Hearthstone is getting real

I may have to look into this new Hearthstone Mansfield that's coming out.Boasting 30 hr. heat time with their new Catalytic converter.

 

Good for them. Hope it’s true, I had a hearthstone heritage that had problems but it delivered on specified burn times. Being able to slow the burn down is very important for people actually using their stoves for heat.

 

What puzzles me is how does Hearthstone boasts 30 hr.burn times for their Mansfield catalytic hybrid at 550lbs of soapstone ? Whereas Woodstock with much heavier stoves such as the Progress at 700 lbs and the Ideal at 620 lbs offer burn times up to 14 hrs.What's going on, and I think the Woodstocks are Catalytic as well?

 

Had a friend who had the Heritage.I told him to go with the Mansfield instead.He didn't and he wasn't happy with the heat output.It was too small for his place.I find the larger Hearthstones with a pipe damper work the best of the Hearthstone family.

 

I'd be inclined to look into the new Hearthstone Green Mountain models. At least one ongoing review right now is very positive.

 

The largest model seems to be the best bet with more heating capacity.Only thing is it needs a 8 inch pipe.

 

I have an IS, Woodstock’s are catalytic, really depends of your definition of burn time. I am consistently going 24 hours on re loads this time of year.. stove not throwing much heat during day.. fill up at night cause it’s still down in 30s at night.

 

The weight of the stove has nothing to do with burn time. The firebox size and available range of heat output does.

 

Canadian border VT
Are you pleased with your Ideal Steel? Great burn times. Does your pipe go straight up or threw wall and up? Would sure like close to same burn times when I get mine.

 

Short answer yes!! I got first year and were a few problems BUT company took care of it! In fact I have a crack in housing above door hinge emailed Woodstock they are replacing stove body! On a 5 year old stove!
Make sure you have dry wood set it and forget it.. I burn 4 cord a year my house is weird your Temps are more in line with BDF a great guy that runs thermal couples and has real life Data charts with heat times

we have same stove but our temps are about as different as different as mine and yours.
In winter I try to keep stove above 500 stove top
He averages 300 IIRC

 

The reason I mention the weight on these stove is because they are soapstone.The stone gives off heat even when the fire is out.I remember the time my brother and I were in the cellar and the Hearthstone one's soapstone was emitting so much heat after the fire went out we were sweating.Before this stove I had three other soapstone stoves in the basement the Mansfield.The Woodstock Classic and the Woodstock Fireview all much smaller and lighter and none of their after fire heat came off their surfaces like the heavier larger Hearthstone One.So I surmise more soapstone weight would give more after burn heat. So the Progress at 700 lbs with the more I assume soapstone is only rated to heat 2200 sq.ft.for up 14 hrs with a Cat seems puzzling to me.The Ideal at 620 lbs with more I assume soapstone heats about the same and it also has a Cat.It seems to me that these stove should get longer heat times similar to the Blaze kings and the new Hearthstone line.It puzzles me why they don't.That's all.

 

Probably because “burn time” is not the same as “stove kinda warm” time. After running a stone stove for many years I prefer a welded steel stove and luckily the stone stove companies like Woodstock and hearthstone have added steel stoves to their lineup. The stone is pretty looking but stone doesn’t “make” heat so peak output (or sf heated) is not increased by weight. In fact, stone is an insulator compared to steel so the stone actually hinders peak output.

I found that thermal pass to be a pain in the azz! Slow to warm up when cold and slow to cool off when you’re hot like that time you were sweating in the basement. A steel stove with good control can be adjusted as needed to maintain comfort.

I have a secret desire to drop a Woodstock IS in the shop in place of the nc30. Theyre quite expensive but the owners love them.

 

No the stone doesn't make heat however the long slow releasing of the heat makes the Hearthstone One among other things a great stove to combat the down draft of a basement install.This stove's usable heat time is about 14hrs due to the amount of soapstone releasing the heat slowly.This allows me to sleep all night with more than enough time to get to the reload before the stove cools off to the point that the downdraft kicks in.Man I love that feature.The other soapstones were too small and retained their heat for a shorter period of time.Thus if I didn't get to them early the downdraft set in and I had to open the cellar door to start the stove.That was a drag in the dead of winter.Not anymore due to the size and heat retention of the One.

 

What if you just had a stove that was both more efficient and would actually burn that whole time? 14 hours is no problem. No thermal mass or “heat life” gimmicks needed. Technology has improved a lot since that old Hearthstone One but if it’s working for you then keep doing it.

Lots of great choices out there.

 

My thoughts precisely.

 

I did have the Blaze king king at one time.Got it cheap $2500.00.Old timer was going out of business and I scooped it up.I had it going into a 6 inch pipe so the reloads were smoke filled house.I didn't want to go through the hassle of installing the 8 inch pipe.So I sold it for a small profit and went with the Mansfield.The King still gave me 17 hrs of heat even though it wasn't set up according to specs.However I've had many models over the years.I never had a stove come close to the "One's " performance.I'm good but the new Mansfield sounds interesting.

 

Before you fall in love with Hearthstone, search the user reviews for both Q.C., durability, and customer response to stove problems.
If the stove is for serious 24/7 heating, better to look at makers that have long time reliability and consumer satisfaction.
Blaze King, Woodstock, Jotul, Pacific Energy == high end stoves with good reps.
And, from an O.F., stay away from any "new and improved" model... of anything.

 

What are your usable heat times in the winter ? Shoulder season is easy heating.

 

Well I'm in love with the Hearthstone One.My Mansfield is twenty five years old and still performing well with the occasional gasket change.I've never had a need to call customer service which some say is fair to poor.Yes I agree with you about new and improved.The new Hearthstone interest me but I don't want to be the test dummy.I'll wait to see what becomes of it.Plus I don't like the idea of having to buy a new stove part every few years.