Blaze King Boxer 24 Secondary Burn

[RyanD1981]

Hi All,

I have a general question about my Boxer 24. First off - I love this wood stove. By far the best wood stove I've ever owned. Im familiar now with the operation of the cat and all that it entails. One thing I want to understand better is where the secondary air comes from. Does anyone have an answer to this; specific to the Boxer 24? Also, what are those large tubes that run diagonally from back to front in the firebox? Any help would be appreciated.

Ryan

 

[Highbeam]

Hi All,

I have a general question about my Boxer 24. First off - I love this wood stove. By far the best wood stove I've ever owned. Im familiar now with the operation of the cat and all that it entails. One thing I want to understand better is where the secondary air comes from. Does anyone have an answer to this; specific to the Boxer 24? Also, what are those large tubes that run diagonally from back to front in the firebox? Any help would be appreciated.

Ryan

Not many boxer owners posting on this forum but the other Bk cat stoves (and I’m assuming this one too) do not have secondary air. These are not hybrid stoves. Those long tubes in the firebox carry primary air up to the air wash plate above the loading door.

 

[RyanD1981]

Not many boxer owners posting on this forum but the other Bk cat stoves (and I’m assuming this one too) do not have secondary air. These are not hybrid stoves. Those long tubes in the firebox carry primary air up to the air wash plate above the loading door.

Thanks for the quick reply. So can you explain to mean what you mean by hybrid stoves?

 

[Highbeam]

Thanks for the quick reply. So can you explain to mean what you mean by hybrid stoves?

Sure, last I checked the epa recognizes three types of clean burning wood stoves. There are whole articles written about these three types but to summarize. You have cat stoves, non cat stoves, and one that has both a catalyst and secondary combustion called a hybrid.

Those that provide primary and secondary combustion by injecting air into the fire are called non catalytic since they don’t use a catalytic combustor at all. These are the most common.

The cat stove uses primary air to feed the fire and then the catalyst does everything else.

Your Bk is a regular cat stove.

 

[RyanD1981]

Sure, last I checked the epa recognizes three types of clean burning wood stoves. There are whole articles written about these three types but to summarize. You have cat stoves, non cat stoves, and one that has both a catalyst and secondary combustion called a hybrid.

Those that provide primary and secondary combustion by injecting air into the fire are called non catalytic since they don’t use a catalytic combustor at all. These are the most common.

The cat stove uses primary air to feed the fire and then the catalyst does everything else.

Your Bk is a regular cat stove.

Thanks. For some reason I thought there was secondary air that was coming in to burn the gasses off the wood, but I suppose its just the cat that's burning that gas. Is a regular cat stove better than a hybrid?

 

[Highbeam]

Thanks. For some reason I thought there was secondary air that was coming in to burn the gasses off the wood, but I suppose its just the cat that's burning that gas. Is a regular cat stove better than a hybrid?

That’s a good question. Some of the current cat stoves on the market do a superb job of burning at very low rates which is statistically where most people burn most of the time. In my particular application the very low burn rates with high efficiency are pretty ideal.

The hybrid concept is only better if you plan to run the stove hotter. Since at higher burn rates the straight cat stove can sometimes be overwhelmed and the secondary air system can burn up smoke that would otherwise slip past. Wasted smoke is emissions and inefficiency. None of the current hybrids are optimized for low burn rates. Lots of new hybrids on the market this year since the 2020 regs require just a little bit cleaner air than a noncat can easily accomplish.

I would rather have a well designed hybrid than a poorly designed cat stove. Either technology can be great, just depends on execution.

The noncat design is the least flexible of all as far as burn rates go. They do high output best and they really shine in their simplicity and low operating cost. No cats to replace, no extra levers to pull, very simple and clean burning. You generally vary the output by fuel load or reloading frequency.

I own a cat stove and a noncat stove which were both chosen because I thought they matched my needs the best.

Don’t anybody go twisting my words! All of these stoves burn wood and keep us warm. I want to try running a Woodstock hybrid but for some reason they still have a specific insulative hearth requirement. I hear the IS is a great runner.

 

[Rickb]

High beam explained it very well, but to make it super simple.

Cat stoves Are great for burning low and slow for long burn times but less heat output. They can be turned up for more heat but really excel at low output.

Tube stoves/secondary stoves/non cat stoves Are great for higher outputs. They can be turned down to burn slower, but do not have the ability to go really low/slow like a cat.

hybrid stoves are are kinda in between. Im not really sold on them myself but there are many people on here who have them and they seem to do a good job.

 

[Highbeam]

High beam explained it very well, but to make it super simple.

Cat stoves Are great for burning low and slow for long burn times but less heat output. They can be turned up for more heat but really excel at low output.

Tube stoves/secondary stoves/non cat stoves Are great for higher outputs. They can be turned down to burn slower, but do not have the ability to go really low/slow like a cat.

hybrid stoves are are kinda in between. Im not really sold on them myself but there are many people on here who have them and they seem to do a good job.

Way better job than I did. Good job.

Trouble is that within each class there are some real good ones and some not so good depending on your specific needs. Like a big cat stove with a 10 hour max burn time. May as well buy a noncat and save the money that you would spend on replacing cats.

 

[webby3650]

We’ve been running a new Lopi Liberty in the show room. Big beautiful glass, tons of heat! It cruises at about 600 minimum... This seems to be the new normal for non cats and hybrids. Our Jotul 500 is the same way. Most people couldn’t even use it unless outside temps are in the teens. Or it’s in a barn!