If you have a VC Resolute Acclaim Please help

[scalo]

I just purchased a VC Resolute Acclaim to replace my VC Defiant and would like to know what you run your stove temps at? also if you have any problem with the stove huffing. I have a ~32' center metalbestos 6" chimney I have been running the stove around 450 to 550 degrees and the chimney around 350 to 400and every now and then I Will get a huff from the stove for no apparent reason, any ideas?
Thanks in advance

 

[laynes69]

I don't have a vc, but sounds like you are getting some buildup of gasses. When you reload maybe you are dampering back too soon? When does it happen?

 

[scalo]

occasionally it will happen after I reload the stove, but it can also happen when the stove is running fine and all of the sudden it will huff and I will give it a little more air and it calms down

 

[logbutcher]

Fussy little stove Scalo: like any new stove ( chainsaw, truck, firearm, woman,...) you'll acclimate to its idiosyncrasies after a month or so. First, get the temp up to at least 500 F with full air BEFORE you pull/push the damper/recycle on. Second, then wait 'til the temp starts to go back up (the cycle gets going by closing the burning down some). Finally, then shut the air back down to where you want it. Those are pretty standard SOP's for most cat or non-cat dampered or recycle burn stoves like V.C.
And, check the leakage in the stove: smoke pellet, light bulb in the stove, cigar.
Be aware however, that earlier mid-90's Acclaims had serious defect problems . Cracked plates and casts, broken firebricks, lack of air control, deformities in plates. CFM Majestic (maker of the brand V.C.) sent most of the stoves "down south" where they would not be used seriously for heat ( no offense to you south of the M-D Line ! :monkey: )
Is the stove new from a dealer ?

 

[Ductape]

Interesting..... i just bought a new Defiant to replace my Resolute Acclaim !

 

[logbutcher]

Huffing Stove

I just purchased a VC Resolute Acclaim to replace my VC Defiant and would like to know what you run your stove temps at? also if you have any problem with the stove huffing. I have a ~32' center metalbestos 6" chimney I have been running the stove around 450 to 550 degrees and the chimney around 350 to 400and every now and then I Will get a huff from the stove for no apparent reason, any ideas?
Thanks in advance

Woops forgot the huffing part Scalo.
This is a tough time of year for stoves with temps going up and down, rain with low pressure, and wind. In the say 40's with rain, low baro pressure, your stack tends not to draw well, Add in a low burn, and you've got down drafts pushing smoke down the chimney in your face since there's not enough heat to to "pull' the smoke up and out.
For temps or low pressure conditions try smaller, hotter fires without damping or closing off the air. Or, use softwoods for when you need a short warmup fire.....like some fireside romance ?

BTW: was your VC "Defiant" one of the pre- EPA , ~1989, early Vermont Castings stoves, or one of the recent Defiants ?

 

[scalo]

Thanks for all the help! I tried a few of these things last night when I lit my fire and no huffing. The Defiant was 3 years old when I sold it and the Resolute is brand new from the dealer. I had thought that the chimney might be too tall and that that might be a problem. also I was thinking about one of those draft inducing caps but they are about $100 and I would rather try everything else before that.

 

[scalo]

Interesting..... i just bought a new Defiant to replace my Resolute Acclaim !

The Defiant is an awesome stove really heats well but it was too much for my house so I bought a smaller one.

 

[Ductape]

Logbutcher, are you a VC afficianado ?

 

[scalo]

My family is very big on Vermont Castings, I have never really had any problems with them. My Defiant never gave me any problems but it was touchy when it came to the gaskets. If they were not perfect it could get out of hand and was hard to control but normally it was great. Just the resolute is giving me problems with the huffing.

 

[logbutcher]

Just Say NO to VC

Logbutcher, are you a VC afficianado ?

Was in Love with the original high quality Vermont Castings Company pre-CFM Majestic buyout in the mid-90's. Vermont Castings was so good that it had a yearly Owners' Party in Vermont. Now it's a different company: lack of QC out the door, near no dealer or post-sale customer support, bottom line only manufacturer although with new owners ( Canadian Teachers' Union !) it may change. Not an "afficionado" of any product except Glock ( works in water, in mud, in snow) , and oh yeah, Subaru (also works in water, mud, snow !) . .

We've made wood ash for over 30 years from too many wood stoves: surplus Army tent coal, Ashley, Lange, Fisher, older Morso ( 2BO) , Tempwood, new and older V.C. stoves, Jotul just to name some of the beasts.
The two CFM Majestic "VC's" we bought since 1994 in two homes both had problems out-of-the-box; no resolution by CFM except when pushed hard, very hard, since our stoves are used for heating.

We are 24/7, 99% wood heat, 100% harvested from the stump on our woodlot. Two stoves: Jotul Oslo non-cat, and a VC Encore cat do the job. I prefer the cat for its efficiency, longer and cleaner burn, but the Jotul non-cat is simpler to use and maintain. Any stove needs yearly maintenance: cat cleaned or replaced, gaskets checked and replaced, leaks sealed, stove passages vacuumed, flues swept, controls operating correctly.

But then if there were torts for leering and drooling over our woodpiles, I'd be doing serious time.

End opinion: if we bought another stove it would be any brand BUT "VC". :angry2:

Now to lurk near the pile, the drool is freezing to the beard, in the snow :monkey: :help: I cannot help it..................

 

[Ductape]

Was just curiuos. I remember back when i was a kid in the early seventies, driving to Vermont with my uncle to pick up his stove. Apparently, back then you could buy factory direct to save a few bucks. A few years back we decided to start burning wood to save on the heating costs and bought an older Resolute (used)...... a late seventies/early eighties vintage. This year i decided a little bigger would be better, since our house is 130++ yrs. old with original windows & such. I bought a new enameled Defiant, mostly based on past experience of my own, and other family. My wife insisted it be enameled, as its the first thing you see when entering our house. OK with me, but i could live with cast iron myself. I know i had read recently, here and/or elsewhere, complaints about VC quality. I hadn't heard EXACLY what the problems were, but i've seen a bunch of used enameled stoves on ebay with the enamel literally falling off. Since there were a few of them.... i figured at one point VC must have done some penny pinching and ended up with a problem. Are there particular problems you'd expect me to run into with my new Defiant? I'm hoping to have good luck with it, as i love it so far !

 

[scalo]

is your defiant a cat or everburn?

 

[Ductape]

I reckon its an everburn, since its non-cat. Is that the official name for them?

 

[scalo]

there is a non-cat and there is an everburn, the everburn replaced the cat stove a couple of years ago.

 

[logbutcher]

Most of the "VC" stoves come without problems...like most products. It's the high percentage of consumer problems on sites , word of mouth, and by dealers that is worrisome. Even a 5% failure is high for anything we buy. You expect and should expect that a $2500.+ appliance like a VC porcelain wood stove will perform, not give the owner problems. We've had 3 red porcelain Encores with NO problems with the finish. Remember, like all porcelain baked on finishes it will chip, so keep up with touching up those tiny chips especially around the top load door.
Just burn your Defiant or Resolute correctly, watch your top temp (mandatory), use seasoned hardwoods, and keep an eye on the stove gaskets, doors, damper, and air control for proper operation. You should be fine if you also have a professional dealer to back you up if there's a problem.

Where are you two in N.H. ? I have a serious case of Oak envy that grows there since we don't have much Downeast.

Goodluck.