Not Enough Heat...

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reckebecca
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Post by reckebecca » Tue. Dec. 23, 2008 9:39 am

I have searched and searched and can't find answers that seem to fit my situation so decided to break down and just ask.

I've finally gotten through the frustration of lighting and maintaining......now, I'd like some heat! :)

I have a Saey 92 which is a cast iron, hopper fed stove rated for 50,000 BTUs and I am attempting to heat approx 800 sq. feet. And, that being said, I'd be okay if I was only really heating half of that since the bedroom is farthest from the stove and I prefer that the bedroom be cool.

I've got a thick bed of coals that glow red all the time, sometimes with blue flame. I've been running with air intake full open 24/7 for days now and can barely get the room that the stove is in to 70 degrees. This morning the LP boiler kicked on and the thermostat is set at 55 in the room with the stove!

I have a baro installed and I believe that I have it set to open when draft hits .05. I am consisetly getting draft readings on the manometer between .03 and .04 (which is the upper end of what the manual says it should be).

I have shaken and flossed and fluffed and ignored, none of it seems to be producing heat - most of the time I can touch the surface of the stove which seems rediculous. I've even had a fan blowing on the stove in an attempt to get the heat to re-distribute. But, when the stove isn't producing heat, there is very little to re-distribute. :)

I'm feeling like I made a huge mistake in buying this stove, building a coal bin, etc., etc., etc. and I don't want to give up on it. Please help!


 
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WNY
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Post by WNY » Tue. Dec. 23, 2008 9:49 am

What size coal are you using?

 
reckebecca
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Post by reckebecca » Tue. Dec. 23, 2008 9:51 am

WNY wrote:What size coal are you using?
Oops, meant to include that - Blaschak pea

 
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Poconoeagle
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Post by Poconoeagle » Tue. Dec. 23, 2008 10:05 am

Have you tried to close the air intake a bit and see if it slows down a bit to radiate heat? sounds like its all zooming up the pipe..

 
reckebecca
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Post by reckebecca » Tue. Dec. 23, 2008 10:10 am

Poconoeagle wrote:Have you tried to close the air intake a bit and see if it slows down a bit to radiate heat? sounds like its all zooming up the pipe..
No, I haven't tried that - quite frankly I was terrified that the fire would die! LOL I was also equating more draft = more heat as I've read here so many timeshere. So, I figured I'd get less heat if I closed down the air intake. But, I'll try it! How far? Should the baro be set to open sooner?

 
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Post by CapeCoaler » Tue. Dec. 23, 2008 10:16 am

Try some Nut size, stick with Blaschak Coal, Nut is a better 'learner coal' size.
The lowered draft behind the baro may make 'cutting your teeth' on pea a PIA!
The Nut will breath better and you can cut your air back to less than 50% of full open.
I suspect you will just need 20-30% open on the Nut.
Coal to full depth and the hopper full should get you heating the small house to a comfy temp.

 
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coalvet
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Post by coalvet » Tue. Dec. 23, 2008 10:18 am

You say you have a thick bed of coal, just how deep is that because coal wants to be deep to heat effectively. Have you tried using the stove with the hopper removed? The stove website says it is removable, of course you would get longer burn times with it installed, but I wonder if you might get more heat without it.


 
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Poconoeagle
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Post by Poconoeagle » Tue. Dec. 23, 2008 10:22 am

The best foundation for "dialing" in your stove is to begin with the correct draft. A draft guage(manometer) is a good investment. The trial and error method is a great teacher. With a good strong fire, and full load of coal, if you turned it in to the 3/4 spot and watched, you will realize which way to go next. Also a magnetic thermometer(only $10-$15) will indicate your success. Subtle adjustments are needed as conditions change thruout the burning season,i.e. stronger winds and colder temps. You will learn to adjust with patience and experience..

 
reckebecca
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Post by reckebecca » Tue. Dec. 23, 2008 10:29 am

coalvet wrote:You say you have a thick bed of coal, just how deep is that because coal wants to be deep to heat effectively. Have you tried using the stove with the hopper removed? The stove website says it is removable, of course you would get longer burn times with it installed, but I wonder if you might get more heat without it.
I haven't tried with the hopper removed - my understanding is that the hopper is removeable so that the stove can be converted to wood burning if someone wanted that option.

My coal bed is about 4" deep (as deep as it can be in the stove with hopper) across the entire firebox.

 
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Post by CapeCoaler » Tue. Dec. 23, 2008 10:42 am

Shalow bed with the pea works.
The smaller size restricts air movement thru the bed so if the manual says only pea stick with that.
The hopper will not restrict the amount of heat.
It is removable so you can burn wood.
The Hitzer 503 I run is similar.
Since you do not have a problem starting the fire just start cutting back on the air say to 50% and leave it be for an hour.
Get the magnetic thermo the stove body should be between 200-400* when running.

 
reckebecca
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Post by reckebecca » Tue. Dec. 23, 2008 10:52 am

CapeCoaler wrote:Shalow bed with the pea works.
The smaller size restricts air movement thru the bed so if the manual says only pea stick with that.
The hopper will not restrict the amount of heat.
It is removable so you can burn wood.
The Hitzer 503 I run is similar.
Since you do not have a problem starting the fire just start cutting back on the air say to 50% and leave it be for an hour.
Get the magnetic thermo the stove body should be between 200-400* when running.
Manual does say Pea or chestnut.

Okay, I've got the air cut to 50% and fingers and toes crossed! :)

 
CapeCoaler
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Post by CapeCoaler » Tue. Dec. 23, 2008 11:03 am

If this test with the pea snuffs out the fire get 4 bags of Nut to test that size out.
The draft may be not strong enough with the barometric damper to pull thru the bed of Pea coal.
It will throw enough heat to keep you toasty!

 
reckebecca
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Post by reckebecca » Tue. Dec. 23, 2008 11:20 am

CapeCoaler wrote:If this test with the pea snuffs out the fire get 4 bags of Nut to test that size out.
The draft may be not strong enough with the barometric damper to pull thru the bed of Pea coal.
It will throw enough heat to keep you toasty!
Will do. But, I'll be REALLY bummed if I've got 3 ton of bulk in the wrong size!

I was figuring this stove was well sized for the space and would have NO problem heating it - part of the frustration.

But, the thermostat in the room is bumping 70 now so, that's positive!

Thanks!

 
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Post by CapeCoaler » Tue. Dec. 23, 2008 11:24 am

If you were running the draft wide open the heat was running up the pipe too quick.
Not enought retention time in the stove.
Coal is way different than wood heating!
Coal takes about an hour to respond to your air adjustments.
A little quicker going from hot to cool, a little longer going from cool to hot.

 
reckebecca
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Post by reckebecca » Tue. Dec. 23, 2008 11:51 am

CapeCoaler wrote: Coal is way different than wood heating!.
THIS, I'm learning! :)

I seem to have a more active fire (more flame) now than I did when it was wide open so, this is reinforcing and encouraging. I was just so afraid of killing the fire again and having to go through the bailing out and starting over AGAIN. So, thank you for the encouragement I needed to be brave. :)


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