cat combustor questions

[Todd]

OK, I'm probably going to jinx this, but may I comment that it's remarkable that we're all having such a civilized discussion on stove catalysts 15 posts into this thread!

:lol:

-Colin

Yes, I'm very proud to say that it is possible to respect "the other side" and have such a civilized conversation. :bug:

I was thinking the same thing, but I'm sure as the season goes on this debate will heat up like always.

 

[elkimmeg]

i believe injecting super heated thematically controlled secondary air in the combustion chamber is what gives me that constant extended burn time .

Having the ability that soapstone heat storage would be the icing on the cake. In my case I do not need it behind my interior chimney floor to ceiling 12" long granite field stone facing

When 24/7 burning is done day after day those stones absorb heat and releases it for hours and hours after the stove burns down low

My upstairs family room combustor stove I'm on the third year with the stovecombustor,com combustor. The fire box size is 1,25 and even after 6 hours per load it still cranks out
decent heat. I have had 3 other stoves in this location Some a lot bigger than this one but none out preformed this small cat stove

Like north said these stoves are great for the shoulder seasons


(Did you know that Condor makes a cat probe thermometer. It monitors the temp in the cat combustion chamber.)

When monitoring the top of pipe temps there is another way to determine when to engage the cat. The fire should have chared the surface of the wood and it is beginning the second stage of burning. that is the correct time to engage the cat. With secondary air controlled ,usually there is little fiddling to do with the primary air, once the cat is engaged ,it regulates it for you

this is even true during the coaling stage of the burn when the cat has no smoke particles to burn that secondary air is still being opened and closed to provide for the even flow of heat.

 

[jpl1nh]

i believe injecting super heated thematically controlled secondary air in the combustion chamber is what gives me that constant extended burn time .

Having the ability that soapstone heat storage would be the icing on the cake. In my case I do not need it behind my interior chimney floor to ceiling 12" long granite field stone facing

When 24/7 burning is done day after day those stones absorb heat and releases it for hours and hours after the stove burns down low

My upstairs family room combustor stove I'm on the third year with the stovecombustor,com combustor. The fire box size is 1,25 and even after 6 hours per load it still cranks out
decent heat. I have had 3 other stoves in this location Some a lot bigger than this one but none out preformed this small cat stove

Like north said these stoves are great for the shoulder seasons


(Did you know that Condor makes a cat probe thermometer. It monitors the temp in the cat combustion chamber.)

When monitoring the top of pipe temps there is another way to determine when to engage the cat. The fire should have chared the surface of the wood and it is beginning the second stage of burning. that is the correct time to engage the cat. With secondary air controlled ,usually there is little fiddling to do with the primary air, once the cat is engaged ,it regulates it for you

this is even true during the coaling stage of the burn when the cat has no smoke particles to burn that secondary air is still being opened and closed to provide for the even flow of heat.

And having the thermostatic control ability with the soastone would be icing on the cake! One of the intriuging things about the stove world is all the different approaches to the same problem of maximizing combustion cleanly with maximum heat transfer into the living space. I would argue that for all the debate about cat vs non cat, cast vs steel vs soapstone, really they all have their advantages and disadvantages and which is really better is a moot point. You learn to operate what you have to its optimum capabilities and if you sized it appropriately and chose the benefits most important to your needs you end up loving what you have. Elk, I must say, with your experience with the little VC cat stove you have it is a great reason for anyone looking for a long burning small stove to go that direction!