Single digit temps first of 2016 what are you roasting ?

Real good, took a weeks worth of tuning but its dialed in now

 

Put a bag of independence softwoods in last night. I've been saving them for the single digits. They burn HOTTTT

 

-21* here this morning. Woke up about 4 am (after my normal time) and raised the feed rate to both stoves to 2. The house had "cooled" off to 71* - with it being 67 in the bedroom. I recently turned feed rate the main floor stove back down to 1.5 as it is 73 in the middle of the house and 69+ in the bedroom. Did leave the bedroom bay window curtain open last night so the poor plants wouldn't freeze, so that lets in a bit of extra cold to compensate for.

The window isn't the big heat loss factor; it is the floor over the garage (that is cold on the tootsies - I can feel exactly where the floor transitions from conditioned basement to garage. Makes for planned path thru the bathroom since it directly straddles the partition - tub side is warmish and the vanity side is cold.

 

-10 this morning. I let the oil monster run for the upstairs MBR to keep that attic heat exchanger warm. don't need a burst pipe. 67 downstairs with the 52I trying to catch up. prolly should have upped the feed from 3.5 to 4. But when I used only the oil, (they size them for 0 degrees around here) with these temps and wind would have the burner on at 100 percent and loosing some ground, so i'm liking the dual heating plants.

 

Just in time for this Arctic Blast

 

I don't like flannel lace !

Doggy

 

Are you talking feed rate or heat setting? Actually it doesn't matter. How do you keep your house warm with either of the set at 1.5 or 2? I always leave my feed rate at 4 and last night I had the heat setting at 4.5. Is your house super insulated?

 

Setting for stoves during this cold spell: During day; stove temp (fan high) / auto, heat setting at 70* and feed rate at 0.5-1.0. During evening I raise the feed rate to 2. Keep in mind, I was running DL's in the basement stove and Vermont's / LaCrete's during those two cold days. The main floor stove has given indications that it is past that good stuff and back to PTL's, so I'll find out when I get home how well a feed rate setting of <1 worked today. I also get good solar gain during this time of year, which is a blessing.

No super insulation in this 2x4 built R13 (I know, I put it and a vapor/air barrier in last year). Basement walls are insulated with R5 rigid foam and the concrete floor is not insulated at all. The ceiling to the main floor is acoustic tiles instead of sheetrock, which allows a lot of cold air to drop down from the attic. The 2 places I can't physically feel the air coming down from the ceiling are the hall way and bathroom, both of which are sheet rocked. The attic has R19 insulation but it isn't laid down well - another thing I have to fix at some point. Does have 90% new windows and all 3 exterior doors are new with 2 new storm doors (door to garage doesn't need one). I also insulated the sill pretty good.

I have a small house - the upstairs is 950 sq/ft and the basement 650 sq/ft. The main floor stove is situated on one end, and the air flow is pointed directly down the centrally located hallway into the bedroom door at the other end of the house. Plus, since the basement is unfinished the mainfloor floors warm up a bit from the downstairs stove when the P61 is in constant burn mode.

 

I just don't see how you can heat your house, any house at a feed rate of .5 to 1. IIRC the feed rate on Harman's indicates the lbs./hr fed to the stove. Therefore at a feed rate of 1, you should get 40 hours out of 1 bag of pellets. Maitenance burhn on my stove will eat a bags of pellets in 24 hours. Harman recommends setting the feed rate at 4.

 

Totally agree with you Sub , I know this was discussed here a few years ago , I'll find that thread . Just set the rate at 4 and leave it alone turning it lower and the stove will under feed .

 

Found the thread

Skip post # 1 go right to # 2 with my Man Sub and read from there should answer all ?? about the Harman and Feed Rate

Harman - Feed adjuster settings for different grade pellets? | Firewood Hoarders Club

 

Nice find Will.

 

This is my take on adjusting the Feed rate of a Harman , don't over think it
if you do You're doing it wrong

 

I know you guys mean well, but I have been thru all that and used those settings. I don't think the Stove temp / auto mode is well understood (I know I don't) - heck, I just learned about it a couple of months ago because older manuals don't even mention it as an option.

All I know is at the feed as low as it will go, the middle of my house is 77 degrees right now and the stove is doing a maintenance burn at all times with my being able to control the fan at all times (going thru about a bag in 24 hours). I couldn't live in here if the feed rate was set higher (been there, done that).

Tomorrow morning I will be switching to Room Temp / auto - heck, might be doing it tonight if the temps rise another 5 degrees. Them, the feed rate will go to 3 on the P43 (small pellets) and 3-4 on the P61 (varied pellets).

 

Hey ,what ever works for you girl friend that's all that matters I go against the norm too I don't have an OAK nor do I want one .

Bottom line is are you warm ?? Don't matter how you got there

 

We're gonna have to get you oak'd up at some point but before we start we'll have a couple and game plan the project

 

Of 30 packs

 

Nothing will get done but a bunch of smoothies being consumed

 

That sounds like a plan to me