Comparing the Ideal Steel to Progress Hybrid

OK, so I've swapped out the Progress Hybrid in order to do some beta testing with the new Woodstock Ideal Steel Hybrid (here's the installation thread http://firewoodhoardersclub.com/forums/index.php?threads/swapping-out-the-progress-hybrid.1595/).

We've run the PH since late Jan of 2012, burning about 8 cord / yr of Red Maple, Ash, and some Cherry. We've been very happy with the PH, and following the upgrade this past summer it has been burning even better than before. I'm not sure how we got picked as an Ideal Steel Hybrid beta tester (no inside connections), but we do have a tall chimney, burn a lot of wood, have experience with the PH, and are about 45 min from Woodstock's showroom and factory.

Our Ideal Steel setup is largely the same as with the PH, but we moved the Ideal Steel back from the front of the hearth, which has shortened the distance from the stove to the Conar flue temp probe. I am seeing differences in flue temps, and am halfway wishing I hadn't introduced a setup difference into the comparison.

The PH was my first experience with an EPA stove. I grew up burning wood as the primary heat (Portland Stove Foundry , cook stove, Tarm boiler), and prior to the PH have owned and burned a Tempwood, a cook stove, and a few other stoves. I've learned a lot from many of you here on the forums, and have more to learn and unlearn.

 

Awesome, thanks for being a Beta for Woodstock and sharing it here!

 

Excellent, thanks Flamestead. I think a lot of folks will be very interested to hear how your experience with the Ideal Steel compares to your past experience with the Progress Hybrid, especially in regards to total heat output and burn times.

 

Still getting the hang of running the stove, so some easy stuff first.

Wood length: This was our first year with wood cut specifically for the PH, most of it is 20". I would consider going up to 21" with the PH because it loads from the side and you just slide the wood in until it stops. The occasional long piece fits nicely on the top, diagonally. I don't think I would go 21" with the Ideal Steel, because it is a long way back to the back of the stove, and I'm not able to slide the wood in across pieces I've already loaded. With the coals raked forward I'm not setting the wood in place as easily - 20" works nicely, but any longer might test my coordination.

Aesthetics: I've been quite pleasantly surprised. I could live with this stove in the primary living space (kitchen), and more importantly, my wife agrees.

 

Really looking forward to the different comparison.
House structure, location, insulation, etc. etc.....
BrianK has been awesome posting his results, looking forward to yours, Flamestead!

 

Yeah, he set the bar pretty high. I think between the two of us we can give you all some things to work with.

 

Flamestead, when you get a chance I'd really like to see the ash pan assembly and mechanism. They weren't ready yet when they brought mine to DC.

 

Looking forward to your reports.

 

Unlike the PH, the ash grate does not cover the full floor of the firebox, and the pan is narrower than the PH, but is the same length and depth. The mechanism is different than the PH, in that the Ideal Steel has a single, central latch point, while the PH engaged at both upper corners of the door (I suspect the pan width is related to this difference). I liked the solid surety of the PH latch, but we had an exchange student partially it open one evening while warming her feet, and the full firebox began reacting as one might expect. Fortunately I was there and figured it out (and then gave everyone else a demo of the signs). When you close the PH door you know it is closed, but I read that some don't like how it operates - we'll need my wife's opinion on this comparison.

The big improvement for me with the Ideal Steel is that the pan rides up on a couple of rails - this needs to be brought back to the PH design. With the PH there is some inevitable spillage of ash inside its housing (pull the pan when it is over-filled, and some ash drops off the back as you pull the pan out). Over time, that ash gets dragged out under the pan and drops right onto the door gasket. Then I look and think, 'Oh, I can probably just blow lightly on that ash and it will fall nicely off the gasket' (but every time I do it I generate an ash cloud and then curse my laziness). I see the rails as a way to greatly minimize this (minimize the ash cloud, not the laziness).

Had a hard time getting the camera to focus straight-on to the firebox, so here's an angled view inside...

 

^The cat^

 

I messed up the flash on the good camera, but here's a couple (stovetop is 300)...