Burn Time Definition

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ajzzara

Member
Dec 1, 2021
37
Hawley, PA
Hi All,
Quick and possibly stupid question. When discussing burn times, does it mean:

1) The amount of time the cat stays in the active zone.
2) The amount of time between an active cat, and being able to reload on existing coals in the stove?

Thanks in advance!
 
Lol. That's different for eachperson claiming, I'd say.

Not stupid, it goes to the core of what we talk about!

When you talk about your burn time, please specify what you mean.

I generally hold to "until the cat drops out of the active zone", but of course that's only useful for folks with a BK to compare.
Reloading without needing kindling is a more universal time.
But that might be a loooong time if you mix oak (coals) and maple (ashes burying the coals).
Usable heat is another time; the long time above won't give usable heat. But that is a very subjective measure; what's usable for me may not be enough for you. So not very useful.

(And EPA testing has the stove on a scale, they add fuel, see the weight increase, and the test ends when the weight is back to the initial weight...)

And this way the holy wars about burn times start :-)

So not stupid, people have fought on that hill . No good answer exists.
 
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Lol, then the heaviest stove would have the longest time... regardless of the fuel consumption time profile.
 
Lol. That's different for eachperson claiming, I'd say.

Not stupid, it goes to the core of what we talk about!

When you talk about your burn time, please specify what you mean.

I generally hold to "until the cat drops out of the active zone", but of course that's only useful for folks with a BK to compare.
Reloading without needing kindling is a more universal time.
But that might be a loooong time if you mix oak (coals) and maple (ashes burying the coals).
Usable heat is another time; the long time above won't give usable heat. But that is a very subjective measure; what's usable for me may not be enough for you. So not very useful.

(And EPA testing has the stove on a scale, they add fuel, see the weight increase, and the test ends when the weight is back to the initial weight...)

And this way the holy wars about burn times start :-)

So not stupid, people have fought on that hill . No good answer exists.
I have always been good at unintentionally stirring the pot, I guess this is parfor the course.
I have a Sirocco insert. If people are seeing 12- 18hrs of active cat on this stove, I think my stove is broken 😆.

How do you other BKers measure burn time?