Advice: Ideal Steel or Blaze King Princess

[Aranyic]

Not to hijack but I've got a question on the two stoves which is something that will play a significant factor in my decision at some point. My wife loves the warmth of the wood heat. However she lacks the desire for the attention span of monitoring it is the best way to put it probably.

The princess if she wants more (or less ) heat she could just turn the thermostat some and the stove would take care of the air.

Does the ideal steel handle it the same way once in catalytic mode? Or do you have to watch to make sure you don't put too much or not enough air into it more so?

 

[JA600L]

Not to hijack but I've got a question on the two stoves which is something that will play a significant factor in my decision at some point. My wife loves the warmth of the wood heat. However she lacks the desire for the attention span of monitoring it is the best way to put it probably.

The princess if she wants more heat she could just turn the thermostat some and the stove would take care of the air.

Does the ideal steel handle it the same way once in catalytic mode? Or do you have to watch to make sure you don't put too much or not enough air into it more so?

I can answer from the IS side. You simply engage the cat at the right temperature, burn it hot for a bit, then set it to whatever your desired heat output is. Several hours later you would want to open up the air to burn any coals down. You can always adjust it more if you are indecisive, but overall it is a fairly easy task. Dry wood and good draft is the ticket to easy operation.

 

[freeburn]

The only real way to know which performs better is to have someone own both and give us an honest review. I volunteer if anybody wants to drop off a princess here .

Now that would be Ideal!

Don't forget you need to pay for shipping on that Woodstock. My local dealer sells the princess for just over 2000$.

Right on the shipping. That's a great price! Dealer closest to me starts at $2600. No thanks.

 

[JA600L]

Now that would be Ideal!
Right on the shipping. That's a great price! Dealer closest to me starts at $2600. No thanks.

Did you get a shipping quote yet? It's usually fairly reasonable and no sales tax.

 

[freeburn]

Did you get a shipping quote yet? It's usually fairly reasonable and no sales tax. Are you planning on using the $300 Tax credit?

Are you talking about the IS or the BK Princess?

IS shipping is $323 + price of stove ($1925-$2360).

 

[rdust]

Are you talking about the IS or the BK Princess?

IS shipping is $323 + price of stove ($1925-$2360).

No way I'd let a few hundred dollars decide the stove choice. I don't have a dog in this fight but the cost difference between the two is nothing worth noting.

 

[JA600L]

When I got my stove I payed $2310 with the works shipped. I shared the shipping with a coworker who got one as well. That was over a year ago so prices may have gone up some.
I looked at Blaze King and they were a couple hundred more from the local dealer. They just seemed so bland. It was a lot of fun designing the artwork andirons, top burner etc.. The soapstone is a feature I enjoy too.

You will never appreciate the Ideal Steel based off of pictures. When you open the crate there is a major wow effect. It is much bigger and modern in person.

 

[freeburn]

When I got my stove I payed $2310 with the works shipped. I shared the shipping with a coworker who got one as well. That was over a year ago so prices may have gone up some.
I looked at Blaze King and they were a couple hundred more from the local dealer. They just seemed so bland. It was a lot of fun designing the artwork andirons, top burner etc.. The soapstone is a feature I enjoy too.

You will never appreciate the Ideal Steel based off of pictures. When you open the crate there is a major wow effect. It is much bigger and modern in person.

I've heard that before. Too bad I can't see it in person first. Anyone have an Ideal Steel in Wisconsin near Lacrosse?

 

[blueguy]

4+ cubic' stove on a 6" flue similar to the Ashford in styling. Ready, set, go!

Cough.....Sirocco 40......cough


:D

 

[JA600L]

I've heard that before. Too bad I can't see it in person first. Anyone have an Ideal Steel in Wisconsin near Lacrosse?

Give a call to Woodstock. They might be able to make a connection for you.

 

[LocustBurner]

Woodstock has a Facebook page:
https://www.facebook.com/Woodstock-Soapstone-Co-123135437743584/

 

[freeburn]

I

Give a call to Woodstock. They might be able to make a connection for you.

I tried that, but the whole confidentiality thing prevents them from letting you know. They told me to check on some of "those online forums".

Sorry, don't do Spacelook.

 

[Woody Stover]

You actually only save 50$ on the fireview vs. The princess

Uh, no. And this is a Dura-Foil. Call your BK dealer and ask how much your steel cat is.

 

[LocustBurner]

CAT for Ideal Steel Hybrid is also $150.
Operating life varies from 4 to 8 years.
Extremely easy to change out.

 

[Highbeam]

Uh, no. And this is a Dura-Foil. Call your BK dealer and ask how much your steel cat is.
View attachment 172328

Yep, I agreed, you save a little bit on cats. Move on. Got anything else? I would not base a stove buying decision on saving 100$ every 4-8 years on a replacement part. Every day I only have to load my bk stove half as often as I would a Woodstock.

 

[rdust]

Yep, I agreed, you save a little bit on cats. Move on. Got anything else? I would not base a stove buying decision on saving 100$ every 4-8 years on a replacement part. Every day I only have to load my bk stove half as often as I would a Woodstock.

Yep, based on 5 years it's about 20 bucks a year or 1.666 dollars per month. I think we can move on from the cost of the cat being a deciding factor.

Another bonus of the BK cat design is I don't have to let the stove go cold to clean the fly ash off the cat like many WS owners have to do on a regular basis.

 

[LocustBurner]

Based on my observations, the IS CAT probably will only need cleaning once a month, less if your wood is seasoned.
Woodstock recommends cleaning the combustor every 4-6 weeks.
And ANY stove with an ashpan has to be cool before that can be emptied, usually a weekly job so as easy is it is to check the CAT, spending another minute with a vac is a non-issue, IMO.

Not a 'deal buster' to worry about as some here would have you think.

I replaced the firebrick liner in the Lopi several times over 20 yrs. but only after viewing a UTube video detailing an Ideal Steel SS firebox liner install did I realize just how much of my Woodstock IS's firebox is soapstone.
Only 11 pieces of traditional firebrick are in the Ideal Steel's floor. ALL of the rest of the HUGE 3.2 cu. ft. firebox is lined with SS.
Combined with the two side panels, this stove is sporting a lot of SS!

 

[freeburn]

Yep, I agreed, you save a little bit on cats. Move on. Got anything else? I would not base a stove buying decision on saving 100$ every 4-8 years on a replacement part. Every day I only have to load my bk stove half as often as I would a Woodstock.

Just curious, what data from the IS are you using to gauge this "half as often" need to load?

 

[freeburn]

Cost of a cat is not really my concern. Even a tube stove has cost associated with it. For example, the NC30 baffles need replacing and they aren't all that cheap to replace if you go OEM. Sure you can do some aftermarket for much cheaper. But the tubes aren't all that cheap either if you bang one of those up. There are costs associated with every stove, not a big deal. Not to mention inflation will come into effect as well when the time comes. I think it is going to come down to aesthetics. Both of these stoves seem to be on par and I'd be happy with either one. Thanks for the helpful banter and I have definitely learned alot more by just reading along with the discussion. Consider this post answered to the OP if you'd like. Otherwise, if you want to keep up the banter, don't do it for my sake! Thanks again!

 

[Ashful]

Based on my observations, the IS CAT probably will only need cleaning once a month, less if your wood is seasoned.
Woodstock recommends cleaning the combustor every 4-6 weeks.

Unless you want to count wanding the ash vac in front of it once at the end of each burning season, I clean my cats approximately... never.

 

[rdust]

Unless you want to count wanding the ash vac in front of it once at the end of each burning season, I clean my cats approximately... never.

Going into season 5 this year I pulled mine and gave it a vinegar/water bath. First time I did more than just hitting it with a vacuum. Not sure it did anything but figured it was worth a shot.

 

[JA600L]

Yep, based on 5 years it's about 20 bucks a year or 1.666 dollars per month. I think we can move on from the cost of the cat being a deciding factor.

Another bonus of the BK cat design is I don't have to let the stove go cold to clean the fly ash off the cat like many WS owners have to do on a regular basis.

I never let my stove go cold to clean the cat or empty ash.

 

[JA600L]

Yep, I agreed, you save a little bit on cats. Move on. Got anything else? I would not base a stove buying decision on saving 100$ every 4-8 years on a replacement part. Every day I only have to load my bk stove half as often as I would a Woodstock.

If I lived in Washington state I would load once a day too. I live in Pennsylvania. It's a real feel of -2 here right now. Unless you had a small well insulated house you would be loading twice a day too.

 

[tarzan]

If I lived in Washington state I would load once a day too. I live in Pennsylvania. It's a real feel of -2 here right now. Unless you had a small well insulated house you would be loading twice a day too.

Not exactly fair since the weather right now is unseasonably cold. I'm loading twice a day now myself (we're sharring the same weather) but for the week leading up to yesterday I was loading one full load before bed and then 3 splits late afternoon.

 

[Woody Stover]

If I lived in Washington state I would load once a day too. I live in Pennsylvania. It's a real feel of -2 here right now. Unless you had a small well insulated house you would be loading twice a day too.

I only have to load my bk stove half as often as I would a Woodstock.

In your climate, people routinely heat their homes with a candle and two farts.

Move on.

That's the best idea you've had. This thread played out pages ago. Hey, you've got a great stove for your climate, and as long as you're happy with it, good for you. But for some reason you can't admit that some other cat stove might be better for someone else; You've somehow concluded that your stove is the best thing for everyone. You've only ever burned one cat stove. It's understandable that you were wowed, after burning the wood-eating tube stove previously. But your cat stove experience, other than one model of BK, is limited to reading on the internet. You've never experienced the clear advantages that other cat stoves have to offer. You should have been able to figure out some of those advantages from reading, but have shown no evidence of having done so. Too bad, your loss. It's a good thing for you that ignorance is bliss. See ya...