Will all new wood burning stoves be catalytic after May 1, 2020?

[bholler]

So we made the very first "hybrid" wood stove in 1983. It had secondary air delivered to the firebox separately from the air supplied to the combustor. Our experience was the stove did not burn any cleaner, but did increase production costs. (Read more expensive retail pricing as well)

So if you look at the most current list of EPA certified heaters that meet Step 2 (correctly terminology is 2020 compliant), the cleanest are not necessarily "hybrid". Neither are the most efficient units "hybrid". There are most certainly some "hybrid" units in both the area of clean burning and efficient, but not the leaders. So with that said, our learning curve from 1983 is still in effect.

I suspect there are many changes coming in the future. Two weeks ago I met, along with a couple of other folks from industry, with senior EPA and state regulators. The goal is at some point to have a FRM (Federal Reference Method) to test wood stoves. It will be a complicated topic and take a few years to refine, but in the end, industry will have a new test method. Then stoves will have to be engineered to deal with those changes. I suspect 2023-2024 before the method is formalized. Of course there are many forces at play, including who is in the White House at the time, research funding etc.

What are the cleanest and most efficient stoves now? Looking through the list it looks like the hybrids have a slight advantage in both. But I don't know how current that list is

 

[BKVP]

What are the cleanest and most efficient stoves now? Looking through the list it looks like the hybrids have a slight advantage in both. But I don't know how current that list is

So on the cleanest list, there is a VC at .3 gr/hr and the PE32 at .4 gr/hr.
So on most efficient, there is a tie. There is a small KUMA at 81% and the KE40 at 81%

So when you buy your new Blaze King Bholler...and you like larger capacity stoves, you can get the cleanest or most efficient. In fact, I suspect I will see you in KOP next month. What's your flavor?

 

[BKVP]

It should be noted as well that EPA's site is very, very confusing!

 

[Mech e]

It should be noted as well that EPA's site is very, very confusing!

It's a government entity. Confusion is a prerequisite.

 

[bholler]

So on the cleanest list, there is a VC at .3 gr/hr and the PE32 at .4 gr/hr.
So on most efficient, there is a tie. There is a small KUMA at 81% and the KE40 at 81%

So when you buy your new Blaze King Bholler...and you like larger capacity stoves, you can get the cleanest or most efficient. In fact, I suspect I will see you in KOP next month. What's your flavor?

I won't be buying a bk anytime soon. I like the looks of the Chinook and I like lots of things about the princess I am running but the BTUs just fall short to often for me to buy one. I am sure the king would work but I don't have room for 8" in my chimney with insulation and I just couldn't buy something I dislike the look of that much. So next year the regency will go back in untill I come across a good deal on something else.

And yes I will be in kop. For a few days this year

 

[bholler]

I see quite a few in the 81 range and of the higher efficiency stoves looking at it the hybrids seem to have the best balance of efficiency and emmisions. But really a percentage point or two really doesn't change much. Clearly your biggest benifit is the thermostatic control which no one else is close to

 

[SteveKG]

I bought a Woodstock cat stove in 2013, so I have 5 1/2 winters with it. I replaced the cat last summer, at five years. It was somewhere a bit less than $150.

So, $30 a year? I have found that I burn roughly half the firewood I did prior to the cat stove. Even though I don't buy firewood, the decrease in physical labor and time as I age is well worth the cat cost. Plus, as others have already posted, stove burns quite evenly and no visible smoke from stack. Particulate pollution is a real issue, and the cat burns off particulates.

 

[bholler]

I bought a Woodstock cat stove in 2013, so I have 5 1/2 winters with it. I replaced the cat last summer, at five years. It was somewhere a bit less than $150.

So, $30 a year? I have found that I burn roughly half the firewood I did prior to the cat stove. Even though I don't buy firewood, the decrease in physical labor and time as I age is well worth the cat cost. Plus, as others have already posted, stove burns quite evenly and no visible smoke from stack. Particulate pollution is a real issue, and the cat burns off particulates.

Yes a modern cat stove can save you allot of wood if you are switching from an old pre EPA stove. But there isn't that much to be saved by switching from a good modern non cat to a cat stove. There are certainly other benefits to cat stoves that for some people are well worth it though.