Harman Mark 11 Questions (How Much Coal Etc)

Hello,
I have a new Harman mark 11 being delivered tomorrow and had a few minor questions. How much coal should I put in this? I see everyone saying "fill it to the top of the firebrick" is this right? I don't have it yet so I don't have the directions yet but, what should the barometric damper be set at? Finally any tricks with these that I should know about?

Yes, if you read thru the posts in this section, it will give a lot of information on running your stove properly and filling it up to the top of the bricks.

The Baro damper needs to be set at around -.04-.06 WITH a draft Gauge (Search on Baro Damper & Manometer).
Barometric Damper Installation

Barometric Damper? Do I Need One?

Manometer Install

There are a couple different methods to getting the fire started and established. Initially I start a good wood fire and layer the coal after it the wood fire is going well. when that coal gets burning good and hot I put about 3/4 of a load on it keeping a section of the hot coal exposed so that flames will burn off the volatile gasses from the new coal. When the blue flames get going, then I load it all the way to the top of the fire brick.

When reloading after about 12 hours, I open the ash door to get the fire livened up and then shake down the ash until I see some hot coals drop through. THen I shake a little more to get the consistent glow across the whole bottom of the coal bed. then I add the coal to fill it to the top of the firebrick, again keeping a section with flames to burn off the gasses. I leave the ash door open for about 5 minutes ( a timer you carry with you is a very good thing to have) then shut it down and its good for the next 12 hours.

You should have a couple CO alarms through the house. A second ash pan is helpful to allow the just removed ash pan to cool next to the stove before carrying it outside. This minimizes ash dust for me. I'll second the suggestion to get a manometer to properly set your baro damper.

Is it possible to set the baro at say 4 till I am able to pick up a manometer in a week or so?

you can set it by moving the weight to .04-.06 mark on the baro and run it that way till you get your self a manometer,or just cap the spot on the t where the baro goes and run it with out one.
just make sure you have a co detector in the house. I have 1 downstairs where the stove is and 1 upstairs.

I just set my baro according to the directions that came with it. It's better than nothing and should work fine until you get a manometer.

Well I got her a day early. As of right now I have the baro set at 6, the vent opened 1 turn, and the coal filled to the top of the firebricks in the front. Seems a little of to me though with them settings the magnet on the side is saying about 325 and the pipe one is right around 200. Does this sound correct?

Sounds good.

Post some pics of your setup. This is almost a requirement here.

the snowman.

the snowman wrote:Post some pics of your setup. This is almost a requirement here.

the snowman.

04freedom wrote:Well I got her a day early. As of right now I have the baro set at 6, the vent opened 1 turn, and the coal filled to the top of the firebricks in the front. Seems a little of to me though with them settings the magnet on the side is saying about 325 and the pipe one is right around 200. Does this sound correct?

Congrats on your new install! For the first fire that 325* sounds OK since it sounds like a low simmering fire to "season" the stove and burn off the paint smell. The 200* pipe temp may be a little high and you may want to adjust your baro to .05. Each installation is a little different depending on chimney and wind so you'll have to experiment a little with different settings to get your optimum burn.

As you burn a little hotter as time goes on the 125* difference is a little close I think. It could be where exactly you are measuring the temps, though. As mentioned earlier.....we love pics!!

For example, on my Mark III I measure the sidewall temp just around the corner from the front at the level of the top of the loading door and it'll measure close to 500* while the temp on my flue pipe about 18" up from the stove before the baro will run about 200* for a 300* difference. If my sidewall was 325* my pipe temp would drop below 150*. I keep my draft at .04 - .05 measured with a manometer, not depending on the baro scale.

Had a little mishap today. After shaking the ash down I put a shovel full of coal on and left the the ashpan door open to stoke it a little. In the mean time my coal delivery showed up so I opened the to shoot it into the bin. This all took about 10 mins. When I put the coal my temp gauge was showing 275 when I got done shooting the coal it was at almost 600. I shut the damper to cool it down. Did I do any damage??

Nah! But it's a good thing you coal delivery didn't take a long time. Never leave the room with the ash door open would be a good safeguard.

ya need at least 3 in.s of red hot coals with Antracite (Soft coal needs 6in.+) going all the time under the coals on top or the fire will go out. So keep the 3in. red coals and add more to the top of fire brick. This way you will get an long burn even at 30 below F. Like I do here. Shake it in the morning keeping 3in. add more again. What ever you do or how much you shake it or add to it you have to keep 3+ inches at all times. This info is from an old Firemans book from the eary 20th century I read 28 years ago to learn how to burn coal when the web was not there to help me learn.