Finally Got Cold, -3 for a High -19 for a Low.

 
SAU
Member
Posts: 216
Joined: Sat. Sep. 06, 2008 12:47 pm
Location: Powder River Basin WY

Post by SAU » Mon. Dec. 15, 2008 8:35 pm

And the Vigilant didn't keep up. The gas furnace has came on a couple of times in the mornings with the thermostat set at 59. I even went to the trouble of firing up the Nordic insert. Man oh man. People say the Vigilant is the ultimate "he man stove". Well let me tell you, they are wrong. I burned that Nordic junk last year and had no idea how bad it is. The fire bed is only four inches deep and the shaker is just plate metal with slot cut into it that you slide back and forth quickly and violently to get any kind of shaking action. The thing is truly pathetic. The house heats up pretty good with it's south facing elevation and I got the place up to 71 degrees today, but I'm pretty sure the furnace will be kicking on by the morning again. Good thing we have electric blankets :).

Anyone have recommendations for coal inserts?


 
User avatar
Scottscoaled
Member
Posts: 2812
Joined: Tue. Jan. 08, 2008 9:51 pm
Location: Malta N.Y.
Stoker Coal Boiler: EFM 520, 700, Van Wert 800 GJ 61,53
Baseburners & Antiques: Magic Stewart 16, times 2!
Coal Size/Type: Lots of buck
Other Heating: Slant Fin electric boiler backup

Post by Scottscoaled » Mon. Dec. 15, 2008 8:39 pm

I'd insert a good coal boiler into your basement and stop playing games with the He man stove. :) Scott

 
User avatar
Rob R.
Site Moderator
Posts: 17965
Joined: Fri. Dec. 28, 2007 4:26 pm
Location: Chazy, NY
Stoker Coal Boiler: EFM 520
Hand Fed Coal Stove: Chubby Jr

Post by Rob R. » Mon. Dec. 15, 2008 8:39 pm

Harman makes a nice hand-fed insert. I have heard that people like it for burning anthracite, but I'm not sure how it would work for bituminous as it has no over-fire air vents.

 
User avatar
LsFarm
Member
Posts: 7383
Joined: Sun. Nov. 20, 2005 8:02 pm
Location: Michigan
Stoker Coal Boiler: Axeman Anderson 260
Hand Fed Coal Boiler: Self-built 'Big Bertha' SS Boiler
Baseburners & Antiques: Keystone 11, Art Garland

Post by LsFarm » Mon. Dec. 15, 2008 9:20 pm

Sniff around for an old stokermatic or Prill. Or cough up the cash for the new bituminous burner equiped EFM boiler.. It has a Prill firepot I think.

A big handfeed boiler or furnace willwork, but you really don't want a fireplace insert, not with bituminous..

Look in the EFM manufactureers section for info.

Greg L

 
User avatar
rockwood
Member
Posts: 1381
Joined: Sun. Sep. 21, 2008 7:37 pm
Location: Utah
Hot Air Coal Stoker Furnace: Stokermatic
Hand Fed Coal Stove: Rockwood Stoveworks Circulator
Baseburners & Antiques: Malleable/Monarch Range
Coal Size/Type: Lump and stoker + Blaschak-stove size

Post by rockwood » Mon. Dec. 15, 2008 9:59 pm

Here in Utah I see old stokermatics come up for sale and they go fast.
stokermatic.JPG
.JPG | 40.2KB | stokermatic.JPG
I grew up around these and know they will have no problem heating an average size house in cold climate.

steinkebunch has a similar unit (I think) in Wyoming.

 
SAU
Member
Posts: 216
Joined: Sat. Sep. 06, 2008 12:47 pm
Location: Powder River Basin WY

Post by SAU » Mon. Dec. 15, 2008 10:27 pm

I poked around on craigs list a little but no luck.

My coal burns without an overhead air source mark.

LS, you are quite knowledgeable, are you a dealer? More importantly, to me anyway, Why wouldn't an insert work well with bit?

When I bought the Vigilant this summer I was counting on natural gas going through the roof. This inflation/deflation cycle has been tremendous, and I'm sure I'm not the only one who was looking at a three year or less return on my coal investment. With current prices I'm sure it will jump to four or five years, if these prices can hold. My greatest benefit is that coal heat is essentially free to me after the appliances pay for themselves. An insert would take a while to pay for it's self, a stoker would take forever I'm afraid.

 
User avatar
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

Post by VigIIPeaBurner » Tue. Dec. 16, 2008 1:50 am

SAU - vearing from the topic a little ... do they run the strip mines 24/7 when it's that cold?


 
SAU
Member
Posts: 216
Joined: Sat. Sep. 06, 2008 12:47 pm
Location: Powder River Basin WY

Post by SAU » Tue. Dec. 16, 2008 3:33 am

Kind of sorta.

At 20 below the trucks are supposed to run half speed and the shovels are to reduce capacity by 50%. Mines vary in their low temperature rules. The huge walking draglines are especially sensitive due to the boom structure, and even if they don't break while it is cold they will start having issues when it warms up. Equipment availability falls off dramatically because electronics start to malfunction and air systems freeze up. We screwed up the other day and let the automatic diesel lightplants shut off in the morning. in the evening when it was time for them to start they wouldn't. The large cable used to power the shovels is a pain in the neck to move in warm weather but it is almost impossible when it is this cold, it goes from being flexible to being nearly petrified. Cold snaps, and the first few really hot days of summer almost guarantee equipment availability to drop to 65%.

Ran into a boiler maker who is working on a power plant near here. We were sitting at the bar in a restaurant, and struck up a conversation. The reason we wasn't working was because none of their equipment would start.

 
User avatar
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

Post by VigIIPeaBurner » Tue. Dec. 16, 2008 4:07 am

Hang in there! Daylight time will be gettng longer in a few days :) If I had to work out in that, I don't know what kind of gear I'd need to wear. Not to mention breath. Do you work 12 hrs then too or do you do more frequent breaks?

If you could warm your house up to 71 when it's -3 without much help from the gas furnace your not doing too bad. How many times did you have to tend the stoves and how many Lbs are you throwing through the Vigilant?

 
User avatar
captcaper
Member
Posts: 724
Joined: Thu. May. 29, 2008 11:55 am
Location: Northern N.H.

Post by captcaper » Tue. Dec. 16, 2008 7:27 am

markviii wrote:Harman makes a nice hand-fed insert. I have heard that people like it for burning anthracite, but I'm not sure how it would work for bituminous as it has no over-fire air vents.
This stove will blow you away if you are right in front of the blower vents..My Mark III which looks just like this one without the side wings has a stong blower. But I guess you can get a variable switch.

 
SAU
Member
Posts: 216
Joined: Sat. Sep. 06, 2008 12:47 pm
Location: Powder River Basin WY

Post by SAU » Tue. Dec. 16, 2008 11:15 am

The longest I was out of the pickup the day that the high was -12 was about 20 minutes, mostly you try to take it easy, not as much gets done, wear Carhart bibs & coat with layers. When I was young and dumb I did a small stint drilling. I would stand so close to the diesel heater that I once caught on fire. As far as the coal usage... A lot. I really don't know how many hods I've thrown at them.

 
User avatar
Ashcat
Member
Posts: 419
Joined: Mon. Aug. 18, 2008 10:29 pm
Location: West Chester PA
Hand Fed Coal Stove: Hitzer 983
Coal Size/Type: Nut/Blaschak

Post by Ashcat » Tue. Dec. 16, 2008 12:09 pm

SAU-- Hitzer's 983 insert has over-the-fire vents that might permit bit burning. The Hitzer people are very responsive and could easily answer this question, by phone or email.

Model 983 Fireplace Insert - Hitzer Stoves

By the way, how much space are you looking to heat?

 
SAU
Member
Posts: 216
Joined: Sat. Sep. 06, 2008 12:47 pm
Location: Powder River Basin WY

Post by SAU » Tue. Dec. 16, 2008 12:19 pm

1750 square foot bi-level

 
User avatar
Ashcat
Member
Posts: 419
Joined: Mon. Aug. 18, 2008 10:29 pm
Location: West Chester PA
Hand Fed Coal Stove: Hitzer 983
Coal Size/Type: Nut/Blaschak

Post by Ashcat » Tue. Dec. 16, 2008 12:57 pm

SAU wrote:1750 square foot bi-level
Sounds do-able to me with an insert.
My 983 has a single door with no fire-level intakes (but it has above the fire intakes). The double-door variety pictured at the link above has fire-level intakes also, which might help with burning bituminous more than my single door model. Both have large firebox that puts out alot of heat.

 
User avatar
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

Post by VigIIPeaBurner » Tue. Dec. 16, 2008 7:42 pm

SAU wrote:...8<... When I was young and dumb I did a small stint drilling. I would stand so close to the diesel heater that I once caught on fire. As far as the coal usage... A lot. I really don't know how many hods I've thrown at them.
I hear that too. When on a overnight hike w/o a tent, just some plastic sheeting and my new (in '74) down mummy bag. Nearest town recorded -19. Toasty -in my dreams ;)

I was wondering, on the Vigilant's right side, do you need to open the paddle cover over the secondary burn opening to burn bit? Ashcat's comment about Hitzers with the higher fire box air feeds got me wondering about this and weather other stove makers offer this option.


Post Reply

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