New member here. Hello.

[TWilk117]

Hello everybody

I’ve been lurking around here on and off for a couple of years now. Thanks to all who have shared their experiences, knowledge, problems, and pictures.
I had jackknifed a stagnant thread in the antique section pretty badly. So I decided to start a new thread.
I bought a 1150 sq ft ranch house in 2015.
Most of the papers I signed said it was built in 1950, but some said 1947.. so I’m a little confused about that. Just about everything is original. It has a Heatilator fireplace. Only no Heatilator vents on the front of it. One on the back in the kitchen and one on the side in the little hallway to the dining room.
It’s extremely inefficient and I wish I could demolish it and get a nice big free standing cast iron stove.. that is completely out of the question at this stage of my life. Also I like it being original if that makes any sense.
So I have a small cast iron stove sitting around doing nothing.. it’s a Navigator Stove Works: NSW2 or Little Cod. I want to set this thing up on the hearth with a custom stand and heat shielding and add a hearth extension. Run a chimney liner down to a custom back plate and back fill with vermiculite. Inside the house I’m sure we will have to do some serious custom pipe work. I’m guessing a couple of t’s but waiting for a couple of friends to come take a look at it.
The stove has a 4” oval top vent. The stove builder told me that if I run a 4” liner down and use the vermiculite, my stove would run like a Ferrari..
My question to you folks is if I used a insulated 6” liner back filled with vermiculite.. How big of a difference or problem would that create as far as draft and performance.
The reason I ask is because maybe one day I may want to upgrade to something bigger. Also 6” liner kits are a bit cheaper than 4” liners that can be used for wood burning.
Thanks for any thoughts or advice. http://www.marinestove.com/codinfo.htm

 

[jetsam]

If you run a 4" liner and pour it full of vermiculite, you will be sorry when you decide you want to heat with wood, and need a 6" or 8" liner. The money spent on the liner is a dead loss, and you have to redo the blockoff plate and pick up all that vermiculite and haul it back up to the roof and pour it down again....

Honestly, just the savings of buying 1 liner instead of 2 is enough to make a new stove pay for itself right away- without factoring in the extra labor, wood wasted on the old inefficient stove, etc.

You can kick that can down the road, but it gets more expensive every time you kick it!

Then again, if you have cheap heat that you are happy with, and you don't plan on heating with wood, maybe the 4" liner will work for you long term.

 

[TWilk117]

Well I see your point, that’s why I’m debating with what to do?
I truly believe that this little stove will heat the house pretty well while I’m home stoking and feeding it. I’m home most of the winter time because I’m a gardener..The boiler will come on when the fire dies and that’s okay because I will ultimately be saving a lot of oil. Right now I’m just running an radiant electric heater, and the boiler hasn’t come on at all so far today. The house is small. The living room is probably under 400 sq feet, and the stove will be practically in the center of the house with a ceiling fan very close by to circulate.

But will tapping into a 6” liner from 4” pipe going to make a huge difference in the stoves performance?

 

[TWilk117]

I’m thinking yes it will. But would like to hear from the pros here.

 

[weatherguy]

Well I see your point, that’s why I’m debating with what to do?
I truly believe that this little stove will heat the house pretty well while I’m home stoking and feeding it. I’m home most of the winter time because I’m a gardener..The boiler will come on when the fire dies and that’s okay because I will ultimately be saving a lot of oil. Right now I’m just running an radiant electric heater, and the boiler hasn’t come on at all so far today. The house is small. The living room is probably under 400 sq feet, and the stove will be practically in the center of the house with a ceiling fan very close by to circulate.

But will tapping into a 6” liner from 4” pipe going to make a huge difference in the stoves performance?

Yes it will . I'd wait and put a 6 inch with a stove to match.

 

[TWilk117]

Thank you.
I’m going to go ahead and run the 4” and enjoy my awesome little cast iron galley stove.
If I ever get a larger stove I can put it in a different location and vent out a wall or the roof.

 

[TWilk117]

I like the idea that I will be able to heat the house for a majority of the time during the coldest weeks of the year just by burning stuff I find or cut down on my large wooded lot and at customers houses; with this little stove. It’s rated as 74% efficient.

 

[begreen]

Thank you.
I’m going to go ahead and run the 4” and enjoy my awesome little cast iron galley stove.
If I ever get a larger stove I can put it in a different location and vent out a wall or the roof.

That's the best plan. Going from 4" to 6" would be over a 2x increase in square area which is generally not recommended. This is a boat stove, designed to work in close quarters with a shorter chimney. Connecting it to a much taller and wider pipe would make it hard to control. Maybe consider putting a damper on the pipe coming out of the stove. A 14' pipe on this stove is going to provide strong draft. Don't use vermiculite here. There's a good chance of an upgrade to an insert once the novelty fades, that will want a 6" liner.

 

[TWilk117]

That's the best plan. Going from 4" to 6" would be over a 2x increase in square area which is generally not recommended. This is a boat stove, designed to work in close quarters with a shorter chimney. Connecting it to a much taller and wider pipe would make it hard to control. Maybe consider putting a damper on the pipe coming out of the stove. A 14' pipe on this stove is going to provide strong draft. Don't use vermiculite here. There's a good chance of an upgrade to an insert once the novelty fades, that will want a 6" liner.

✔️

 

[begreen]

I like the idea that I will be able to heat the house for a majority of the time during the coldest weeks of the year just by burning stuff I find or cut down on my large wooded lot and at customers houses; with this little stove. It’s rated as 74% efficient.

That is wishful thinking. It is designed mostly as a cook stove to heat a fishing boat cabin. Even stoking it like a fireman it is only going to put out a limited amount of heat. That should help warm up the living room on a mild winter day, but when temps are in the teens it's going to seem somewhat anemic. What is the btu output of the current central heating system?

Start cutting and stacking wood now. Your best bet for burning well will be dry wood. Oak takes 2 years to season.

 

[TWilk117]

Yeah I know @begreen I just tightened the chain on my saw for like the thousandth time. My living room is fairly small and it’s become my sleeping quarters since my ex left.. so I would be waking up and throwing more wood in.
I imagine rounds cut to 11” inches and split 2-4” inches will season rather quicker stacked in my sunroom.
I also imagine this stove will put off a lot more heat than this POS electric heater.

 

[begreen]

Yes, small splits will dry faster. If you have some ash in your woods, that will dry quicker as will standing dead trees.

Those little oil fired heaters are usually great, but it would take 3-5 of them to match the btu output of the stove.

 

[TWilk117]

Yes, small splits will dry faster. If you have some ash in your woods, that will dry quicker as will standing dead trees.

True. I do have some of that left since I halted firing up the Heatilator.. when I cut green stuff it goes in a different stack. Than there’s a rotting stuff stack and than the gooder stuff goes on the porch.
I know a firewood guy that hooks me up with a lot of ash. Burned great. I also know some tree guys that give rounds away for free.
Thanks for your input. I have read one your threads. I love your stove!
Happy holidays,
Tim

 

[TWilk117]

Those little oil fired heaters are usually great, but it would take 3-5 of them to match the btu output of the stove.

Yeah just the one heats the entire house pretty well. It’s costly though. When it’s really cold the boiler still occasionally goes on and off.. probably a good thing.
I hate burning oil. I hate ordering it and I hate paying for it. Electricity seems like the lesser of two evils.