2017/2018 VC owners thread

[RandyBoBandy]

Woodsplitter67, I'm greatly encouraged. One thing to note the 2016 owners manual makes no mention of an adjustment or an "allowed" adjustment to the primary air damper. The 2017 manual does. I noticed on mine when I was setting it up that the damper was closed when the handle was only half way in the closed position. So I adjusted it to close at the full back position (which I assume is what it should be). There must have been some acknowledgment at VC that this was a problem. Also noticed when I did this that the allen screw that was supposed to be tight on the cable was not even hand tight. Maybe quality control guys were on vacation in February 17' when this was tagged as being built??? So far what I've learned is you should have above average draft (more than so so), wood larger than 4" diameter, and wood that has a moister content between 14% and 20%. You take any one of these out of the equation, then problems may/will surface (mainly puff back conditions). I can adhere to these rules though. I haven't reached a 12 hour burn time yet but I've gotten 8 hours whereby I only need a few 2" dry pieces added for 15 minutes to being it back up to where I can add the big stuff. This may beg another question, how big is too big? If it fits though the top , its good to go? Kevin

I cram my stove full all the way up to griddle top. I use a range of split sizes to get a tight stack. I like to fill as much air space as I can with fuel. I don’t hesitate to put 6” splits in when I have them.

 

[defiant3]

Cast Iron,consider wht your intentions are for this stove.The harder these guys have to work, the less people generally lke them. Are you looking for a full time, primary heater or something supplemental? Keep in mind you're in a colder climate as well, and those who are successful with their stoves in N.J. for example just don't demand as much of them as you may way up north. Also, find out if there are service people in your area.If not, make a pact with your wife that you get to do the "I told you so" thing when the V.C. needs repair and there's no one to do it. Don't get me wrong I'm a big V.C. fan, but they don't always make good workhorse stoves in northern climates.

 

[Cast Iron]

Cast Iron,consider wht your intentions are for this stove.The harder these guys have to work, the less people generally lke them. Are you looking for a full time, primary heater or something supplemental? Keep in mind you're in a colder climate as well, and those who are successful with their stoves in N.J. for example just don't demand as much of them as you may way up north. Also, find out if there are service people in your area.If not, make a pact with your wife that you get to do the "I told you so" thing when the V.C. needs repair and there's no one to do it. Don't get me wrong I'm a big V.C. fan, but they don't always make good workhorse stoves in northern climates.

The "I told you so" ain't the option Defiiant . Not with wives.Maybe with a dog.
The stove will be for hard use. One of the things before the sale is the VC warranty, the dealer's service promise ...right.
With the so called new VC, what can fail on this? Do BK or Woodstock stoves have any failures besides the cat and gaskets ?

 

[Diabel]

If you decide to go with VC, two things are a must.
A flue probe and a cat probe (ideally Auber at100).

 

[Cast Iron]

If you decide to go with VC, two things are a must.
A flue probe and a cat probe (ideally Auber at100).

Agree. The 'new' Flexburn comes with a catalyst probe wayyyyyy in the rear, unreadable. But they do supply it.
Your Auber 100 needs to be plugged in. Not so simple for us. Any non 110v cat probes aroud besides Condor ?

 

[Dobish]

Agree. The 'new' Flexburn comes with a catalyst probe wayyyyyy in the rear, unreadable. But they do supply it.
Your Auber 100 needs to be plugged in. Not so simple for us. Any non 110v cat probes aroud besides Condor ?

i ended up adding an outlet near my stove so I could plug in my AT100. definitely worth the 35 minutes it took me. I had to snake it through 2 different walls and a ceiling.

 

[bholler]

So far you have saved me from death...or worse since I was not comfortable with Vermont Castings' rep.
Dealers out of area have been satisfied with service on warranty claims...I called them before the big home war started over which stove.
Maybe one of the more senior people around here can answer why only the BK guy posts on heartthnet out of all the makers. You get a lot of info from insiders. It just plain good marketing.

Stove guy from englander posts here some. I beleive there is a guy from sbi who posts occasionally as well.

I know many of these guys have figured out their vc stoves and they work well for them. But i work on stoves every day and i can tell you that vc still has durability problems with the internal parts and people still have problems running them correctly more than most other stoves. Harmans are the only other ones that are as routinely problematic. I will never have one in my house and will not be recomending one to anyone soon either. I have had many vc stoves but they all were used as outside fireplaces untill they fell apart. Then i grab another one that we pull out to replace and use it.

 

[bholler]

The "I told you so" ain't the option Defiiant . Not with wives.Maybe with a dog.
The stove will be for hard use. One of the things before the sale is the VC warranty, the dealer's service promise ...right.
With the so called new VC, what can fail on this? Do BK or Woodstock stoves have any failures besides the cat and gaskets ?

Well yes any stove will have a few failures but bk and woodstock both have good track records for reliability. Especially bk.

 

[Cast Iron]

Well yes any stove will have a few failures but bk and woodstock both have good track records for reliability. Especially bk.

Can you be specific about problems with the VC Flexburns that you worked on in the past few years with the 'new' owners and changes ?
Thanks.

 

[bholler]

Can you be specific about problems with the VC Flexburns that you worked on in the past few years with the 'new' owners and changes ?
Thanks.

Delicate and expensive refractory panels. Poor cat life. Puffback. Hard for people to learn to use. Poor customer support. Warantee is a joke. Finicky latches frequent gasket replacement.

Really the newest stoves are slightly easier to run and the internals seem to be a little more durable. But all of the other problems are still there.

 

[Diabel]

Can you be specific about problems with the VC Flexburns that you worked on in the past few years with the 'new' owners and changes ?
Thanks.

Overall the downdraft system is known to be problematic. Yes, some of us have it dialed in and it works. But to a novice it will be a chalange. This is just my opinion. It is still the best looking stove out there!!

 

[Cast Iron]

Well yes any stove will have a few failures but bk and woodstock both have good track records for reliability. Especially bk.

Can you be specific about problems with the VC Flexburns that you worked on in the past few years with the 'new' owners and changes ?
Thanks.

Overall the downdraft system is known to be problematic. Yes, some of us have it dialed in and it works. But to a novice it will be a chalange. This is just my opinion. It is still the best looking stove out there!!

"Best looking" goes a long way with a wife.....errrrr and stove.
I got the manual and the service manual for the Defiant/Encore Flexburns from VC. The refractory is completely changed from the old ones, the cast plates are now gasketed, no more secondary air 'control', the ash pan latch is improved, the so-called "dual" use seems OK, and dealers ( 4 called in N.E. ) are pleased with warranty service from the comapny. Bholler is right that the damper is the same complicated mess as older ones. Research done. Too much ? The VC posts here are super.
No real complaints here so far for the Flexburn 2in1 ?

 

[RandyBoBandy]

Can you be specific about problems with the VC Flexburns that you worked on in the past few years with the 'new' owners and changes ?
Thanks.


"Best looking" goes a long way with a wife.....errrrr and stove.
I got the manual and the service manual for the Defiant/Encore Flexburns from VC. The refractory is completely changed from the old ones, the cast plates are now gasketed, no more secondary air 'control', the ash pan latch is improved, the so-called "dual" use seems OK, and dealers ( 4 called in N.E. ) are pleased with warranty service from the comapny. Bholler is right that the damper is the same complicated mess as older ones. Research done. Too much ? The VC posts here are super.
No real complaints here so far for the Flexburn 2in1 ?

If you are willing to put in the time to learn how to properly run the VC and don’t abuse or overfire it it should be a good heater for you. This is not a “throw firewood in and walk away stove”. You will need 3 thermometers (flue, griddle top, and cat) and more than likely you will end up restricting the secondary air in some fashion. The condar thermo is battery powered but a piece of junk as well. I would recommend adding an outlet like dobish did and getting the AT100.
I’m surprised the wife didn’t like the Ashford. It has that cast iron classic look. Does it have to be a cat stove? The pacific energy T5 and T6 are great looking stoves that come in enamel.

 

[Diabel]

I remember when I did my limited/uneducated stove research ("looks"was at the top of the list), Quadrafire had a top loader. It was a serious heater (non cat). Later I had learned through this site that it is a great stove and very good looking to add.

 

[bholler]

Can you be specific about problems with the VC Flexburns that you worked on in the past few years with the 'new' owners and changes ?
Thanks.


"Best looking" goes a long way with a wife.....errrrr and stove.
I got the manual and the service manual for the Defiant/Encore Flexburns from VC. The refractory is completely changed from the old ones, the cast plates are now gasketed, no more secondary air 'control', the ash pan latch is improved, the so-called "dual" use seems OK, and dealers ( 4 called in N.E. ) are pleased with warranty service from the comapny. Bholler is right that the damper is the same complicated mess as older ones. Research done. Too much ? The VC posts here are super.
No real complaints here so far for the Flexburn 2in1 ?

Yes i am fully aware of the changes i have worked on enough to know. And like i said it is better. But still way behind just about everyone else.

 

[bholler]

I remember when I did my limited/uneducated stove research ("looks"was at the top of the list), Quadrafire had a top loader. It was a serious heater (non cat). Later I had learned through this site that it is a great stove and very good looking to add.

Yes pretty much the only top loader i would ever consider. But it would have to be used now

 

[Cast Iron]

Yes i am fully aware of the changes i have worked on enough to know. And like i said it is better. But still way behind just about everyone else.

What parts/systems of the Flexburns have you had to repair or replace ? Age of the stoves ? User errors ?
The top load Quadra Fires looked at seemed too clutzy, too much to swing out of the way to load that could break....for me. Ugly to boot !

 

[bholler]

What parts/systems of the Flexburns have you had to repair or replace ? Age of the stoves ? User errors ?
The top load Quadra Fires looked at seemed too clutzy, too much to swing out of the way to load that could break....for me. Ugly to boot !

I have replaced several different internal parts on different stoves i dont have the exact info on the ages of the stoves i worked on available. And yes much of that damage was from user error as most damage to stoves is. The difference is that vc stoves dont stand up to mistakes nearly as well as most other stoves. As far as the quad goes we work on 4 or 5 of them and i have only had to replace gaskets and one peice of glass on them. And they have been in service much longer than the new vcs that have needed many more parts.

 

[webfish]

The top load Quadra Fires looked at seemed too clutzy, too much to swing out of the way to load that could break....for me. Ugly to boot !

My Explorer 3 is not clutzy, at least I don't think so. I don't really use the top loader as I find it easier to use front. Ugly? hmmmmm.

 

[Kevin Weis]

Looks good to me.

 

[bholler]

My Explorer 3 is not clutzy, at least I don't think so. I don't really use the top loader as I find it easier to use front. Ugly? hmmmmm.

View attachment 224691

I completly forgot that the explorer 3 was a top loader.

 

[begreen]

Must be referring to the Isle Royale. That stove has a very respectable history of good service without a lot of maintenance. And it is very good looking. One of the few large stoves that passed the wife test in our house.

 

[bholler]

Must be referring to the Isle Royale. That stove has a very respectable history of good service without a lot of maintenance. And it is very good looking. One of the few large stoves that passed the wife test in our house.
View attachment 224693

Yes that is the one i was referring to it was a good reliable heater. And looked very good as well. I actually prefer it to the look of the vc a little but that is just personal taste. I could see how others would feel differently.

 

[Diabel]

Must be referring to the Isle Royale. That stove has a very respectable history of good service without a lot of maintenance. And it is very good looking. One of the few large stoves that passed the wife test in our house.
View attachment 224693

Yes that is the one. This one passed the wife test here. But I decided to go with VC NC what a mistake that was........

 

[Cast Iron]

"T.W.T." The Wife Test.