# Calling all Jotul F100 owners. . .



## swhitderson (Jan 7, 2012)

Morning gents,

New to the forum - and to the industry.  I am considering my first wood stove and have nearly settled on the F100 (don't need anything larger for my application - 1ksf in SC for supplemental & backup heating purposes).

However!  I have been lurking hereabouts (great forum) and have read about a couple of aspects and would like some clarification from experienced owners:

1. Smoke spillage on reload - I have read that this seems to be a fairly common experience as well as how the design of the stove contributes to it.  Makes it sound practically unavoidable.  So here's my question - have any of you F100 guys managed to avoid this result?  If so, how?

2.  Lack of an ashpan - I am pretty unclear on the advantages of an ash pan.  As a guy with NO experience in these matters it seems like it would just make things easier to clean rather than having to dig them out of the firebox.  Also, I have read that without the ashpan underneath the ashes tend to build up in the firebox and spill out the front when opening the door.  Again, what is your experience here?

3.  Waffle top - I am attracted by the option of being able to heat stuff on top of the stove (especially when the power goes out!) and am just wondering to what extent the waffle top limits the ability to do so (as opposed to, say, the F3, which would be my first alternative).  Anybody want to offer an opinion on that?

Finally - if anyone who has experience with both the F100 and the F3 would like to share any other relevant observations comparing the two, I'd be grate-ful (see what I did there?).

Cheers,
Scott in SC


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## Evil Dave (Jan 7, 2012)

I have got a F100 Nordic in our tiny weekend log cabin (10' x 20') and have about 14' of chimney height including the double wall stove pipe. I have only burnt about 1 face cord of wood so far, so our experience is limited.

I really like the little guy. It can cruise along with a full load for about 5 to 6 hours. 

1) I have only had smoke problems when I was burning in weather that didn't need a fire, when it was new and I was new to the stove.

2) We have never had an ash pan on any stove, so I don't miss having one. You will be removing ashes fairly often, this is a small stove, you will need as much fire box as you can keep empty. The front guard lifts right out to give you good access for a thorough cleaning.

3) Ours is set up with the stove pipe exiting the top. With a double wall stove pipe exiting the top you don't have enough real estate left to sit much on top. The waffle top acts like a built in trivet and does seem to bleed off some heat, there is still plenty of heat to boil water in a steamer.

It is a great LITTLE stove.


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## tcassavaugh (Jan 7, 2012)

top of the morning to you.
 first, i don't have a jotul F100 (but i did stay at a holiday inn)...just kidding. i do have the next model up, the F 3 CB that uses up to 18 inch logs and has an ash pan. it too is front loading. i seldom have a problem with smoke spillage. key is open the door slowly and there is not much of a smoke spill, if at all. i've also had an older model 602 i got in the early 90's and it took 16 in wood and had no ash pan. while it was a great little stove it was a pita to find wood for it if i didn't cut it myself and you had to let the stove go out or burn down considerably before you could empty out the ash. it heated well, but because of the small size, you had to feed it quite often if you wanted good heat from it. I have my F3CB in a 1200 sq foot ranch with a full basement. i have it on the main floor and i have a summit in the basement. this year i've used the jotul a lot more just heating the upstairs and it does a bang up job. in the past i've used the summit to heat the whole house and used the jotul when it got really cold. i decided to use the jotul more exclusively this year and haven't had to start the summit yet as its been 55-60 in the basement. I've already used considerably less wood this year.

i udnerstand you can after doing your research you've decided you can get by with the F100, but at least consider the F 3 CB. I find it a good practice to get a little more stove than you think you need because eventually you need it or decide to burn more than origionally thought.  The F3CB has a little longer wood, little longer burn time a slightly higher BTU output and an ash pan that works and controls that are easy to use. i haven't cooked on this one yet. my set up with the pipe coming out of the top center of the stove prohibits large pans and skillets but it could be easily done. exiting out the back would certainly allow you to use it as a cook stove. i do have a big cast iron simmer pot that boils away sitting on the top providing some moisture back into the air....so there is room to cook, just not a large amount (probably a pot and small skillet going at once). 

I don't think you can go wrong with a jotul....i really like them over others but they are a little more expensive. check on the price difference between the F100 and F3CB and if it isn't that great, i again suggest you take a peek at it. 

good luck

cass


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## tcassavaugh (Jan 7, 2012)

hey dave, really like your "tiny" cabin. was that a prefab or did you build it. the interior is nice and the stove fits it. my little jotul also exits from the top....straight up....took up less space that way. probably would have installed my little  602 that i still have except it was end loading thus sticking out further than my wife really wanted it to. gotta love those jotuls.

cass


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## Evil Dave (Jan 7, 2012)

My "log cabin" is a 10' x 20' Mini Barn that was hauled in with an overwide permit and dropped like a dumpster. We finished it, it came as a shell with a partial low loft in one end. We replaced our old 28' travel trailer at our family campground with the cabin. Travel trailers aren't made to sit outside all winter long without taking a toll on them. When it was clear that we weren't taking the trailer on the road as much, we got the cabin and a 12' long Lance 1161 truck camper for the 3 or 4 weekends that we camp away from our main campground.

We have had the cabin about 3 years and just got it "finished" last summer, if it ever really gets finished. The F100 has been installed and operational since the fall of 2010. We really like it, it is about 4 times more stove than we really need once up to temp, but it helps to have more stove than you need while heating up the 6" thick log walls.

I really like the Jotul F100, but it is a small stove. Cutting firewood at 15" takes some getting used to. In order to get 5 to 6 hours and still have enough good coals to reload without starting over we need to load with some well seasoned black locust. More realistic burn time with significant heat output would be closer to 3 1/2 hours or so per load. Fortunately, once the cabin is up to temp, we don't need much output or we are opening some windows for relief.


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## thetooth (Jan 7, 2012)

I had a F3 installes this October it has been heating my L shaped ranch very nicely . 

No issues with smoke spillage . Ours is vented out of the rear .

I don't use the ash pan on the F3 I just scoop out of the fire box 

We have been very pleased with the stove . I reload every 2-4 hours , stove does burn out over nite but there are always some coals to assist with reloading .

18 inch is the max log size for the F3 , 16 inch is optimum , less fiddling .

We bought in September during Jotul days at the dealer and saved 10% if you are in no rush to buy .


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## fishingpol (Jan 7, 2012)

Welcome Scott.  I had an F-100 last season.  Nice stove, it has limitations on burn times, but don't let the size fool you.  It does kick out some nice heat and the large glass door helps that.  I did not have smoke spillage issues.  Mine was rear vented into 25 ft flex liner.  I have the F-3 now and never use the ash pan.  I let it fill up and clean out the ashes only when needed.  I've read a few posts concerning ash pan door leaks or a build-up of ash in the back that can prevent the ashpan from going in all the way resulting in the ash door not closing all the way.  I do not burn 24/7, so there is really no need for me to empty the pan constantly with a fire going.  I can't really comment on the waffletop on the F-100, as I had a fireplace install, so there was little room to put a pan on the top.  I think I cooked a shallow pan of beans once or twice.  If top venting, you loose some space.  If rear venting, the top outlet cover sits proud, not giving you a really flat surface.

Both stoves are good heaters for their size and easy to operate.  I'm also very partial to Jotuls. 


Evil Dave, awesome cabin by the way.  You should start a new thread in Perfect Picture or the Inglenook to really get more people to see your place.  A lot of people would enjoy seeing the pics.


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## tcassavaugh (Jan 7, 2012)

i use my ash pan on the F 3 CB about once a week. i also make sure i use the shovel and pull out any that might have accumulated behind the ash pan. you're right, if you don't check it, it will build up and hamper the correct closing of the door. i still have the 602 becaujse i couldn't bear to part with it its such a good heater. think i might do an install in the garage and use it to take the chill off.....if i did any projects in the garage. good stoves....as are many others

btw, dave....nice pics. might have to get one of those and put it up in northern n.y.

cass


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## firefighterjake (Jan 8, 2012)

Evil Dave . . . just had to say how much I loved the little cabin. Looks cozy.


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## swhitderson (Jan 8, 2012)

Hi guys - really appreciate all the feedback.

Evil Dave - beautiful little cabin.  Love the setup.  Thanks, too, for sharing your experiences with the F100.

fishingpol - thanks to you, too, for the response on the F100.

Cheers,
Scott in SC


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## Lynch (Jan 9, 2012)

i have the f100 and have been burning almost 24/7 for a couple of months now
and love it. i heat 700sqft in northern maine with no problems.  even with outside temps at -11 this year surprisingly are coldest yet i can have it 75-77 in the house.
but would have to get up to load the stove at night to keep it that warm. or let it cool down to around 64 over night.
if loaded right i can have good coals in the morning. 8 hours later.
no smoke spillage.
i have not tried heating anything on the top of the stove. but i think if you rear vent it you would have a good flat spot to cook on.
when burning 24/7 i have to clean the stove out every 2 weeks.
ashes do tend to fall on the ash lip on the front but nothing out of the norm. and is expected with any front loading stove

oh i have burned close to 1 1/2 cords this year.
might burn another cord.  it hasnt been really cold this year. 


ummm cant think of anything else.
but if you have any other q's let us know.


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## swhitderson (Jan 10, 2012)

Hello Lynch - appreciate the info.  Sounds cozy, way up there in the cold country. . .

Cheers,
Scott in SC


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## onesojourner (May 25, 2012)

Well I have 3 winters under my belt now and we are pretty happy with it. we burn 24/7 in the winter. I never wake up to feed the stove but I can load it up and damp it way down and it will still be warm in to morning with enough little coals that I can get it going again fairly easy. We heat 700-800 sq ft in an old house with no insulation in the walls. it keeps it toasty in there on all but the coldest days ( single digit days) we can crank it when it gets that cold and run it up to 650 or so and it just keeps up. The stove has probably saved us about 750 bucks in the last 3 years. When you burn all the time you have to scoop the ash out every morning. It is about a 5 minute job.


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## begreen (May 25, 2012)

Thanks for the update. Something must have been done right when they built the place. That is not bad performance at all. What wood do you burn, hedge?


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## DianeB (May 26, 2012)

So just showed my hubby the little cabin - something I have wanted to put smack in the middle of our 8 acre wood lot for a long time.  He went running


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## Angus (May 26, 2012)

The Jotul 602 is also worth a look at, they are brilliant small stoves, they are easy to light, there are always enough embers the next day to go without re-kindling and they are very simple to use and easy to clean out.


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## Paolo (Nov 22, 2013)

I recently purchased an F100 and it is working fine for a 1,000 sq ft space, insulated.  It does tend to release smoke when the door is opened during low heat fires.  Slowly opening the door helps to minimize smoke escaping into your live space.  Wood burns best when brought up to heat of around 300 degrees F and above.  At that point the damper is effective for a slow burn without extinguishing the fire due to air reduction (the higher heat works at keeping the fire alive and well).  I use seasoned hardwoods with this stove and so far it seems to be fairly efficient with the burn.  I would recommend a magnetic temperature gauge for the stove pipe.  I use a single wall chimney pipe on the inside of the house which produces a little more heat for the interior space.  Its a nice object to look at when the fire is burning.


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## onesojourner (Aug 18, 2014)

We have our stove heating about 3000 sq ft. The house is icf so it is very tight. The stove is upstairs. When burning in the evening the up stairs stays in the mid 70's and the basement is in the mid 60's. I usually run the hvac fan when things are warmed up. The stove is right in the middle of the house with the return ducting above it.  on cold nights, teens or below, the backup heat strips kick on between 4 and 6 in the morning if I don't reload in the night. We have probably 20ft of pipe going straight up so we get no smoke spill unless it was just lit and things aren't drafting yet.


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## pcampbell (Feb 6, 2015)

onesojourner said:


> We have our stove heating about 3000 sq ft. The house is icf so it is very tight. The stove is upstairs. When burning in the evening the up stairs stays in the mid 70's and the basement is in the mid 60's. I usually run the hvac fan when things are warmed up. The stove is right in the middle of the house with the return ducting above it.  on cold nights, teens or below, the backup heat strips kick on between 4 and 6 in the morning if I don't reload in the night. We have probably 20ft of pipe going straight up so we get no smoke spill unless it was just lit and things aren't drafting yet.





We are building a new tight EnergyStar rated home with a max heat loss around 30k BTU/hour (that number is  probably overestimated since it's a Manual J calc).   I know the F100 advertises max output of 30k BTU/hour.  Will the F100 be enough for us?

I would consider the F3CB but actually like look of the F100 better.  I am also sort of worried about heating us out of the house with the bigger stove?  This should be a 0.6 ACH 50 house, so very tight , just not as insulated as your ICF house (although much smaller....)

Another option may be a small soapstone stove - Soapstone Tribute (which is $1900 , so about $600 more than the Jotul).

My heat loss at +17F is more like 18k BTUs.  Although 17F seems ridiculously warm right now based on the January we have been having.


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## begreen (Feb 6, 2015)

A small soapstone stove or cast iron clad stove would work. Or for more regulation of the heat consider a cat stove like the Woodstock Keystone or a Blaze King Ashford 20. The cat stove will burn at a steady 10K BTUs on low over a longer burn time. That means less frequent feeding which is the shortcoming of a 1 cu ft stove.


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## BuoyTen (Feb 7, 2015)

Hey there- I am currently running both stoves you are considering. Oddly, the F100 is in my primary home, and the 3CB is in my camp in VT. I am not usually "brand loyal", but was very impressed with the way my camp stove throws heat and its overall easy operation and efficiency. I did not think I needed as big a stove for home, so I opted for the F100 staying true to the Jotul line.

I have been burning the little guy for 3 weeks, and am just getting to know him (although I can say, he sometimes just doesn't see things my way...) I would say I am now learning how to run it more with each passing day.

Quick OBS on both... 

No smoke issues on either.
I also shovel ash to clean on both (my model 3cb has no pan anyway).
I top exit both stoves, and barely have room for a steamer on either.
The F100 is a really small stove dimensionally. You will find it is VERY low to the ground, although I think a long-leg kit is available.

I don't think you could go wrong with either, but I would not be the guy to ask which size is better for you.

Good luck. BT


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## pcampbell (Feb 11, 2015)

onesojourner said:


> We have our stove heating about 3000 sq ft. The house is icf so it is very tight. The stove is upstairs. When burning in the evening the up stairs stays in the mid 70's and the basement is in the mid 60's. I usually run the hvac fan when things are warmed up. The stove is right in the middle of the house with the return ducting above it.  on cold nights, teens or below, the backup heat strips kick on between 4 and 6 in the morning if I don't reload in the night. We have probably 20ft of pipe going straight up so we get no smoke spill unless it was just lit and things aren't drafting yet.



I noticed one thing - no outside air kit - does that work OK in your ICF home?  Do you have an HRV?  My home will have an HRV.  I've heard from Jotul that they do NOT recommend outside air kit...


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