2016-17 Blaze King Performance Thread (Everything BK)

[Ashful]

Just saw BKVP's closing comments on the other thread.. those are disappointing to say the least. The Ashford continues to have a useless ash system, you can't fill it up any more than 1/2 without it spilling on the floor under the stove.

I think you got it wrong. In fact, I wasn't even saying "don't buy an Ashford 30", as it really is an amazing stove. I was saying, "wait until they get that one issue fixed," as I knew BK would never let a known issue stand. BKVP stated very clearly that this issue has been resolved on new production stoves.

BKVP, thanks for the offer for us to call you direct, again. I wasn't going to pester you about it, until I heard there was a fix in place, but I'll give you a call soon so we can discuss what to do about the two stoves I purchased that have this issue.

I wouldn't hesitate to recommend the Ashford 30 over any other stove. They are amazing, and look damn nice, too. I'd just verify you're not getting a unit out of dealer stock, that may have been manufactured before this problem was resolved.

 

[drz1050]

Who said not to buy an Ashford? Those words never came from me. Besides the ash system, I like it.

 

[BKVP]

Let's move on....

 

[webby3650]

Let's move on....

Agreed! Everyone seems to be on edge this year. We should be burning soon, that will cheer everyone up! And beer...

 

[HisTreeNut]

New member here... I have been following the forums for a couple of months now. I grew up in a house that had a water stove that heated the house. I am going to be moving into a house with my fiance soon and we will be putting an insert in the basement fireplace. Upon reading not just this forum but other outlets, I have decided on the BK Princess Insert. I have been in contact with the only dealer in NC that I could find on the BK website. Waiting on hearing back from them to get the ball rolling. Have always loved cutting and busting wood with my father and I am extremely excited about the coming months.

Where in NC are you? There at a few of us hearth members in the mountains.
BK's are great stoves, from what I have seen and BKVP is great for responding & answering questions.
Welcome to the Hearth!

 

[ejn327]

I'm thinking that tomorrow morning might be a good time to do my first burn in the Sirocco insert. What is the recommended method?
The BK owners manual says to do a low burn for several hours but the sheet from the coatings manufacturer says to do a medium burn for 45 minutes and then do a hot burn for an hour. Which of these methods is more recommended?
I'm planning on opening up all the windows and turning some fans on to get the fumes out of the house.
While I do the first burn, should I keep the bypass door open the entire time or should I burn the cat when it comes up to temp?

 

[webby3650]

Do as the manual says, it's geared specifically for your stove. The card from the paint manufacturer is a general guideline for their product no matter what stove it's on.

 

[Jeff in Maine]

Vacuum and a paint brush works good. Just a vacuum is typically all that's needed though.

Thanks for your reply I will do just that.

 

[jetsam]

I want to correct the 'professional' install on my Princess insert before it gets cold- I need a blockoff plate and may Roxul the fireplace too.

Question: How do I pull the insert out without damaging the liner? My current plan is to clamp ropes to the liner on the top, let the liner (but not the retrieval ropes) fall into the chimney, then pull the insert out below. Not sure if that's a bad plan or not; advice appreciated.

 

[BKVP]

Exact same specs as Sirocco 25 insert. Will post picture soon.

 

[PackAttack1990]

Where in NC are you? There at a few of us hearth members in the mountains.
BK's are great stoves, from what I have seen and BKVP is great for responding & answering questions.
Welcome to the Hearth!

Thank you! I live north of Greensboro.

 

[Ashful]

View attachment 183462

Very nice! Your place?

 

[BKVP]

Very nice! Your place?

Nope. Ashful is the guy with the crib...My house is a 1895 Craftsman, sorely lacking in attention from me (not my wife who has list 2 miles long and growing). I have 2850 square feet heat with a King Parlor. One of the first ones to come off the production line.

 

[tarzan]

View attachment 183462

I'm most impressed with the fact there's no summer greenery and sunshine seen through the window in the pic. Something overlooked in many stove add pics. Yeah, that irks me

 

[Highbeam]

I'm most impressed with the fact there's no summer greenery and sunshine seen through the window in the pic. Something overlooked in many stove add pics. Yeah, that irks me

Well, yeah, the fire is going so it must be winter. Having a summer landscape outside would be faker IMO. Also from a marketing perspective you would want the outside to be miserable and cold while the inside is warm and cozy..... and a dog.

 

[BKVP]

I'm most impressed with the fact there's no summer greenery and sunshine seen through the window in the pic. Something overlooked in many stove add pics. Yeah, that irks me

Guilty as charged! We all try to get images photographed in the "good weather" because setting up in the rain and carrying in equipment is a pain in the rain and snow.

 

[MacinJosh]

I have 2850 square feet heat with a King Parlor. One of the first ones to come off the production line.

Any photos? Is it very different from the current model? Curious.

 

[touchthewindrider]

Thank you! I live north of Greensboro.

So, are you dealing with Chimneys Plus over in Pittsboro? I'm thinking of contacting them myself. I'm just East
of Raleigh.

 

[webby3650]

I want to correct the 'professional' install on my Princess insert before it gets cold- I need a blockoff plate and may Roxul the fireplace too.

Question: How do I pull the insert out without damaging the liner? My current plan is to clamp ropes to the liner on the top, let the liner (but not the retrieval ropes) fall into the chimney, then pull the insert out below. Not sure if that's a bad plan or not; advice appreciated.

Usually you can just break the top plate free that's holding the liner. It's siliconed to the flue tile. Cut it free, lift it up and move you clamp down temporarily to hold it up. Do your work and reverse the steps.

 

[Poindexter]

Looks like I get to be "that guy" this year. First load coming out of my passive solar kilns into the garage is too dry to measure. I can get the "7%" LED to flicker sometimes when I have the pins bottomed out near a knot or sap filled void. The meter dashes up to 35% really quick when I put the pins in a puddle of spit in my palm.

Fired the Ashford 30 up tonight, the wife was in head to toe fleece with wool socks on. Not anymore ;-)

Cold start and light off were pretty uneventful with the half load of <7%. I engaged the cat just up into the active zone. I trotted into the yard barefoot and couldn't tell the stove was running at all - not cold enough yet to see heat mirages up by the stack outlet, and no visible plume from any angle.

After about 45 minutes with the cat engaged and the Tstat on high I backed it down to medium with the idea of taking the TStat on down to low a few minutes later. After 45 minutes on high the cat probe was about halfway up in the active zone. After ten minutes on medium the cat probe was 75-80% up into the active zone, but still in the active zone. I decided to not turn the Tsat down any further for now.

My wife did ask me to turn the convection fans off sometime later, I (well the stove) took the 1200sqft main floor of the house from +69dF to +82dF in about 90 minutes without really working at it, outdoor ambient is about +50dF.

BKVP and I have traded a couple PMs about wood in the 8-11% MC range off gassing VOCs faster than the cat can consume them, leading to a fuel rich situation in the gasses in the firebox. The short version is "drier is better", the long version is operation gets a little trickier, as sudden combustion of the VOC laden air/fuel mix in the firebox will at least make an odor in the room if the glass doesn't break.

Thankfully I only have about a cord of this stuff. Once I get through it I'll be in the rocking chair the rest of the season burning my wetter 11-13% MC wood. All spruce this year, I have one solar kiln unit full of sap globs I am saving for January.

My glass won't be this clean again until next May when the guy from my local BK dealer comes and cleans it again...



I doubt I'll be able to keep my stack plume this clean all season, but a fella can hope...

 

[Gotrek]

I think your moisture meter is not working correctly a puddle of spit should register 100% moist

He he

Sent from my SGH-I337M using Tapatalk

 

[PackAttack1990]

So, are you dealing with Chimneys Plus over in Pittsboro? I'm thinking of contacting them myself. I'm just East
of Raleigh.

Yes that is who I am in contact with right now. Talked to another company in Virginia but they basically said to use Chimneys Plus as it was closer. I have completed a little survey they emailed me about what I wanted from the stove and how soon I wanted to get started on it and they emailed me back about 8 days ago and said they would be in touch soon. Hopefully I hear back from them this week.

 

[Mr. Jones]

I've got a question guys. I guess I can ask it here. Thinking about getting a princess today or tomorrow. I like the ambience of the flame, or glowing plasma bouncing at the top like the non cat stoves do. My question is, can I wait to engage the cat and get this effect for a few hours while we're up, watching tv at night after work, and then engage the cat for the long burn times when heading to bed? Or does it not work like that? Thanks.

 

[Ashful]

Engage the cat. You can still have flames with the cat engaged, and leaving it open can warp the bypass door.

The flames only go away when run very low. If you run it with similar heat output to a non-cat (eg. medium setting), you'll get plenty of flame show.

 

[twd000]

This summer I have been working on cutting and splitting an 8-cord pile in preparation for burning in a yet-to-be-purchased BK in 2017-2018. What is the preferred split size for hardwoods in the BK stoves? 4" across the wedge? 6" across the wedge? I plan to burn 24/7, or as nearly as possible. I understand you need to char the load before engaging the catalyst. Of course the charring happens fastest with the lowest surface area-to-volume ratio, and you don't want to spend more time than necessary with the cat bypassed. I would guess that a lot of BTUs are wasted charring a full load of small splits. How big is too big?