I finally saw a Regency F5100 in the flesh today. I found one at a local stove dealer that I did not even know what there (w/in 5 miles of my house) and they had one on the floor as a static display demo. As that stove was on my short list before buying a new stove last summer, I thought I would pass along my impression of it as it seems to be either a fairly rare stove or the owners are not very active on this forum. First of all, it is a direct competitor to the Blaze King King. It is a very large stove with a 4.4 cu. ft. firebox, an 8" flue and it is physically large outside as well. Even the shape, size and placement of the combustor is very similar to a B.K.K. although the F5100 is a hybrid stove rather than a pure cat stove. That said, the hybrid aspect is almost like an add- on rather than a design from scratch; it is basically the same firebox, combustor and flue gas path as the B.K.K. but adds one stainless steel air tube right at the bottom / front of the shelf at the top of the firebox. Overall, I was impressed. It is a very nice stove, attractive and very well made, in the typical modern style of pedestal steel stoves. The model I saw had an ash pan which was quite large and located behind a drop panel on the front of the pedestal- a nice touch. The ash pan is not sealed and so it there is no ash grate, instead a pull- plug covers a hole in the center of the firebox floor, and this plug is removed to scrap ashes into the ash pan. Very typical of modern steel stoves. The door opens almost flat to the stove, and all the hardware is bolted to the stove face so all of it can be replaced as needed- again, a nice design. The bypass is the typical lifting, heavy plate that uncovers a hole at the top of the firebox when open (bypassed). While the firebox is quite large, it is surprisingly narrow top- to- bottom with an opening of something like 11". The firebox is square and can be loaded E/W or N/S as desired, and is firebrick lined. There is a single air lever on the front and while easy to use, it does not have any type of markings and has an amazingly short throw from fully open to fully closed (or as close as the design allows). It appears that it would be difficult to make fine adjustments to the draft given this adjustment. The design has the combustor facing directly toward the flue; I suspect the flue temps. will be fairly high with this stove and some efficiency will be lost because of it. The dealer said that the stove requires double- walled smokepipe, 8" all the way, and at least a 36" straight vertical run before making any turns. Again, the double walled pipe will be a detriment to overall efficiency, and I suspect (but do not know) that they want a strong draft to minimize the smoke spillage when the loading door is open. There is a well in the top of the stove for the catalytic combustor thermometer, which is included. Nice touch that they include the thermometer and make provisions for one but to see it a person has to stand next to the stove and look down into the well- the thermometer is absolutely not visible from any other position such as in front of the stove, etc. It was on sale and the final price was $2,500- not bad at all IMO. The stove comes with a lifetime warranty and the company is apparently pretty reputable although that is my impression and I have no actual knowledge. Again, this is very clearly a direct competitor to the Blaze King King model, somewhat less expensive, a much better looking stove IMO, and of excellent build quality, and has the advantage of being a hybrid. Just my opinion but anyone considering a very large, modern wood stove would do well to throw this Regency onto the list for consideration. I do have a few photos if anyone is interested along with a few dimensions. Brian
A stove shop near me has one and it is on my short list of stoves when the 30-NC has exhausted it's life. Very large and good build quality
Interesting....... Per the website it says 30+ hour burns. It looks like this thing could throw a lot of btu's if needed. Does anyone around here have one of these stoves? How it Works: The catalytic combustor with heavy duty cast iron damper permits the wood stove to burn slowly, providing a long, consistent burn, delivering 30 hours or more* of heat with from a single load of wood. Eco-boost Technology ensures maximum re-burn of products of combustion before making their way to the combustor. Fuel is utilized to its full potential with only 1.46 g/hr of emissions and 85.48% efficiency! Load up to 90 lbs of wood at a time for 30+ hours* of consistent, reliable heat. Airwash system helps keep the glass clean * Length of burn time and BTU output depend upon wood species used, moisture content of wood, elevation, climate conditions and installation.
I've been doing some research on this stove myself. I have a dealer within 10 miles of my future house to be built. BUT they don't have one on display. I am down to this one or a BK king for the 2800-3000 sq ft I'm looking at heating. The Bk dealer is over an hour away and I like the looks of this stove over the BK. But I like the idea of the thermostat on the BK. Could a Guy fasion something up as far as markings to repeatedly get the same settings? Not overly concerned with the difference in burn times as the super low burn most likely won't give me the heat I need anyways. If I can get a solid 12 hours of heating I will be happy. Could you post the pics? I would be interested in seeing them!
Welcome to the forums!! At this point I'm not sure anyone on this forum has one?? I am really interested in this stove also even though I have no plans to change out my 6" chimney I know someone that I would love to recommend this to. I would love to hear someone who has one chime in here with their real world experience with it. If it could do 30 hours of low and slow and have secondary combustion on top of that when you need serious heat that's a big plus to me as I personally like the hybrid idea.
The couple that I've read about haven't been impressive, but I think the problem is that none of us stove nerds has gotten hands on one. I'd take one for a spin, but I'm pretty happy with what I have. I don't know how much it will compete with Blaze King without a thermostatic control, and the hybrid aspect doesn't seem to be as refined as Woodstock. There also seems to be a lot of disappointment with the CI2600 hybrid insert.
Something tells me that stove is very heavily leaning on a proper flue set up. It kind of sounds funny with "eco boost" technology. I agree with others, if I'm getting that big of a firebox and 8" flue, Blaze King thermostat all the way.
Steel. Big steel stove. Big. Wide. Last time I went to the dealer that carries Regency, they had one on display....non-burning. The 8" collar caused me to not look real close, although I did look inside the cavern called the firebox.
Not only a 'proper' setup but a very specific one. The installation requires the use of double walled pipe, and at least a 36" straight vertical run from the stove before any bends. Blaze King 'suggests' an 8" flue but de-rates the King model if used with a 6" flue. In my opinion, this really restricts how many installations can even use the Regency F5100, at least legally and those that have to go through an inspection (for the municipality and / or insurance). As I said, a very nice stove at a pretty reasonable price, from what appears to be a reputable mfg. but the restraints along with some of the design aspects are why there is not of of those sitting in my house. Brian
Didn't see this in the manual. Interestingly, the only thing I see is that the connector must be 8", and double wall is recommended. BK also recommends the 36" rise before any elbows, and the use of two 45s instead of a 90. They make no mention of chimney diameter. Most of the 6" installs I've heard of mention smoke spillage and performance issues. One of the things I remember reading about the 5100 is that the manufacturer wouldn't approve the use of a 6" flue because the stove would overfire. I wouldn't think the increased velocity would overcome the nearly 50% decrease in cross-sectional diameter.
Yeah, that does not make any sense at all- either from a scientific point of view or one of common sense: how could a 6" stove pipe possibly cause a larger, and apparently by a considerable amount, of increased gas flow? I think those are just the words they happen to spit out when giving the reason but the real, root reason is to reduce smoke spillage into the room with the door open. And that is a problem with all stoves with large doors; larger stove pipes just reduce the amount of smoke in my experience, they do not eliminate it. Brian
Do you think it could be that it messes with the EPA approval rating that was achieved during testing so they are unable to condone it?
Possible but I kind of doubt it on the double wall smoke pipe. I do not see how that would have an impact on the EPA emissions testing.... but I do not know and certainly cannot speak for Regency or that stove. Given the large smoke pipe and double- walled pipe at that, I would love to see some fuel gas temperatures. I suspect they are very high, which will hurt efficiency. Brian
To the contrary, Blaze King recommends the use of double wall pipe because flue gas temps are so low. It helps to keep those gases warmer and ensure a more reliable draft. I suspect it is the same with Regency. I don't have a flue probe, but I can hold my hand on the double wall connector for at least a second or two when burning hot, and indefinitely under more normal settings.
I was actually trying to say the 6" pipe may not be large enough to allow the stove to function properly and 6" may mess with how the stove burns enough to invalidate the EPA testing. I would agree with Jeff that the double wall is probably more about keeping the flue warm and consistent.
I put double wall on my 27, thinking that the 13'ish pipe was gonna need all the help it can get. Definitely not the case, as that stove sends all kinds of extra heat up the chimney. I've never had an issue with draft, even from a cold start when the inside temp is cooler than outside. If I need 6" double wall in my next house, I'm gonna switch it out with single wall and bring it home.
Hey all, So I am noticing a problem with this stove. It seems as if the air control has very little movement on it. Aka not 100% control. It only slides a bit open/closed. Has anyone else noticed this? I got under the stove and noticed that when it is fully shut (all the way to the right) the shutter is not completely closed and air can still leak in. The stove is getting about an 8 to 10 hour burn time and I suspect this is the reason. I am just looking for any solutions (if anyone has noticed this same problem) and also for anyone with the stove to let me know if they also notice that the air control lever only slides a bit each way. If you look @ the air control on say the CS2400 or even the F3500 you will notice it slides A LOT more - and completely cuts the air off. Thank you for any replies beforehand
Log, welcome aboard. Glad to have you here. Actually, I do believe you're the only person we've seen who has this stove. A couple of us (me included) have seen the stove in a showroom, but not running. Seems like a fairly short burn for such a large hybrid.
