The Regency CI2600 & CI2700 operation thread

  • Active since 1995, Hearth.com is THE place on the internet for free information and advice about wood stoves, pellet stoves and other energy saving equipment.

    We strive to provide opinions, articles, discussions and history related to Hearth Products and in a more general sense, energy issues.

    We promote the EFFICIENT, RESPONSIBLE, CLEAN and SAFE use of all fuels, whether renewable or fossil.
  • Super Cedar firestarters 30% discount Use code Hearth2024 Click here
I posted my times a few posts back and I am only getting about 6 or so hours. I know others are getting longer. I wouldn't say mine is packed full but it is packed as full as I can get it with the way my wood is split. I was hoping for longer than 6 hours though.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Im only getting 6 hours too, with tiny embers left. And the fan when in auto mode is staying on 24/7. I discovered today that the door seal isnt tight. Put a dollar bill in and close door. If you can pull it out, the door seal isnt sufficient. Mine needs to be adjusted, but theres no clearance to get at the nuts. Very annoyed!
 

Attachments

  • [Hearth.com] The Regency CI2600 & CI2700 operation thread
    image.webp
    28.2 KB · Views: 444
We adjusted the door latch last night. It was a pain to get at the nuts, and remove a couple washers. The door is much tighter now. And the draft control is working better too. The glass *seems* to be staying cleaner too. The bottom corners of the glass were sullied overnight, but there's only a bit of the horrible black creosote stuff that's next to impossible to remove.

I also used Krud Cutter on the glass last nite. It helped
 
A running fan should not cause the temperature to increase regardless of the damper position. I was having a similar issue and ended up finding that the flue collar was not properly seated to the insert during installation. That has been fixed, but I haven't had a chance to confirm if it fixed the issue with my fan increasing the temperature yet.



I would expect the indicated temperature to be higher when the fan is off. This is because the temperature is of the insert (the outlet of the catalytic combustor). Running fan will remove more heat from the insert (and transfer it to the room) and therefore should cause the temperature of the insert to be lower.

It is good to know if the fan off prevents the glass from getting black, but it defeats the practical purpose of the insert as you will not extract as much heat into your house. Did you find that your house and especially the room with the insert were not as warm with the fan off?

Thanks Vetrano! Appreciate the info! What did they do to fix your flue collar? My temps always go up when I turn the fan on... nothing huge... maybe 30 degrees Farenheit or so but it's pretty consistent. Did you notice a difference yet? Thanks again!
 
I also used Krud Cutter on the glass last nite. It helped

Hi Mtnhiker, I tried the Imperial Cleaner from Lowes Canada... I first tried the non-corrosive kind and I spent about 30 minutes pushing really hard and it barely came off. Went back to Lowes and bought the corrosive kind... again Imperial (this was in a spray bottle) and warns you to wear rubber gloves and has the poison sign on it... but it was so so so much easier to clean with. Sprayed it on... let it sit for 2 minutes or less... wiped 95% of it off with very little effort.
 
Smoke... Hi folks! It's about -18 Celsius here which is just below 0 Fahrenheit... I loaded my stove up pretty full last night around 8:30 and came down at 5 am and still had some hot coals there... temp was about 250 F in the stove. The fan blower had shut off automatically so I was happy with that (I think).

I put on a couple of big logs this morning at 5... let it get up to 900 degrees or so with the Cat engaged. I then opened the stove around 6:30 and chucked it full. It got up to close to 1200 degrees with the cat. conv. engaged and I started turning the air damper down. Pretty much closed it down all the way (did so in stages over half an hour) and left for work.

It was still around 1000 F when I left (air down to about an 8th, cat converter definitely running) but I noticed a lot of smoke coming out of my chimney this morning. Is that because it's so cold or something wrong with the install? The installer didn't touch anything inside the stove or remove anything during the install. It's a new model and was delivered to the store where I bought it about a month ago. Thanks again everyone! Love this forum! So helpful to us newbies!!!
 
Hi Mtnhiker, I tried the Imperial Cleaner from Lowes Canada... I first tried the non-corrosive kind and I spent about 30 minutes pushing really hard and it barely came off. Went back to Lowes and bought the corrosive kind... again Imperial (this was in a spray bottle) and warns you to wear rubber gloves and has the poison sign on it... but it was so so so much easier to clean with. Sprayed it on... let it sit for 2 minutes or less... wiped 95% of it off with very little effort.
Thanks for the info! Cleaning the glass is chore - yes it takes over a 1/2 hr. I got krud cutter everywhere - hearth and dripping on the hardwood floor. It didn't mark the floor or have any bad fumes. I'll make a note if the product you mentioned. Sounds like it'd be good for an end-of-the-season cleaning
 
Here's what Joe from regency service emailed me.
Sounds like Regency is responsive to the buying public and willing to educate...that's good to know.
 
For the people that are getting blacking on the glass. How is the wood stored? Ex wood shed, in the sun, covered or uncovered, if it's next to a building what side of the building. Reason I'm asking is I was burning wood that is covered and burned great, I just started burning wood 2 years old that I stored on the north side of my garage had no cover except for some plastic on top, water would still get between the wood and garage with no sun. The moisture readings is around 15% but the wood does not burn as nice. I have built a cover for it back in October it looks dry again moisture reading around 15% but it still is not burning as good as my other wood.
 
For the people that are getting blacking on the glass. How is the wood stored? Ex wood shed, in the sun, covered or uncovered, if it's next to a building what side of the building. Reason I'm asking is I was burning wood that is covered and burned great, I just started burning wood 2 years old that I stored on the north side of my garage had no cover except for some plastic on top, water would still get between the wood and garage with no sun. The moisture readings is around 15% but the wood does not burn as nice. I have built a cover for it back in October it looks dry again moisture reading around 15% but it still is not burning as good as my other wood.
I keep most of my wood under a tarp and although there have been a few pieces that got wet from rain the majority stayed dry. I also brought a buch in the garage in the fall and don't see a difference with it.

What I have found is that if I keep the air at least half open only the sides and bottom get black. If I close it more than that the glass gets progressively more black to the point that having the air fully closed makes the glass almost completely black. The positive side is that I easily get the burn time advertised if I fill it up and choke off the air.
 
I keep most of my wood under a tarp and although there have been a few pieces that got wet from rain the majority stayed dry. I also brought a buch in the garage in the fall and don't see a difference with it.

What I have found is that if I keep the air at least half open only the sides and bottom get black. If I close it more than that the glass gets progressively more black to the point that having the air fully closed makes the glass almost completely black. The positive side is that I easily get the burn time advertised if I fill it up and choke off the air.
Still don't have my chimney extended due to the bad weather. The installers wont go up the roof with snow or ice on it. But this is a different story.

A comment on the wood storage. I notice a difference on where the wood is stored. I have it typically under a tarp away from my house, but on the deck. After all the snow and rain I brought some wood into the garage. About a half cord. The wood from the garage was burning worse than from outside. I believe that during this time of year the moisture level in the garage is much higher causing the wood to soak it up. The glass was really bad with this wood. The wood from outside is about 15% moisture level and leaving the glass black too. I brought a weeks worth of wood to the inside, next to the fireplace. This wood is now really dry and burning much cleaner. The black hard creosote is nearly gone. Another observation I made is that if the glass door is cold the build up is quickly visible due to condensation. This sticks then. When I slightly lean the door open I can heat the glass up slowly and avoid the condensation. I even keep the door slightly leaned after engaging the CAT (which actually engages) and then when everything has settled and the glass is hot I close the door completely. With this technique and the dry indoor wood I nearly completely avoid build up. There is still some at the bottom side where the hinges are, but can be easily wiped away with a cloth.
 
I keep most of my wood under a tarp and although there have been a few pieces that got wet from rain the majority stayed dry. I also brought a buch in the garage in the fall and don't see a difference with it.

What I have found is that if I keep the air at least half open only the sides and bottom get black. If I close it more than that the glass gets progressively more black to the point that having the air fully closed makes the glass almost completely black. The positive side is that I easily get the burn time advertised if I fill it up and choke off the air.

Very cool! How long do you see a flame for? I'm trying to sort this out myself here... I'm getting around 8 hours of heat or so but only seeing a flame for 3 or 4 hours (that was last night's burn anyway)... thanks again!
 
Very cool! How long do you see a flame for? I'm trying to sort this out myself here... I'm getting around 8 hours of heat or so but only seeing a flame for 3 or 4 hours (that was last night's burn anyway)... thanks again!

The times you posted are very reasonable depending on how much you fill the stove and your air settings. I typically only add 3-5 splits (reasonably large - about 6-8" thick and about 14-16" long) and will get times in the range you stated. If I fill it right (I have only done this once or twice) up i will get heat for 12 hours plus.
 
The times you posted are very reasonable depending on how much you fill the stove and your air settings. I typically only add 3-5 splits (reasonably large - about 6-8" thick and about 14-16" long) and will get times in the range you stated. If I fill it right (I have only done this once or twice) up i will get heat for 12 hours plus.
Thanks again! I stacked i pretty well last night and got 9.5 hours of heat easily... my coals were about bright still and the stove was at about 330 degrees Fahrenheit. I don't like the wood I have at the moment so I think there's room for improvement there... thanks again!
 
Thanks again! I stacked i pretty well last night and got 9.5 hours of heat easily... my coals were about bright still and the stove was at about 330 degrees Fahrenheit. I don't like the wood I have at the moment so I think there's room for improvement there... thanks again!
I have found that hard wood vs soft wood can make a big difference as well as if you run the fan or not. Not running the fan gives me many more bright coals after an overnight burn. This is at the expense or reduced heat output though.
 
Door Adjustment... Hi again! I just did the dollar bill test and it came out very easily. I got the bolts to loose with a 7/16 bit for an impact driver. That was the only thing I could loosen it with. Anyway, 2 questions:

#1) I can pull the dollar bill out but there's a lot more friction than before. Should I remove another shim?
2) Do we only need to adjust on the handle side of the door?

Thanks again!
 
Last edited:
1) The bill should not pull out easily. It will get loosed with time and need another shim removed at some point.
2)the only adjustment is on the handle side. I agree that it would have made sense to have shims on the hinge side too but this is not the case.
 
1) The bill should not pull out easily. It will get loosed with time and need another shim removed at some point.
2)the only adjustment is on the handle side. I agree that it would have made sense to have shims on the hinge side too but this is not the case.
Thanks Vetrano! I removed one more shim but the door wouldn't close all that well! Your description was perfect... it pulled out but not easily before i removed the second shim. The insert is only a month old so I'll check it again on the weekend again as I break it in. Thanks!
 
Door Adjustment... Hi again! I just did the dollar bill test and it came out very easily. I got the bolts to loose with a 7/16 bit for an impact driver. That was the only thing I could loosen it with. Anyway, 2 questions:

#1) I can pull the dollar bill out but there's a lot more friction than before. Should I remove another shim?
2) Do we only need to adjust on the handle side of the door?

Thanks again!

I can still pull a dollar out of the door now after tightening it as much as possible, it's just a lot tighter. The latch is pretty hard to close now. We cannot remove anymore washers or the hardware won't attach properly.
 
Just got my first electric bill since install the ci2600! My electric bill is lower than my Nov bill! :) So the ci2600 is using less electricity than my forced air heating system uses. I'm finding that if it's cold out, 30s or below, my 2nd zone of heat upstairs is turning on. If it's 40s out, I can heat the whole house with the ci2600, though it'll only be 60 upstairs at the opposite end of the house, over the garage. 2,800 sf area in MA. stove is in a cathedral living room at one end of the house too. Please note, I don't think it hasn't been below 20 degrees out since we installed it though. Maybe one night?
 
Does anyone know about how long the auto on fan takes (or what the criteria is)? I've been watching mine for almost an hour now and it still hasn't kicked on. The stove was cool from over night (about 185 F) so I didn't get it too hot too quickly but it's been over 900F for half an hour anyway... still no auto on. It's about minus 22 F here outside today... Thanks!
 
Hi again! Just wondering how close you stack your wood to the glass? When I load Front to Back, the load of wood I have right now goes past the andirons which makes me a bit nervous. I'm experimenting with the loading and putting it diagonal this time around due to the length. I can't seem to get as much wood in the stove with my current delivery of wood. Next year I'll cut it myself to a better length but this is our first year with it. Thanks again everyone!
 
Just got my first electric bill since install the ci2600! My electric bill is lower than my Nov bill! :) So the ci2600 is using less electricity than my forced air heating system uses. I'm finding that if it's cold out, 30s or below, my 2nd zone of heat upstairs is turning on. If it's 40s out, I can heat the whole house with the ci2600, though it'll only be 60 upstairs at the opposite end of the house, over the garage. 2,800 sf area in MA. stove is in a cathedral living room at one end of the house too. Please note, I don't think it hasn't been below 20 degrees out since we installed it though. Maybe one night?
That's great news MTNHiker! My electricity bill is going to go from about $420 down to $250 for the month of February. I probably used $100 worth of wood but we're getting a nicer heat and I can cut the cost of the wood close to half next year when I split it myself...
 
Ended up having one of these installed at the beginning of February. I don't think my wood is the greatest, and I don't have a moisture meter (yet, coming tomorrow) to verify, but on the whole I'm liking it. It's a newer model with a cast iron plate.

I am getting 12 hours or so of "heat time" before the blower shuts off, and then have been able to restart from coals with kindling after 18 hours or so, which has been handy.

When I load E/W the glass gets real black in the lower right and left corners, moreso in the right corner. The only way to get the black off that works so far is a razor blade. The lighter stuff in the middle I get off with ceramic glass cleaner. When I load N/S the glass gets black at first, then will gradually clean up.

There's an issue with my gasket which I think is causing increased blackening. On the right side in between the hinges the gasket is...almost like it was soaked in glue I guess? And not puffed out at all. I don't think it's making good contact and is causing some of the blackening. I got another piece from the stove shop and will be replacing it.
 
Hi again! Just wondering how close you stack your wood to the glass? When I load Front to Back, the load of wood I have right now goes past the andirons which makes me a bit nervous. I'm experimenting with the loading and putting it diagonal this time around due to the length. I can't seem to get as much wood in the stove with my current delivery of wood. Next year I'll cut it myself to a better length but this is our first year with it. Thanks again everyone!

I stack mine all the way up to the door, past the andirons, but not touching the glass. I've found this is the best way to get a decent load in, no issues so far but it's only been a little over a month. Most of my wood just barely fits (which is perfect) but a few pieces are too long and I'll need to load them E/W.