Weekend Cabin

[Redside]

Hi, I am thankful for a forum like this and am looking for some advice.

I have a very remote off-grid 16X24 cabin with 10 foot walls, half loft, and vaulted ceilings at a 10/12 pitch. The insulation is good, but there are lots of triple pane windows. The cubic feet is about 5,300 making it equal in volume to a 660 square foot building with a normal 8 foot ceiling.

This is a weekend cabin and avg temp is about 0 F in winter (will get as low as -40 for a week or two). My needs are unique in that I need to warm the space up as quick as possible and then hang out a couple days. I am leaning towards a Blaze king Sirocco 20, but have narrowed down my options to:

1. BlazeKing Sirocco 20.1
-How long does it take for the blaze king to come up to temp and heat the frozen cabin vs Super 27?
-Is it bad to burn a blazeking super hot while cabin is coming up to temp?

2. Super 27 or TN20. I know the stoves are oversized for the space, but:
1) Will it heat the space quicker than the sirocco 20 and get the cabin up to temp?
2) Is the Super 27 oversized? The Super 27 manual actually list the BTU range at 11,000 - 34,600 btu/hr
- This is actually a lower low and higher high btu/hr range than the Vista or TN20
- The Vista seems more appropriately sized, but why not the Super 27 since it actually can burn lower?

3. Should I get a very small stove with direct vent propane heater as a supplement?
- This would be no big-deal, but costs me more money as wood is essentially free where I am
- This is the least favorable option as I don't relish the thought of not having hot coals in the morning

All three options (sirocco 20, Super 27, or small stove with propane backup) seem to work, but what is best? Can I still get an overnight burn with the Super 27 and not cook myself out? I am pretty impressed with the BTU range of the Super 27 and it seems like it will heat the place up the fastest from a frozen state (which is very important). Some of the Woodstock stoves seem perfect for 24/7 (eg., Keystone), but I am not getting soapstone since it will heat up slow compared to bare steel.

 

[begreen]

I'd get the Super 27. It will heat up quickly, but can be run with a partial load if the place warms up enough and has a good long burn time A ceiling fan will help reduce heat pocketing at the ceiling peak.

 

[Rickb]

I love my bk and I run it on low most the winter but if I was coming into a frozen cabin I would probably use a cheaper tube stove. Now if you going to be using it for a week straight every time you do fire it up that would be a different story.

just a fyi the small 20 I have can give me 8 - 10 hours of good heat from 5 splits on low, about 2/3's full, but im never starting with temps below 60f.

 

[Redside]

I have a friend looking to up size his sirocco 20 so costs isn't an issue since I can get a decent deal. The only thing I was worried about is burning the blaze king wide open and having the flames lick the cat for 6 hours every time I come out and bring the cabin out of a frozen state.....figured the super 27 would be much more durable and able to crank out more heat running it wide open..........more opinions wanted since I don't know squat.
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If i can run the blazeking wide open and it would heat the cabin up relatively quickly then I would get it over the Super 27.

 

[webby3650]

Keep in mind that whatever stove you choose will rust pretty quickly in an unconditioned space. I wouldn’t get too fancy.

 

[webby3650]

There’s no risk in running a BK wide open. The thermostat prevents it from overfiring.

 

[Ashful]

No issue with running BKs wide open. So far as I know, they’re the only stove that can be left unattended while set at full blast. The thermostat will manage it for you.

That said, absolute max output on some of the tube stoves may be slightly higher. It’s tough to say, as I know some of the BK BTU ratings are overly conservative.

 

[Redside]

Thanks for all the suggestions........looks like a sirocco 20 is going to take first place. Out of curiosity, I looked at the BTU rating for the Super 27 and it has a really low BTU burn rate (lower than the sirocco 20 in fact). For those of you with the Super 27, it looks like it may be possible to burn it very slow cleanly and not overheat the place......anyone have any experience they can share?

I still think the blazeking looks to be the number 1 pick. It would be nice to get the fire going, turn the thermostat to high, and then go do other chores/play while the cabin comes up to temp without worrying about runaway fires.

 

[webby3650]

Thanks for all the suggestions........looks like a sirocco 20 is going to take first place. Out of curiosity, I looked at the BTU rating for the Super 27 and it has a really low BTU burn rate (lower than the sirocco 20 in fact). For those of you with the Super 27, it looks like it may be possible to burn it very slow cleanly and not overheat the place......anyone have any experience they can share?

I still think the blazeking looks to be the number 1 pick. It would be nice to get the fire going, turn the thermostat to high, and then go do other chores/play while the cabin comes up to temp without worrying about runaway fires.

Most of my non-cats would run slow, then start smoking as the combustion temperature drops. While You can turn it to low, only after it’s had the opportunity to reach about 1200 combustion temps. Non cats have trouble burning cleanly on low as the internal temp drops. A cat stove can burn cleanly all the way down to 500 degrees combustion temps.

 

[begreen]

Thanks for all the suggestions........looks like a sirocco 20 is going to take first place. Out of curiosity, I looked at the BTU rating for the Super 27 and it has a really low BTU burn rate (lower than the sirocco 20 in fact). For those of you with the Super 27, it looks like it may be possible to burn it very slow cleanly and not overheat the place......anyone have any experience they can share?

I still think the blazeking looks to be the number 1 pick. It would be nice to get the fire going, turn the thermostat to high, and then go do other chores/play while the cabin comes up to temp without worrying about runaway fires.

BTU ratings can be ambiguous. There are EPA tested ratings, cordwood ratings and peak output. The Super 27 can put out a lot of heat and quickly.
Heat Output Cord Wood (BTU)72,000 BTU
Heat Output EPA (BTU) 34,600 BTU

 

[Nigel459]

Thanks for all the suggestions........looks like a sirocco 20 is going to take first place. Out of curiosity, I looked at the BTU rating for the Super 27 and it has a really low BTU burn rate (lower than the sirocco 20 in fact). For those of you with the Super 27, it looks like it may be possible to burn it very slow cleanly and not overheat the place......anyone have any experience they can share?

I still think the blazeking looks to be the number 1 pick. It would be nice to get the fire going, turn the thermostat to high, and then go do other chores/play while the cabin comes up to temp without worrying about runaway fires.

I can endorse your decision for the Sirocco. We love our 20.1 box, it's plenty of stove for our space which sounds similar to yours, maybe even higher in need. Run it low and slow or just as hot and fast as any style stove to "blast the heat", with the bonus that it self regulates and won't overfire. Best of all worlds in my humble opinion, you won't be disappointed. Good luck, enjoy and have fun!

 

[Pertzbro]

I'd go for a cheaper priced steel plate tube stove. Any of the ones from the big box stores.

 

[Nigel459]

I'd go for a cheaper priced steel plate tube stove. Any of the ones from the big box stores.

He said he was getting the Sirocco for cheap, slightly used too, but I hear ya.

 

[Redside]

Thanks for all the input. If cost was an issue then a decent tube stove (13-NC, TN20, 17-VL) would be the way to go. Since I will be using the stove in shoulder season and hopefully will spend more time there as I get older, the Sirocco 20 seems perfect. Thanks again for making the decision easier.

 

[Rickb]

Since cost isnt an issue and the BK is going to be no cheaper you cant go wrong with it. I bet you only run it on high for a couple hours before the cabin is up to temp and your back at a low burn.

Check back in and let us know how its working out!

 

[Poindexter]

I have a friend looking to up size his sirocco 20 so costs isn't an issue since I can get a decent deal. The only thing I was worried about is burning the blaze king wide open and having the flames lick the cat for 6 hours every time I come out and bring the cabin out of a frozen state.....

I can assure you from personal experience as well. I run my BK size 30 box at wide open throttle for weeks every January, no issues. If it wasn't safe to do, they would put a shorter swoosh mark on the dial.

All of the stoves you mentioned are names I see frequently, likely modern/ current production and will do best on cordwood seasoned to 20% MC or less. Take a split, split it open, measure the MC on the freshly exposed face. Useless to measure the outside surface, worse than useless to stick pins in end grain.

I am not sure how fast you can heat that cabin up without leaks. I just don't know. Imagine it is zero F ambient, the entire structure is at zero ambient, the air inside is at zero ambient, and you start a fire in any stove. The drywall, studs, insulation, vapor barrier, windows and caulk sealing the windows will each warm up at different rates and expand at different rates. I have no idea how fast you can warm it up without causing an air leak. The fool thing might spring a leak from cooling off the last time you had it warm. Once you have an air leak, water vapor is coming in on the third air molecule.

I am chest deep in trying to maintain a permanent warm structure in a cold environment in the DIY section here and I think the fundamental problem is "permanent."

If the price was right, I too would grab the BK 20 size box. You got to be south across a mountain range from me...

 

[xman23]

For a lot of years we would arrive to a 45 F cabin, About 1800 sq ft plus a basement, we keep at 45. The stove running hard plus the house electric heat would raise 3 - 5 degrees an hour. The stove is big enough for the house. The stove alone can easily overheat the house when it's below 0. The cold house issue is the thermal mass and getting the heat into the thick insulation. Now we have the heat come on eight hours before we arrive, It's 65 and we don't have to run the stove very hard.

 

[EatenByLimestone]

I run a t5, same firebox as the super 27, in a cabin with the same footprint as you. I have 8 foot ceilings.

No regrets. The cast iron surround adds mass that can help moderate the heat coming off the steel once the place is up to temp.

When coming into a cold cabin I turn on a 15k btu sunflower heater run off a propane tank. It'll help warm up the place quicker and since it's IR, it'll warm up the table you're sitting at which is nice.

I close off side rooms and warm the main up first, then open doors individually. I've had the 12x16 main room up to temp in 40min with single digit temps outside.

 

[EatenByLimestone]

I used to run the Century in my signature in the cabin. The small steel stove was better sized once everything was up to temperature, but had short burn times and took longer to get everything up to temp. Reloads when you needed the heat became a chore.

 

[Mike M.]

No matter which stove you get try to stock pile smaller size splits for the heat up fire. I like to store mine inside so that every time I arrive at the cabin there is always dry wood available. Also a wood shed is extremely helpful for keeping snow off your fuel. Mine is attached to the garage which works well. I like to get to the cabin, light a nice fire that is controlled, then head out for hunting or atving while the fire heats up the place.

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