Production Woodstock IS

I have only run my IS two times so far since installing it, both for break-in fires to cure the paint. While doing this I had some time to look at what this stove can do. Despite only burning at lower temps it's incredible how reactive this stoves controls are. From a flue temp of 250 and then moving the bypass to engage the cat the flue temps immediately came down 20 degrees in the first 3-4 minutes and the air control damper was also found to be very detailed in it's control. Something as simple as closing the damper 1/5 can take the flames away and how quick even that happens.

It should be a good season to test and see what this stove can really do. Looking forward to your input along with the many other new IS owners we have on the forum.

 

Sean, thanks for the welcome. Mine is very noticeable on cold start. Not to me or wife now that we know its normal. I don't think mine will do it except on completely cold start. We are new to a EPA stove, and are still learning how to fire stove. First impressions on stove is how spectacular the secondary's are, once u get the stove to 400 deg. If you cut the air back to about a third, the fire show last about 3+ hrs. down to large coals, then the heat last a long time. I loaded 6 medium cherry splits at 0600 this morning and stove is only down to 145 at 1630. Only gripe is either paint on stove or Lowes single wall stove pipe has set fire alarm off three evenings with the stove above 500 deg.

 

Welcome to the forum haymaker. Glad you chimed in, looking forward to some of your IS experiences to share with the many others that are here as well.
I'm not sure if you noticed in another thread or not, I think it was "My Day at Woodstock", that Lorin (from WS) posted a response to the tinny fluttering you heard during warm up. A few of us had also experienced this noise and had concerns.
I think my intentions are a 'wait and see' situation. I'm hoping the fluttering is short lived or someone finds a way around it before we make a stink.

 

It sounds to me like the paint on your flue pipe or the stove itself has yet to fully cure yet.

 

Thanks for welcome. I just loaded the IS up with wood and no metallic clicking, stove temp on reload was 130. I'm taking it to around 600 this evening to see if smoke alarms go off again.

 

I just lit mine too, ran into the same problem again, alarm clock...
To try something new; this time I opened the bypass and heated the stovepipe to 350
before engaging the cat again, it worked...no ringing this time.

 

Just got home from an out of state wedding. Last night it got down to 38 in Ohio and only got up to 55 today. House was 61 when we got home. I had loaded the stove before we left so when we got home I was able to light it right away. It was loosely filled with pallet scraps, dry pine, and some random size ash round cutoffs from bucking. From cold start at 6:20pm I had the stove up to 250 within 20 minutes and engaged the bypass. Bells kicked in at 6:42 with stove at 300. They lasted 4 minutes and the stove rose to 375 in that time period. We dont mind them when we are expecting them. At 6:55 the damper got moved from half way to 1/4 and the stove was at 425. It is currently pegged at 500 with damper 1/4 open.

Anyone else notice some deflection in the plate with the secondary holes? I lit the stove using top down method and had pallet scraps pretty close to the plate. For the second time I notice about 1/4" of the bolt exposed. It clearly bows in during initial hot starts when the secondaries are blasting full steam. It has now gone back to normal.

 

I think the key to this stove is to get it as hot as possible and then set it to the desired burn rate. If you don't do that it takes a while to get the soapstone hot. Once you get the whole stove up to temperature it throws incredible heat. Burn times are hard to tell as I am burning 1-3 " silver maple pieces from trimming trees and they don't burn as long as normal cord wood. My shoulder season wood isn't the best test for this stove. I'm afraid to feed it cord wood because it might over heat the house.

 

Thanks for the heads up on the top plate, I haven't even looked up there yet.

 

I'm right there with you on shoulder wood and this whole thing being so early in the season that burn times and stove top numbers are probably still a month away.
We were down to 42 deg at around 7pm up my way. I lit the IS using 1/3 of a load of shoulder wood. As I mentioned earlier, to avoid the bells I found getting the stovepipe to 350 and then engaging the cat eliminated the bells.

 

My IS heats my home Woodstock has photos of your stove up on their Facebook page now.

 

thanks Brian. I actually tagged myself when the stove came out. Lorins camera takes much better pictures than mine.

 

From his postings, I wonder if Dave will be able to hold out on getting an IS until he can find a good deal on a used one?

 

He seems very interested...

 

Not sure if this is the right place to ask but....

On the catalyst 'carriage' lever, does the rod (or bolt or whatever it is) enter the stove below the carriage itself? To explain that question a bit further: the lever that engages / disengages the combustor has some kind of operating rod that enters the stove body itself. What is that part and where does it enter?

The reason I ask is that it may be a fairly easy place to install a temp. probe.

Thanks,
Brian

 

Hi Brian,
The IS has a bung hole for a cat temp probe on the front of the stove right above the door frame. I think the hole is filled with a bolt or a screw. I don't know what brand or size probe Woodstock is recommending.

 

You should have a temp probe portal in the front of the stove just under the top door front lip.

 

Yes but that one is above the stove chamber itself and in the combustor chamber (not sure of the nomenclature here, just making up what seem to be reasonable names as I go along....).

I am looking for a way to have a probe in the actual firebox, where the wood is, when the by-pass is closed. Obviously drilling a hole in the firebox would do but I am looking for a less invasive way to get there. Drilling a small hole right through the pivot point of the by- pass operator lever would work well if that point is below the catalyst slide itself and inside the actual firebox.

Brian

 

I got the stove in this weekend and will try to have it hooked up late this week or early next week.
Work is interfering with the install.... I have a pretty big job with the chimney ahead of me.

Thanks to those sharing their results, it is fun to learn about how the stove is working out for you guys.

 

Stove looks great fanatical! Did you got to WS to get it or was it shipped?
What are your plans for the rest of the install?
Is there a heat shield with your IS?