What we got here is a dilemma

Just spoke with a the nice folks at Woodstock. Good news is, the IS will have a heat shield available. Bad news, no blower.

I firmly believe that a blower is needed to get the most out of the stove in the kitchen location due to the fact that it will half inside a tight fireplace. Will the stove heat the area? Yes, but my goal is convenience and without the blower I will reload sooner on colder days as the heat will not move as well.

So, the question are:

• Do I still go with the IS?
• Do I go with two Kings and put the 30 in the kitchen with a new rheostat blower that ESW offers?
• Do I skip the second King for now and search out a Princess insert for the kitchen?

 

That kinda sucks. I'm a big believer in the blower.

My Spectrum doesn't have one, and I burned it a few times as is. The way the stove is built, there is a heat shield on the back that goes up over the top. I assume that the blower mounts somewhere and blows up the back and across the top. I just so happen to have a small fan that fits underneath it and can be rotated to point straight up. Huge difference in heat output and warming up a cold (like really cold) house. I thought about taking a picture of it, but I would prolly get in trouble with the clearance police.

 

Did they say why no blower?

 

Good news on the shield.
Should help with clearances, eh?

 

Yes, it should.

 

The seemed to have no interest in offering a blower or have any plans to offer one. I didn't press the issue.

 

Yes. I agree, there is a huge difference when a blower is used. World of difference with the 30 between this year and last.

I'm lean toward not going with the IS at this point. Which sucks. It would have made my life a lot easier, and I also wanted to give a Woodstock stove a try after several missed opportunities and whatnot.

 

Not sure it would be an issue for me, as I have an air purifier blowing into the stove room.
Even w/o that, the convective flow is pretty good....eventually.

 

I think you would notice a huge difference since your big request has been the need to get the most out of your stove. Instead of needing 500-600 stove temps, you could probably warm the house just as well with 400-500 degree temps. A good blower will allow you to get more usable heat from a burn cycle.

 

Could you put a small fan behind the IS in the fireplace?

 

It will be a tight fit and in my experience with fans (several) and blowers (one) the blower beats the snot out of the fans.

 

On an unrelated note, I bypassed the snapdisk on the BK the other day. I had cleaned out most of the ashes, loaded it up, and didn't get it rolling like I should have before I got rushed out of the house. It didn't take off real well, and we came home to a warmish 400° stove, no blowers on, and a rapidly cooling house. The snapdisk hits the bottom part of the back of the stove, and would normally be near or below the level of the ash bed. With no ashes, a cold load of wood, and a wimpy fire, it wasn't hot enough to turn them on. When I opened the air up, the fire came to life and the temp rose quickly, but the blowers were off/on/off. It was a quick disconnect and reconnect of male/female ends.

Or so I thought. I was in a bit of a hurry, and didn't pay much attention. I noticed on Tuesday that only one blower was working. I had to look again and do a cut and splice.

Interestingly, the motor/fan are made in Traverse City, MI.

 

With 23 different stoves, you have way more expeience than me, but the fan trick works really well with the PE. It an older Spectrum, and is almost identical to the Super 27 today. I thought that is what it was until I looked closely.

 

My T6 doesn't have a blower because I felt they wanted too much for it. I placed a small fan blowing up toward the rear opening and can feel good air flow out the top. I have thought about making my own shroud and mounting the fan to it. If your kitchen install is in a fireplace or alcove you could make a metal plenum for air flow from a small fan. Then again, you might want to buy a stove with a blower and be done with it. Good luck with the install

 

Is a ceiling fan an option? Waaaaaaay better dispersal of heat and air movement in general and if it gets hot in your house in the summer this is an added bonus. The only issue is when the stove goes out you don't have a snap disc running the ceiling fan and you have a ceiling fan blowing cold air all over the house after the fire goes out.

 

I think it's really hard to say with any chance of being correct what would work well without really knowing the layout of your home, average temps, insulation, etc, etc.

My brother lives in Maine in an old house, roughly the size of yours. He put in a wood furnace and it gets heat all over the house quite well.

I'd have to wonder if that would work out better than many stoves?
Do you have a forced air system or hot water system? Could you tie into either with a wood burner?

Would cost much less than multiple stoves and would be less work too.

http://www.tractorsupply.com/en/sto...urnace-2500-sq-ft?localStore=PRESQUE+ISLE,+ME


I can say that in my home with the Princess the fans make a big different with pulling heat off the stove.

 

I am pretty confident I can get two used Kings for around $2K total if I search long enough. I can probably get $700-1000 for the two VC stoves, total. That's a lot cheaper than an add-on boiler.

I agree. There is a huge difference with the 30, also.

 

Would tying into your existing water heat system provide enough heat for your house? Is that system in decent shape?

Perhaps keep a stand alone stove (or two) in case the power goes out so you can still heat (no power = no pumps)

The short term cost would be higher for a wood boiler unit if you are looking to buy used stoves, I agree.
But long term if you factor less labor for you (loading, cleaning, maintaining one burner vs 3), likely less wood usage, more controllable/even heat it seems like it would work out better.

 

How about cutting a hole in the rear heatshield of the IS and adding one of these.

 

With the blowers on high, I transfer 50% more heat in any given period of time with the King. I wouldn't buy a stove without them unless I knew I could run low and slow and keep the house warm even in January. They might be less critical if you don't mind using supplemental heat but my goal is to use none and I have to run wide open when its cold and blowing.