Longest Burn Time

I think I might do just that. I could sell this Harman Mark III and guy the Hitzer with that money and I think I will buy Coal Burner's Kodiak. It looks like he did a very nice job of fixing it up. Does anyone know if the Hitzer glass stays clean? I love that big window but not if it looks like crap after a day or two of burning.

Thanks,
Glenn

grobinson2 wrote: <snip> Does anyone know if the Hitzer glass stays clean? I love that big window but not if it looks like crap after a day or two of burning.

If you don't burn wood - or at least if you don't let your wood starter file smolder then ... yes it stays perfect. At least that is my experience with the 30-95
In fact if you do get some creosote or muck from your wood starter, just let your coal fire get good n hot for 5 mins and it will burn it off.

p.s. DONT clean or wipe the glass when its hot. You will wipe the stain into the glass. Only wipe when its completely cool. At least this is how the ROBAX glass should be cleaned.

Thank you for the tip on the glass. I knew you should not use a glass cleaner on them but I did not know you could not clean them at all while it is hot. With the Hitzer does everyone burn nut in those with the hopper or pea coal preferred? Has anyone taken the hopper out and just banked the coal?

Thanks again,
Glenn

I've cleaned my glass hot & cold ... still looks like hell after a couple seasons. My Mark I always got cleaned hot, but since I bought the Mark III last season I've been cleaning it cool .... still has the same telltale cracking along with staining inside those cracks. I think it's just the nature of the glass (Robax).

grobinson2....I've got a Hitzer 354. Running it @ 300-400 F it goes 24 hrs with a full firebox. Shake it down and refill with 40-50# of nut and it's good ti'll the following morning with several hours to spare......running 400-500 F a few of the colder days with the same result....14 hr burns should be no problem if those temps will keep your house warm.

Took the boss to look at the Hitzer tonight. Thought it looked like a welded steel box but liked it over all. Going back by my self in the morning to talk to the owner.

Thanks again guys for all the info.

Glenn

In judging burn time there is another factor you have to consider. In a stove with a manual air setting the opening remains constant for the entire burn, so as the charge of coal becomes exhausted and ash builds, the remaining unburnt coal gets less and less air, leading to longer burn times, but decreased heat output.

In a stove with a thermostat controlling the air intake, heat output remains constant by increasing the air as the coal charge becomes exhausted, causing the remaining coal to burn faster and faster to maintain heat output, and leading to shorter burn times. In a thermostat equipped stove it is not necessary to set the air setting higher when recharging the stove because it has already opened automatically as the last charge burned out.

So for longest burn times the manual setting will work best, but heat output will not be uniform.

During the Christmas Holiday my 140 auger ran for 50+ hours without attention. The only modification I made was to reduce the thermostat from 70 to 65.

Franco B,
I can not for the life of me figure out how I had not thought of that before. It makes perfect sence and would explain my supper long burn times with my very deep coal bed in my Darby. So then the Stratford SC100 would give a LONG burn time but not as uniform a heat throughout that long burn time.
Thanks again,
Glenn