What would your stove be without strict EPA regs? Or with factory upgrade options?

Just bored and thinking out loud.
How do you think the performance of your stove is affected by the particulate matter rating?
Does it make as much heat as it possibly could?

Would more mass or a series of fins make it throw heat easier?

More air or less air, secondary air control, more burn tubes etc

What upgrades options would your stove have, if you had a say?
Any and all thoughts appreciated.

 

Well, I for one do not understand the question frankly. Not an insult or 'knock' in any way, just not able to decipher what you are asking. ?????

Brian

 

I'd have the most efficient, clean burning stove I could afford.

 

Hmmm...

Anecdotal evidence mind you, but..

With the functional secondaries, and the cat combustor, it provides more heat than our old non-cat stove did.

I also believe that with the decrease in partulate emmisions it is being extremely efficient, and squeezing the BTU's of my wood further, requiring less wood, and less work.

The mass of the stove being greater than the old stove, it throws heat slower, but much longer. I think fins would not be an improvement really. They may help transition/radiate some of the heat faster initially, but at the cost of longer lingering warmth later.

Aside from a larger firebox (not needed), yes I think it gets as much heat as possible from the wood it is provided.

I can't answer to that, as I don't have the knowledge/experience to base any conclusions.

It could also serve as an AC unit in the summertime, still utilizing wood in some sort of cold fusion technology.

 

I'd really like to know how much wood a new stove would actually save me. I have a big old Nashua installed by my dad, probably 40 years now. Wood is technically free except for labor, BUT the labor is increasingly becoming more painful for me. I grew up with wood heat and would surely miss it. I could run the Nashua in my sleep now, as we are old friends.

 

The IS is about efficient as they come and put out very little emissions.
Not much could be improved.

Now! that cold fusion thing. I like the idea!

 

Absorption refrigeration

 

I went from an Allnighter to an Englander 30-NC. I used both as efficiently as I could/can, and I am not 100% sure how much wood I save, maybe in the 10-20% range. It is hard to know with precision without accounting for the all the variables, and I only ran the Allnighter for 2-3 years.

But I never regret buying the 30, it is a great stove. If it saves me 10%, it is worth it financially over the long term, and I just like the stove more than the Allnighter. My wood is likewise free, except for labor.

 

I guess if you already own one of the various Cadillac stoves (BK and IS come to mind) there probably isn't much room for improvement.

A good upgrade example I can think of, is guys adding a convection deck to the NC-30 to help move some of that air around.

If I were to use my stove for an example. What if it had 20 lbs of steel added per side, and 15 across the top? It's a 230 lb stove, so that's quite the jump in mass.

Adjustable louvers on the face of the stove where the blower air comes out, or even out of the top. It's already radiating heat like the sun, so why not send it out in a different direction.

A snap disc or built in programmable timer set up that keeps the fan running until you want it off, or it decides it's time to shut off.

Air control of secondary air. A little control on the top end, or to close down when only coals remain.

Some kind of steel bracket/screen or support for extra protection of viewing glass.

I realize stoves are built to a price point, but it's fun to imagine.

 

I have toyed with the idea of adding some form of automatic air control to the 30.

 

That is a hec of a lot of saving's Dennis in both wood use and labor, good for you! Talk about efficiency and it says alot about the Woodstock Fireview you have!

 

About how much does a Woodstock stove go for ? Every time I read the word Woodstock I think of the little bird on Snoopy.

 

SS-1 Stovestat Wood Stove Blower Thermostat

 

That is ok. I use to think about drugs, hippies, and commie boomers. I was wrong though. Very well made stoves. Nothing cheap about the four models I've seen. I almost went with a BK ashford 30, but went with woodstock due to excellent people. I had to ship our stove to Montana. Still was worth the extra 500.

 

That is about on par with what we experienced with a different epa stove. We have longer, colder winters, but instead of burning 7 to 8 cord; we dropped to 4 to 5 cord. The house was consistently warmer.

 

If you get yourself a modern BK or Woodstock Cat equipped stove you will quite likely notice a very significant reduction in wood use. Burn times will amaze you. I went from a late model Century EPA/secondary burn stove to the BK. Huge difference. Cant hardly imagine the difference you might experience!

Hopefully your home has windows/insulation much newer than your stove

 

Thanks for the info ! The Progress Hybrid really grabbed my attention, the side door thing probably won't be acceptable though because of ours being in a corner.