Blaze King vs other brands?

[Krock]

Hey folks, been reading through quite a few of the forums and there is lots of good info. I recently bought a 2700 sq ft newer mobile home in northern NM. I have a quadrafire 1200 pellet stove but I grew up on wood. I am currently going through roughly 4-5 tons/year of pellets and at $350/ton it’s getting rather pricey especially since there is tons of good wood nearby. Temps in the winter are usually low teens at night with some dips into single digits and below zero. I would like to explore a stove as a primary heat source since I have only an electric furnace at the moment plus the pellet stove.

I have looked at the Blaze King princess and got a quote for roughly $9k installed . I like the long burn time and efficiency but I mostly like the thermostat. I work 10-12 hr days during the winter so I like the idea of loading it once I leave and having the stove provide heat while I’m gone. I briefly glanced at the quadrafire but can’t find much info on it. Something more budget friendly than $9k would be nice but the BK princess is great from what I hear.

What other cat stoves with thermostats are out there that you guys know of? Looking for something efficient, thermostatically (even if it’s mechanical) controlled, with good heat output and a good blower. Also looking to get the tax credit. I have access to ponderosa (which I try not to burn unless I have to), juniper, piñon, Doug fir, white fir, spruce, aspen and oak. I would primarily burn Doug fir, juniper, piñon, and oak and have great access to all of it.

Thanks for any suggestions folks!

 

[Krock]

I’m hoping to have it take the place of my pellet stove as well

 

[begreen]

BK and VC stoves are both thermostatically regulated. A BK stove looks like the best choice.

 

[stoveliker]

Do remember that the longer burn time is at a lower output.
So depending on the need for BTUs you have (how well insulated and sealed your home is), you may not be able to keep things at 70 F for 12 hrs at zero F.
A leaky home needs a lot of BTUs, and you only have a certain amount in a fully loaded stove. You can distribute them over 30 hrs but the number of BTUs you get per hour may not be enough to keep the temperature at the desired level.
12-13 hrs is not very low, though, so it depends on your home's needs.

But they are great stoves (I have a 30.2 model).

How tall would the flue be? Note also it would have to go up at least the first 2 ft, but preferably all the way straight up for draft.
Are you at elevation?

 

[moresnow]

Look at the manual for the BK models you are interested in. Research the venting/pipe length requirements. Your proposed install location may require a fair amount of pipe above the roof line. This will require additional bracing. Not a huge obstacle but something to consider.
Is there a more central location for a stove install?

Can you perform the install yourself?
Can you purchase the venting components yourself? Money to be saved if so.
A few thoughts.

 

[Krock]

Do remember that the longer burn time is at a lower output.
So depending on the need for BTUs you have (how well insulated and sealed your home is), you may not be able to keep things at 70 F for 12 hrs at zero F.
A leaky home needs a lot of BTUs, and you only have a certain amount in a fully loaded stove. You can distribute them over 30 hrs but the number of BTUs you get per hour may not be enough to keep the temperature at the desired level.
12-13 hrs is not very low, though, so it depends on your home's needs.

But they are great stoves (I have a 30.2 model).

How tall would the flue be? Note also it would have to go up at least the first 2 ft, but preferably all the way straight up for draft.
Are you at elevation?

If I can get 10 hrs burn time that would be more than adequate and during the daytime, temps are usually around 25-35F so the highest demand would be nighttime which if I get 8 hrs, that’s more than enough. I just moved from Fairbanks too so anything over 65 in the house and I’m roasting haha. I just can’t justify over $1200 a year in pellets no matter how user friendly it is. I fight fires for the forest service so I know all the good spots to get firewood especially if we do hazard tree removal. The guy at the dealer recommended the king but I think it would be overkill for me so he said the princess would probably be fine too.

The flue would be 20 ft at most I’m thinking. I’m going to try to maximize the amount of chimney inside. I’m going to likely put it close to the peak of the roof where the two sides of the mobile home are married up hopefully reducing the likelihood of ice buildup as well since it would be closer to the peak.

My pellet stove is currently in a corner but thinking about it, I would only get 90 degrees of radiant heat instead of close to 240-270 degrees if I put it close to a hallway in the dining room.

And yes, I live at 7000’ with great (during the winter it’s nice at least) solar exposure on the east side and pretty good solar exposure on the west side. The house is oriented north/south.

How is your thermostat? I noticed it is on the stove which doesn’t make much sense to me because it would get a ton of radiant heat. I’m guessing it’s mechanically controlled via a spring or something so you would just adjust it once you figure out what the rest of the house’s temp is? The quadrafire wood stove has something similar I think but I can’t find a ton about it.

 

[Krock]

Look at the manual for the BK models you are interested in. Research the venting/pipe length requirements. Your proposed install location may require a fair amount of pipe above the roof line. This will require additional bracing. Not a huge obstacle but something to consider.
Is there a more central location for a stove install?

Can you perform the install yourself?
Can you purchase the venting components yourself? Money to be saved if so.
A few thoughts.

That’s does bring up a good point, might be better to have the chimney near the peak of the roof. That would also help reduce ice buildup and snow getting caught on itAnd I probably could do the install myself but I’m too nervous to cut a giant hole in my roof. The install was $1200 including mileage and I don’t mind spending that knowing it’s done right. The princess was around 5000 and the rest of the cost is air intake and chimney.

 

[bholler]

If I can get 10 hrs burn time that would be more than adequate and during the daytime, temps are usually around 25-35F so the highest demand would be nighttime which if I get 8 hrs, that’s more than enough. I just moved from Fairbanks too so anything over 65 in the house and I’m roasting haha. I just can’t justify over $1200 a year in pellets no matter how user friendly it is. I fight fires for the forest service so I know all the good spots to get firewood especially if we do hazard tree removal. The guy at the dealer recommended the king but I think it would be overkill for me so he said the princess would probably be fine too.

The flue would be 20 ft at most I’m thinking. I’m going to try to maximize the amount of chimney inside. I’m going to likely put it close to the peak of the roof where the two sides of the mobile home are married up hopefully reducing the likelihood of ice buildup as well since it would be closer to the peak.

My pellet stove is currently in a corner but thinking about it, I would only get 90 degrees of radiant heat instead of close to 240-270 degrees if I put it close to a hallway in the dining room.

And yes, I live at 7000’ with great (during the winter it’s nice at least) solar exposure on the east side and pretty good solar exposure on the west side. The house is oriented north/south.

How is your thermostat? I noticed it is on the stove which doesn’t make much sense to me because it would get a ton of radiant heat. I’m guessing it’s mechanically controlled via a spring or something so you would just adjust it once you figure out what the rest of the house’s temp is? The quadrafire wood stove has something similar I think but I can’t find a ton about it.

You really don't need a thermostat or even a cat to get 8 to 10 hour burns at all. Those times are very achievable with any large stove

 

[stoveliker]

The elevation will make your chimney a bit short. I believe that for every 1000 ft the minimum required flue height is 1 ft more. Download the manual from the BK website; it's in there.
That'd mean that you might need 15+7=22 ft *minimum* for it to function well.

The thermostat is not one that regulates room temp (like one for a conventional heating system). Instead it regulates heat output of the stove. So it has to be on the stove. It does so with a bimetal coil that controls the air inlet. You'd have to find the right setting to keep your home at some temperature (and that setting will be a bit different when the outside temps are different).

 

[FPX Dude]

If you have access to free firewood, it's a no brainer...

 

[BKVP]

So it's 70F warmer where you are now than where you were

 

[Lindalou]

I have a Lopi wood stove for 24 years. Use it all the time. We season our wood 1 1/2 years before burning. Our secondary burners are still in good shape.

 

[AsylumResident]

For what it's worth, I am one year into burning with a VC Defiant. If I would have found hearth.com before I made that purchase, I am 95% certain I would have gotten a BlazeKing. The VC is a beautiful stove but there is a lot of tinkering and quite the learning curve.

 

[stoveliker]

There will be a learning curve with any modern stove, especially if one is not used to a stove or if one was used to an old pre-EPA "smoke dragon". It took me a bit to become comfortable with my stove as well.

 

[BKVP]

There will be a learning curve with any modern stove, especially if one is not used to a stove or if one was used to an old pre-EPA "smoke dragon". It took me a bit to become comfortable with my stove as well.

Well written. Today's stove cannot be expected top perform like older models did. We decrease emissions, increase efficiency, increase draft issues as a result and operators need to find what works best for them in their application.

BKVP

 

[AsylumResident]

I completely understand that. What's interesting is the similar issues that seem to be relatively consistent, especially with the Defiant. Of course I have not talked to every person that owns a newer Defiant, however, the individuals I have talked with have similar issues. This leads me to believe it is a fundamental design issue since it is mostly replicated given all the different variables in play (flue size/height, geographical area, type of wood, MC of wood, weather, etc.)

I have no doubt, if I would have purchased the Blaze King, I would have had to work through some challenges. But from what I can see, the challenges with the Blaze King are mostly resolved, whereas the challenges with the Defiant, not so much.

 

[begreen]

I completely understand that. What's interesting is the similar issues that seem to be relatively consistent, especially with the Defiant. Of course I have not talked to every person that owns a newer Defiant, however, the individuals I have talked with have similar issues. This leads me to believe it is a fundamental design issue since it is mostly replicated given all the different variables in play (flue size/height, geographical area, type of wood, MC of wood, weather, etc.)

I have no doubt, if I would have purchased the Blaze King, I would have had to work through some challenges. But from what I can see, the challenges with the Blaze King are mostly resolved, whereas the challenges with the Defiant, not so much.

The two have fundamentally different combustion designs. Of the two, the BK is easier to service and I think a bit more flexible with variables of draft, wood, etc. The Defiant has convenient top loading and a beautiful design in a strongly radiant stove.

 

[AsylumResident]

The two have fundamentally different combustion designs. Of the two, the BK is easier to service and I think a bit more flexible with variables of draft, wood, etc. The Defiant has convenient top loading and a beautiful design in a strongly radiant stove.

On the designs of the two, the BK seems more logical with the cat in-line with the natural flow of smoke and draft. The Defiant has the down draft design forcing the flow in an opposite direction first. Not really sure what the overall effect, if any, that would have on it. The top load is a very nice design, that is the main reason I went with a VC.