Our next door neighbor has the Spectrum with the same firebox. They normally get 10 hr burn times with this stove, but it is understandable with the uninsulated concrete walls that the stove is being pushed much harder. This is not an issue of firebox size so much as it is one of heat loss.
Yes, but now you have added value to the house and savings for as long as you live there and so on for the next owners too.
I don't overfire all night, ive got a temp gauge and it stays at the proper burn temp. They have been overfired before we bought the place as they are in rough shape. But if the stove is filled right to the brim, has a nice bed of hot coals, put on the lowest setting and left there all night translate into heatloss? Like the stove is sealed what does it matter if I am losing heat to poor insulation I am still only getting 6 hours.
What I am saying is that 8 hr burn times with a 2 cu ft stove are pretty common. And the Super 27 gets even longer burn times due to it's coupled air control design. If the stoves have been compromised by damage done previous owners then they may never perform well again unless repaired. It's possible with warped baffle for a lot of wood gases to bypass the baffle and head out the flue without warming the house. This is just speculation of course without seeing actual pictures of the stove installations and the insides of their fireboxes.
Absolutely. I am by no means saying it isn't worth it. Just that the claim it would cost a couple hundred is way off
I'm not a big fan of coal/wood burners. It's good that they finally are adding secondary tubes but this is not EPA certified and with dubious efficiency claims (at least for wood burning).
The 27 gets good long burns even with softwoods. The Summit doesn't get that much longer burn times, it just puts out more heat for the same duration.
I burnt coal for a while but didnt like the smell or dirt. And combo units are either good at one or the other almost never both.
No, but the heat created will be released into the house rather than through the basement walls, so the upstairs temp will take longer to drop below a comfortable level.
Coal quality can vary greatly sometimes rocks , mud and debris packed in bags , wet anthracite smells horrible I agree but if dry no smell no smoke , unless it’s bituminous
I only burnt anthracite I am in the middle of pa coal country. We have some of the best coal available. And to me coal stinks. It stinks when dry unburnt. It stinks when burning and the ash stinks. Some people don't mind it but I do.
As a sweep I can understand your disdain for coal . But there is no comparison for BTU , per pound or length of consistent thermal output
