2016-17 Blaze King Performance Thread (Everything BK)

[Gforcefd]

Good to know. I read hi density gasket and my first thoughts were LEFT HANDED MONKEY WRENCH or Windshield Washer Fluid.

I need to re split some wood

 

[Poindexter]

@becasunshine , i have seen the box full of smoke like that a time or two. sounds like yours was complicated by wind.

When i have time i leave the loading door open while the fresh spits catch on the coals.

I brush my pipe every four cords now, may go even longer in the future.

I doubt you had a chimney fire, just a stalled draft the little fire was working against. once the little fire broke through the stall it hadbig draft and got to work.

 

[Niko]

Got me a nice delivery last month. man splitting wood is a lot of work when your alone. Well im a lil spoiled with my tractor and splitter.

I give props to guys that do all this with a AX!

 

[kf6hap]

When my time comes, I think a pallet of NIELs will keep me going a few more years. The only thing I use an ax for is checking moisture content. The power company has fell enough trees for 6 winters. Who said power lines on your property is a bad thing?

 

[tarzan]

I give props to guys that do all this with a AX!

Anyone doing that with an ax should read the story of John Henry

 

[drz1050]

Buck to length with chainsaw, split with maul. a 6 lb maul for me is much faster than a hydraulic splitter. I'm sure this will change as I get older..

 

[Highbeam]

For some reason, maybe really dry wood, I have been able to run my thermostat lower than in previous years without stalling the cat. I'm now down to the low edge of the gold "normal" zone as shown on the classic stat labels. My question is about flue temps. I use a probe meter to measure internal flue temperatures and usually the temps were running 400 which was right at the bottom of the "optimum" range. Now that I am able to lower the stat I am getting really long burn times (easily over 30 hours), no extra glass gunk, but the flue temps are also running much lower like 250 degrees measured at about 18" above the stove.

I know the BK king/princess brochure shows that 47 hour burn in the king along with 200-400 as the flue temps but does anybody else run this cool? I am worried about chimney accumulation. Cat temps are well into the active range, like between 3 o'clock and 12o'clock, so I feel like I'm in the zone. The probe meter probe is getting a shiney black coating which I would rather not see, the stack emissions are light and white half the time and clear the other half which is normal for my stove.

So on your lowest burn rates, what internal flue temps are you seeing?

 

[kf6hap]

After start-up, steady state stack gasses (BKs don't smoke) are 200-400 depending on how cold it is. The probe is 30" above the stove top. The thermostat can be set an arc angular 30 minutes more CCW when it is 30F as opposed to when it is 60F OSA. This stove exhibits a good amount of automatic outside air reset in that the thermostat's position has to be changed very little to keep the house 75 while the outside air might rise and fall 20+F throughout the day. Very nice feature!

 

[Stump shot]

My Ashford is running about 250 (probe) right now.

 

[Highbeam]

Thanks guys. 200-400 range sounds healthy then. I'll keep at it and enjoy the long burns.

 

[kf6hap]

Keeping the stack above 212F will prevent condensate. At 0500 OSA= 28.7, flue 300 the house was 75.5. Now at 1145 OSA=51, flue 275F it is 74.5 without touching the thermostat. This is the torture test of thermostatic control. Keep in mind the usual HVAC system has a wider temperature swing than this!

 

[begreen]

The stack at the probe level should be a bit above 212º. Flue gases are going to cool down before they reach the cap. How much will depend on the installation and outside temps. With a straight up install I would shoot for a minimum of 250ºF. For an out the wall exterior chimney, at least 300ºF.

 

[Ashful]

Meh. You guys put a lot of energy into hunting for things to worry about.

 

[jetsam]

I set the dial for a cat temp of "yes", and the rest takes care of itself.

Not that I don't think the stove geekery is cool, but I appear to be too lazy to participate.

 

[tarzan]

I often run with the cat just into "active." This happens on shoulder season days when I just shut the stat to the point it won't open in the mornings . I believe from previous threads that I'm fortunate to be able to just turn the stat down and stay just in the active zone. No fiddling for that sweet spot.

Running this way I see stove top temps of roughly 280F. I don't know what flue temps are but assume, pretty low. I clean the pipe annually but feel confident every two years would do it. The only build up is the top few inches of the chimney, brown and dusty beyond that.

 

[Highbeam]

Meh. You guys put a lot of energy into hunting for things to worry about.

Come on now, a standard issue condar probe meter indicates "too cool" at any flue temp below 400. We BK guys are able to run way way below that and I want to verify that ignoring the condar ranges is okay or will I end up with a stack plugged with creo!

 

[drz1050]

Come on now, a standard issue condar probe meter indicates "too cool" at any flue temp below 400. We BK guys are able to run way way below that and I want to verify that ignoring the condar ranges is okay or will I end up with a stack plugged with creo!

Do you have a soot eater? I think I read you can run those up the flue without disconnecting the stove.

 

[kf6hap]

"Too cool" only applies to secondary burn stoves. The cat converts all that combustion gook into heat. I can get the stove top down to 175 and still be in the active region.

 

[drz1050]

"Too cool" only applies to secondary burn stoves. The cat converts all that combustion gook into heat. I can get the stove top down to 175 and still be in the active region.

Keep in mind that your stove top isn't really your stove top. It's a convection top that sits on standoffs, so will be a good deal cooler than the actual top of the firebox.

 

[claybe]

First fire of the season baby!




Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

 

[jetsam]

My fire hasn't gone out for weeks now. 40s at night, 60ish by day, stove cruising as low as it can go.

I've almost burned all the bugwood from my last round of splitting!

 

[tarzan]

Weatherman says 73F here tomorrow and snow the next day!

 

[jetsam]

Weatherman says 73F here tomorrow and snow the next day!

Maybe he's upset with you. You could send a fruit basket?

 

[Agent]

Since I finally got around to resetting my password after moving and installing a Princess at this house, I figured I'd drop you guys a line.
Even with all the hype, Blaze Kings are still a bit underrated.
For more than a month, I've just been burning lathe and stuff from my house remodel, since I'm short on firewood, and it's wood. Any other stove loaded to the gills with 100 year old ultra dry slats of pine would be a disaster in the making. This one runs 6-8 hours while keeping the house in the low 70's. Bunch of 2x4's and some <2" diameter elm branch pieces? 18-20 hours later, it's still way too hot to touch.
I am totally digging this voodoo magic.

 

[Ashful]

Since I finally got around to resetting my password after moving and installing a Princess at this house, I figured I'd drop you guys a line.
Even with all the hype, Blaze Kings are still a bit underrated.
For more than a month, I've just been burning lathe and stuff from my house remodel, since I'm short on firewood, and it's wood. Any other stove loaded to the gills with 100 year old ultra dry slats of pine would be a disaster in the making. This one runs 6-8 hours while keeping the house in the low 70's. Bunch of 2x4's and some <2" diameter elm branch pieces? 18-20 hours later, it's still way too hot to touch.
I am totally digging this voodoo magic.

The controlability is unparalleled, but are you sure that lathe does not contain anything that will poison your cat?

My house was "modernized" to lathe and plaster in an 1820'ish remodel. Original walls are wood plank, but all hidden behind that 1820's plaster, now.