Vigilant II Is Just Humming Along!!!

 
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VigIIPeaBurner
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Hand Fed Coal Stove: Vermont Casting Vigilant II 2310
Other Heating: #2 Oil Furnace

Post by VigIIPeaBurner » Tue. Feb. 24, 2015 10:34 pm

Better part of two pans. At night, I shook and poked it well into an empty pan. Loaded it all the way up with coal and damped it down as soon as the flames were going. Shook again in the late AM until the pan was filled and there was a good glow in the ash drop. Emptied the first pan. I kept topping off the fire box several times during the day. The evening shake and poke mostly filled it the second time.

I'm on the last month of my UAE nut pile. This coal is low ash and I very rarely get sizable clinkers that I can't crush up with the knife. I normally get one pan per 5 gallon pail of coal. Easiest coal I've used in 14-15 years.


 
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michaelanthony
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Hand Fed Coal Stove: Vigilant 2310, gold marc box stove
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Coal Size/Type: 'nut
Other Heating: Fujitsu mini split, FHA oil furnace

Post by michaelanthony » Sun. Mar. 01, 2015 6:41 pm

Went down to Portland this week end, loaded up the Vigilant at 11:00 a.m. friday and returned around 4:00 p.m. today. The Vigilant kept a nice idled fire for roughly 53 hrs and the house was 65* when we walked in the door. I shook out 2 plus pans of ash and she is back in 3 rd gear and the house is back in the 70's :)

edit: I added approx 35 lbs. of coal as well.
Last edited by michaelanthony on Sun. Mar. 01, 2015 8:08 pm, edited 1 time in total.

 
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joeq
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Post by joeq » Sun. Mar. 01, 2015 6:51 pm

Whoa! That's fantastic Mike. Is that a new world record, or what?

 
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michaelanthony
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Post by michaelanthony » Sun. Mar. 01, 2015 7:12 pm

joeq wrote:Whoa! That's fantastic Mike. Is that a new world record, or what?

..oh I doubt it :lol: for me it is though, just a testament to the tightness and control of the Vigilant. I re-installed the stove this fall and I sealed the fireplace damper with cement board, furnace cement and insulated the smoke shelf very well and the dividends are showing themselves. :)

 
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joeq
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Post by joeq » Sun. Mar. 01, 2015 7:24 pm

Very impressive. Nicely done.

 
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VigIIPeaBurner
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Post by VigIIPeaBurner » Sun. Mar. 01, 2015 7:27 pm

michaelanthony wrote:Went down to Portland this week end, loaded up the Vigilant at 11:00 a.m. friday and returned around 4:00 p.m. today. The Vigilant kept a nice idled fire for roughly 53 hrs and the house was 65* when we walked in the door. I shook out 2 plus pans of ash and she is back in 3 rd gear and the house is back in the 70's :)
Excellent Mike! What did you load it with, nut or pea?

 
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michaelanthony
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Coal Size/Type: 'nut
Other Heating: Fujitsu mini split, FHA oil furnace

Post by michaelanthony » Sun. Mar. 01, 2015 7:36 pm

VigIIPeaBurner wrote:
michaelanthony wrote:Went down to Portland this week end, loaded up the Vigilant at 11:00 a.m. friday and returned around 4:00 p.m. today. The Vigilant kept a nice idled fire for roughly 53 hrs and the house was 65* when we walked in the door. I shook out 2 plus pans of ash and she is back in 3 rd gear and the house is back in the 70's :)
Excellent Mike! What did you load it with, nut or pea?
All I have is TSC Kimmel's 'nut. Hoping I can get pea from TSC next season, it is about a thousand yards away. 8-)


 
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Rich W.
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Hand Fed Coal Stove: Vermont Castings Vigilant Multi-Fuel (coal for me); Vermont Castings Vigilant 2310 in the shop
Coal Size/Type: Nut
Other Heating: System 2000 Oil Burner; VC Resolute Woodstove (sold) Jotul 8 Woodstove (sold)

Post by Rich W. » Sun. Mar. 01, 2015 8:17 pm

What was your griddle temp during that timeframe?

 
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michaelanthony
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Post by michaelanthony » Sun. Mar. 01, 2015 8:24 pm

Rich W. wrote:What was your griddle temp during that timeframe?
My answer would be a guesstimate as I was away...but I have had the griddle down to 295* per IR gun in the past and I didn't check when I came in, I had to do a shake and bake :D

 
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Rich W.
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Other Heating: System 2000 Oil Burner; VC Resolute Woodstove (sold) Jotul 8 Woodstove (sold)

Post by Rich W. » Sun. Mar. 01, 2015 9:50 pm

I asked because during mild weather I can coast at 275, shaking once per day, and it always looks like there's lots of time left. The pan is very full after a 24 hour shake!

 
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michaelanthony
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Post by michaelanthony » Mon. Mar. 02, 2015 2:47 pm

Rich W. wrote:I asked because during mild weather I can coast at 275, shaking once per day, and it always looks like there's lots of time left. The pan is very full after a 24 hour shake!
Maybe I can achieve the lower temps with pea size, the 'nut I have is a little larger than usual but it is nice and clean.

 
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blrman07
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Post by blrman07 » Fri. Mar. 06, 2015 6:51 am

Woke up this morning and noticed the bedroom was a bit cool. Got dressed and came downstairs and on the way down I smelled the unmistakable smell of heat. Until we started heating with a coal stove I wouldn't have thought you could "smell" heat. I came down to the Living Room and the thermostat showed 60 meaning the hot water baseboard heaters had kicked on. The boiler was firing on oil and the coal stove was humming along right where I left it at 450 F.

We had a quick excursion into the upper 30's so I backed the stove down. The living room had gotten up to 80. I didn't check the weather and got caught with my inlet air damper set for around 30 OAT.

It was 3 when I got up instead of 30 like I thought it was going to be.

OOPs. That means Momma will be staying under the covers until the house temp comes back up.

 
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Photog200
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Post by Photog200 » Fri. Mar. 06, 2015 8:13 am

blrman07 wrote:
OOPs. That means Momma will be staying under the covers until the house temp comes back up.
Looks like you will be making your own coffee this morning Rev. ;)

Was -5°f here near Lake Ontario this morning and the new stove is working extremely well. I could not be happier with the stove.

Randy

 
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Post by blrman07 » Tue. Mar. 24, 2015 8:29 am

Yesterday morning I got up and did my routine stove tending. Dump ash pan, load the stove, shake it down, knifed it to get the stubborn big chunks out and settled in for a morning of catching up on some paperwork. I work at the dining room table and the stove is about 6 feet away. I sensed that it was warming up in the room and thought it was just the oat coming up. I glanced at the stove and had blues all over the top of the new coal I put on. Great I thought....getting good heat.

I kept working and glanced over at the stove and the coal was really glowing more than usual. I just got coal from a new to me yard and thought HMMM I have to go back there. This stuff burns GREAT!

about 15 minutes later I looked over again and the entire coal bed was glowing. Heat was cranking!!! I went over and backed the flapper control down. 15 minutes later no change. I checked with my IR gun and I was at 750. Hmmm..backed it down some more. 10 minutes later I shot it again and I was at 820 and the pipe was 350!!!! Something is definitely wrong. I opened the front loading doors to get some cool air in and backed the air control all the way closed. NO CHANGE!!

I looked at the ash door and the handle was down indicating that it was closed and locked. I started checking all around the stove for possible cracks, Nada. Then I said I wonder....I grabbed the ash door handle and the door swung open. I had pushed it shut and thought I had it latched but apparently I didn't.

Moral of the story.....No matter how well you know your stove, your gonna mess up eventually.

 
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joeq
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Post by joeq » Tue. Mar. 24, 2015 11:00 pm

Good thing it was there in your living area, and you caught it Larry. Thanx for the tip.


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