When to start using the coal stove

Ok, this is going to be my first winter with coal. I just got my keystoker A120 in, and 6 tons of rice coal to go with it. Now I'm itching to try the thing out, but from what I've heard you don't typically want to bother with the coal until it starts to get colder out. I plan on using oil for the nights where it just dips into the 40s long enough to chill the house off. How do you guys decide when it's time to start up the coal stove and keep it burning? Any advice?

I would say when it doesn't start topping 40-50 degrees during the day.

We usually start our stove around Nov. 1 - Nov. 15 depending on the weather and run thru April or May....

The answer depends on the heat loss rate of your house. Once the daily outside temps stay low enough that your house needs some heat during the day as well as at night, then it makes sense to keep your stove/furnace burning.

If your house is well insulated with good windows, you may want to wait till the daily temps are in the 30's. If your home is poorly insulated and has drafts and poor windows, even highs in the mid 50's could drop the inside temps to an uncomfortable level. Especially if it is windy.

What you don't want is your furnace burning coal to just idle along, not needed to heat the house. This may happen during the ocasional warm spell, but they usually last only a day or two.

WNY [above post] has a Leisureline HyfireI that has a small burner and a large burner [~40K/85Kbtu] so he will be able to use the small burner during the fall and spring, the larger one through most of the winter and both when it is seriously cold.

Greg L.

Usually I start thinking about burning coal when a light jacket stays with me for the better part of a day. In east central PA, that could be anywhere from October thru mid November. When nights are cool but days are warm, my chimney can't always decide what it wants to do, so I wait till daytime temps cool down.

Unless I catch my wife cranking up the oil burner during the day...

If my boiler was hooked up I'd be running it right now. Low 60's in the day and 38 degrees at night means we wake up to a 55 degree house. brr. I've been baking biscuits for breakfast just to warm up the kitchen. My rule of thumb is when the toilet gets frosty (the bathroom is the coldest room in the house) then it's time for some more heat.

As soon as she turns on the oil heater its time for coal

Ok thanks for the advice guys.

i myself start my stove when the temps stay below 50 during the day! i too couldnt wait to start burning coal when i got my first stove,so when it got into the 40;s at night i would get er goin...didnt take me long to realize i used alot more coal this way.unlike wood,where you can start a smudge then let it go out....coal takes alot to get goin good...say my stove...a harman mark3 takes 60lbs to fill it up and get goin real nice and once its goin good it only takes 20lbs per filling...every 12-14 hrs.so coal isnt ideal to start only to let it go out a few hours later,but..i say but...with all that said,a fella gotta have sum fun too and experiment.....

I will start burning wood at night when the temps drop into the 40's at night. I won't start burning coal until it is 40 or below during the day.

Bugize,

How many sq. feet do you heat with the Mark III?

It must really put out heat, my Mark I is amazing, I've never seen the Mark III burning.

By the way...since I had 2 1/2 feet of water in the celler during the nor'easter last April there has been no oil fired furnace to warm up the place. Insurance paid for a new unit, only used to warm the place up until the Harman is up to temperature. We should start installation next week. Of course I thought about a coal burner first, but decided to stay with oil, it's a good back-up esp. during really cold days when we are away from home (or I could ask a neighbor to stop in & feed the coal stove!).

John

Oh-and I agree about starting the coal stove when that thermostat mysteriously moves and I hear the sound of the oil furnace...

brrr. we were down to 34 last night....just itching to start it, but the rest of the week will be in the 70's....the furnance is set at 60 and hasn't come on yet! so the house is holding the heat so far.

WNY wrote:brrr. we were down to 34 last night....just itching to start it, but the rest of the week will be in the 70's....the furnance is set at 60 and hasn't come on yet! so the house is holding the heat so far.

Cripes! My Keystoker is still sitting in the garage in pieces!! Better get my butt in gear and finish it up, even though this week is supposed to be in the high 80's here! Fortunately, our house is new and very well insulated, so I'm not going to be needing the stove probably until the first of November, but that will be here faster than you think!

Chris

I had an overnight low of 36* on saturday night, only 41* last night. But the Propane boiler was needed Saturday night and last night..

I put a few hours of work into the AA boiler, but if it gets seriously cold and looks like it will stay that way for several days, I'll fire up the big boiler with the 'Iron Fireman' stoker. I have five tons of Buckwheat coal for it to burn.

It is supposed to warm up into the 80's this week, so we just had a 'warning' from MommaNature.

Greg L

We have a an old 1890 Victorian, kinda drafty, but replaced 17 windows so far and 5 more to go, and it is insulated too. We will see how it holds the heat this winter. It was chilly after Jan. getting the stove running, the furnace did come on a couple times to help keep up when it down in the single digits.

Greg, I got the 8" hole cut in the HyFire top for the duct work, just need to hook the chimney up and the duct work.

The Keystoker is still hooked up in case I need it....then it will go into the attached garage and ducted upstairs.!! if 2 stoves don't keep this house warm, I give up!