nice to see the flame but think back not that many years and most folks who heated with wood never saw the flame. But then, just looking at our situation, we purchased the Fireview in 2007 and this is the first stove we've owned that had glass for viewing the flame! None of our other stoves had this and we got along just fine.

The Russians had the giant masonry type stoves and never saw the flame. You are right

 

[fox9988]

WS is checking for any customers in my area, hopefully I will get to see one of their stoves in person. The summer sale ends Aug 17 so I need to decide soon. I asked them if they had any refubished stoves, none at this time. They said they usually only got 4-5 a year (mostly due to financing), out of ~2600 sales. That speaks well considering the 6 month satifaction guarantee.

 

[Todd]

Not many refurbs, you have to be quick when they advertise them. I lucked out on a keystone refurb last year and every once in awhile I check to see if they have a gas stove refurb but nothing yet. Maybe they will have a few specials at the BBQ in Oct?

 

[firecracker_77]

Not many refurbs, you have to be quick when they advertise them. I lucked out on a keystone refurb last year and every once in awhile I check to see if they have a gas stove refurb but nothing yet. Maybe they will have a few specials at the BBQ in Oct?

I picked up a Woodstock demo for $1250 that was $2500 list. They sold me Duravent too and had it perfectly sized for my application. Kudos to Woodstock!

 

[Backwoods Savage]

Way to go Firecracker.

 

[firecracker_77]

Not many refurbs, you have to be quick when they advertise them. I lucked out on a keystone refurb last year and every once in awhile I check to see if they have a gas stove refurb but nothing yet. Maybe they will have a few specials at the BBQ in Oct?

The gas Woodstock is great as a secondary heat source. My wife wasn't crazy about getting one initially, but last winter when my basement was toasty warm, that all changed. As our basement is the primary place we spend free time, the furnace doesn't have to run to keep the upstairs as warm and the basement is perfectly warm. A nice space heater. The push button convenience and low maintenance as opposed to wood makes it great for general use for people who aren't wanting to have the ongoing woodstove labor. I would recommend the Woodstock brand to anyone for that reason. You can do ventless for less, but I prefer a vented gas fireplace or stove all day long. I don't need any extra moisture and if you've ever dealt with or heard of mold horror stories...the health consequences and enormous inconvenience and cost of mold remediation justify my belief that no moisture added to your house is a good thing especially in a basement. Hearthstone makes equally beautiful gas stoves, and I'm sure there are many others that I'm unaware of that could meet many budgets, so patience and legwork will be rewarded if patient. It's much easier to find an affordable used wood stove given the number produced, but I found a gas one right away used with one phone call, so I know there's hope.

 

[Hiram Maxim]

I have to laugh because you are looking at the same things we were. When I first saw some of these new EPA stoves, including the Fireview, I laughed out loud. I could hardly believe a stove of that size would heat our home. Long story short, it does very nicely. Then after some remodeling last year which included an addition, we still have more than enough stove to keep us very warm. We used to close off rooms in the house. We do not do that any longer....and we stay warmer burning only about half the amount of wood we used to burn.

Dennis,

Thats great to hear!

I was thinking about You the other day and how Your remodel and Open Cell Foam injected exterior walls were working/performing for You?

Hope all is well!

Hiram

 

[Shadow&Flame]

Hey fox9988,

I cant help you much with your stove choice(I know nothing about the ones you are looking at), but I would like to say hello and say you have found the greatest website for stove info going. I am sure you have figured that one out by now thou.... The only advice I can give you is to stay away from Congo
stoves if you can. I didnt have the best experience with them and just wanted to give you a heads up...for what its worth.

Wish you the best of luck with your new home and the new stove you choose. I am certain you will like it better than the smoke dragon...

Have a good one.

S&F

 

[Backwoods Savage]

Dennis,

Thats great to hear!

I was thinking about You the other day and how Your remodel and Open Cell Foam injected exterior walls were working/performing for You?

Hope all is well!

Hiram

Thanks Hiram. The extra insulation is also making a huge difference with the air conditioning. It really showed when we lost power for 3 days and ran only one air conditioner (we have 2 very small ones). Even though we had 100 degrees with super high dew points, the house stayed very comfortable using only the one.

With that in mind, I will be curious to see what our wood usage will be this coming winter. I predict we will still be a bit under 3 cord for the winter. That is nice because I'm getting to the point where it is more difficult to put up the wood. So, less wood to put up is fine with me. Now if I could keep from selling some and giving some away, I could cut even less. However, that might not be as much fun.

 

[fox9988]

WS can't find any local customers with current phone #'s. I stopped by a local dealer Friday just to look around. They had a BK king and princess, True North, full line of Lopi, full line of PE, and a few Jotuls. The owner was very helpful, she been in business for 35 years. She said her and her husband had used almost every stove they stock, at one time or another, to heat two different homes and their 4000sqft business. Between the PE's And Lopi's she recomended the 27 series or the 1750/Endeaver. I was concerned with getting 10 hour a burn time without over-heating during mid burn cycle (1536sqft, new, tight, well insulated ,mild climate). I'm concerned with short hot fires and relighting vs slow and low. She didn't think it would be a problem. I'm still leaning toward the WS. We like the looks of the FV, but the Keystone would fit on the hearth better due to the reversible flue collar.

 

[begreen]

Sounds like you have a good dealer that has provided some good advice. That gives you some alternatives to consider. But if you decide on Woodstock you will also be in good hands, just a bit farther away.

 

[ddddddden]

. . .If your wife likes the Fireview I'd go with it, it won't disappoint.

+1. If you like the pics, you'll love the stove. Sounds like a very good fit for you. . .or maybe the Keystone. Hmm. . .

. . .You can get a 12 hour burn with either Woodstock, but the Fireview would be more consistent and give you a little more room and fire power.

For numbers with that, he has measured the Keystone @1.4 cu ft and Fireview @1.8 cu ft.
I'm glad to have the extra 20% of capacity.

. . .Could the soot be vacumed out of the elbow on a FV through the open top?

Yes, that's what I do, except that I just scoop it out. This easy access through the top is probably the biggest difference to the Keystone. . .easier to grab the cat too.


OTOH, the Keystone has the easy-access bottom ash pan. For the rate at which you will probably burn in your climate(sounds similar to mine) and house, I doubt that you will need to empty ashes every day; I don't, so the lack of an ash pan is not a big deal to me. The Fireview will hold a good amount of ashes. In fact, I probably have the stove's extra 20% of capacity filled with ashes most of the time , but that helps it to keep coals burning forever. I believe Todd said that the Keystone does not hold coals as long because it gets more air under the coals via a hole in the ash pan. Some in colder regions might prefer this, as coal buildup from previous loads can be an issue with a smaller stove, if you are pushing loads of wood through the stove more frequently to get more heat. Most of the time, I'd rather nurse the coals, like the Fireview does.

 

[Todd]

I don't leave much ash in my Keystone fire boxes, when I reload I rake the coals forward towards the glass and the ash falls through the slots into the ash pan. I could probably empty the ash pan every 3-4 days but I like to stick to an every other day routine so I don't forget. I still get 12 hour burns with little or no ash in the box. I still remember having some coaling issues with the Fireview because I got lazy about empting ash, it doesn't happen with the Keystone.

I've played around with that ash pan hole a few times and plugging it has left me some unburnt chunks in the back of the stove. With the hole open I can turn the stove all the way down to 0 and still end up with a nice coal bed in the morning but the glass gets dirty.

 

[fox9988]

Are flue temps a concern with a cat, or does it burn clean as long as the cat is active? What are the minimum stove top temps that can be maintained with a clean burn? Todd, nice description of the Keystone's lack of over coaling, I've dealt with that before.

 

[Todd]

Are flue temps a concern with a cat, or does it burn clean as long as the cat is active? What are the minimum stove top temps that can be maintained with a clean burn? Todd, nice description of the Keystone's lack of over coaling, I've dealt with that before.

Cat stoves run pretty low flue temps but as long as the cat is active it will burn up all the nasties and there should be little or no creosote build up.

Stove top temps can be misleading in Woodstock stoves since the cat is located right under the center top stone. You can turn it down to a low smoulder fire with the cat doing all the work and the stove top temp can climb up over 700 while the rest of the stove is relatively cooler. Turn up the air and the flame returns and takes some of the work away from the cat and the stove top temps cool while the rest of the stove heats up. Sounds kind a confusing but the air control does regulate the heat very well. I think a better indication is watching the flue temps over stove top temps or just watching the amount of flame in the box.

 

[fox9988]

I just got off the phone with WS again, as usual they were very polite and helpful. I forgot to ask them, how does the rear heat shield attach to the back of the stove- studs or threaded bolt holes in the cast? I also forgot to price the shield.? Thanks to all of you this will be an easy sale

 

[Todd]

Threaded bolts attach the shield and it costs $80

 

[Highbeam]

I'm having my annual itch to replace my stove and the fireview still has a lot to offer.

Do you really think they'll figure out a way to allow top venting the fireview? Similar to the collar on the PH? That would make this stove fit my hearth easily.

 

[fox9988]

I asked about that rumor. They said a top vent and ash pan have been discussed, but are not in the works yet.
Looks like I will be ordering a Keystone in the morning. I appreciate all of your advice/help (especially Dennis, Todd and firecracker). I'm sure we will love the new stove. I will be sure to post some pic's of the install.Thanks again.

 

[Shadow&Flame]

I asked about that rumor. They said a top vent and ash pan have been discussed, but are not in the works yet.
Looks like I will be ordering a Keystone in the morning. I appreciate all of your advice/help (especially Dennis, Todd and firecracker). I'm sure we will love the new stove. I will be sure to post some pic's of the install.Thanks again.

Did you find a local shop? That was the biggest hurdle I had...
Hope you really enjoy your new stove...look forward to the pics.

 

[fox9988]

Did you find a local shop? That was the biggest hurdle I had...
Hope you really enjoy your new stove...look forward to the pics.

WS deals direct only, no middle man. Like it or your money back +shipping!

 

[Shadow&Flame]

WS deals direct only, no middle man. Like it or your money back +shipping!

Sweet...you doing the install?