Question about wood stove

suitcase_sally · #1 03/09/10, 08:57 AM

I bought this house back in 1978 and there is a Franklin-type wood stove here. A week or so ago, I "overheated" it. "How overheated", you may ask? Well, it was glowing red in the dark around where the stack exits the top. Yesterday I was cleaning the top and noticed a hair-line crack extending out from the stack about 3/4 of the way to the front of the stove. Is this junk?

My house is small - two stories but only 28x30 for each floor. The stove is on the second floor because when I bought the house, the first floor was the garage and the living space was on the second floor. I remodeled the lower floor into living space, but don't have room there for a woodstove. If I have to replace this stove, does anyone have a suggestion? I keep the bedrooms closed (using for cold storage for onions and such) so I can't have one of those large, behemoths that most homes have. I'm heating maybe 5-600 sq. ft.

Can I cement this crack and continue to use the old stove?

Harry Chickpea · #2 03/09/10, 09:24 AM

How did you get a Franklin that hot? That in itself is impressive.

The stove is not safe in that condition, since the crack may just be part of the problem and the metal in the other 1/4 may be weak and ready to break. I would not use it anymore unless I had no other option, and I would braze the crack, then drill and tap holes and make a stovepipe sleeve or jacket to provide additional structural support. It would look like junk.

Five or six hundred square feet is a minimal area to heat. The second floor location pretty much rules out heavy masonry (Russian) stoves. I guess I would start by looking at the quadrifire stoves and go from there.

roachhill · #3 03/09/10, 09:26 AM

I would think you could repair the fireplace safely but Franklins are very inefficient heaters. If you want to use it as a real heater you would be better off replacing it. As far as replacements go I swear by old Fisher wood stoves if you can find one. They don't cost much when they go on sale maybe $100 to $150. The only small one was the Fisher Baby stove but that might be hard to find as the bigger stoves were more popular.
Maybe the best bet would be a patch so you could use it for a little longer then you would have the entire summer to find a good deal on just the right stove for you. Nothing cost you like having to rush a purchase.

suitcase_sally · #4 03/09/10, 09:30 AM

Well, spring is nearly here and I do have back-up propane, so I'm not really rushed.

Yes, it's inefficient, but I've got 80 acres of woods.

Does anyone have one of those Vogelxxxxx (don't know how to spell it). Those small one-log Swedish stoves?

haypoint · #5 03/09/10, 09:43 AM

Back in the early 1970s, China supplied many Franklin style stoves and some parlor stoves, too. Very cheap castings. If that's what you've got, it is a wonder it has lasted so long.
Any stove that you can open up enough to get a good draw will eventually over heat.

As a replacement, choose something made of cast iron AND is air tight.

In the UP, a small cast iron can heat a well insulated 1000 square foot house and keep a fire overnight. Look at some of the smaller Vermont Castings stoves.

If you get an air tight stove, size isn't critical. A stove that is too big can be shut down and control the heat, plus hold more wood. That means fewer fillings.

A small stove requires more splitting and often length is a problem, too.

Run a "wanted to buy" ad. Many people gave up on wood heat, have a stove sitting in the garage and haven't made any effort to put it up for sale. Your ad might spur someone to sell.

suitcase_sally · #6 03/09/10, 10:02 AM

I have two of those tiny box stove types that you can buy for $150-200 stored in my pack house. I don't know if they can sit close to the wall though. I have a back board that allowed the Franklin to sit close in to the wall.

suitcase_sally · #7 03/09/10, 10:08 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Harry Chickpea

How did you get a Franklin that hot? That in itself is impressive.

Actually, I did it 3-4 times.

What I learned:

a. Do NOT load up your stove with small 3" diameter wood and go to sleep.

b. Do NOT close the doors and leave a small crack open to "feed it with air". Can you say "vortex"?

c. If something sounds fishy, open your eyes and take a look.

I sleep on the sofa, so I was able to catch it before it burned the house down. The stack thermometer was WAY over in the 600º range.

Stephen in SOKY · #8 03/09/10, 10:18 AM

Englander stoves are very highly thought of by those who have them. Summers Heat is Englander branded for Lowes and Lowes really marks them down this time of year: http://www.lowes.com/pd_135215-76845...33291&Ntt=wood stove&Ntk=i_products&pl=1&currentURL=/pl__0__s?newSearch=true$Ntt=wood stove$y=9$x=17

ET1 SS · #9 03/10/10, 09:40 AM

For a stove to last from the 1970s to 2010 is impressive.

Just replace it this summer and you will be fine.

Wis Bang 2 · #10 03/10/10, 01:24 PM

According to my dad my pappy wasn't happy firing the old pot belly stove at the cabin until it was cherry red...

He was a RR conductor from the days of wood and coal stoves in the caboose. I remember him starting a fire at the rented cottage in Canada by filling the stove w/ split wood and tossing in a lit RR fusee so I belive the stories!

We have a US made franklin stove at camp & one of dad's buddies had frostbite during the 'Battle of the Bulge' and couldn't stand being cold. He routinely stiffed the franklin until the cabin was around 98 degrees and never got it red hot...

You need to close the vents once the fire is hot and close the chimney damper some. You tend a fire insead of letting it burn full out. I'd look for a small airtight stove and replace the franklin.