I Want to Put in a Coal Stove

 
ColdHouse
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Post by ColdHouse » Sat. Sep. 28, 2013 12:23 pm

franco b wrote:
Either way is more work than at first glance but I do favor easier maintenance.
What is the common procedure to cut a 6" hole above the mantle?


 
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Post by coalnewbie » Sat. Sep. 28, 2013 12:27 pm

Answer, spend the money get it cut professionally.

 
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Post by franco b » Sat. Sep. 28, 2013 12:50 pm

coalnewbie wrote:Answer, spend the money get it cut professionally.
Probably the best way. There are drills to go through masonry easily without breaking everything up.

Put "drilling foundation" into the search box and read about what others have done.

 
Den034071
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Post by Den034071 » Sat. Sep. 28, 2013 1:25 pm

Ch im a mason 40 plus years .You do not need a liner ,.A terracotta flue which you have will outlive your grandkids .Also connect above mantle .Pm me if I can help . jack

 
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Post by Wiz » Sat. Sep. 28, 2013 2:16 pm

Say no to liner. ;) Leisure Line customer service is top notch and their products too. ColdHouse is you fill out your profile completely someone maybe near by to help with chimney.

 
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dcrane
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Post by dcrane » Sat. Sep. 28, 2013 3:56 pm

LL Hearth model can come with side saddle hopper so it does not require space behind the stove for the hopper, but I personally would opt for the sidewinder (holds 10 lbs less coal but my guess is that it will put out similar heat ratings).

That Chimney looks pretty good... get cheap black pipe and send it as high as you can up it and call it a day!

the first thing you need to decide is manual coal stove OR stoker coal stove (these are two different worlds and you need to make as choice based on as much info as you can obtain regarding each). If the choice is manual then your next decision will be hopper feed or not (most the people here who have a hopper feed stove will make you believe the stove does some magical shyt that it otherwise wouldn't do if it did not have a hopper)... I say BS... more cost, more shyt to not function right, few hours extra burn time... big freeekin deal :lol: but again... im just one opinion of many here and plenty will advocate both ways. If the choice is Coal Stoker than im going to say this pretty point blank... you would be a fool not to buy a Leisure Line because their simple well built with customer service and care 2nd to none (this is VERY critical with a stoker in particular... matter of fact.... it EVERYTHING!)... sure Harman and many other have units that all do the same stuff...blah blah blah... but the second you need help or need to by spare parts or need to service the unit yourself, etc... that's when you say "OHHHH SHYT...I shoulda bought a Leisure Line"

Good luck...either way your going to love coal!

 
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Post by franco b » Sat. Sep. 28, 2013 5:34 pm

dcrane wrote:your next decision will be hopper feed or not (most the people here who have a hopper feed stove will make you believe the stove does some magical shyt that it otherwise wouldn't do if it did not have a hopper)... I say BS... more cost, more shyt to not function right, few hours extra burn time... big freeekin deal but again... im just one opinion of many here and plenty will advocate both ways.
It's not a matter of opinion, a stove with hopper and thermostat to control the air just has features that a stove without them cannot match.

With a hopper you open the top and pour in the coal to fill the hopper; without it you open the front door on most stoves and shovel in coal until the fire pot is full and maybe pay attention to banking the sides or leaving a hot spot showing. More fuss and takes longer.

The hopper feeds hot coal that partially has had the gas burned out of it; much less chance of puff back and far faster recovery time to get back up to heat. At the end of a burn the thermostat will have opened automatically to maintain the heat so there is no need to manually open the air and then come back when the new load is burning and adjust again. The thermostat does it for you and the bi-metal thermostats are very reliable and can even maintain even heat without manual or barometric dampers in most cases.

The hopper acts like a big baffle in the center of the stove to force flue gasses closer to the sides to give up their heat. There is a downside to that however in that the hopper insulates the top of the stove so it will not be as hot as in a stove without it.

The hopper will feed some coal between shake down times but that very much depends on how easily the particular coal collapses when burnt. I would not consider it a major advantage.

The experienced coal burner will make either type of stove work well but will do it faster and easier with a hopper and thermostat.


 
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Post by dcrane » Sat. Sep. 28, 2013 6:53 pm

Ha! that did not take long, as you can see our good friend Franco like the manual hopper fed's... the drawbacks are much more area's to prevent air tight stove remaining air tight over the long haul (if you don't mind risking the extra stinkin' up of the house then no matter), also good manual stoves have a removable baffle (that not only forces the hot gases out and to the sides for radiant heat but more importantly to clean your pipe or MPD its a simple lift out and stick a vacuum hose in, no messing around with disconnecting the stove, etc.), also... if you have to go over to your stove to shake it down (you do!) whats the problem taking a shovel or two of coal and adding it then, banking, adding, controlling wtf you want to do is a lot easier without having 30 lbs of coal falling into your lap as your working with the stove. bi-metal thermostats and the linkages/levers & chains and extra crap that goes along with it are all wonderful when they are new and functioning perfectly (I see them as a lot of horse *censored* that can fail and cost MO money for not enough advantage to justify)... unless of course you have a 200 lb hopper and an automatic shaker system that on a timer, etc.etc. (then I will say...ok... now were talking about some length and time advantages worth thinking about). If its automated that you want just go with a Leisure Line, plug it in and call it a day!

OK... now you have the arguments of each from 2 good sources (more will only make redundant talk), I love Franco and he knows I respect his opinion as much as anyone on this forum!

 
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Post by freetown fred » Sat. Sep. 28, 2013 7:16 pm

dc, why do you talk that kind of nonsense? Their not extra crap, they are very functional tools if you learn how to operate them--anyone seriously looking for a free standing would go with the hopper if they could or were given the choice. My Hitzer has no areas where keeping it air tight is concerned & I've never had any "stinkin up the house You were almost right about one thing -- up this point he had ONE good unbiased explanation.
dcrane wrote:Ha! that did not take long, as you can see our good friend Franco like the manual hopper fed's... the drawbacks are much more area's to prevent air tight stove remaining air tight over the long haul (if you don't mind risking the extra stinkin' up of the house then no matter), also good manual stoves have a removable baffle (that not only forces the hot gases out and to the sides for radiant heat but more importantly to clean your pipe or MPD its a simple lift out and stick a vacuum hose in, no messing around with disconnecting the stove, etc.), also... if you have to go over to your stove to shake it down (you do!) whats the problem taking a shovel or two of coal and adding it then, banking, adding, controlling wtf you want to do is a lot easier without having 30 lbs of coal falling into your lap as your working with the stove. bi-metal thermostats and the linkages/levers & chains and extra crap that goes along with it are all wonderful when they are new and functioning perfectly (I see them as a lot of horse *censored* that can fail and cost MO money for not enough advantage to justify)... unless of course you have a 200 lb hopper and an automatic shaker system that on a timer, etc.etc. (then I will say...ok... now were talking about some length and time advantages worth thinking about). If its automated that you want just go with a Leisure Line, plug it in and call it a day!

OK... now you have the arguments of each from 2 good sources (more will only make redundant talk), I love Franco and he knows I respect his opinion as much as anyone on this forum!

 
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Post by Rob R. » Sat. Sep. 28, 2013 7:55 pm

Doug, how many stoves have you owned & run that were hopper fed?

 
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Post by dcrane » Sun. Sep. 29, 2013 3:33 am

Rob R. wrote:Doug, how many stoves have you owned & run that were hopper fed?
well... I'm a little different in that I was able to build whatever I wanted and lined up stuff by the hundreds over many years to fire side by side (the baffle on the 44 came about from a top load hopper design that just didn't do much for me), so while I know their are arguments both ways about different subjects like large square fields for the coal bed and hoppers and steel vs cast iron and a 100 other things from door hinges to liners and I'm sure many people could try many things and view them differently... I don't need to fire up a coal stove with a large square, 3 inch deep coal bed to know I wont like it as much as a vertical round coal bed 8 or 10 inches deep. But I know its just one opinion and many will enjoy a big square coal bed more for their own reasons. But I know you guys love your Hitzer's and I should buy an oldie to try out someday ;)

 
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Post by Lightning » Sun. Sep. 29, 2013 3:38 am

oops :lol:

 
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Post by coalnewbie » Sun. Sep. 29, 2013 4:11 am

The man "says I favor easier maintenance" and if so the LL stove you want it is a good choice. I hate being a stove mistress as that game gets old real quick. Some people can manage simple point of heat stoves well but for a neophyte easy to use is the way to go. The nation is full of good coal stoves but many end up on CL as the expertise level to get the best out of it was not there. If you take any one of the illuminati here, give him almost any stove and a pile of the black rocks and he will make heat real quick and learn to manage it in a flash but that may not be the place to start your coal adventures. I have a big highly divided house and play with all kinds of handheld stoves, however, lurking in the basement is a large LL unit that punches out the heat without much need for attendance and that the wife can manage when I'm away.

 
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Post by titleist1 » Sun. Sep. 29, 2013 7:48 am

Welcome to the forum and congrats on your coal burning decision which you will never regret!

As you can tell it is an opinionated bunch around here and we are not shy about sharing them!! :D

First off don't bother with the liner. Get your clay tiles in the chimney checked for condition and if necessary spend the money repairing them rather than on a liner. I think that is one issue that you don't see much debate about on here :!:

i'd say hand fed vs. stoker is the first decision after you decide how big a stove you need. IMHO stokers are easier to operate, (no ash shake down & my wife can handle it if I am not around for a few days), easier to load (auger or vac system to fill hopper), thermostat controlled. IMHO advantages of hand fed are no electric required (if you lose elec often that can be the deal breaker for a stoker), quieter for living room operation (no combustion fan), no fan or stoker motors or timer or thermostat controls to break.

I used a hand fed for 19 years and switched to a stoker (known as a Girlie-man transition!). I like the easier operation and thermostat control and ours is in the basement so the fan noise is not a problem. But I have a hand fed sitting in the corner of the basement ready to move into place in case we get a blizzard induced power outage that lasts a few days.

If you go stoker, easy decision.... LL is a fine product with great service. You won't be sorry you chose them.

If you go hand fed...more decisions as you can see....vintage round base burner, modern square box, insert or free standing, hopper fed or not, bi-metallic thermostat air control or spinner/slider air control....

a lot of research reading on here is in your near term future, but get to it cause cold weather is a comin' !!! :)

 
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Post by ColdHouse » Sun. Sep. 29, 2013 10:12 am

What would you think of a 5 Season used Hitzer 503 Coal Stove Insert for around $1500 with 2 new fans included? Can these units be painted? Where can the paint be purchased?
Thanks!


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