So as to not take over Grizzly Adams' thread I thought I'd start a new thread for this adventure. Here's what I found in my inbox this morning! Unfortunately I won't be able to pick it up until probably Thursday or Friday evening but you can place money on me having it installed before the weekend is out. Along that line; is it wrong of me to be excited to get the Answer in the shop and tore apart to see what makes her tick?
Wow, day and a half?! Go get that puppy! I'm chompin' at the bit here....... Call 'em and tell 'em you'll be in ASAP, so they don't sell it to someone else.......stuff happens.
OMG, there'd be WORDS if that happened Papadave...wow. Since looking at the forecast for the rest of the week I've decided that I'll plug the truck in tomorrow when I leave for work and pickup the stove tomorrow night before pool league. I assume an outdoor firing is recommended just like any new stove correct? I've got 4' of spare black pipe; will that be enough for said outdoor firing?
If you have the time to fire outside, sure. I did mine in the house, and opened windows and the front door for a while. Just remember to account for cooling too, although that shouldn't be much of a problem in this weather.
I was all excited to fire up the truck and take it too work so I could pick up the stove over lunch. I plugged it in last night but the batteries were pretty low (it has an onboard charger as well as a block heater on the same plug) and when I hit the key this morning I got about one revolution. Granted it was -10ยบ with a 15mph wind but still. I'm guessing I froze a battery because I don't drive it regularly enough to keep them topped off. So I went ahead and disconnected one of them and put the big charger on it and left the onboard charger connected to the other one. We'll see how it behaves tonight. If she starts I'll back her in the shop so at least it's out of the wind for the morning. If not the batteries will have to come out and go in the hotbox (an old cooler with a light bulb inside) overnight on the charger. That's better than bringing them in the house and have them off-gassing indoors!
First fire!!! Yes, it is in the back of my truck and yes that is quite the jury-rigged (but uber safe) chimney setup.
Have you decided whether to install it upstairs or downstairs? My Myriad is in the unfinished basement and I also have a Drolet 1800 i on the 1st floor. Both burned last night (2 deg) and the cabin was 69 deg this morning. The cabin is about 2100 sq ft including the basement, mainfloor, and upstairs.
What the heck is that thing in the back of the shed? Nice stove by the way, I have an SBI product as well an Osburn 2400 insert.
For the rest of this season I'm going to put it in place of the Lopi Answer on the main floor. I figure this will serve two purposes. One I'll get to know the new stove while it's in close proximity (my master plan is to automate it with an ardunio before it is moved downstairs) and two I'll get to do a little work on the Answer to make it a little more user friendly. The draft control is a PITA to operate and I'd like to find out where the secondary air control is if there is one. Seeing (feeling really) how much of a heating machine the myriad was last night on a pitiful little load of wood I can tell that it'll easily overheat my upstairs but that's alright for this year!
That sounds like a plan. I could have used a larger stove upstairs, but the fireplace dimensions limited me to the 1800i. The Myriad keeps the basement nice and toasty, but very little migrates upstairs.
This is my struggle as well, with the Daka heating the basement. Fortunately I think the SIL will be moving out soon taking her 5 cats with her. Then we can shuffle rooms down there with my children and start the remodel that will allow more air circulation. It will also help that we'll be able to leave the basement door open when her and her cats are gone and ours are allowed to roam the whole house again.
That my friend is a highly modified (by yours truly) "all nighter". That poor stove started out life in the addition to an old farmhouse I bought back in '95. The baffle plate was burnt beyond recognition so the first modification was to cut the back 1/3 of the top off and re-add it with a new baffle system and flue collar. After a big remodel to that old house that didn't quite get completed I found that the stove was just too small so I went on a search for what other people were doing to their stoves to get more heat. I ran into this "theory" that a large pyramid shaped stove would be more efficient and extract more heat from the smoke. The idea was to keep the smoke in contact with the flames as long as possible so that it re-burned before going out the chimney. I thought a true pyramid shape was a little beyond my construction ability but a simple triangle would be plausible so I acquired a sheet of 1/4" plate, had it sheared to my dimensions, holes plasma'd in the front and the back and went to work welding. So long story long, that bugger will heat but it is a true wood eater! After running the Answer and my first fire in the Myriad I can tell you without a shadow of a doubt that there is something serious to this stove technology. Not that it's a huge mystery or black magic but there is certainly a science to it. Thanks for asking Foragefarmer, that brings back some great (and other not-so-great ) memories!
No secondary control as is with many of these new stoves, you will get used to the primary air control, I would like to lube mine so it moves easier. As you found out already the stove puts out a lot of heat, looking forward to your feedback. There is a lot going on in that picture of yours.
At least a guy can see the secondary air inlet on the Myriad. The Lopi's is all hidden in the pedestal somewhere. I think I'm going to try either a graphite based lube on the Lopi or some anti-seize. I knew that picture would get a few guys around here "thinking"!
Did you get it out of the truck and installed? This is what they look like when they are not in the back of a truck.
I have a stout friend (at least he was my friend, we'll see after this) coming I've this morning. The Lopi is cold and I've almost got her unhooked and ready to roll out the door! Cribbed, how have you liked the lack of door swing on yours? I see where the stop is and I'm awfully tempted to remove them so it swings at least 140 degrees instead of the weird 100 or so.
Sam, I have lived with the lack of swing, but I am not liking that. I will also investigate removing the stops to get it to open wider. It is a bit weird because the 1800i upstairs opens the full 180 degrees.
