Vermont Castings-Vigilant

[Ductape]

ductape thank you very much i will give them a call does you or does anyone know the model number of the stove pictured in naisbeat's message?

Its a Vermont Castings Vigilant.

 

[City Slicker]

?

I have a 1986 vigilant and use the thermastat controlled door in back. Have it set and have not touched it in years. Just around the corner from it is a hole with a sliding tear shaped door that I leave all the way open. I would not recommend using the draft reduction door just inside of the top lid - it causes the stove to smoke too much and interfears with proper draft in my opion. Mine has the solid steel doors in front which I only use when cleaning out ashes once in a while. I use the top lid to load stove and clean out ashes. Good luck!

 

[dustytools]

Im going to replace the gaskets in the top lid and front doors on mine soon and was curious if anyone knows what size gasket rope to use. It seems like I recall someone saying 5/8" at one time but it looks like 5/8" would bind the top lid. Thanks, Terry.

 

[havenodog]

Dustytools
I got my gasket kit online from a Vermont Castings supplier. I forget the name of the website but if you do a search you'll find it. They were real great and the kit came in a couple three days. There are still plenty of new parts available for them even though they have been out of production for some time. The gasket kit has all the gaskets for the doors and the glass. Even the top plate. Good success Greg

 

[PlankSpanker]

I feel uniquely qualified to respond here since I've been burning wood in a Vermont Castings Vigilant for the past 23 years. As with any stove,there are a lot of little tips and tricks to make it work well for you. These stoves can hold a lot of wood and if allowed to burn "open" with seasoned wood, they can get extremely hot, so clearances and a good pipe and flue are very important. For starting a fire (if no coals present), roll up 3 individual pages of your local newspaper. No colored or glossy pages ever! Throw some nice dry kindling on top followed by 3 logs (my Dad always said you need 3 logs to make a fire). Situate the first log so that one end is elevated by leaning against an inside wall of the stove. This will allow air to get under the logs and feed the fire. With damper open (handle on side horizontal) and top closed, light the fire through the front doors. Hopefully you have good draft. Leave front doors wide open until the logs are burning. Once you have a fire, close the front doors and open the intake vent(s) on the back and side. Now you can open the top and dump 8 or 9 sticks of wood in to fill the stove. Close top after filling and let draft create a nice hot burn. Shouldn't take more than 15 minutes depending on wood dryness. At this point you want to "shut down" the stove for a nice safe controlled burn. Close the damper and close both intakes and go to bed. Hopefully by morning there will still be a nice bed of coals that you can throw some logs on. Open the damper and open the top. Throw a few sticks in. I will sometimes prop the top open by laying a poker underneath the lid so that it draws air in through the top. Sounds weird but works great. I don't mess with the spring controlled intake door on the rear other than propping it wide open or shutting it completely down depending on what I need. My wife likes the ambiance of leaving the front doors open, but you will burn wood way too fast and most of your heat will go up the chimney this way. You will learn to love this stove but be forewarned, it will gobble up 5-7 cords of wood per season in a cold climate such as here in Minnesota. You've got a great stove at a very nice price. Take care of it and it will keep you warm and happy. Later,
Geoff

 

[wkpoor]

I gotta rep ya on that purchase. What a great stove at a steal of a deal!

 

[brbarnhouse]

Vigilant

I know this thread is old but I was just cruisin AS and came across it I just got a Vigilant stove my grandparents bought it new in 1981 and burned 3 fires in it total this is my first wood stove so I have no reference but my stepson has burned wood exclusively for a few years now and helped me install it and he was impressed with this stove my question to anyone that uses on is when I get it hot 450 or so on my flue thermometer I close the damper for the longburn and the temp drops off to 200-225 with the key hole door open and the rear damper open is this normal?

 

[Encore]

When my stove is running full tilt, it's not even that hot, but I have triple wall insulated flue. It kinda depends on what kind of flue you have


I find it easier to monitor the fire from the griddle temp though, not the flue temp.

 

[brbarnhouse]

When my stove is running full tilt, it's not even that hot, but I have triple wall insulated flue. It kinda depends on what kind of flue you have


I find it easier to monitor the fire from the griddle temp though, not the flue temp.

yeah mine is black stove pipe my griddle temp seems to stay around 450 but I'm just not getting the results I expected maybe I expect too much

 

[cheeves]

Your stove fits his verbal description to a Tee. He is only asking $200 for it, im just wondering if I drive there and find it to be worth the money and it is a coal stove can I still use wood in it? Thanks for posting the pics.

Yes!

 

[Chris-PA]

yeah mine is black stove pipe my griddle temp seems to stay around 450 but I'm just not getting the results I expected maybe I expect too much

You want your flue temperature to drop - as long as the stove temp isn't dropping too much as well. The intent is to reduce the heat going up the chimney and have it transfer into the room instead. I believe with that era of stove technology the damper just makes the smoke travel a longer path within the stove so as to extract more heat from it.