Kent Tile Fire (and Sherwood) stoves

[Wodburner]

Every two years...no chimney....single wall to triple wall pipe.

 

[Exmark]

Load the Kent as a copilot and build some sides. LOL you will have to make sure the tire pressure is up to snuff...

I brought a load of oak home. Had to go slow. Forgot to add some air to the tires, with AL rims and winter. My normal 55 PSI turned into 32 real fast...

I read the baffle is a great modification. Does it need to be stainless ? Or just that just increase life of the material ? I saw one pic with no metal, just brick ? Could not determine what the fastener was though... I wonder if that baffle is more beneficial than any other insulation...

Been spending lots of time with the Kent with this remarkably warm weather....

I experienced diminished draft, so I cleaned the chimney and what a pain to clean the secondary chamber. I will have to see if there is an easier way. Single wall to a triple wall at the ceiling. Is there an easy way to remove the single wall ?

I used compressed air and a vacuum. There was so much "dust" or ash in the secondary chamber... Makes me wonder if the guy we hired actually cleaned it ??

Nice draft now. No more smoke while loading....

 

[russb]

Load the Kent as a copilot and build some sides. LOL you will have to make sure the tire pressure is up to snuff...

I got the stove this morning. Most of the wood was pine, which I grabbed anyway because I can mix it in or just burn it in the outside fire pit. Damper puck worked fine, and the baffles weren't warped as far as I could tell. Once I unload it after work or tomorrow I'll take a closer look and maybe some pics.

Got some stove pipe and chimney pipe as well. Now I need to think about the install. Time to call the local sweep and get an estimate, before deciding whether to tackle it myself.

 

[dougand3]

Most of the wood was pine, which I grabbed anyway because I can mix it in or just burn it in the outside fire pit.

Good deal getting a Kent Tile Fire. Now, if you Cut/Split/Stack the pine for ~ 1 year, it will burn great in the Tile Fire. I put 3-4 splits of 6-8" size and get 8 hours of usable heat with a great coal bed for re-load.

 

[russb]

Here's the Kent I picked up (those are my tiles, I was just playing with it), and pics of the damper and baffle. Probably poor quality, just posting for anyone interested, since this forum seems to like pics. Again, for a data point, I got it for $200 with a truckload of wood (mostly pine), and some stovepipe and triple wall chimney pipe, with cap. After I finish a couple more projects on the house, I'll get to the install. Local chimney guy coming to chat with me this afternoon about my 100+ year old brick chimneys.

Hopefully there'll be some cold weather left in NJ by the time I install it!

Edited to add: You can see I have nothing bolted to the baffle. Also, there's no firebrick at all in this thing! I plan to run it with the minimum amount of tampering, at least at first, but I will get some firebrick in there.

 

[Wodburner]

Not Bad for $ 200.00. I bought my KTF new and it did not come with fire bricks in it and I have never added any....and do not plan on adding any either.

 

[russb]

Not Bad for $ 200.00. I bought my KTF new and it did not come with fire bricks in it and I have never added any....and do not plan on adding any either.

Interesting. Do you leave an ash layer in the bottom? I think the manual recommended that, I assume for some extra insulation?

 

[Wodburner]

Yes, I do leave a covering of ash in the bottom. Do you have to extra cover on the back of the stove ? It is the plate ( more like a heat shield ) that has the serial # and build date on it ?

 

[russb]

Yes, I do leave a covering of ash in the bottom. Do you have to extra cover on the back of the stove ? It is the plate ( more like a heat shield ) that has the serial # and build date on it ?

Yep, it has the heat shield with the serial number and manufacture date, etc.

 

[aqua]

As I wrote when I did mine, I think the holes could maybe be 1/2" or so higher but not more than that.

It's great you found the original add-on piece. I think your warpage was caused by insulating the sides of the firebox too much. So much heat concentrated in a smaller area, the only places for it to go are out the front door and up into the baffle. Try splitting the side bricks into half thickness to gain back the lost firebox volume and it will radiate more heat out the sides as well.

I thought a lot about insulating the bottom of the baffle, but decided against it. IMO, it would change the operating nature of the stove drastically. The consequence of adding more insulation is increased rate of gasification of the wood load. The air system of the stove is not sophisticated enough to handle it, let alone control it. There's no air in the back of the firebox. Insulated on the bottom and sides with splits, the stove still retains its well-balanced character. Read the post early on where I used the Quadrafire stove to mimic the firing and air conditions of the Kent.

Tweaking a firebox is a balancing act.

If you watch the stove burn, you'll see the flames are always licking up against the front 4"-5" of the baffle. That's where you want the insulation. Until the steel becomes super-heated, flame in contact with steel will always kill the flame. The whole point of the mods is to move those flames forward, in front of the baffle holes, which is insulated and where the bleed air is waiting for them. It's a pre-arranged collision of all the ingredients needed.

Have fun and keep us posted.

 

[aqua]

Quick pics of my old and over fired stove. Then some of the new old stove. The old stove burned very clean as it had top bottom and side air due to almost every seam being cracked. New old stove received the holes in the air wash, split brick throughout, including the bottom of the baffle. The are held in place by angle iron and can be moved for and aft or just removed easily.

 

[aqua]

Quick pics of my old and over fired stove. Then some of the new old stove. The old stove burned very clean as it had top bottom and side air due to almost every seam being cracked. New old stove received the holes in the air wash, split brick throughout, including the bottom of the baffle. The are held in place by angle iron and can be moved for and aft or just removed easily.View attachment 123643 View attachment 123644 View attachment 123645

You can see I also made a retainer for the bottom of the bricks to keep them in place. I used the lightweight white brick on the sides and the heavy brick from ace hardware on the back wall, bottom, and top as it is less fragile and those are the areas most likely to get hit when loading. Maybe of some interest is the Oregon test cert.(pic). Installed and running. Oh so well mannered! Stove burns clean, after warmup and uses way less wood with very even heat. Me happy I am having trouble uploading the pics I will try again in a new post

 

[russb]

Waiting for my newly ordered Insulflex Magnaflex 30' chimney liner kit (ordered from theheatelement, member here, and recommend contacting him if you need a liner) to get here so I can install my Kent Tile Fire.

The entrance to the chimney, where I'll run my stove pipe to, is really low. Once I have the Kent up on a hearth pad (probably just the width of a brick like the manual requires, I think I'll pretty much need to connect a 90 degree elbow, have a short horizontal run (<20"), then into the chimney liner. How does the Kent draft? Once in the chimney it's 27' straight up, so I'm hopeful this setup won't be too terrible. Any thoughts?

Also, about the hearth pad. The manual lists asbestos and brick. I basically need a really cheap, quick solution until I get a chance/the funds to build a nice brick hearth pad that does our 150 year old house justice. Maybe just cement board on the floor and a layer of brick on top? Or cement board and sheet metal? This stove doesn't seem to need much, judging by the manual.

Edited to add: I have some left over porcelain tile around, can I just use a layer of cement board and tile to start with? The manual really only lists 3/8" asbestos and 2 1/4" brick as hearth material.

"The Tile Fire must be installed with the floor protected by a UL listed Floor Protector of 3/8" Asbestos Mill Board or 2 1/4" Masonry Brick. The floor protector must extend at least 16" in fornt of, and at least 5 7/16" to either side of the appliance."

 

[russb]

Any Kent owners out there? Can this thing really sit on one layer of brick like the manual and rear of the stove say? If so I can then do the calculation and figure out how much durock i need before the tile layer to match the R or K value of the brick.

Also, I have a Tile Fire C.H. model, for the record, per the plate on the back of the stove. According to this old thread (https://www.hearth.com/talk/threads/kent-tile-fire-model-question.5437/), it seems it's a rarity.

Edited to add: Just found this resource--http://www.hearth.com/econtent/index.php/articles/hearth_design

So I can extrapolate that I only need a pad with an R Value of 0.45, since that's the R value for 2 1/4" thick brick.

 

[Wodburner]

I actually bought a tile hearth from a stove store. It is 1 1/2 inches thick and does very well....never smelled anything burning or smoldering.

 

[aqua]

If you are building to code then you will of course have to look up codes for your area. If you are talking plain common sense safety, then a brick base would be plenty. I would grout the bricks so there are no cracks. My stove is fire bricked on the inside and there for a bit more insulated than a stock stove, but with the factory base and a fire 24/7 for weeks on end, it only gets warm enough to make it a cat sleeping area,or a good place to slowly dry your wet boots. My base is a layer of 3/4" sheetrock followed by durarock then 1/2" of clay tile. Side clearances are another thing....I am only talking bases.

 

[russb]

My setup will have no combustibles anywhere near the sides. Following manufacturer recommendations for the rear clearance, plus a little (but not much).

Think I'll just use a plywood layer, two layers of 1/2" Durock NextGen (think these are R=0.39 per layer), and then my porcelain tile. That might leave me with enough vertical space to put the stove legs (leveling bolts) on tile scraps and allow a bit of an air gap. That's dictated by the height of the wall thimble. I unfortunately need to use a 90 degree elbow right form the stove to go into my chimney liner. I'll (also unfortunately) need to cut away part of the wood mantle, since it will be dangerously close to the stove pipe where it goes through the wall.

 

[russb]

Burning in my Kent TF now. Since I started so late in the season and had nothing split, my wood isn't well seasoned, but once I have enough hot coals it's burning fine. I have some good dry pine that I'm using to get it hot. The rest of my wood is oak, which was from a tree that's been down for over a year (maybe two years) and cut into rounds for several months, but it had been sitting on the ground under the snow. I'll just need to keep an eye on the flue with the way I'm burning. I've had no problems drafting, even though I have a 90 degree elbow coming from the stove with about 20-24 inches of horizontal run after that before it turns up the chimney (which is 27' of insulated flexible liner--what a bear to install--went with pre-insulated Magnaflex liner, good stuff).

I went with a layer of 5/8" OSB, two layers of 1/2" Durock NextGen, and a layer of tile for the hearth pad, which is more in R-value (almost 0.8) than a course of brick would have been (0.45 if I remember right). Just added a couple inches to all the clearances suggested in the manual. I also had to tear down the wall around where the stove pipe passes into the chimney (via an old terracotta crock) since the lathe was mortared to the crock! Glad I did a little exploration before burning. There's one stud about 8" from the stove pipe, but with the wall opened up I can feel that it hardly gets warm to the touch while I'm burning. Not to code, but safe nonetheless. My living room is now ugly, but warm, since I also had to tear down the wood mantle. Oh well, plan to build a brick mantle/hearth for next year. And burn seasoned wood. I have access to a bunch of oak that's been down for over a year. If I cut it in the Spring I should be good to go for next year.

one issue with the stove: my damper rod does bind a bit near the full open position. Not sure why, but I saw some discussion of this in other threads, with a conclusion that if the top plate has begun to warp the stove's on its way out. I was just curious as to the explanation of this. So what if it binds a little bit? I can still get it moving just fine.

Here's the thread:
https://www.hearth.com/talk/threads/mal-functioningkent-tile-fire-damper.59631/

I'll try to get a pic of the stove burning in here soon. It's not a looker how as I have it set up, but I was focused on speed and economy. It's me and my fire versus the oil company now.

 

[golddustsilver]

Here is a website for Kent. Really good website they have. It gives the history of Kent and other cool info.There are part #'s for all the new and old stoves. Look under " Information Downloads". My KTF is going strong. Temps here in GA have gone below 0 with wind chill. I just found a different website that sells some spare parts for Kent. Check it out.

"I don't always burn wood, but when I do.... I use a Kent. Stay warm my Friends"

Welcome to a Warm Home - Wood Fires | Gas Fires | Heat Pump Space Heaters

(broken link removed to http://www.direct2you.co.nz/147-kent-spare-parts)

Hello,
I have a Kent woodburner that looks a lot like the one pictured in this post. We are actually looking to get rid of it and in doing some research online I found your post. You seem to be well informed. I am wondering if you know if there is still a market for these? Should I try to sell it? I have no idea for how much? We have never used it since living in this house...probably 8 years. I think it is from the 80's, and we didn't install it. t is in our dining room and not a place where we really hang out much. We have a fireplace in our living room. I am going to transform the room into a children's play area. Anyway....should I call a contractor to uninstall? Or are there special people who do this? I am a little clueless on this. Any help you can give would be much appreciated. Thanks!

 

[russb]

Hello,
I have a Kent woodburner that looks a lot like the one pictured in this post. We are actually looking to get rid of it and in doing some research online I found your post. You seem to be well informed. I am wondering if you know if there is still a market for these? Should I try to sell it? I have no idea for how much? We have never used it since living in this house...probably 8 years. I think it is from the 80's, and we didn't install it. t is in our dining room and not a place where we really hang out much. We have a fireplace in our living room. I am going to transform the room into a children's play area. Anyway....should I call a contractor to uninstall? Or are there special people who do this? I am a little clueless on this. Any help you can give would be much appreciated. Thanks!

Hopefully you'll get the reply you're looking for, but here is some sales data. I bought mine for $200 a month ago. I saw another for sale on CL in ME for $350. Another, I think in CT, for $225. Then again, I saw a post on here about these stoves being illegal to install in OR unless there's an EPA sticker on it somewhere. So that might dampen the market. Then again, I know some people who would still install it regardless of the regs (looks nervously around, puts hands in pocket, meanders away).

Why not put it in your living room?

 

[dougand3]

Hello,
I have a Kent woodburner that looks a lot like the one pictured in this post. We are actually looking to get rid of it and in doing some research online I found your post. You seem to be well informed. I am wondering if you know if there is still a market for these? Should I try to sell it? I have no idea for how much?

Here is some more info:
http://pasurvivalprods.tripod.com/kent.html

I'd think you could get $250, if OR law doesn't prohibit. I'd buy it if I still lived off the Sunset Hwy in Rock Creek.

 

[golddustsilver]

Hopefully you'll get the reply you're looking for, but here is some sales data. I bought mine for $200 a month ago. I saw another for sale on CL in ME for $350. Another, I think in CT, for $225. Then again, I saw a post on here about these stoves being illegal to install in OR unless there's an EPA sticker on it somewhere. So that might dampen the market. Then again, I know some people who would still install it regardless of the regs (looks nervously around, puts hands in pocket, meanders away).

Why not put it in your living room?

Thanks for the reply and information! I also read something abut the EPA sticker in OR which I don't believe we have. We already have a built in fireplace in our living room. We do have a downstairs finished basement area that may work. Not sure how safe it would be to have in the basement, although we did just install an egress window down there so it may be to code.

 

[golddustsilver]

Here is some more info:
http://pasurvivalprods.tripod.com/kent.html

I'd think you could get $250, if OR law doesn't prohibit. I'd buy it if I still lived off the Sunset Hwy in Rock Creek.

Thank you, very helpful. Sorry you moved away, unless you like it better where you live now. : )

 

[Kent Tile Fire Newbie]

Thanks for the reply and information! I also read something abut the EPA sticker in OR which I don't believe we have. We already have a built in fireplace in our living room. We do have a downstairs finished basement area that may work. Not sure how safe it would be to have in the basement, although we did just install an egress window down there so it may be to code.

My KTF is installed in my basement, and it makes a very real difference in the upstairs temperature while burning, not to mention the added bonus of a warm basement when doing laundry or working in my workshop. I cut some vents in floor, and the heat rises right up. Definitely recommend looking into a basement installation!

 

[russb]

Finally uploading a picture of my Kent TF in action. I might have the most aesthetically pleasing setup of anyone. Next year I hope to have a nice hearth/mantle and slightly more seasoned wood.