Unfamiliar with CAT stoves...is it possible to burn with a broken cat?

[knxville]

Hello,

I'm not real familiar with cat stoves, but from what I've read it seems like there is a little more complexity than non-cats. Is it possible to burn in a cat stove with a broken cat? Would it be like burning in a non-cat stove?

Please advise....

Thanks!

 

[cmonSTART]

Sure it is possible to burn with a broken cat, but it would be like running an old pre-EPA smoke dragon. Creosote, dirty chimney, and all.

Be nice to your cat.

 

[Slow1]

Is it possible? Well - technically yes of course the fire will burn and you will get some heat. However, you won't get anywhere near as clean a burn or the efficiency of a properly functioning stove. The difference in design between the cat and non-cat stove is a bit more than just slapping the cat in the smoke path (well, at least this is true for modern cats - as I understand it the original cat designs may have been about that).

"little more complexity" is true generally speaking. This is true because cat stoves have a bypass damper to engage/disengage when feeding the stove that allows smoke to go around the cat until it is up to temperature to burn in there (avoids gunking up the cat). As has been said by others here - it is 'more' complex, but that doesn't make it 'complex' or even hard. Some non-cat stoves have bypass dampers as well so in those cases it evens out the playing field in my opinion.

Now to your message... I'm inferring that you have a cat stove there that you are considering burning w/o a functional cat. Why not just replace the cat? If you post what kind of stove it is I'm sure we can help you find the right one for it. Further if the stove is in good shape otherwise you should be much happier with the heat output and control with the cat installed.

 

[Backwoods Savage]

Welcome to the forum knxville.


Good post Slow1.

Of course you can burn without the cat and we occasionally do that....but only in early fall or late spring when we just want to take a bit of chill off. Then we don't have enough wood in the stove to realistically run the cat as the stove just doesn't get that hot.

Yes, they are really complex! You have a draft lever and a bypass lever. The bypass is either up or down (on our stove). The draft is the same as other stoves. Not too complex in my book.

On the cats, they are not that expensive and the difference in the amount of heat you get with the cat is huge. I can see no good reason for not using one.

 

[firefighterjake]

Sure it is possible to burn with a broken cat, but it would be like running an old pre-EPA smoke dragon. Creosote, dirty chimney, and all.

Be nice to your cat.

What he said . . . I guess the better question would be why would you want to burn without a cat . . . and forget all that being kind to the earth stuff . . . I mean I would want the cat in place so I could burn more efficiently and take advantage of the tech to burn less wood.