Absolutely a block off plate will increase the heat being delivered to the house quite a bit.
Is that a typical load of wood? Do you always switch direction like that? I load everything north south and that allows me to fit much more in the stove
Trouble with Blaze King
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Is that a typical load of wood? Do you always switch direction like that? I load everything north south and that allows me to fit much more in the stove
Ok I will work on getting a block off plate, should I also insulate or will a block off plate suffice?
I always try to put as much wood in each load. I most often load the wood the way as shown in the pic, they are 16' cuts but the wood always goes in on an angle (higher at the back), because of the coals from the previous load, so I put the one on top E/W
An insulated block-off plate will help increase heat output, but I wonder if there are other factors. Is the house poorly insulated, or does it have a lot of glass area, high ceilings?
You are right, the house is not the most efficient, 2x4 walls, windows are original, and my house has a lot of them (most don't open). House is built over a crawl space (which I have encapsulated and insulated). We will be increasing the attic insulation. Ceilings are 10ft
We also have an old Osburn 1700 stand alone stove that we also use, when it gets below -10C. Its actually more efficient with wood, and better heats up the house, I just hate that it goes out at night and I have to light a new fire every morning. The Sirocco will last through the night that is its only redeeming quality.
BKVP
Minister of Fire
That load isn't ideal. It look like 6-7 pieces. Also, crossing stacking results in lots of air gaps and more spontaneous ignition.
Do you have any larger pieces where you might reduce all that surface area to combustion? Any species other than pine available?
Our burn times are predicated upon larger pieces and buring Western Larch and Douglas Fir. Also, you may need to watch coal or ash level to maximize load weight.
Try a few of these items and report if you see any issues....and yes block off plates are usually well thought of in performance attributes.
Do you have any larger pieces where you might reduce all that surface area to combustion? Any species other than pine available?
Our burn times are predicated upon larger pieces and buring Western Larch and Douglas Fir. Also, you may need to watch coal or ash level to maximize load weight.
Try a few of these items and report if you see any issues....and yes block off plates are usually well thought of in performance attributes.
I see a few red flags.
1) The full load is not full at all. It's more like a half load since your firebox looks to be at least 1/3 full of coals from the previous load and your stacking is log cabin style. You need to pack this thing full for long burn times.
2) This stove, like all, is meant to be burned in pretty complete cycles but that pile of coals was not hot enough for you right? I suspect you were loading early on that heap of coals because you were trying to get more heat out of it. Classic coal accumulation problem from asking too much from an appliance. Running at higher settings means shorter burn times. You only get those really long burn times at low output levels. It's odd because you say you're running it on low but then you're not getting enough heat out of it.
3) Melted "plate" under the cat? You mean the 1/2" thick bypass plate? If that thing is warped then the fuel is bypassing the cat which will further reduce burn times, efficiency, and output.
4) Just another thought, running a BK cat stove at max output can be less efficient (use more wood) than burning a noncat stove at the same output level. The cat stove design excels at low/medium output for long burns where the house stays warm. The noncats seem to do better at high output settings and worse at low outputs.
Just some random thoughts. I hope something might help.
1) The full load is not full at all. It's more like a half load since your firebox looks to be at least 1/3 full of coals from the previous load and your stacking is log cabin style. You need to pack this thing full for long burn times.
2) This stove, like all, is meant to be burned in pretty complete cycles but that pile of coals was not hot enough for you right? I suspect you were loading early on that heap of coals because you were trying to get more heat out of it. Classic coal accumulation problem from asking too much from an appliance. Running at higher settings means shorter burn times. You only get those really long burn times at low output levels. It's odd because you say you're running it on low but then you're not getting enough heat out of it.
3) Melted "plate" under the cat? You mean the 1/2" thick bypass plate? If that thing is warped then the fuel is bypassing the cat which will further reduce burn times, efficiency, and output.
4) Just another thought, running a BK cat stove at max output can be less efficient (use more wood) than burning a noncat stove at the same output level. The cat stove design excels at low/medium output for long burns where the house stays warm. The noncats seem to do better at high output settings and worse at low outputs.
Just some random thoughts. I hope something might help.
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Performance is all a matter of perspective.
I have a Sirocco insert. It was professionally installed October 2020 at my house near Spokane WA .
The chimney is 27 feet of 6-inch double-wall, insulated metal liner inside the existing masonry chimney with an 8-inch square clay liner. Space between the new insulated metal liner and existing clay liner is blocked off only at the top with a sheet-metal plate that is sealed to the existing liner. The new insulated metal liner is topped-off with a standard chimney cap.
So far I have been burning Ponderosa Pine almost exclusively. Living in a Ponderosa Pine forest, it makes perfect sense to burn free Ponderosa Pine firewood.
My wood has been split, stacked, covered and drying for more than a year, and measures at 10 -15% moisture.
As most of you know, Ponderosa pine is a light softwood, and isn't loaded with BTUs. It burns up in a jiffy. Even so, a judiciously packed firebox (crammed full with as little free space as I can manage) will burn on low for 10 hours with no problem.
I grew up in a large super-drafty 1880's two-story farmhouse heated by an open fireplace in the living room and a woodstove in the kitchen. The vast quantities of firewood that those two consumed would be mind-blowing to most on this board. It was typical that a generous cord of white oak with a bit of Douglas Fir mixed-in to get the fire going, would go up the stacks in a single week. Mind you, this was in NW Oregon where temps below freezing were not encountered more than a few days each winter.
Heat output of this little Sirocco insert, and the niggardly amount of wood it burns, is absolutely astounding to me. I bought this insert to stick in a basement fireplace merely as an emergency heat source to keep the house from freezing up when the local utility goes into the inevitable FUBAR mode. (Another unavoidable feature of living in a pine forest . . .)
Anyway, my wife likes the fire so much that the Sirocco is running a whole lot more than I ever expected it would. Right now it is over 80F degrees down here in the 1200 foot daylight basement, and outside it is only about 30F. Upstairs it is much more temperate with the thermostat set at 69F. This house is a vintage 1972, poorly insulated, 3800 square-foot, monstrosity, with 16 foot ceilings upstairs, crummy insulation, and lotsa glass. Running the Sirocco down in the basement certainly cannot keep the entire house above 69 (let alone 80), on a colder winter day, but the gas furnace only come on now and then if a fire has been running all day.
Like I said, it is all a matter of persepctive - buying a Blaze King insert was one of the very few good decisions I've made in a long time
I have a Sirocco insert. It was professionally installed October 2020 at my house near Spokane WA .
The chimney is 27 feet of 6-inch double-wall, insulated metal liner inside the existing masonry chimney with an 8-inch square clay liner. Space between the new insulated metal liner and existing clay liner is blocked off only at the top with a sheet-metal plate that is sealed to the existing liner. The new insulated metal liner is topped-off with a standard chimney cap.
So far I have been burning Ponderosa Pine almost exclusively. Living in a Ponderosa Pine forest, it makes perfect sense to burn free Ponderosa Pine firewood.
My wood has been split, stacked, covered and drying for more than a year, and measures at 10 -15% moisture.
As most of you know, Ponderosa pine is a light softwood, and isn't loaded with BTUs. It burns up in a jiffy. Even so, a judiciously packed firebox (crammed full with as little free space as I can manage) will burn on low for 10 hours with no problem.
I grew up in a large super-drafty 1880's two-story farmhouse heated by an open fireplace in the living room and a woodstove in the kitchen. The vast quantities of firewood that those two consumed would be mind-blowing to most on this board. It was typical that a generous cord of white oak with a bit of Douglas Fir mixed-in to get the fire going, would go up the stacks in a single week. Mind you, this was in NW Oregon where temps below freezing were not encountered more than a few days each winter.
Heat output of this little Sirocco insert, and the niggardly amount of wood it burns, is absolutely astounding to me. I bought this insert to stick in a basement fireplace merely as an emergency heat source to keep the house from freezing up when the local utility goes into the inevitable FUBAR mode. (Another unavoidable feature of living in a pine forest . . .)
Anyway, my wife likes the fire so much that the Sirocco is running a whole lot more than I ever expected it would. Right now it is over 80F degrees down here in the 1200 foot daylight basement, and outside it is only about 30F. Upstairs it is much more temperate with the thermostat set at 69F. This house is a vintage 1972, poorly insulated, 3800 square-foot, monstrosity, with 16 foot ceilings upstairs, crummy insulation, and lotsa glass. Running the Sirocco down in the basement certainly cannot keep the entire house above 69 (let alone 80), on a colder winter day, but the gas furnace only come on now and then if a fire has been running all day.
Like I said, it is all a matter of persepctive - buying a Blaze King insert was one of the very few good decisions I've made in a long time
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Poindexter
Minister of Fire
I have never operated an insert, but from following along lo these many years block off plates are not only uniformly suggested, but when users install them and post back up, block off plates give impressive performance gains. Just from reading here...
I am curious to know how many pounds of fuel folks can load into the 25 insert/ 24 freestander fireboxes. One pound of wood has a predictable number of BTUs in it, regardless of species. More pounds, more BTUs. Total BTUs loaded in, divided by hours of burn time, equals BTUs per hour available, minus what escapes up the flue without a blockoff plate.
The 24/25 box is a tricky shape. I pinged my local BK dealer a few weeks ago, it was this burn season, and they didn't have one on the floor at all, never mind one I could beg to play with.
It is an issue with all inserts. They can use an existing chimney, but the floor has to taper front to rear to fit an exisiting fireplace. The homeowner doesn't have to pay to have the old fireplace taken out, but the other side of the compromise is a less than ideal firebox to load. I look forawrd to playing with a Boxer 24 some day, but I might get the paint to peel off it.
I am curious to know how many pounds of fuel folks can load into the 25 insert/ 24 freestander fireboxes. One pound of wood has a predictable number of BTUs in it, regardless of species. More pounds, more BTUs. Total BTUs loaded in, divided by hours of burn time, equals BTUs per hour available, minus what escapes up the flue without a blockoff plate.
The 24/25 box is a tricky shape. I pinged my local BK dealer a few weeks ago, it was this burn season, and they didn't have one on the floor at all, never mind one I could beg to play with.
It is an issue with all inserts. They can use an existing chimney, but the floor has to taper front to rear to fit an exisiting fireplace. The homeowner doesn't have to pay to have the old fireplace taken out, but the other side of the compromise is a less than ideal firebox to load. I look forawrd to playing with a Boxer 24 some day, but I might get the paint to peel off it.
