Cat or no Cat??

[North of 60]

And blaze king has their non-cat line to test the waters.


Yes testing the waters makes me wonder about the future of cats? I measured and found that the blazeking princess will fit in my fireplace opening. But,I dunno, still think that when I buy a new insert in a couple of years, it will likely be another PE.

Don`t think I could bring myself to gamble on parts availability,as much as I like the "princess cat"..

SONNY

Blaze King non cats are old. Lots still around here. They sell them for a high price becauce they can and they beleive in them.
The investment was worth it. I e-mailed the same question on availability and they said why change a good thing.
The stoves are made in the USA and Canada. Being a fitter/ welder there fabrication is superb from My observation.
There feet have been wet for along time on the cat and non cat end for quite awhile. By a spare cat @ time of puchase and im sure in 20 years you wont be burnin wood anyways you retired crusty fuss pot. :lol: ;-)

 

[eernest4]

Chief, before we replaced our old stove last year we looked at a lot of stoves. We intentionally stayed away from cat. stoves as we just were afraid of them and could see no advantage plus the cat. has to be replaced every so often, hence, the additional costs. Well, after a long search, we again looked at the Woodstock soapstone stoves (we had looked at them many years ago).

Naturally we also looked at the Hearthstone soapstone stoves too and liked the looks of them and had heard good things about them. But to make a long story short, we finally ended up with a cat. stove from Woodstock. This company is almost unbelievable. What they do and how they run the company is what you might call old fashioned. They really care about their customers and go to great lengths to make sure the customer is satisfied.

So, we got our first cat. stove. We found that maintenance is minimal. For instance, we just cleaned our cat. This amounts to removing the cat. (just lift the lid and pick up the cat.) and brushing it with an old paint brush. We also vacuum the fine fly ash in the top of the stove at the same time. This takes maybe 2-3 minutes total. This is the first time we have looked at the cat. since early January. We also looked at the chimney. It is as clean as a whistle. Even the cap is clean and does not need any cleaning. And we heat our home totally with the Fireview.

They told us we would use less wood. We figured that was nothing but marketing hype.

Wrong! I won't know for sure until the heating season is done, but right now it looks like we'll use at least 40% less wood than with our old heater and the house is warmer.

I am still amazed at this stove. Several times I've gotten up during the night and naturally went to the stove to check everything is okay. I do this without turning on lights as I don't mind walking in the dark. When I get to the stove it appears the fire has gone out. Many times all you can see is the smallest bit of red coal in the bottom...yet, the stove is kicking out good heat. Good heat means 500-600 degrees. How can this be?! I don't know, but I love it.

In short, I can not say enough good about this stove and the company. Think strong about it before you buy.

Hi backwoods,

Exactly what was the old stove that you replaced with the woodstock catalitic
combuster model that saved you 40 % on wood.

I can easily believe a 40 % savings over a pre epa non secondary burn stove, but are you saying that your old stove was a secondary burn epa stove & you got a 40 % savings over that????????????

I though the difference in efficiency between a secondary burn & a cat was that some cat models could be up to 10 % more efficient,tops!

Am I wrong??? And if so,please explain so i can further my knowledge.

 

[Todd]

Eernest4,
I'm pretty sure Backwoods replaced a non EPA stove with his Fireview, but let me tell you how much wood I saved when I replaced my EPA Hearthstone Homestead with my catalytic Fireview. I used to burn 4 cords give or take with my Homestead burning 24/7 from mid Oct to April. I had this stove for 2.5 years. After burning the Fireview for the same time period I only go through 3 cord. 25% is pretty significant in my opinion. I've noticed longer, more even burns with better heat output with the Fireview.

 

[slindo]

One thing to take into account, in the cat vs non-cat decision, is that there are expensive, hard to find cats, and cheap, easier to find ones. For example, the round ones seem to be pretty generic, so they are usually cheapest and available from a lot of sources for $90 or so. The long dedicated rectangular ones VC uses are up to $220 now. The difference really adds up over the life of the stove!

Another thing is how easy the cat is to clean, and whether full removal is necessary. Some you can just pop off the top or open a door, and brush the cat clean. On other, like the early VC Encores you have to move the stove away from the wall to get access, the remove a door, then pry the cat out gingerly from where it sits surrounded by some very, fragile, easily damaged, refractory.

 

[Backwoods Savage]

Hi backwoods,

Exactly what was the old stove that you replaced with the woodstock catalitic
combuster model that saved you 40 % on wood.

I can easily believe a 40 % savings over a pre epa non secondary burn stove, but are you saying that your old stove was a secondary burn epa stove & you got a 40 % savings over that????????????

I though the difference in efficiency between a secondary burn & a cat was that some cat models could be up to 10 % more efficient,tops!

Am I wrong??? And if so,please explain so i can further my knowledge.

Well, there are never any shortages of doubting Thomas,' so I am not surprised that my figures would be challenged (and I mean no offense by this). We replaced our Ashley with a Fireview. I'll not argue with so-called "known and proven" figures. I only state what is true in our case. That is, all I know is that we are burning a whole lot less wood and staying much warmer than we have in the past.

Also, we've used an Ashley stove since 1977 or 1978 (not sure which year but is immaterial). The point being that we heated with an Ashley for many, many moons and we've heated with a Fireview for part of one heating season. Perhaps I can be more exact if you ask me in May 2009. That will give us two heating seasons with the Fireview. Also, this year's heating season is not over with yet, but I will post our wood usage when we are done heating this Spring....if that ever happens! Where is the warmer air?

In the meantime, we will cut and burn less wood and stay warmer. Thank you.

 

[Backwoods Savage]

I also find it interesting that Todd is experiencing a 25% difference....not 10%. That is also comparing Hearthstone with Woodstock. I find that amazing.

 

[Highbeam]

Just think... if todd went back to the hearthstone he would need to cut and stack 33% more wood. He only saved 25% by switching to the woodstock. I love flipping that math.

 

[Todd]

Huh? :-S

 

[Backwoods Savage]

Todd, if you are using 3 cords and then need to increase that to 4 cords, that extra cord is equivalent to 33% of your present 3 cord stack. Math is strange, huh.

 

[brewmaster15]

Hi all,
Relative newbie on this forum.... and definetly not an expert... just sharing here...
I have a VC Dutchwest 2462 (extra large ) with catalytic....I think I have had it close to 7 years now.. was running great the first 5-6 years and then needed some catalytic work .. replaced the combustor last year and ran like a charm... I'm not sure what it cost but I think it was $190 at a wood stove shop....once I had it I found the manufacturer , condor, sells direct at half the price...so thats basically alls it cost me in 7 years...not bad I guess. Oh that and a replacement glass ..My fault there.

I don't get into the extended studies on run times many others do... Though I enjoy reading them.....I just know I load that stove up at night and it burns thru into the am....maybe 6-8 hours... This was critical for me...I use that stove to heat my basement fishroom/hatchery ....and also have floor vents to the upstairs bedrooms....But the fish room is critical...I breed a South American cichlid that likes it hot....Tanks need to be at 82-86 F so even with the wood stove...supplimental tank heaters are needed....If that stove doesn't work well.. the electric bill goes thru the roof! I run it Oct-April out here in CT.

Overall...I'm pretty pleased with the way this cat stove works...I've had others that were not cats that worked well too.. what sold me on it was its efficiency and its low emissions...oh and its not a bad looking unit.

A bit concerned on the current state of affairs at VC so as much I like the stove...Can't recommend it....but I think Cats are good way to go...even with the "maintenance and upkeep issues"

HTH,
al

 

[raybonz]

Hi all,
Relative newbie on this forum.... and definetly not an expert... just sharing here...
I have a VC Dutchwest 2462 (extra large ) with catalytic....I think I have had it close to 7 years now.. was running great the first 5-6 years and then needed some catalytic work .. replaced the combustor last year and ran like a charm... I'm not sure what it cost but I think it was $190 at a wood stove shop....once I had it I found the manufacturer , condor, sells direct at half the price...so thats basically alls it cost me in 7 years...not bad I guess. Oh that and a replacement glass ..My fault there.

I don't get into the extended studies on run times many others do... Though I enjoy reading them.....I just know I load that stove up at night and it burns thru into the am....maybe 6-8 hours... This was critical for me...I use that stove to heat my basement fishroom/hatchery ....and also have floor vents to the upstairs bedrooms....But the fish room is critical...I breed a South American cichlid that likes it hot....Tanks need to be at 82-86 F so even with the wood stove...supplimental tank heaters are needed....If that stove doesn't work well.. the electric bill goes thru the roof! I run it Oct-April out here in CT.

Overall...I'm pretty pleased with the way this cat stove works...I've had others that were not cats that worked well too.. what sold me on it was its efficiency and its low emissions...oh and its not a bad looking unit.

A bit concerned on the current state of affairs at VC so as much I like the stove...Can't recommend it....but I think Cats are good way to go...even with the "maintenance and upkeep issues"

HTH,
al

Hey Al,
I have a 20+ yr. old large CDW stove and it does a good job as long as your wood is seasoned and dry.. I pay about $100 for a cat and they last me at least 5 yrs. but closer to 10 yrs.. I have heard lots of negative comments but I have had good luck..

Enjoy!

Ray

 

[Todd]

The key to a good experience with a cat stove as well as any type stove is well seasoned firewood and proper draft. It really isn't brain surgery to run and maintain a cat stove.