Jotul F45 Greenville Experiences
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It’s been a very mild Winter for us this year and I’m not complaining after the previous record snowfall Winter we had last year. I’ve only had to plow snow once so far and only burned two cords of wood!
Most days have been a 12 hour reload schedule, only a few times have I had to go with an 8 hour schedule. The last two days was one of those rare times. Seems I hit a wall once temps dip into the teens and below so this cabin needs more heat than a 12 hour schedule can provide.
I’ve been getting by fine Burning mostly Aspen all season but I have a small stash of super dry Oak I needed to burn up so the last couple days I’ve been digging into that. I can see why Jotul states firewood over two years seasoned can be too dry! This stuff can really take off fast and burns very hot! A full load has been giving me flue temps and stove top temps in the 600-700 range and I need to shut the stove down much sooner than my typical load of Aspen. Burn times are surprisingly shorter as well.
Overall the stove has been working great. I’ve kept the secondary air blocked by about 25% and that seems to be the sweet spot for the majority of burns. The extra thermal mass I added to the hearth seems to even out the heat some and deflect the radiant heat out into the great room more than before.
Looking forward to seeing some reviews once the new catalytic F45 comes out. I’ve heard they also have a thermostatic controlled secondary air, should be interesting.
Most days have been a 12 hour reload schedule, only a few times have I had to go with an 8 hour schedule. The last two days was one of those rare times. Seems I hit a wall once temps dip into the teens and below so this cabin needs more heat than a 12 hour schedule can provide.
I’ve been getting by fine Burning mostly Aspen all season but I have a small stash of super dry Oak I needed to burn up so the last couple days I’ve been digging into that. I can see why Jotul states firewood over two years seasoned can be too dry! This stuff can really take off fast and burns very hot! A full load has been giving me flue temps and stove top temps in the 600-700 range and I need to shut the stove down much sooner than my typical load of Aspen. Burn times are surprisingly shorter as well.
Overall the stove has been working great. I’ve kept the secondary air blocked by about 25% and that seems to be the sweet spot for the majority of burns. The extra thermal mass I added to the hearth seems to even out the heat some and deflect the radiant heat out into the great room more than before.
Looking forward to seeing some reviews once the new catalytic F45 comes out. I’ve heard they also have a thermostatic controlled secondary air, should be interesting.
Yup!
HPBA update
Just got back from the trade show in Nashville. There wasn’t a whole lot of surprises or new products. Most notable was jotul. They have replaced the castine with a smaller version of the Oslo. Same castings only smaller. The new cats are being made in Texas and have an innovative SS can design...
www.hearth.com
Swept chimney today, got about a pint of fine soot after burning just under 3 cords. I was a little worried that I’d have more since I was playing around with blocking the secondary air but all seems well.
I think I’ll change out the door gasket before next season, starting to get a little buildup in a lower corner.
I think I’ll change out the door gasket before next season, starting to get a little buildup in a lower corner.
After three seasons burning the firebox and baffle look great. No warpage, sagging or cracks.
Yep look great. I won't sweep until early fall when I rent a lift to pressure wash the house. Last year I had 2 cups of fine stuff. When I plugged the smoke pipe 2 months ago all looked well in it and at the tee. I had a great year burning after learning to reload at a lower temp and burn/expect at higher temps in the flue with my oak and hickory at 14/15%....One day I'll take time to write up my trials and tribulations. We had a very mild winter again.
Here’s something that’s been bugging me about this stove and other Jotul’s that I can’t find an answer to. The top of the stove isn’t just a solid cast iron top. There is an inner square piece that is gasketed and has retainer clips inside holding it down. Why is this? Could you just leave that cover unhinged and use it for access to the top of the baffle? Easier maintenance? Not sure if this cover is heavy enough to keep the seal and not affect the draft? Anyone know?
That’s kind a what I thought. Since my stove is rear vented I might be able to go through there with a soot eater and not have to disconnect the pipe.
I ended up popping the whole top off. I’ll just leave it unbolted since there’s a gasket around it and it’s got to be about 30-40 lbs. This should make maintenance easier a I could probably sweep straight up through there instead of disconnecting the pipe. There’s no way I can sweep down from the top with my steep pitch metal roof. There was lots of ash behind the turbulators plugging those holes as well as other nooks and crannies I just couldn’t reach with my vacuum.
EbS-P
Minister of Fire
I pulled the bolts on our F400 at the first cleaning. They didn't go back in until I sold the stove.
I've been running my f400 with Bolts Removed since day 1. No problems at all. Those bolts are long gone.
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