Last week we went through a cold spell that had temps down near 0*F a couple nights in a row and it not climbing too much out of the teens or 20's. Last year I was working from home, but this year I'm back in the building so I'm not sitting right next to the stove and keeping it fed throughout the day. An additional wrinkle that I've had come my way is picking up my daughter from day care- after work I'll run to the store or something if I have to before going to pick her up so I'm getting home on average about an hour later than I have in years past. As the cold days and nights kept going the house was getting up to about 70 but not really climbing too much beyond that. The lack of insulation in the walls I need to address but based on my past review I wanted to share a bit of a discussion I've been having go on in my head. Is this the stove I want or do I want to go up a size. I thought ya know I'd like a little bit bigger of a stove, get a couple more hours of burn time, and have a bigger viewing window. I even mentioned it to my wife who said "so when are you getting your new stove?" to which I replied "our stove." I have been browsing the website, looking at the artwork and imagining having the larger window and that's very appealing to me. The Absolute Steel has the stove function that is close to the Survival and the hybrid system which to me has proven to be a rock solid platform. The thought lasted the better part of a day but subsided pretty quickly. Is the daydreaming of a new stove the gateway drug to buying a new one? Could be. Another thought I'm having is I'm still learning this stove. I'm not as knowledgeable as many of the guys on here, and I couldn't tell ya too much about a wood species by looking at it, so there's still a lot of room to grow for me on that part. I don't like making rash decisions so thinking it through a few adjustments were made to give a bit more peace of mind such as placing the thermostat on the wall at 60 instead of 58 and using the compressed wood bricks a bit more when the temps start to dip. Could the wood being burned be lower BTU stuff and that seems to be lacking? Yeah, sure could be. Could be a ton of things. Anyhow- since this thread has been just my observations and nearly entirely positive, I felt like it would be a little dishonest of me to not share the thoughts that ran through my mind over the last cold spell. At this point upgrading a whole stove because it was a little cooler than I've become used to seems a foolish use of money. A better use of time and effort would be to manage the amount of coaling the stove had been producing based on some of what's been discussed recently in a few of the other threads and if nothing else all you hardwood guys know the value of a dense and productive supply of high BTU wood, and my parting words would be that the compressed wood bricks I regularly mention really do seem to be all they promise to be and has me leaning towards getting 2 pallets for the next winter.
Never used the compressed bricks but they sound like a high quality product. Dry wood vs not so dry will make or break a stoves efficiency.
I ended upgrading last year from a little Jotul 602 to a twice the size F45 and there’s still times I wonder if I went big enough when we have an old fashioned cold January like this one. Most mornings have been below zero this month, -27 this morning and I’m feeding the stove half loads every 4 hours to keep the stove temps up for a more even temp in the cabin. Funny thing, when I burned the 602 in temps like this I also had to burn it every 4 hours but with full loads. Colder temps tend to make me overthink my decisions but in reality my stove is properly sized for 90-95% of the weather we get an I just need to adapt at times til the weather warms up some.
To me it’s about heating the home with the least amount of fuel possible. You could go up to a bigger stove and you will also, more than likely, burn more wood as well. There is one way to ensure going up in stove size while also burning less wood... A guy local to me has burned quite a few stoves. Had a very nice WoodStock one size up from yours...a catalytic stove. Paladium or it’s cousin. Can’t recall. Had a couple other catalytic stoves as well, and even an anthracite coal stove called a Chubby. It was small, but heated his house...though with lots of tending. He recently found an even larger stove that has the ability to burn real low. All he did to it was out a mew catalyst in it and it burns like a new one. He’s been sharing results with me comparing his other wood stoves and I’ve been comparing all of that with my large anthracite coal stove. I must say that after seeing all of his pictures and seeing his notes, I am thoroughly impressed with his results. The stove he bought used was well cared for Blaze King model King Ultra. Now I’m not saying you need a stove that large and I don’t mean to poo poo on WoodStock by any means. They make a good product and this guy was thoroughly impressed by his WoodStock and loved it. However, he said there is no comparison. He just told me he’s used less than 1 cord of wood since November 16th and likely has a good amount of that cord still left to burn. You can certainly look into larger WoodStock stoves and I know they would serve you well with enough heat and certainly a beautiful view. I would recommend looking into a Blaze King Sirocco or even a Princess and just take a look at them and what they have to offer. Take note of their low burn btu output, their high burn btu output, and their burn times. This guy is taking a bed of coals, adding 5 small splits and getting 24-30hour burn times. He showed me pictures of the wood after one of those long burns and no joke...1.5-2.5 pieces of the wood hadn’t even charred yet over that time...meaning he could have burned longer. It even impressed me. Not a prettier stove on the market to me than a WoodStock Soapstone or a Hearthstone, but I’m into heating my home with less fuel. That means more time for something else, and more money in my pocket. Once you studied new BK’s, then go look for a nice used one and do the repairs. This guy has very little in his BK King Ultra. I agree with him...best money he ever spent and if I needed a smaller stove...with what I know now and have witnessed from a guy local to me, now I would not hesitate to get a smaller BK unit, or any unit sized to fit my needs. I can pm pictures of his 24-30 hour unburned wood if you like.
Already did in another thread. Just wasn’t wanting to turn his WoodStock thread into a Blaze King thread.
He and I have been corresponding since before he bought this stove. I knew he was getting it and I seen pictures of it before he bought and after he got it home. Put a new catalyst in and off to the races. Beyond his expectations and mine as well.
BK makes a fantastic stove for sure. I'm a CT boy and WS is in my backyard up in NH so I'm kind of a home team kind of guy with them, but that is an impressive result after that long in the burn chamber. No one needs to worry about hijacking a thread as far as I'm concerned. More info for someone in the future who's considering the Survival is what it's all about to me. I have no idea how many people have purchased the Survival, but when I was looking at it I didn't see too many resources online, so that was the origin of my starting this. I liked reading what other guys did for the IS and the AS, if someone else winds up getting the Survival- good / bad or indifferent I hope they feel free to post their experiences here.
Don’t misunderstand me...that picture was earlier in the season, but below freezing then as well....and a good bit below. Temps like the last few weeks, no. He’s used slightly more wood, but nowhere near full loads. He’s heating 1000 sq ft, I think.
I’m certainly not downing WoodStock at all, but I just wanted to show the versatility of that stove based on what I found and thought it might be something to consider, no more, no less. It may be too large for you. I can’t recall. I’m a fanboy of no manufacturer. I have not even met this guy yet, but we’ve been texting back and forth for months now. He’s a new member of this site and a member of the other site. For myself... I’m into getting my winter heating bill and fuel use as low as possible. His stove is the only thing I’ve seen to come close to my anthracite coal stove. It’s still a good ways from rivaling my stove, but way ahead of any other wood stove burn times that I have seen. WS are good, but not that good...least not yet. If a cheap heat bill is your game, and saving money while using wood...WS and BK stoves are where it’s at. BK appears to have quite the advantage over all the rest. My main point to the OP was just to glance at the Sirocco. It may work for him. I also realize there other factors at play with stove choice. Looks being one, ambience another. Lots of factors. The only two factors my posts consider are fuel consumption and wallet consumption. I’m as surprised about the OP’s Survival stove as anyone. It has and IS still serving him well. Any other larger WoodStock will do the same. Just wanted to point out that IF the two factors above are the most important factors to him (after having experience with an existing stove), them there is quite possibly an even better option than a WS. Won’t be as pretty. Won’t ha e the nice flame show to watch, but you will stare at an unused wood pile that is getting drier and drier as you watch it...which means more heat and even more fuel/money saved. Carry on...
Let me give you an example to clarify what this guys texts and notes from his mew to him BKK stove has shown me. When I first moved into this place I didn’t have any wood cut yet, so I bought 3 cords. Well, I got two cords delivered, but that is a story into itself. I also had another half cord I had bought from another guy. So I have 2.5 cords...and they nearly 4 years seasoned. I’ve been burning coal in the meantime...so I could season my wood before use. Wood costs here...have sky rocketed even before winter, but when I bought mine the wood was $150 a cord. Two cords was $300. I burn 1 ton of coal each year...<$300 ton then. Currently, I have over half a ton of coal left. Currently, this guy has wood left from one cord of wood. Not sure how much. Likely not half a cord left, but considering nearly twice more btu’s from coal than wood...he is still doing astonishingly well. Btu’s otherwise sent up the pipe is being thrown into the house by the stove. He will not beat me in less fuel used, nor money saved for wood fuel had he purchased it for what I purchased my wood...but for a wood stove he and I both say the BKK way exceeds our expectations. This same guy also spent a few years burning anthracite coal...so we have both compared notes and freely give this information from experience. He was greatly impressed with... his anthracite coal experience ... His WoodStock stove (Palladian size)... and now this BKK stove. (He said the WS stove he had for a small stove didn’t heat the house quite as well, but for its size did a decent job. That says a lot for it, but he said it’s not the same as the BKK. Fair enough given the King is much larger.) Considering the btu’s from anthracite coal...I’d say that speaks volumes for both WoodStock and BK.
I think a large soapstone stove would heat 1000 sq ft for quite a long time.My Hearthstone One gives me 14 hours of heat heating 2200 sq '.No telling what my stove would do to 1000 sq ft.My cousin introduced me to the Hearthstone 1 when he built a log cabin in Maine many years ago.I lite that stove and got him going and shut it down on a Friday evening.It got so hot in there that we went outside in 3 below weather just to cool off.That bad boy keep that 2000 sq ft cabin hot from Friday evening till Sunday morning when we left on one load of wood.That huge amount of soapstone was radiating heat long after the fire burned out all weekend.We didn't dare put any more wood in that thing.That stove is made for subzero weather.I've had the Blaze King King nice stove but it can't put out the heat of a One.Now these days you can get a refurbished One for $1200.00 or that's what I paid years ago.Probably a little more now.You can't beat that price even if it is a little more now and this thing works even if the CAT doesn't.
I just meant that the catalyst and bi-metallic thermostat on the back of the stove work real well together without blasting you out of the house. Any large stove can heat a small space...even an old pre-epa stove...but they either blast you out or creosote up your chimney. I also never made the comparison between the Hearthstone One and the BK. In this case he needs doesn’t need the maximum btu capability of either stove. What the BK offers not even the One can...a small load or large load of wood, burning long and low for 25-40 hours. 24 hour tending with his BK means the heat cycle is maintained at nearly a constant temperature the entire time, rather than hot and cold cycles in the rooms. He’s been keeping the blower on low as well...and now his entire house is a more consistent temperature. I didn’t think the OP was looking for maximum heat, just a bigger unit. The BK offers maximum size and fuel capacity, but a burn rate of a much smaller stove...all with the creosote issues. Any of the soap stones from either company would also fit that scenario...just not in the same manner or flexibility. Actually, I was comparing the King, but I actually suggested looking at the BK Sirocco or Princess stoves. However, the larger King has a lower btu rating than the Princess according to BK website...leaving the King as still a viable option even for a small square footage space. Larger soapstone is an option as well. A larger stove certainly won’t be over worked...just have to be careful burning long and low in a lot of larger stoves. Anyway, I wanted to share what a guy local to me has shared with me just in case it might be an option for you. Whatever the OP gets and is happy with is all that matters. I’m certainly surprised that the Survival has worked as well for him as it has. A testament to that little big stove as well.
Ya the King and the One is overkill for 1000 sq '.They both take an 8 '' pipe though the One with all that stone would heat that space if insulated well for at least two days on one load.Just don't fill the stove.That's where I went wrong.I didn't know what I was dealing with.
It may be possible when OP considers insulation of his home, or may not. It’s working very well for the guy local to me, especially in this colder weather, but it’s also why I suggested the Sirocco, Princess. They make a couple other smaller models as well. The benefit to the stoves smaller than the King (even including it with its low burn rate) is larger fuel loads for less tending and absolute control of the heat output in an instant...then the stove maintains that for hours on end with its built in thermostat...just like my coal stove...holds the house temp within +/-2 of set temperature...for hours to on end...and this guy is saying by using his blower on low 24/7 the far end of the house stays much warmer as well. Like my coal stove...with his BK on low burn (it stays there) he said he can place his hand on the pipe at the thimble. All the heat staying in the stove. He also said it’s the first stove that’s not blaring heat at him and he can sit right beside the stove without getting too hot. He’s burned a WoodStock soapstone, an Englander catalyst stove and a few others, a Chubby anthracite coal stove, and now this BK. He said the BK is most like the coal stove (a much smaller stove) but with far less tending because of size, and far less ash. I think he told me he burned near a month before taking out the ash. A huge plus for anyone once they experience it. If the soapstone companies would offer a bi-metallic thermostat on their stoves, after having one on my current coal stove, then I’d be all over one. It would be the best of both worlds for me.
On a side note, I have another spot where a Survival Hybrid would be just the ticket for me and this thread has been real helpful in making that determination. In this thread it has out performed my expectations for the OP.
Hearthstone is coming out with a CAT Mansfield that may have the thermostat.If Hearthstone does it right it'll be a monster.
A little end of the season wrap up: So I'm on my way to having the 3 year plan instituted. My supply is I think 18 months dry and should be 24-30 months dry next year and projecting forward I think I'll be up to speed with that goal. As I mention kind of regularly I'm burning approximately 1 ton of compressed wood bricks in a year. I'm debating with myself to purchase 2 tons for next year- the primary reason is to keep the moisture content low and as I've been putting between 1 and 3 bricks in with a reload I've stretched out the wood supply I've had. Different strokes for different folks but I like this route. In a week of frustration I thought long and hard about upgrading the stove that I have to the next size up, but ultimately decided that wasn't the route I'd be taking in the near term future. For the vast majority of the winter the stove keeps up with what my needs are, and there were very few times that my furnace ever came on this year. A longer burn time and a bigger viewing window would be what I'd be after, but for now I'm going to see if in the coldest of the cold using more compressed wood bricks would get me where I want to be. I think the single frustration I dealt with the most this year was the guy who drops wood off for me for free delivered some monster stumps that I haven't gotten through yet, so beggars can't be choosers and I should have budgeted my time better- and I think a rip chain (if I'm calling it the right thing) is something I should invest in because I've had one heck of a time trying to get through these things. What else? I can't think of anything in particular. I'm still overwhelmingly impressed and happy with the stove. The changes I need to make are with my wood supply amount / age / and I need to reconsider how I store my stacks to achieve some better air flow. I have a few ideas, but those are going to be a summer project for sure. As always- questions / comments / suggestions are always welcomed.
