Below are pics of the old and new.
Have used the new stove all last season and this one so far. Have come to find out the differences in both of them. It was hard getting used to the catalyitic stove from the old style.
Start with the Pro's of the new stove over the old one,
1. It does use less wood, Although the wood i am burning this year is a lot drier it still will burn all night.
2. The new stove does put out more heat, It actually is too hot when the temps are not that cold. Which is my fault as i should have bought the next smaller model. This one is rated for a larger house than mine.
3. It looks nicer, Now to some that don't mean nothing and i agree, But it is nice to be able to see the flame. We learned quickly how to keep the glass clean without scrubbing it. When you fill up the stove always place wood against the glass and it will keep it burned off. Be careful not to break the glass.
4. Stove pipe stays cleaner than old one, Don't know why but i would have to clean the old one at least one and sometimes two times a winter. This one is clean all winter long.
5. No elbow at the back of the stove to accumilate soot and creosote. New one has a pipe that goes straight up.
6. More air adjustments, You can control the catatyst air and the fire box air. These two are hard to get a grasp on untill it's used a few times. But once you find the right adj. for your home it's fine.
Now for the Cons.
1. Weight, new sove is extremely heavy and whereever you set it, That's where it's going to stay. It took four big men to carry it in after i took all the doors off. Also had to brace the floor, Now for houses built on concrete pads this is not a problem. It weighs over 600 puonds.
2. Size of firebox, The wood has to be split into a lot smaller pieces to fit in it. Length is shorter but not a big deal.
3.Firebox depth, The old one had about six inches between the bottom of the box and the bottom of the door, New one has about an inch. Ok, Why the problem there? Old one never a problem with burning coals falling out when you open the door. New one you have to keep the ashes removed religiously or you will have hot burning embers in the floor. Has happened a few times already. We did put it on a pad but no fun opening the door and stuff falls out.
4. Catalyst, Supposed to burn smoke and create a cleaner atmosphere, Hogwash, The chimney smokes as much as the old one. I was told you had to get the cat red hot for it to work, But if you do that you can't stay in the house. The stove will be too hot. also the stove stinks when it gets that hot. Now i know a lot of you are going to tear me up on this one, But the smoke pouring out the chimney is proof enough for me. The main reason we bought it was to eliminate the smoke.
5.Small ash pan, Now this is not too much of a big deal. It has to be emptied about every other day and the old one could go nearly a week. It had a huge pan. The ashes don't fall through the grates very well. You have to rake them around to get them to fall.
6. No auto thermostat, The old one had one that would adjust with the temp and adjust the air flow to keep it kinda the same, This one has no such animal.
Now i'm sure i have missed a few on either side of the pro's and con's. All in all the stove works good, it's just not what we expected as far as the burning of smoke and ash. We really wanted to help out with putting less smoke in the air and not bother neighbors around. I will say that it keeps the house warmer and i guess that's what it's all about.
Vermont Dutchwest
King wood circulator
Have used the new stove all last season and this one so far. Have come to find out the differences in both of them. It was hard getting used to the catalyitic stove from the old style.
Start with the Pro's of the new stove over the old one,
1. It does use less wood, Although the wood i am burning this year is a lot drier it still will burn all night.
2. The new stove does put out more heat, It actually is too hot when the temps are not that cold. Which is my fault as i should have bought the next smaller model. This one is rated for a larger house than mine.
3. It looks nicer, Now to some that don't mean nothing and i agree, But it is nice to be able to see the flame. We learned quickly how to keep the glass clean without scrubbing it. When you fill up the stove always place wood against the glass and it will keep it burned off. Be careful not to break the glass.
4. Stove pipe stays cleaner than old one, Don't know why but i would have to clean the old one at least one and sometimes two times a winter. This one is clean all winter long.
5. No elbow at the back of the stove to accumilate soot and creosote. New one has a pipe that goes straight up.
6. More air adjustments, You can control the catatyst air and the fire box air. These two are hard to get a grasp on untill it's used a few times. But once you find the right adj. for your home it's fine.
Now for the Cons.
1. Weight, new sove is extremely heavy and whereever you set it, That's where it's going to stay. It took four big men to carry it in after i took all the doors off. Also had to brace the floor, Now for houses built on concrete pads this is not a problem. It weighs over 600 puonds.
2. Size of firebox, The wood has to be split into a lot smaller pieces to fit in it. Length is shorter but not a big deal.
3.Firebox depth, The old one had about six inches between the bottom of the box and the bottom of the door, New one has about an inch. Ok, Why the problem there? Old one never a problem with burning coals falling out when you open the door. New one you have to keep the ashes removed religiously or you will have hot burning embers in the floor. Has happened a few times already. We did put it on a pad but no fun opening the door and stuff falls out.
4. Catalyst, Supposed to burn smoke and create a cleaner atmosphere, Hogwash, The chimney smokes as much as the old one. I was told you had to get the cat red hot for it to work, But if you do that you can't stay in the house. The stove will be too hot. also the stove stinks when it gets that hot. Now i know a lot of you are going to tear me up on this one, But the smoke pouring out the chimney is proof enough for me. The main reason we bought it was to eliminate the smoke.
5.Small ash pan, Now this is not too much of a big deal. It has to be emptied about every other day and the old one could go nearly a week. It had a huge pan. The ashes don't fall through the grates very well. You have to rake them around to get them to fall.
6. No auto thermostat, The old one had one that would adjust with the temp and adjust the air flow to keep it kinda the same, This one has no such animal.
Now i'm sure i have missed a few on either side of the pro's and con's. All in all the stove works good, it's just not what we expected as far as the burning of smoke and ash. We really wanted to help out with putting less smoke in the air and not bother neighbors around. I will say that it keeps the house warmer and i guess that's what it's all about.
Vermont Dutchwest
King wood circulator
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