2023/24 VC owners thread general discussion

[arnermd]

It is definitely different burning ash from locust. The fire box looks quite different in the morning after 10 hour burn. I understand why and it makes sense, but I think I'm going to miss the locust. Don't take that as a complaint, just an observation. I know there are plenty of people who don't have access to hardwoods that would kill to burn ash.

So what were the differences you noticed?

 

[Eman85]

I let the stove go out today and ran the brush through. Cap just had some crunchies that I wiped off. Had a small pile of black on my tray that I place in the stove when I clean, vacuumed everything and relit. It's in the 40's here during the day and should be high 20's to low 30's at night. I'll keep it going 24/7 .
I like my Auber meter, easy to see from across the room and the 110V is better than my battery meter. Small learning curve with the alarm as I made a mistake with setting it. Luckily it happened just as we were going to bed and not asleep already. Temps were good so I just unplugged and dealt with it the next morning.

 

[AsylumResident]

So what were the differences you noticed?

The ash catches quicker and gets up to temp quicker. It also burns a little faster.

 

[Woodsplitter67]

The ash catches quicker and gets up to temp quicker. It also burns a little faster.

the ash is a less dense wood..

 

[AsylumResident]

the ash is a less dense wood..

That it is. I took down two maple trees from my front yard this fall so I’ll have some of that plus ash for next year.

 

[Woodsplitter67]

That it is. I took down two maple trees from my front yard this fall so I’ll have some of that plus ash for next year.

I burn maple here and there... its just ok most maple arent super dense so its like cherry, ash.. oak, beach. hickory, dogwood, mulberry is what your looking for to burn in the dead of winter

 

[Rusty18]

The encore is feasting on some maple I css with top cover back in 18/19. Imagine throwing rolled up newspaper soaked in diesel into the stove! Well it’s not quite that bad but it’s easy to light, burning clean, and controllable. No complaining from me.

 

[skb31]

Hello all. New VC encore 2040 owner here after recently replacing my 1979 resolute. I feel like I already owe many of you thanks as I’ve been lurking and learning.

I know I’ll have some questions. I’ve ordered the auber AT100 with K type probe as well as as separate stove top and pipe thermometers.

I’ve done a half dozen small break in fires and did my first damper closed/catalyst fire last evening.

It’s quite a difference from my old stove. I’m being very careful about overfiring it and find it runs hotter on less wood then I’m used to.

First questions! If this is the wrong place just redirect me and I’m happy to post there. Noob and all that.

Is it normal to see flames in the secondary chamber once the catalyst kicks in?

Is the middle of the griddle the best placement for a stove top thermometer? I’ve seen some people mention placing it between the griddle and the flue collar?

Would a taller chimney (~30 ft) contribute to hotter burn temps? I do not have a stove pipe damper but could get one installed if need be. I had to keep the primary air almost all the way down to keep temps under control. Leak tests will be next.

Any general dos or don’t are appreciated. Great community and thanks again.

 

[Eman85]

Is the middle of the griddle the best placement for a stove top thermometer? I’ve seen some people mention placing it between the griddle and the flue collar?

Would a taller chimney (~30 ft) contribute to hotter burn temps? I do not have a stove pipe damper but could get one installed if need be. I had to keep the primary air almost all the way down to keep temps under control. Leak tests will be next.

My thermometer is more towards the flue on the griddle. I don't think a few inches will matter, it's mostly for reference once you get used to burning it. What temps were you keeping under control? What were the temps?

 

[skb31]

My thermometer is more towards the flue on the griddle. I don't think a few inches will matter, it's mostly for reference once you get used to burning it. What temps were you keeping under control? What were the temps?

675 on the stove top meter for about 30 minutes. Factory installed cat meter never left the operating range if that’s worth anything. That was air control 90% closed and 3 medium splits over decent coal bed. If I hadn’t read threads here first I might have over fired it.

I’ve got new meters coming this week including new top and pipe ones as well as an auber at100 for the cat. My previous stove was managed with the pipe temp not STT and no catalyst.

 

[arnermd]

My thermometer is more towards the flue on the griddle. I don't think a few inches will matter, it's mostly for reference once you get used to burning it. What temps were you keeping under control? What were the temps?

Same here, on the griddle but closer to the back. 100% agree location does not matter, just a reference point. STT are not that critical for controlling the stove, Cat temps are much more useful.

675 is pretty toasty but not crazy, my stove has been then there many times. What is more concerning is the air was 90% closed..... time to look for air leaks or check your primary air control flapper.

FYI... it is not unusual to have high STT and low/normal cat temps. If you have a ripping primary burn there is not a lot of smoke for the cat and lots of excess air to help keep the cat cool.

 

[Woodsplitter67]

675 on the stove top meter for about 30 minutes. Factory installed cat meter never left the operating range if that’s worth anything. That was air control 90% closed and 3 medium splits over decent coal bed. If I hadn’t read threads here first I might have over fired it.

I’ve got new meters coming this week including new top and pipe ones as well as an auber at100 for the cat. My previous stove was managed with the pipe temp not STT and no catalyst.

Id go with a key damper in the stovepipe.. 30ft and your north.. as it gets colder your draft will increase.. 30ft of pipe is a good amount

 

[AsylumResident]

My thermometer is more towards the flue on the griddle. I don't think a few inches will matter, it's mostly for reference once you get used to burning it. What temps were you keeping under control? What were the temps?

I have a magnetic thermometer that was once on the griddle but opening and closing the griddle caused the probe to shift too much and give me the wrong readings (some as low as -360). So I moved it to the cast behind the griddle between the griddle and the stove pipe. My readings are different but I learned where they should be with this new position.

 

[sargeott]

675 on the stove top meter for about 30 minutes. Factory installed cat meter never left the operating range if that’s worth anything. That was air control 90% closed and 3 medium splits over decent coal bed. If I hadn’t read threads here first I might have over fired it.

I’ve got new meters coming this week including new top and pipe ones as well as an auber at100 for the cat. My previous stove was managed with the pipe temp not STT and no catalyst.

As for temp locations:
I run three surface temp gauges
1 Stt between the griddle and the flu connector
1 on the griddle (we like to cook on ours)
1 on the flu exit about 8 inches up ( this tells me how the stove is running while in start up and when I should expect max draft temps).

 

[AsylumResident]

So I did my mid season clean out today. Nothing really better to do and the stove has been cold, so why not..
Picture 1 is my cap before I started.. picture 2 is the capnafter I wiped it clean with my glove.. jut the little crusty guys on it.. pic 3 is my pipe when I got done. Pic 4 is what was in the ear buds while cleaning up on the roof.. pics 5/6 is what I got out of my 8inch pipe.. no creosote.. just soot.. brown and dry.. not alot either.. thats 1 5 cups.. 2 max

For as low as Iv been burning this looks really good. in my opinion.. I know there has been some discussion about cat temperature and maybe at the lower temperatures the catalyst may not be burning everything up.. Im pretty convinced.. anything over 800 degrees is burning pretty clean..

View attachment 321613 View attachment 321614 View attachment 321615 View attachment 321616 View attachment 321617 View attachment 321618

I'm debating if I should jump up and clean mine out or wait. About a month I took the stove pipe apart because I was curious and there wasn't much of anything to clean out of it. When I did that I could see through the entire horizonal piece as well. Just a little fluffy sediment resting a long the bottom of the horizontal pipe.

 

[skb31]

Thank you all! I cannot express how much your help is appreciated. I’ve got the new meters coming tomorrow and will call my chimney guy to install a damper on the pipe asap.

What temps am I looking for on the auber meter for the cat temp?

 

[AsylumResident]

Thank you all! I cannot express how much your help is appreciated. I’ve got the new meters coming tomorrow and will call my chimney guy to install a damper on the pipe asap.

What temps am I looking for on the auber meter for the cat temp?

I like to see the cat temp between 1000 and 1300. It won't stay there for hours on end but I can keep that range for 2-4 hours.

 

[Eman85]

cat temps will vary depending on where you're at in the burn, plenty of graphs posted in the VC threads. 600 is basic lightoff and it should rise steady from there with the air open. 1,000 is the next stop and that's usually when I close my air down. Going past 1300-1400 I'll have air closed all of the way if it keeps rising. 1500 and rising is when we all start to worry, 1600 is the max you want to see. Warping the stove is possible as cast iron will melt, I've had a good red glow in the back of my stove, not good for the stove.

 

[AsylumResident]

cat temps will vary depending on where you're at in the burn, plenty of graphs posted in the VC threads. 600 is basic lightoff and it should rise steady from there with the air open. 1,000 is the next stop and that's usually when I close my air down. Going past 1300-1400 I'll have air closed all of the way if it keeps rising. 1500 and rising is when we all start to worry, 1600 is the max you want to see. Warping the stove is possible as cast iron will melt, I've had a good red glow in the back of my stove, not good for the stove.

That's a pretty good synopsis. I have had my cat get to 1780. It was an unfortunate event that I was not on top of fast enough and had to pull wood out of the stove so it wouldn't get higher. My stove didn't explode, my house didn't catch on fire, the dog is fine. Hitting high temps transiently isn't the end of the world, but best to avoid it as much as possible.

 

[Eman85]

When my stove was sold new there was no cat temp gauge, sensor or whatever offered. I probably had some overheats back then but ignorance got me through.

 

[AsylumResident]

When my stove was sold new there was no cat temp gauge, sensor or whatever offered. I probably had some overheats back then but ignorance got me through.

I just posted about that in another thread. If I wouldn't have had a flue temp monitor, the only way I would have known my flue was way too hot would have been from the hot metal smell.

 

[U235]

Hello all. New VC encore 2040 owner here after recently replacing my 1979 resolute. I feel like I already owe many of you thanks as I’ve been lurking and learning.

I know I’ll have some questions. I’ve ordered the auber AT100 with K type probe as well as as separate stove top and pipe thermometers.

I’ve done a half dozen small break in fires and did my first damper closed/catalyst fire last evening.

It’s quite a difference from my old stove. I’m being very careful about overfiring it and find it runs hotter on less wood then I’m used to.

First questions! If this is the wrong place just redirect me and I’m happy to post there. Noob and all that.

Is it normal to see flames in the secondary chamber once the catalyst kicks in?

Is the middle of the griddle the best placement for a stove top thermometer? I’ve seen some people mention placing it between the griddle and the flue collar?

Would a taller chimney (~30 ft) contribute to hotter burn temps? I do not have a stove pipe damper but could get one installed if need be. I had to keep the primary air almost all the way down to keep temps under control. Leak tests will be next.

Any general dos or don’t are appreciated. Great community and thanks again.

Was your resolute tight enough that on low primary setting, the flames in the primary box have more of an aurora/northern lights appearance? I have 23 feet straight vertical with my encore 2040 and prior to addressing leaks in the ash pan and right door, I spent my first season only able to control heat output by fuel load. Now, At 90% closed I definitely see a change in characteristic of the flame, kind of a lazy wandering fluid on the top of my fire box.

Also. The adjustment nut was cross threaded on my ash pan and not engaged. I probably started out okay but eventually the retainer Allen screw loosened.

I’m not sure how your VC journey will play out but I think if you cover the basics (gasket leaks and primary air flap position) you should be on your way.

 

[skb31]

Was your resolute tight enough that on low primary setting, the flames in the primary box have more of an aurora/northern lights appearance? I have 23 feet straight vertical with my encore 2040 and prior to addressing leaks in the ash pan and right door, I spent my first season only able to control heat output by fuel load. Now, At 90% closed I definitely see a change in characteristic of the flame, kind of a lazy wandering fluid on the top of my fire box.

Also. The adjustment nut was cross threaded on my ash pan and not engaged. I probably started out okay but eventually the retainer Allen screw loosened.

I’m not sure how your VC journey will play out but I think if you cover the basics (gasket leaks and primary air flap position) you should be on your way.

Your description of the appearance of the fire is what mine was like. Fuel load was lower than I was used to with my previous stove but I was careful after learning here. I plan to do leak checks on my next fire.

Primary air flap fully closes when cold. I’ll check that next fire as well. Griddle gasket seems ok using a light inside and the room dark. No visible light seen along the seams. I plan to let ash build up as well and not empty the pan but rather clean ashes from the stove itself.

Thankfully I am able to babysit the stove as I learn. I have oil fired forced hot air as my primary and a propane stove out back as well.

 

[Woodsplitter67]

I'm debating if I should jump up and clean mine out or wait. About a month I took the stove pipe apart because I was curious and there wasn't much of anything to clean out of it. When I did that I could see through the entire horizonal piece as well. Just a little fluffy sediment resting a long the bottom of the horizontal pipe.

Midway up and to the top will be the worst areas.. down by the stove is normally cleaner.. the cap it really the tell all

 

[AsylumResident]

Midway up and to the top will be the worst areas.. down by the stove is normally cleaner.. the cap it really the tell all

My cap has some crustys on it. Doesn't look too bad.