Which Handfired Coal to Get With My Inheritance?

 
User avatar
freetown fred
Member
Posts: 30292
Joined: Thu. Dec. 31, 2009 12:33 pm
Location: Freetown,NY 13803
Hand Fed Coal Stove: HITZER 50-93
Coal Size/Type: BLASCHAK Nut

Post by freetown fred » Mon. Nov. 05, 2012 7:34 am

I just gotta add this. SZ & Wm--those antique stoves are without a doubt beautiful & heat well. My concern with recommending them to the average joe-- :oops2: or Ellen--you can easily get into trouble as far as having to do a rebuild/repair ( unless you are willing to spend the BIG BUCKS) molding this, casting that, etc. Where as with the Hitzer, Harman class "BOX" stoves-- parts are readily available & reasonably priced--yes, even for a total rebuild & in my opinion, there are some good looking ones available--I myself was looking for a heating machine that was within my means & one I would have no problems with 10 yrs down the road. Just an old farmers thoughts.


 
Davian
Member
Posts: 878
Joined: Thu. Dec. 01, 2011 6:26 pm
Location: N. Vermont

Post by Davian » Mon. Nov. 05, 2012 10:10 am

freetown fred wrote:I just gotta add this. SZ & Wm--those antique stoves are without a doubt beautiful & heat well. My concern with recommending them to the average joe-- :oops2: or Ellen--you can easily get into trouble as far as having to do a rebuild/repair ( unless you are willing to spend the BIG BUCKS) molding this, casting that, etc. Where as with the Hitzer, Harman class "BOX" stoves-- parts are readily available & reasonably priced--yes, even for a total rebuild & in my opinion, there are some good looking ones available--I myself was looking for a heating machine that was within my means & one I would have no problems with 10 yrs down the road. Just an old farmers thoughts.
The man makes a great point.

 
elleninpa
Member
Posts: 47
Joined: Sat. Nov. 15, 2008 4:52 pm
Hand Fed Coal Stove: Vermont Castings Vigilant, circa 1980

Post by elleninpa » Mon. Nov. 05, 2012 11:35 am

what my dh was thinking too...food for thought for sure, thanks guys! keep it coming...we'll be starting up our old Surdiac in a week or so, usually by Thanksgiving, until then we are running wood in a new non cat stove

 
User avatar
SteveZee
Member
Posts: 2512
Joined: Wed. May. 11, 2011 10:45 am
Location: Downeast , Maine
Hand Fed Coal Stove: Glenwood Modern Oak 116 & Glenwood 208 C Range

Post by SteveZee » Mon. Nov. 05, 2012 4:25 pm

elleninpa wrote:what my dh was thinking too...food for thought for sure, thanks guys! keep it coming...we'll be starting up our old Surdiac in a week or so, usually by Thanksgiving, until then we are running wood in a new non cat stove
Once you have the stove ready to heat there is very little maintenance though, unless it is abused and that would apply to any stove. I understand Fred's point though but I have to say that if you folks could operate a Surdiac, then one of these cylinders is going to feel like easy street because they are burn really well and are not the least bit fussy or need baby sitting. I'm sure that you'll choose what is right for you and your tastes. Best of luck.

 
elleninpa
Member
Posts: 47
Joined: Sat. Nov. 15, 2008 4:52 pm
Hand Fed Coal Stove: Vermont Castings Vigilant, circa 1980

Post by elleninpa » Mon. Nov. 05, 2012 7:07 pm

As much tending as our current stove is, meaning it takes about 10 minutes to really poke the ash out and trim it up and load it twice to three times a day, it really is beautiful to look at, with real swedish styling trim and all, in gray and black metals, and our backsplash/concrete board my daughter and I painted to look like verdigris marble, very pleasant with the copper tones in the cabinetry handles around it...so I'm glad we get one more season with it, it'll go to a good home when we are done with it, I wish it weren't so underpowered for the house, but we put an addition on ten years ago and it really struggles to keep us above 65F upstairs...

 
rberq
Member
Posts: 6442
Joined: Mon. Apr. 16, 2007 9:34 pm
Location: Central Maine
Hand Fed Coal Stove: DS Machine 1300 with hopper
Coal Size/Type: Blaschak Anthracite Nut
Other Heating: Oil hot water radiators (fuel oil); propane

Post by rberq » Mon. Nov. 05, 2012 7:27 pm

elleninpa wrote:... I wish it weren't so underpowered for the house, but we put an addition on ten years ago and it really struggles to keep us above 65F upstairs...
Whatever you get -- and I think someone mentioned this earlier -- err on the side of more heating capacity than you need rather than less. Obviously you don't want to overdo it to an extreme. But most coal stoves can be throttled way way down for the warmer weather of spring and fall, and they burn very well at very low settings (my old Harman would go easily 48 hours between tending in October and May). But in really cold weather, you don't want to be straining the stove, running it at 800 degrees or whatever to get enough heat out of it. So what if you are only running 50 percent capacity when the outside temperature is 20 below zero? The stove will still be well within its most efficient burning range, and if it drops to 40 below outside, well, you just crank it up a little more....

 
elleninpa
Member
Posts: 47
Joined: Sat. Nov. 15, 2008 4:52 pm
Hand Fed Coal Stove: Vermont Castings Vigilant, circa 1980

Post by elleninpa » Tue. Nov. 06, 2012 12:43 pm

thanks rberq, I was jsut wondering about that! so go big or go home? ! great advice!

Hey I noticed Bob that you have a DSMachine...that is a brand new to me...how do you like it compared to your Harman?


 
rberq
Member
Posts: 6442
Joined: Mon. Apr. 16, 2007 9:34 pm
Location: Central Maine
Hand Fed Coal Stove: DS Machine 1300 with hopper
Coal Size/Type: Blaschak Anthracite Nut
Other Heating: Oil hot water radiators (fuel oil); propane

Post by rberq » Tue. Nov. 06, 2012 3:25 pm

elleninpa wrote:Hey I noticed Bob that you have a DSMachine...that is a brand new to me...how do you like it compared to your Harman?
Still too early to tell, since I just swapped it out last spring. It uses no fan, so it's quiet, which I like a lot -- the Harman really needed the blower going almost all the time. It is somewhat bigger than my Harman, which I wanted because the Harman was marginal for the heat I need -- the DSM is not much heavier, but has more surface area. My wife says the Harman was cute and the DSM is ugly. The DSM also is hopper fed, which is very nice because I can load more coal less often. The hopper makes for more of a continuous burn as opposed to loading and burning in batches, where every new batch takes time to nurse along until it is burning right. Overall build quality of the DSM is not as refined as the robot-welded Harman, and the DSM does not feel as solid -- but I suppose you could turn that around and say the Harman is over-built (and significantly more expensive) while the DSM is adequate. I have one of the smaller DSMs -- there are lots of people on the forum who have the big monster DSM models and love them.

 
elleninpa
Member
Posts: 47
Joined: Sat. Nov. 15, 2008 4:52 pm
Hand Fed Coal Stove: Vermont Castings Vigilant, circa 1980

Post by elleninpa » Tue. Nov. 06, 2012 3:38 pm

Thanks, Bob - I'll take your comments into consideration! -ellen

 
User avatar
freetown fred
Member
Posts: 30292
Joined: Thu. Dec. 31, 2009 12:33 pm
Location: Freetown,NY 13803
Hand Fed Coal Stove: HITZER 50-93
Coal Size/Type: BLASCHAK Nut

Post by freetown fred » Tue. Nov. 06, 2012 4:20 pm

Yep, whatever you decide--cute or cuter--make sure you get the hopper fed system-- ;) Hey dh, you hangin tough through all this? :clap: toothy Worse then that last sofa. No move it here, no there, maybe a little more to the left, no your other left :nana: ;)

 
User avatar
wsherrick
Member
Posts: 3744
Joined: Wed. Jun. 18, 2008 6:04 am
Location: High In The Poconos
Hand Fed Coal Stove: Glenwood Base Heater, Crawford Base Heater
Baseburners & Antiques: Crawford Base Heater, Glenwood, Stanley Argand
Coal Size/Type: Chestnut, Stove Size

Post by wsherrick » Tue. Nov. 06, 2012 4:53 pm

Turn of the Century Cylinder Oak or Base Heater design. Big heat for less coal, less fuss, less maintenance and also it is rarely mentioned, much less floor space.

 
elleninpa
Member
Posts: 47
Joined: Sat. Nov. 15, 2008 4:52 pm
Hand Fed Coal Stove: Vermont Castings Vigilant, circa 1980

Post by elleninpa » Wed. Nov. 07, 2012 9:45 am

I've been trying to imagine the turn of the century base heaters in my space. It's a low basement ceiling, finished, at 7 foot 6 inches; and the floor is raised because the previous owners put in a brick platform. So we've essentially got about 7 foot of height to work with, maybe an inch or two more than that. I haven't looked at dimensions yet on the antique round stoves, but I bet there are some that are not toweringly high?

Also, I still need to look up the round base heater that I saw that was made in more modern times...or am I remembering incorrectly?

 
User avatar
nortcan
Member
Posts: 3146
Joined: Sat. Feb. 20, 2010 3:32 pm
Location: Qc Canada

Post by nortcan » Wed. Nov. 07, 2012 11:02 am

elleninpa wrote:I've been trying to imagine the turn of the century base heaters in my space. It's a low basement ceiling, finished, at 7 foot 6 inches; and the floor is raised because the previous owners put in a brick platform. So we've essentially got about 7 foot of height to work with, maybe an inch or two more than that. I haven't looked at dimensions yet on the antique round stoves, but I bet there are some that are not toweringly high?

Also, I still need to look up the round base heater that I saw that was made in more modern times...or am I remembering incorrectly?
7 Fts 6In., you can almost put 2 stoves one on the top of the other :lol:
Seriously some antique stoves are quite tall and some are not so tall.
You should consider exactly what is available for your needs and your likings, antique or new/newer, then evaluate the + and the- of each choices then you'r the boss... :idea:

 
User avatar
63roundbadge
Member
Posts: 190
Joined: Fri. May. 23, 2008 9:43 pm
Location: Lehigh Valley PA

Post by 63roundbadge » Sat. Nov. 10, 2012 8:42 pm

I didn't read all your replies, and this is the first I saw your post. If it's redundant I apologize.

I'm running a Alaska Kodiak for the past 4 years, having had a Efel Kaminar prior to for 24 years. Both burn(ed) pea, both were hopper fed and both are/were low maintenance.

I shake the Kodiak 2x per day when it's running hard, and empty every other night. When it's 50ish outside, I shake it once per day and empty it every 3 days.
The Kodiak idles so low that you have to stare into it to see glowing coals below the raw coal. Stack temp is usually 100-150 degrees w/a MPD closed all the way. I have a baro above it, and the Kodiak really is a joy to use. It is a perfect stove for those who don't like to fuss, I can't stress how trouble-free it is to use. It is very forgiving. Somehow when shaking, air blows over the window minimizing the ash on the window. I clean the window once/month with Rutland cleaner, and honestly it stays clean and clear. The firebox is square, the shaker grate is round so I find I can also throttle the amount of heat by 'to poke or not to poke' the corners.

I've found that since I added heatsinks to the side and have a box fan behind it, I am sending more heat into the room and less up the chimney.

I don't have the Alaska brand fan as it's noisy and located in our main family room, but instead I have the box fan blowing slowly (and quietly) into a plenum I made to direct the air into the rear inlet. At bedtime I turn it up since noise isn't a factor, and it increases the heat exiting the front.

I bought the Alaska because it is American Made and simple and clean in design. Easy to use, minimal dust on shaking and the large hopper opening makes it easy to fill.

 
elleninpa
Member
Posts: 47
Joined: Sat. Nov. 15, 2008 4:52 pm
Hand Fed Coal Stove: Vermont Castings Vigilant, circa 1980

Post by elleninpa » Mon. Nov. 12, 2012 1:41 pm

AS much as I want a turn of the century stove, my dh wears the pants in the family (but don't tell him!) and he wants to go to the local guy and buy (yes, I know its my money).

He was interested in the comments on the Kodiak's and Harman's. He'd be happy to know about the ashes staying off the windows, I think he's gone through two bottles of cleaner in the last three years.

63roundbadge, will you post a picture of your setup? I was interested in the 'plenum'. We use a box fan on our woodburner but wasn't on the coal burner because of the fly ash, boy does it fly around...but then...that's a Surdiac for ya!

PS we've been toasty for a week now, ahhhh, heat!


Post Reply

Return to “Hand Fired Coal Stoves & Furnaces Using Anthracite”