Time between reloads NC-30.

[mgh-pa]

Of course this question is highly subjective due to the nature of the wood being burnt, size, room size, draft settings, etc. However, with 1.5yr dried oak, heating my basement and upstairs, my NC30 seems to be able to keep the temps upstairs around 68-70 with outdoor temps hovering in the low to mid 20s at night. I still feel like I'm loading too much too often, however. I can load it at 6:00am, and then when I get home from work at 4:00pm, the fire is out, but if I rake the ashes, there are hot coals to be found, but temps have dropped quite a bit.

I really was expecting 10hr burn times with this stove with well seasoned wood.

I'm still learning the draft setting as well, and can't really figure out the best setting at this point. I think the best spot with my wood I'm burning is just below half open, so we'll see.

Anyways, what types of burn times is everyone getting and at what intake settings?

 

[pen]

Sorry but that sounds pretty much normal considering where you are heating from. Many people have different views on what "burn time" means. To me, it's how long I can go from load to reload w/out using kindling. Others say how long the stove gives out "useable heat." Sky is the limit. The lack of a clear definition here is often a source of confusion.

Heating from the basement isn't easy.

Is your basement living space? Are the walls finished or concrete? Full concrete (or block) walls or 1/2 walls?

If you have a full concrete wall basement, you may find the best thing is to insulate the basement walls so that less heat gets absorbed by them.

pen

 

[My Oslo heats my home]

I have always interpreted 'burn time' as time between loads without using kindling too. My long burns end up being the overnights, somewhere between 7-9 hours depending on different conditions and wood being used. I burn only oak in the overnights and I leave the days worth of ash inside the firebox. The well insulated bed of ash does an incredible job at having some decent coals in the morning for the startup. 9 out of 10 time I get coals first thing.

 

[mgh-pa]

Oh I can live with it. I just wasn't curious as to whether it was normal or not. I'm super happy with the stove so far compared to what my old stove was doing heat wise. If I can get overnight burns (meaning coals in the AM), and close to the same for daytime burns, I can live with it.

Pen, my basement is bare concrete block walls. The basement is half below grade.

I've thought of doing closed cell insulation on the exterior walls (or framing in walls), but there's one tiny corner that still for whatever reason gets some moisture/humidity, and I haven't been able to figure it out. The second I start framing and insulating, then I'll be worried about mold.

 

[katwillny]

If I load at 11 pm with well seasoned black locust I will have a nice bed of coal at 7am and upon reload within 15-20 minutes the stove is back up at 450-525. I have noticed that I go through a lot of wood on the weekends but thats mainly cause i dont like to see the stove hovering at 300 - 350 degrees. I like to run her at 500 to 600.
Can someone define what "useable heat" is? what temps is considered usable heat?

 

[SlyFerret]

Most of the winter I load once in the morning at about 7am, and once in the evening, usually around 10pm.

When we finally get some real cold, with highs in the teens and single digit lows, I'll add a 3rd load. When we have single digit highs and sub zero lows, I can finally keep it going most of the time.

I usually have coals in the morning. Not as common at 10pm during most of the winter. A quarter of a supercedar does the trick.

-SF

 

[rdust]

Can someone define what "useable heat" is? what temps is considered usable heat?

Nope, usable heat is determined by each individual imo. What's usable for you may not be for someone else. When it's in the Mid 30's to low 40's my BK has usable heat for 24 plus hours. If it was in a basement there is no way a 250-300 degree stove top would be considered usable.

 

[mgh-pa]

Most of the winter I load once in the morning at about 7am, and once in the evening, usually around 10pm.

When we finally get some real cold, with highs in the teens and single digit lows, I'll add a 3rd load. When we have single digit highs and sub zero lows, I can finally keep it going most of the time.

I usually have coals in the morning. Not as common at 10pm during most of the winter. A quarter of a supercedar does the trick.

-SF

So do you have red coals after 15 hours?

Nevermind, I'm an idiot. Didn't read those last sentences.

 

[SlyFerret]

Sometimes, not always.

The 30 is a little oversized for my 1600 sqft house. The place was built just under 15 years ago, so insulation is decent. We got lucky that this house is pretty easy to heat with the stove.

-SF

 

[BrotherBart]

Two days ago I kicked off burning around the clock. I load the stove at nine at night and always have a 250 or so stove top temp and sufficient coals to drag to the front and do a three big split reload. Not having to do stuff like work for a living anymore that occurs around nine in the morning. Then I rake'em and do it again with slightly smaller splits at four in the afternoon and have enough red stuff for the night load at nine again. 40's in the say and twenties at night now. Gets colder I will have to get up earlier. >:-( And use bigger splits and back up the reload time to three o'clock.

Oh how I remember those days of getting a load going while getting ready to leave at six in the morning and racing home to try to get back before the house got too cold. Don't miss those days one damn bit. Did that for eighteen winters here. I feel your pain.

 

[ohlongarm]

Fire started at 5pm last night,ash 10 years old from dead standing tree cut this fall,a small bit of punk in center. Nine am this morning stovetop 300 house 72,raked some really hot coals all the way to front.Threw 3 small cherry splits on top of raked pie of coals stovetop went to 600 easily cut her down cruising at 500 I'm good till 5pm tonight,house now at 74. useable heat after 16 hours with sub par wood.Not hijacking just showing differences in the beasts called woodstoves.

 

[BrotherBart]

Fire started at 5pm last night,ash 10 years old from dead standing tree cut this fall,a small bit of punk in center. Nine am this morning stovetop 300 house 72,raked some really hot coals all the way to front.Threw 3 small cherry splits on top of raked pie of coals stovetop went to 600 easily cut her down cruising at 500 I'm good till 5pm tonight,house now at 74. useable heat after 16 hours with sub par wood.Not hijacking just showing differences in the beasts called woodstoves.

Loaded the 30 May the sixteenth. Reloaded November second.

 

[ohlongarm]

Really? Guess i'll have to put the King up for sale and get me one of those 30's always heard they were great stoves,great to see burn times that long in a non cat.Congrats!