New Guy With New VC Vigilant Stove
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- Member
- Posts: 64
- Joined: Thu. Mar. 27, 2014 9:33 am
- Hand Fed Coal Stove: Vermont Castings Vigilant
- Coal Size/Type: Pea
- Other Heating: 1962 Carrier FHA NG 1st floor, Goodman 96% FHA second floor
Hello All!
I just joined the Forum and did a little searching. I just purchased a Vermont Castings Vigilant Coal Stove. I will be getting my permits soon and starting the install soon.
I have a few questions that you guys might be able to help out with. In some of my research I have found that some people use this as a dual fuel stove (wood or coal). It is not marketed this way. Does anybody know if this is safe to occasionally burn wood?
If I wanted to run this as a primary source: How much coal do most people use in a “normal winter”. I am in North New Jersey.
I just joined the Forum and did a little searching. I just purchased a Vermont Castings Vigilant Coal Stove. I will be getting my permits soon and starting the install soon.
I have a few questions that you guys might be able to help out with. In some of my research I have found that some people use this as a dual fuel stove (wood or coal). It is not marketed this way. Does anybody know if this is safe to occasionally burn wood?
If I wanted to run this as a primary source: How much coal do most people use in a “normal winter”. I am in North New Jersey.
- michaelanthony
- Member
- Posts: 4550
- Joined: Sat. Nov. 22, 2008 10:42 pm
- Location: millinocket,me.
- Hand Fed Coal Stove: Vigilant 2310, gold marc box stove
- Hand Fed Coal Furnace: Gold Marc Independence
- Baseburners & Antiques: Home Sparkle 12
- Coal Size/Type: 'nut
- Other Heating: Fujitsu mini split, FHA oil furnace
Welcome tjfslaughter, congratulations on finding us, your decision heating with coal and your Vigilant! You will be pleased and warm, I have a small ranch and my stove does a great job. I have not burned wood in my stove but some do. I have heard some remove the grates, put some sand in the ash pan and burn wood during the shoulder months. Use the search box in the top right corner, type in burning wood in my vigilant. There are a couple members with the "multi fuel Vigilant and hopefully they will assist you as well. The Vigilant II coal stove was designed for coal so I think if you burn mostly wood a tare down and cleaning may be needed more often than burning coal. How about a description of your set up and god knows we love pictures of new stoves
Good luck. Mike.
Wanted to ask where you are located, like they say we won't steal yah!
Good luck. Mike.
Wanted to ask where you are located, like they say we won't steal yah!
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- Member
- Posts: 64
- Joined: Thu. Mar. 27, 2014 9:33 am
- Hand Fed Coal Stove: Vermont Castings Vigilant
- Coal Size/Type: Pea
- Other Heating: 1962 Carrier FHA NG 1st floor, Goodman 96% FHA second floor
I am in Maywood. We will be doing a kitchen renovation this summer and will use the old fireplace. See Pic. I have a lot of work to do to clean up the brick and meet the Fire c des and clearance requirements. The Fire inspector is great in this area and is more than willing to help me through the process. The house is a 2 story house about 1100 square feet per floor. Attached is a pic of the "fireplace" that we will locate the stove. I am a couple months away from the tear down but I was offered a stove at a price I could not say no. The place I bought it is going out of business. It ships next week to me. I guess my next question is how big of a coal bin should I build???michaelanthony wrote:Welcome tjfslaughter, congratulations on finding us, your decision heating with coal and your Vigilant! You will be pleased and warm, I have a small ranch and my stove does a great job. I have not burned wood in my stove but some do. I have heard some remove the grates, put some sand in the ash pan and burn wood during the shoulder months. Use the search box in the top right corner, type in burning wood in my vigilant. There are a couple members with the "multi fuel Vigilant and hopefully they will assist you as well. The Vigilant II coal stove was designed for coal so I think if you burn mostly wood a tare down and cleaning may be needed more often than burning coal. How about a description of your set up and god knows we love pictures of new stoves
Good luck. Mike.
Wanted to ask where you are located, like they say we won't steal yah!
Attachments
- whistlenut
- Member
- Posts: 3548
- Joined: Sat. Mar. 17, 2007 6:29 pm
- Location: Central NH, Concord area
- Stoker Coal Boiler: AA130's,260's, AHS130&260's,EFM900,GJ & V-Wert
- Hand Fed Coal Boiler: Franks,Itasca 415,Jensen, NYer 130,Van Wert
- Hot Air Coal Stoker Furnace: Alaska, EFM, Keystoker, Yellow Flame
- Hot Air Coal Stoker Stove: Alaska, Keystoker-2,Leisure Line
- Hand Fed Coal Stove: Alaska, Gibraltar, Keystone,Vc Vigilant 2
- Hand Fed Coal Furnace: Ford, Jensen, NYer, Van Wert,
- Baseburners & Antiques: Glenwoods
- Coal Size/Type: Barley, Buck, Rice ,Nut, Stove
- Other Heating: Oil HWBB
3.5 ton up here in an average sized home.(1600 sq ft.) Pea and nut sizes as you learn to burn. Mostly pea. Welcome, and best of luck. If it stays this cold another month, perhaps you will have it fired this year. Brand new model or 'lightly and lovingly used'?
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- Member
- Posts: 64
- Joined: Thu. Mar. 27, 2014 9:33 am
- Hand Fed Coal Stove: Vermont Castings Vigilant
- Coal Size/Type: Pea
- Other Heating: 1962 Carrier FHA NG 1st floor, Goodman 96% FHA second floor
It is a brand new stove. It won't be installed until summer. I will get a coal box of some sort built. I will probably go the basement route.
- michaelanthony
- Member
- Posts: 4550
- Joined: Sat. Nov. 22, 2008 10:42 pm
- Location: millinocket,me.
- Hand Fed Coal Stove: Vigilant 2310, gold marc box stove
- Hand Fed Coal Furnace: Gold Marc Independence
- Baseburners & Antiques: Home Sparkle 12
- Coal Size/Type: 'nut
- Other Heating: Fujitsu mini split, FHA oil furnace
[quote="tjfslaughter"]...................................The Fire inspector is great in this area and is more than willing to help me through the process. The house is a 2 story house about 1100 square feet per floor. Attached is a pic of the "fireplace" that we will locate the stove. I am a couple months away from the tear down but I was offered a stove at a price I could not say no. The place I bought it is going out of business. It ships next week to me. I guess my next question is how big of a coal bin should I build???[/quote]
That's great to hear sounds like the Fire Inspector is a real "public servant" and understanding...same hear with the folks on the forum. It didn't take long before I was hooked on coal and then this place
I didn't exactly need my Vigilant but I wanted one and I couldn't resist the slightly used price, I checked out a dealer this winter out of curiosity and I was told 1900.00 new in the box A modern day base burner of sorts with the indirect damper. I did not install a baro, I did install a mpd for wood burning in direct draft for the cool nights with warm days.
Keep the pic's coming, we love remodels and stuff, lots of knowledge here and folks willing to help.
Welcome to the V.I.P. club," Vigilant In Possession" .....
That's great to hear sounds like the Fire Inspector is a real "public servant" and understanding...same hear with the folks on the forum. It didn't take long before I was hooked on coal and then this place
I didn't exactly need my Vigilant but I wanted one and I couldn't resist the slightly used price, I checked out a dealer this winter out of curiosity and I was told 1900.00 new in the box A modern day base burner of sorts with the indirect damper. I did not install a baro, I did install a mpd for wood burning in direct draft for the cool nights with warm days.
Keep the pic's coming, we love remodels and stuff, lots of knowledge here and folks willing to help.
Welcome to the V.I.P. club," Vigilant In Possession" .....
Last edited by michaelanthony on Thu. Mar. 27, 2014 8:53 pm, edited 2 times in total.
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- Member
- Posts: 64
- Joined: Thu. Mar. 27, 2014 9:33 am
- Hand Fed Coal Stove: Vermont Castings Vigilant
- Coal Size/Type: Pea
- Other Heating: 1962 Carrier FHA NG 1st floor, Goodman 96% FHA second floor
It is a long story but I got the stove brandy new from a dealer that is having a fire sale. He might post on here soon as he has a couple more stoves to sell at a low price. He has a TL200 and Mark 2 to get rid of also. I have no idea what those are.
- michaelanthony
- Member
- Posts: 4550
- Joined: Sat. Nov. 22, 2008 10:42 pm
- Location: millinocket,me.
- Hand Fed Coal Stove: Vigilant 2310, gold marc box stove
- Hand Fed Coal Furnace: Gold Marc Independence
- Baseburners & Antiques: Home Sparkle 12
- Coal Size/Type: 'nut
- Other Heating: Fujitsu mini split, FHA oil furnace
The Mark II, and sounds like TLC2000 are Harman products and they should get some interest. I just finished a thorough clean out as my draft was getting less and less and that means fly ash. The timing was right as the days should be getting warmer, 40's are predicted for the weekend...about time.
You asked about duel fuel and V.C. did have a model that was labeled. I am no expert but from reading on this forum there is 3 or 4 Vigilant models through the years, the Vigilant II being marketed as the true coal stove.
Your other question I failed to answer was the amount of coal I have used and that has been 2 3/4 ton so far this yr, in my ranch I can do a bag a day and stay 75*
You asked about duel fuel and V.C. did have a model that was labeled. I am no expert but from reading on this forum there is 3 or 4 Vigilant models through the years, the Vigilant II being marketed as the true coal stove.
Your other question I failed to answer was the amount of coal I have used and that has been 2 3/4 ton so far this yr, in my ranch I can do a bag a day and stay 75*
Last edited by michaelanthony on Thu. Mar. 27, 2014 9:15 pm, edited 1 time in total.
-
- Member
- Posts: 64
- Joined: Thu. Mar. 27, 2014 9:33 am
- Hand Fed Coal Stove: Vermont Castings Vigilant
- Coal Size/Type: Pea
- Other Heating: 1962 Carrier FHA NG 1st floor, Goodman 96% FHA second floor
I think the guy wants $1100 for them. That's what I got the Vigilant for...michaelanthony wrote:The Mark II, and sounds like TLC2000 are Harman products and they should get some interest. I just finished a thorough clean out as my draft was getting less and less and that means fly ash. The timing was right as the days should be getting warmer, 40's are predicted for the weekend...about time.
- VigIIPeaBurner
- Member
- Posts: 2579
- Joined: Fri. Jan. 11, 2008 10:49 am
- Location: Pequest River Valley, Warren Co NJ
- Hot Air Coal Stoker Furnace: Keystoker Koker(down)
- Hand Fed Coal Stove: Vermont Casting Vigilant II 2310
- Other Heating: #2 Oil Furnace
Welcome to the VIP club (great one MA )!
Depending on how well you get set up to move the heat around, Whistelnut called it pretty well at 3.5 ton/year. That's about my normal usage with my Vigilant II 2310. Mine runs pretty much flat out for 80+% of the season. Heat moves around my house well and it does get chilly in the opposite end of the house. My oil furnace supplements the heat when it's colder than ~25°F outside. I've use as little as 3 and as much as 5 tons depending on the coal quality. Add ~100 gals of fuel oil to that coal usage to keep my 3100 ft² livable.
We'll be here to guide you up the learning curve. Lots of Vigilant II reading here for you to catch up on.
Depending on how well you get set up to move the heat around, Whistelnut called it pretty well at 3.5 ton/year. That's about my normal usage with my Vigilant II 2310. Mine runs pretty much flat out for 80+% of the season. Heat moves around my house well and it does get chilly in the opposite end of the house. My oil furnace supplements the heat when it's colder than ~25°F outside. I've use as little as 3 and as much as 5 tons depending on the coal quality. Add ~100 gals of fuel oil to that coal usage to keep my 3100 ft² livable.
We'll be here to guide you up the learning curve. Lots of Vigilant II reading here for you to catch up on.
- michaelanthony
- Member
- Posts: 4550
- Joined: Sat. Nov. 22, 2008 10:42 pm
- Location: millinocket,me.
- Hand Fed Coal Stove: Vigilant 2310, gold marc box stove
- Hand Fed Coal Furnace: Gold Marc Independence
- Baseburners & Antiques: Home Sparkle 12
- Coal Size/Type: 'nut
- Other Heating: Fujitsu mini split, FHA oil furnace
Hi Dave how yah been? Looks like we have another soon to be happy camper in the Vigilant group.
Tjfslaughter you got a great price and with the current oil prices that stove should pay for itself rather quickly next season.
Tjfslaughter you got a great price and with the current oil prices that stove should pay for itself rather quickly next season.
- Rich W.
- Member
- Posts: 335
- Joined: Tue. Nov. 26, 2013 10:29 pm
- Location: Newport County, Rhode Island
- 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)
Welcome tif...you found the best accessory you can have for your stove...this site and its community of users! I bought my Vigilant Multi-fuel (model 1400) last fall. I replaced a Jotul 8 because I wanted more BTUs, and I have a VC Resolute (wood) in my shop and I like the 80s era VC stoves compared to the new models. I had never burned coal, so the Multi-Fuel was my way to try to cover my options. Turns out that although I can convert my stove to wood, it burns coal beautifully, and there is no reason to stop it!
My house is about 2600 sq ft, center chimney (living room fireplace installation) and only single digit temps cause the oil burner to respond. I was on automatic delivery of oil, and I called the company to tell them not to come, and to top the tank off in July, as I did not want to waste their trip out with a <50 gallon fill! I've cut my heating cost in half!
Since Thanksgiving when I started the stove, I have burned an average of 30 pounds of nut anthracite per day, and my full season average will be in the 20s per day as the milder weather works in. The living room (30x20) is always 70*+, and the rest of the house is in the 60s. We "live" in the living room, so it's a perfect pattern. I am buying bagged coal this year, 10 bags at a time, and will buy 2 to 3 ton on pallets over the summer for next season. It took me a few days to get the hang of running the stove, and it would have taken me weeks without the generous help of this group. Shaking and poking for good results was probably the most important skill next to start up. Lots of variation in start up procedures among the members; blend it together and you'll find your own best practice.
Keep us posted on your install, and ask questions. BTW, if your stove is on the first level I would not put coal in the cellar. Raising it to duty level will get old fast! We look forward to hearing more, and I look forward to the opportunity to give back to this community by helping you and others after taking in so much from here during my learning curve, which continues on. And...nice price you paid!
Rich
My house is about 2600 sq ft, center chimney (living room fireplace installation) and only single digit temps cause the oil burner to respond. I was on automatic delivery of oil, and I called the company to tell them not to come, and to top the tank off in July, as I did not want to waste their trip out with a <50 gallon fill! I've cut my heating cost in half!
Since Thanksgiving when I started the stove, I have burned an average of 30 pounds of nut anthracite per day, and my full season average will be in the 20s per day as the milder weather works in. The living room (30x20) is always 70*+, and the rest of the house is in the 60s. We "live" in the living room, so it's a perfect pattern. I am buying bagged coal this year, 10 bags at a time, and will buy 2 to 3 ton on pallets over the summer for next season. It took me a few days to get the hang of running the stove, and it would have taken me weeks without the generous help of this group. Shaking and poking for good results was probably the most important skill next to start up. Lots of variation in start up procedures among the members; blend it together and you'll find your own best practice.
Keep us posted on your install, and ask questions. BTW, if your stove is on the first level I would not put coal in the cellar. Raising it to duty level will get old fast! We look forward to hearing more, and I look forward to the opportunity to give back to this community by helping you and others after taking in so much from here during my learning curve, which continues on. And...nice price you paid!
Rich
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- Member
- Posts: 64
- Joined: Thu. Mar. 27, 2014 9:33 am
- Hand Fed Coal Stove: Vermont Castings Vigilant
- Coal Size/Type: Pea
- Other Heating: 1962 Carrier FHA NG 1st floor, Goodman 96% FHA second floor
In the next couple weeks I will be stripping the brick. The stove ships out on Tuesday. I think the guy is throwing in a couple pieces of mineral board to get me started.
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- Member
- Posts: 64
- Joined: Thu. Mar. 27, 2014 9:33 am
- Hand Fed Coal Stove: Vermont Castings Vigilant
- Coal Size/Type: Pea
- Other Heating: 1962 Carrier FHA NG 1st floor, Goodman 96% FHA second floor
I have searched the forum and read most of the ss liner sections. Does anybody know if NJ requires a SS liner in a brick chimney (not clay lined). I am going to me with inspector next week to discuss and would like to have some code knowledge. Thanks
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- Member
- Posts: 64
- Joined: Thu. Mar. 27, 2014 9:33 am
- Hand Fed Coal Stove: Vermont Castings Vigilant
- Coal Size/Type: Pea
- Other Heating: 1962 Carrier FHA NG 1st floor, Goodman 96% FHA second floor
It looks like a liner will be going in based on two different installers recommendations and the fire inspectors advice.