So I built the convection deck for my stove and the blower output is now forced over the top of the stove. Big difference in the amount of heat you feel coming off of the stove. Performance is much better. Still, the stove and deck aren't cooling as much as I would like. I am leaving heat on the stove that can be moved off into the room. The factory AC16 blower is a silly 65 cfm and noisy. Cost is 125$ to replace this blower. The optional AC30 blower is only 100 cfm but has the benefits of a rheostat and maintains the deflector setup to blow the air up the back of the stove. Cost is 165$ from AMFM. This air flow is ridiculously small. The 28-3500 furnace from Englander with a 4.7 CF firebox vs 3.5 for the NC30 uses a 850 cfm blower. Even my tiny 2.85 CF blaze king has 210 cfm from the blowers. So what do you think? is the AC30 worth the upgrade money (like 20% the cost of the stove). Sure, it's almost double the cfm of the AC16 but doubling a tiny number is still a tiny number. What about getting fancy and rigging up a hardware store solution? A regular old 6" duct fan is rated for 250 cfm. Actually 160 cfm "free air" whatever that means. I do value using a UL listed optional blower made for my stove. I suppose my big question is will the step to an AC30 be impressive?
I'm in WA, south puget sound, cascade foothills. Looks like I need to fix my profile information to reflect that.
I think Grizzly Adam posted that time zone question here by mistake since there is the same question in another thread! None-the-less, it's nice to know what time zone you're in...might make a difference for the blower motor!! http://firewoodhoardersclub.com/forums/threads/congratulations-on-your-retirement-rottiman.9915/
Highbeam, I haven't used the "hair dryer" blower, but got the AC30 (mine was somewhere around 130, I think). I keep it on low the majority of the time to keep a current going, but turned it up late this morning and got more time from the big coal bed heat for a while. I mentioned this in another thread, but when I turn it anywhere above about 25%, it gets a little noisy. I can hear it on low. I noticed right away that the heat shield/air deflector diffuses the heat quite a bit instead of directing it. I'm sure your deck does a much better job. Dex made one too, if I'm remembering correctly. The AC30 is a dual squirrel cage.
As I mentioned in another thread there are after market blowers that should be able to be fitted to the back of the NC-30. Look on Amazon for FASCO 160. Fasco makes the blower components for a lot of OEM blowers. On Amazon the 160 CF blowers start at about $60 including snap disk, wires, & rheostat. With the work you did on the convection deck a bracket for the blower should be easy. http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss?url=search-alias=aps&field-keywords=fasco+160 KaptJaq
And I thank you for that. I made a new thread for the new question. On the link you posted, the only 60$ blower is one with just a cord. No rheostat or snapdisk. Those items bump the price up over 125$.
$99 & free shipping. Includes cord, rheostat & snapdisk. A lot less expensive than the AC30. I used this unit to replace the blower in a friend's VC insert. http://www.amazon.com/Tjernlund-GFK..._sbs_hi_2?ie=UTF8&refRID=1RWXDXE07D433A4MF84M Check the dimensions to see if it will fit.
Which doesn't really make sense unless the rheostat is some sort of special model. Snapdisks are cheap! A tad OT; I've been contemplating a blower for my Answer but I have been loathe to add any more noise to an otherwise quiet living area. I'm still a little disillusioned with the constant drone of the old pellet stove I had down at the farm. Anyway I've toyed with the idea of mounting a blower in the crawl space directly under the stove (it's a finished crawl space, cement floor and everything) and then just ducting the flow to the stove along with a cold air return duct feeding it. I'd probably throw inside a simple insulated box (or an old cooler) just for good measure but I can't imagine that the 50ยบ air down there would cool it down that much.
The best part about these blowers is that they can be turned off. I never go to sleep with the blower running but when I need major stove mojo I run the fans for the significant increase in room temperature.
I went ahead and ordered this one for 60$ with no rheostat. I can source a speed control locally if needed. 160 cfm baby! http://www.amazon.com/GFK-160-Firep...UTF8&qid=1421885678&sr=8-1&keywords=fasco+160 65 cfm for AC16, 100 cfm for AC30 (small increase but OEM looking), and 160 cfm for this very common replacement blower used in many stoves. I also considered some of the 100$ or so 500 cfm dayton style furnace blowers but I was afraid that it would be too much. I'll post a new thread when I make a bracket and install this thing.
My old Nashua had a 450 cfm fan which I thought was perfect, I was going to put that size on my Drolet (I think the fan is too small also) but it stuck out too far.
I love the larger blower. It is a LOT quieter and moves more air. Mine is always on. Last year was the first year using the blower 24/7 and, even though it made a huge difference, the noise sucked and made me worry that having a stove with a blower in the living room and the kitchen would be hideously loud and annoying. I decided to by the larger blower for more control and, hopefully a lot less noise. It provided both. I actually run the blower at a higher setting than I thought I would since it is so much quieter than the old hairdryer it came with.
I think the difference between the 16 and the 30 are larger than the posted CFM. When the hair dryer (16) is on high, I could barely feel the air coming across the deck. With the 30, I can feel that air over 10-12 ft back from the stove. Well worth the money in my opinion. The AC-16, works, but the AC-30 is more than double the blower. IMO.
New blower arrived today. I couldn't help but run it on the bench. Very quiet, like a microwave running quiet, and with no speed control it's on high. I sat it on the hearth under the stove blowing up towards the gap under the shield and the flow is much greater than ac16. I think it will work.
It would take a lot of air but isn't it possible, not sure how many CFM's it would take but my blower on the Summit and it was a runt cooled the stove top a fair amount, my Drolet does not blow directly across the top so it does not have any where near the effect.
