2021-2022 BK everything thread

[stoveliker]

So, normally I do walk away after dialing down the stove after a reload. Today I happened to be near the stove 45 minutes after a baby-reload (that'll get me to the overnight reload). I had set it a bit higher as I had underestimated the temperature loss overnight and needed to heat up the main floor (basement stove) a degree or two. 4 red oak splits. Swoosh at 3.30 or so (6.00=max).

Black box, but flue temp probe at 700 F. So I bend over to look at the cat, and indeed, running bright... Went outside - zip to see.

I'd not seen a 700 F flue without any flames yet.

 

[Ashful]

Yeah, 700F sounds crazy hot for flue probe. You sure you didn’t accidentally leave that bypass open? 😛

How far above stove collar? Mine usually runs 250F, but can peak around 500-600 on highest burn setting, I think about 14” above collar.

 

[stoveliker]

Yeah, 700F sounds crazy hot for flue probe. You sure you didn’t accidentally leave that bypass open? 😛

How far above stove collar? Mine usually runs 250F, but can peak around 500-600 on highest burn setting, I think about 14” above collar.

Bypass is closed. Otherwise the cat would not be bright.
18" above the collar.

I have seen hotter, but that was during a high burn in the initial charring phase. Never seen this with a black box.

I'm curious what the thought is on wood parameters here. It's red oak. Quite dry ( for me....last I measured from this stack it was 17 pct, and it's been in a 80 F basement for a week or so). It was only 45 minutes in the burn (after a 10 minute high burn upon reload), so some lighter compounds might still be releasing, feeding the cat a lot of fuel. Cat gauge was 1/8" from running out of the hot end of the active zone.

 

[Nealm66]

Crazy weather. 52 degrees and pouring rain . Got the princess turned way down and 24 reload but still 75.2 in the house.

 

[Ashful]

I'm curious what the thought is on wood parameters here. It's red oak. Quite dry ( for me....last I measured from this stack it was 17 pct, and it's been in a 80 F basement for a week or so).

My numbers are on red oak, as well, but I know mine is not that dry. Red oak makes up about 90% of what I burned 2015 until last week, as Sandy (2012) took down a large fraction of them in our area, but I had it stacked on pallets (30 cords worth, at one point) outdoors, uncovered until September of the year it would be burned. Even after 3 summers, and truthfully I burned some of it after just 2 summers and 3 winters, it still feels wet and sometimes sizzles when first lighting.

This week, I switched to hickory (and stacked in my new sheds!), as a 2019 tornado ripped thru a local church lot that was heavily populated with that tree. I still have maybe 1 cord of the red oak left, but it's buried among hickory and ash, now.

 

[Ashful]

Crazy weather. 52 degrees and pouring rain . Got the princess turned way down and 24 reload but still 75.2 in the house.

According to @Diabel, these little stoves can't run that long. 😜

 

[Nealm66]

They definitely can and do. Should have probably did short small fires might have been a better choice in my situation though . Still learning.

 

[stoveliker]

According to @Diabel, these little stoves can't run that long. 😜

That's not entirely correct. @Diabel commented on "nearly 40 hours" which indeed seems rather exceptional for a stove of 3 cu ft. And the quoted bkvp time was for a larger firebox. Moreover what do you mean with your long burn time? Active cat? Coals to relight? Usable heat? (The latter also is vague: at 20 F outside, usable heat is a different thing than at 45 F outside...)

Regardless, more than 24 hrs is certainly (easily) possible for when one does not need a lot of heat. The 30 hr advertising is correct. (Though I only use such a mode when I only want to keep the stove warm during a one day warm spell...)

 

[Diabel]

Regardless, 20h, 30h. It is insane sounding to a regular Joe who burns wood in a noncat stove.

 

[Highbeam]

They definitely can and do. Should have probably did short small fires might have been a better choice in my situation though . Still learning.

Welcome to March! I only did a partial load yesterday at 6. Four splits but they were big, dense, pitchy Doug fir from the base. It’s 80 degrees in the house this morning. Schools are 2 hours late start due to flooding. Washington gets these “pineapple expresses” of warm wet air from the tropics every year just to keep the mud wet and the frogs croaking.

 

[Ashful]

That's not entirely correct. @Diabel commented on "nearly 40 hours" which indeed seems rather exceptional for a stove of 3 cu ft.

Yeah, I was just poking fun. That's where the tongue out emoticon came in.

The original point to which I (and then Diabel) were responding, was that a user was excited about a 20 hour burn time in a King. I was simply noting that this is nothing to get excited about.

Moreover what do you mean with your long burn time? Active cat? Coals to relight? Usable heat?

Maybe we haven't had that semi-annual debate since you've been on the forum. There can indeed be many definitions of burn time, but we always seem to come back to active cat as the definition of burn time in a cat stove, and it was to that which I was referring.

 

[Diabel]

I burn mostly hemlock and am ecstatic about getting 18h burns. I can stretch it longer but I see no point. I have so much fuel.
My issue with the BK is that the 18h burns throw me off cycle after burning for a few days. Not a bad issue to have😜

 

[stoveliker]

Yeah, I was just poking fun. That's where the tongue out emoticon came in.

The original point to which I (and then Diabel) were responding, was that a user was excited about a 20 hour burn time in a King. I was simply noting that this is nothing to get excited about.


Maybe we haven't had that semi-annual debate since you've been on the forum. There can indeed be many definitions of burn time, but we always seem to come back to active cat as the definition of burn time in a cat stove, and it was to that which I was referring.

Sorry, I am of the old-fashioned way that face-to-face works better. Less misunderstandings (all on my side...), less toes stepped on (inadvertently). So I missed that.

Oh, I've seen the debates. Indeed (more than) twice a year. But it's good to clarify.
For me, now, I'm simmering the stove (44 today, will use some solar electrons thru the minisplit), just to keep it and the flue warm-ish. Cat will drop out of the active range at some point. But if I reload on some glowing coals (still have some red cedar kindling to help), it'll be active very soon because the stove and cat is still warm. Burn time... it depends...

 

[Ashful]

Welcome to March! I only did a partial load yesterday at 6. Four splits but they were big, dense, pitchy Doug fir from the base. It’s 80 degrees in the house this morning. Schools are 2 hours late start due to flooding. Washington gets these “pineapple expresses” of warm wet air from the tropics every year just to keep the mud wet and the frogs croaking.

Same here. Half load this morning, and set on low. Will easily run until this evening's reload window.

 

[Ashful]

Sorry, I am of the old-fashioned way that face-to-face works better. Less misunderstandings (all on my side...), less toes stepped on (inadvertently). So I missed that.

Oh, I've seen the debates. Indeed (more than) twice a year. But it's good to clarify.
For me, now, I'm simmering the stove (44 today, will use some solar electrons thru the minisplit), just to keep it and the flue warm-ish. Cat will drop out of the active range at some point. But if I reload on some glowing coals (still have some red cedar kindling to help), it'll be active very soon because the stove and cat is still warm. Burn time... it depends...

Yep. Plenty of chances to get into misunderstandings here, I see it all the time. Best to just assume the best intentions, when there's any doubt, although that can be tough when it's aimed at you.

I think what we can all agree on, despite any disagreements on definition of burn time or the actual usefulness of stretching a 3 cubic foot stove for 35 hours, is the beauty of having a stove that does damn near whatever we want. It was 20F-something this morning, and will be in the upper 40's this afternoon, way above average for us, but no worries. I can throw some wood in the stove, run it low-ish this morning, and then damn near shut it down in the afternoon. If I ran a non-cat, or really almost any other stove, I'd be worrying a lot more about how many splits I put into the stove, and whether it'll be burned out before the afternoon, lest the place get too warm.

 

[BKVP]

Yep. Plenty of chances to get into misunderstandings here, I see it all the time. Best to just assume the best intentions, when there's any doubt, although that can be tough when it's aimed at you.

I think what we can all agree on, despite any disagreements on definition of burn time or the actual usefulness of stretching a 3 cubic foot stove for 35 hours, is the beauty of having a stove that does damn near whatever we want. It was 20F-something this morning, and will be in the upper 40's this afternoon, way above average for us, but no worries. I can throw some wood in the stove, run it low-ish this morning, and then damn near shut it down in the afternoon. If I ran a non-cat, or really almost any other stove, I'd be worrying a lot more about how many splits I put into the stove, and whether it'll be burned out before the afternoon, lest the place get too warm.

Respectfully, it's not solely at cat vs non cat issue. It's a thermostat versus manual damper influence for those quoted burn times.

 

[Diabel]

Of course there is way more at play than just cat vs non-cat debate. This thread was established primarily for people to come here seek help and learn from several seasoned and very active/knowledgeable BK burners. Sometimes some of us enjoy poking at each other. It is fun and no one takes it seriously.

 

[Nealm66]

80 degrees? !! Dang

 

[Highbeam]

80 degrees? !! Dang

Has crept up to 81. The problem with a long burning stove is shutting it off. This small 4 split load is now bumping past 19 hours. I wish it would have burned out this morning at just 12 hours. Couple bread loaves of fuel still left.

After all these years I still screw it up every so often.

 

[Diabel]

Has crept up to 81. The problem with a long burning stove is shutting it off. This small 4 split load is now bumping past 19 hours. I wish it would have burned out this morning at just 12 hours. Couple bread loaves of fuel still left.

After all these years I still screw it up every so often.

You are talking my tongue now.
Sorry this is inside? Not out side

 

[Nealm66]

Man, I totally get it. I’m a constant 75 but really don’t want to keep trying small fires. Busy/lazy . It’s weird how much heat these things can suck out of a small amount of wood when you really would rather have them not lol

 

[kennyp2339]

Im in ooze mode myself, high of 38, threw a load of ash this morning at 6am, 3/4 of it is burnt, cat probe is still at 1 oclock and its 74 upstairs, might top off the tank before bed and let it do its things, this time of year is were I really cash in on wood savings.

 

[Ashful]

The problem with a long burning stove is shutting it off. This small 4 split load is now bumping past 19 hours.

"That's a feature, not a bug." 😜

Name another stove that can go 19 hours on 4 small splits, and I'll admit there's another stove equal to BK.

 

[Highbeam]

"That's a feature, not a bug." 😜

Name another stove that can go 19 hours on 4 small splits, and I'll admit there's another stove equal to BK.

They were big and heavy fir splits but still one handers. Yes, long burns at low output are a feature that I appreciate. Operator error!

 

[begreen]

They were big and heavy fir splits but still one handers. Yes, long burns at low output are a feature that I appreciate. Operator error!

It's the same issue with a masonry stove. Once the flywheel is turning, the heat will keep on coming. One needs to watch the upcoming weather in these spring conditions. Once the sun came out yesterday things warmed up nicely. With the predicted temps I didn't light a fire. By noon there was no need for heat. The sun warmed things up quickly and we had a couple of windows cracked open by 2, it was 60º outside. The heat pump didn't come on until around 7.