New Install of Blaze King King 40 KE Stove on Six Inch Flue and Chimney

You hear talk of damaging the cat if it gets over a certain temperature. With the new temperature gauge they are using, you would never know if you were overheating it or not. An actual number would be helpful just as a reference point.

 

Someone please tell me what the questions here are? Please.

BKVP

 

Here's were the most recent questions started.

New Install of Blaze King King 40 KE Stove on Six Inch Flue and Chimney

 

Hi Chris…. Nice to see a post from you here..

 

Hello sir, I'm a new BK owner (love it!) and new to cats. Thank you for taking the time to address these questions.

First question:

Am I safe to open my BK door while the catalyst temp gauge is quite high? For instance, I'd like to go to bed now, my catalyst temp is up about 3/4 of the gauge, but it's all just glowing coals. I need to add wood for the night. Will I cause thermo shock damage to the cat if I open the bypass door, then slowly open the stove door to introduce cooler air slowly, then reload the stove? I know this is off the thread subject, but just wondering.

Second question:

On the Blaze King cat gauge, what is actually considered too hot. My stove is not even turned up all the way, and the gauge has just about made a full circle. There are no temperature markings on it, so you have no clue what your actual cat temperature is.

 

The post suggesting you remove it (wear leather gloves) lay it on the hearth. The needle should point around 7 on a dial at room temp. And yes, cats are hyperactive when new.

And thank you for buying one of our stoves.

BKVP

 

Glowing happens when resident time increases and gases pool in front of the combustor. Remember, cat activity increases as you reduce air intake because gases have a longer "residence" time in the combustor. While overall heat output will decrease, cat temps will rise.

BKVP

 

BKVP I think he was also asking how to do a hot reload with causing thermal shock to the catalyst. I provided “what I would do” in a recent post you can look at, but it would be better if you provided him with the information.

 

We can never suggest using a 6" system. NO TWO INSTALLS ARE IDENTICAL!.Use an 8" system on our King model please.

BKVP

 

My response didn't post. Minimize duration of time when door is open. Of course you can reload hot. Just do not load wood covered with ice or snow. That will result in thermal shock.

BKVP

 

And for those that frequent this site, I've got a full card every minute of every day. 4:30 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. If someone would kindly send me at "hey check this out", my email is [email protected]

Thank you,
BKVP

 

I cannot begin to tell you how helpful your responses to my questions were. Literally invaluable! I don't regret buying a Blaze King stove for one second and am very happy I chose the King. It's absolutely amazing!

 

We've ended our first cold spell of the winter, temperature last night was -7°F. BK preformed flawlessly, inside house temperature was 77°F. I didn't really have any concerns about it's ability to keep up, but now I'm convinced, it'll handle an occasional -20F with no issues.

 

…and on a 6” chimney that wasn’t recommended.

This information along with a forum member that’s a friend and neighbor have convinced me that a Princess and even a King would work on my chimney.

The only question that remains for me is will it burn low enough in the shoulder seasons to not blow me out of the house? The answer is…don’t put so much wood in it and let it go out some. Burn even less wood that way.

 

I'm hopeful that 3 guys here have made it work. In my 27 years, we've received HUNDREDS of calls from King owners trying it because they read about it on "the web".

Those that had spillage issues either installed 8" systems or traded it their King for a Princess.

I hope yours works and thank you....

BKVP

 

Glad to hear it is working well. I’m hoping before next burning season I can do the same. I have 6” straight out the roof about 18’ total. I don’t think it will be any problem at all. The biggest challenge will be finding a blaze king stove. Dealers are few and far between in these parts.

 

PM me your zip code.

BKVP

 

What I've done on the warmer 35-45° days is simply rake coals to the front and only place 2-3 very small splits on them. I then set the stat to a setting which keeps them burning, the cat active, but heat output low. The bottom line is, there's going to be days when it might be necessary to crack open a window or two despite a very small fire. Other option, let it burn out. Personally, I like a little fresh air.

 

You're spot on with the smoke spilling concern. I can honestly say I experienced it one time when outdoor conditions were "just right". I had anticipated this happening because it would have been a problem at times even for my old wood stove designed around a 6" pipe had it not had a "curtain" over the door opening. What I did was make a "curtain" to slide in over the door opening while loading. Problem solved. It has never happened since. In the pics below, you can see the smoke rolling behind the tin foil, yet none escapes. On my old stove, a piece of stainless steel plate hung on two hooks so it would swivel if bumped with wood while loading. Not that elaborate, but this still works nicely though. Crude but effective. I've since upgraded the tin foil prototype to sheet metal.

For me, the inconvenience of the tin foil was worth the trade-off for an amazing stove with crazy heat output and unbelievable burn times between loads, even when turned up during the recent sub zero temps we just went through. I don't want to mislead any reader into thinking the 6" pipe will work for every install. It won't! I'm fortunate that for me and my install design, it has. I went into this install fully prepared to remove the 6" and replace it with 8" if needed. On a new install and new chimney, by all means, install an 8" chimney, it makes perfect sense!