Vigilant II Is Just Humming Along!!!

 
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nortcan
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Post by nortcan » Wed. Feb. 10, 2016 12:14 pm

Hi Dave, as always very nice photos/videos butttttttttttttt the last blues vid. is burning way too fast :) :D :lol: butttttt I loved it!


 
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Rich W.
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Joined: Tue. Nov. 26, 2013 10:29 pm
Location: Newport County, Rhode Island
Hand Fed Coal Stove: Vermont Castings Vigilant Multi-Fuel (coal for me); Vermont Castings Vigilant 2310 in the shop
Coal Size/Type: Nut
Other Heating: System 2000 Oil Burner; VC Resolute Woodstove (sold) Jotul 8 Woodstove (sold)

Post by Rich W. » Wed. Feb. 10, 2016 1:22 pm

Nice technique...and keeps you in the One Match Club!

 
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windyhill4.2
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Coal Size/Type: 404-nut, 520 rice ,anthracite for both

Post by windyhill4.2 » Wed. Feb. 10, 2016 1:44 pm

nortcan wrote:Hi Dave, as always very nice photos/videos butttttttttttttt the last blues vid. is burning way too fast :) :D :lol: butttttt I loved it!
Nortcan,i watched it 2 times when he first posted it

Now that you mentioned it again

I just watched it again :drool:

3 times this time

Still way too short. :)

 
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VigIIPeaBurner
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Hand Fed Coal Stove: Vermont Casting Vigilant II 2310
Other Heating: #2 Oil Furnace

Post by VigIIPeaBurner » Wed. Feb. 10, 2016 7:50 pm

windyhill4.2 wrote:
nortcan wrote:Hi Dave, as always very nice photos/videos butttttttttttttt the last blues vid. is burning way too fast :) :D :lol: butttttt I loved it!
Nortcan,i watched it 2 times when he first posted it

Now that you mentioned it again

I just watched it again :drool:

3 times this time

Still way too short. :)
Glad you enjoy watching as much as I do. Some nights I lay in front of the stove and watch them dance like that for a few minutes. Makes me think the stove should be mounted on a pedestal to raise it up off the floor a couple of feet just to make it easier to see. Of course that defeats how the heat would disapate so I'll take longer videos and play them on the TV - like Yule Log video for coal addicts!

 
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michaelanthony
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Hand Fed Coal Stove: Vigilant 2310, gold marc box stove
Hand Fed Coal Furnace: Gold Marc Independence
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Coal Size/Type: 'nut
Other Heating: Fujitsu mini split, FHA oil furnace

Post by michaelanthony » Sun. Feb. 14, 2016 8:02 am

The Vigilant ll loves the cold weather and the chance to flex it's muscles. Last night we had high winds and -10 temps and the stove didn't flinch, it quietly keeps cranking out the heat. I'm home today, I think I'll turn her up and see where she goes. :)

 
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Turbogeno
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Hot Air Coal Stoker Stove: LL Pocono
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Coal Size/Type: Anthracite, Rice and Nut
Other Heating: Oil hot water baseboard and DHW

Post by Turbogeno » Sun. Feb. 14, 2016 8:58 am

0500, -16°f, 70°f in the house. I’m slicing at the ashes from underneath, left side clean out comes loose and falls in the ash pan. D'oh!!! I had the stoker idling in the basement so I cranked it up and waited 90 minutes for the Vigilant to cool off some. I got the clean out in with the help of welders gloves but it took several tries. Gotta remember to keep the slicer away from those things. Now it's humming along again.

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nortcan
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Post by nortcan » Sun. Feb. 14, 2016 9:04 am

Turbogeno wrote:0500, -16°f, 70°f in the house. I’m slicing at the ashes from underneath, left side clean out comes loose and falls in the ash pan. D'oh!!! I had the stoker idling in the basement so I cranked it up and waited 90 minutes for the Vigilant to cool off some. I got the clean out in with the help of welders gloves but it took several tries. Gotta remember to keep the slicer away the those things. Now it's humming along again.
Very nice blues, stove and installation.


 
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Turbogeno
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Coal Size/Type: Anthracite, Rice and Nut
Other Heating: Oil hot water baseboard and DHW

Post by Turbogeno » Sun. Feb. 14, 2016 11:03 am

nortcan wrote:
Very nice blues, stove and installation.
Thank you, the only thing I don't like about it is that it has to stay below freezing outside or it's to warm in the house. I guess that's a good complaint though.

 
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windyhill4.2
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Coal Size/Type: 404-nut, 520 rice ,anthracite for both

Post by windyhill4.2 » Sun. Feb. 14, 2016 11:21 am

Awesome stove.....

Color of the paint

Style of the stove

Fire & flame show

All beautiful :D

 
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michaelanthony
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Coal Size/Type: 'nut
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Post by michaelanthony » Sun. Feb. 14, 2016 11:30 am

Turbogeno wrote:0500, -16°f, 70°f in the house. I’m slicing at the ashes from underneath, left side clean out comes loose and falls in the ash pan. D'oh!!! I had the stoker idling in the basement so I cranked it up and waited 90 minutes for the Vigilant to cool off some. I got the clean out in with the help of welders gloves but it took several tries. Gotta remember to keep the slicer away from those things. Now it's humming along again.
Hi Turbogeno, that same scenario happened to me a couple yrs back. I remedied this by flipping the clean out covers over, this puts the "L" shaped edge along the bottom and not at the top where the slicing tool can hit it and jar it loose. Hope this helps.

 
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VigIIPeaBurner
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Post by VigIIPeaBurner » Sun. Feb. 14, 2016 7:38 pm

Turbogeno wrote:0500, -16°f, 70°f in the house. I’m slicing at the ashes from underneath, left side clean out comes loose and falls in the ash pan. D'oh!!! I had the stoker idling in the basement so I cranked it up and waited 90 minutes for the Vigilant to cool off some. I got the clean out in with the help of welders gloves but it took several tries. Gotta remember to keep the slicer away from those things. Now it's humming along again.
Do you have the cleanout cover installed with the tang at the bottom?

I have never found a real reason to slice from underneath. By underneath, I mean removing the grate cover plate inside the double doors and beneath the fettle. I find it messy and unnecessarily creates a lot of fly ash that escapes the draft of the chimney and ends up in the room. Makes spousal unit uncooperative :roll: It seems much easier to stay on top of the fettle and first push the ash inward and down to clear the edge of the fettle until the ears of the grates are partially visible. Then knife deeply, inward and down matching the angle of the fettle and the first grill bar. I try to knife into the gap between two grates but IMHO it doesn't matter just so your pushing the ash down with each slice.


I only slice after I shake. I only slice where I see a reduced glow from below. I use cake pan that just fits between the legs to catch falling ash and errant embers that might dislodge while slicing. I also acts as a mirror so I see the glow that shows thru the grates so I put the effort to the grates that appear dull in the picture below. The picture is a shot of the cake pan that was pulled out so the back edge was just under the edge of the ash drop. You can see the center cleared well from shaking and I need to knife the sides. Monitoring the cleaning effort also keeps burning coal from wastefully dropping into the ash pan.

 
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Turbogeno
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Coal Size/Type: Anthracite, Rice and Nut
Other Heating: Oil hot water baseboard and DHW

Post by Turbogeno » Mon. Feb. 15, 2016 5:49 am

Tang was on the bottom, I just wasn't careful enough.
I'll try your de-ashing procedure. Slicing from underneath does cause fly ash but I've been keeping one door closed while slicing and making sure I have a good draft so most of it goes up the chimney.

 
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blrman07
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Post by blrman07 » Mon. Feb. 15, 2016 6:26 am

I have to slice daily or the stove will ash up and performance will drop enough for it to be noticible. For my morning cleaning I first open the ash pan and leave it open while I take the ash pan outside and dump it in the drive or into old coal bags OUTSIDE. Always outside.

I replace the empty pan and open both doors. I use a chopping knife with a hefty blade I got at a thrift store for a quarter and lift out the cover plate which gives access to the bottom of the grates with the ash door closed. There is a little slot to stick the knife in at the bottom center of the plate. Insert knife and lift up and out. I set it in the $1.50 roasting pan from Dollar General I place underneath the stove to catch the oops moments.

I then close and latch the right door. I take a thin long bread knife I got at a yard sale for a dime and slice the grates front to back and slightly upward between each set of grates. Then I take my knife and plunge it into the coal bed from the top to collapse the bridging. Then I let it settle a moment, open the right side door, close the left and repeat. With one door closed at all times you don't get ash escaping or if you do it's very very little if your draft is good.

For the cleaning before bed time I first turn on the electric blanket on our bed. You got to have your priorites set when burning coal :D I go back downstairs and shake it and do a quick knifing. That livens up the fire very nicely. Load and jump into a nice warm bed. :yes:

If at any time I have gone too long and the fire is lazy or on life support, I fill a couple of inches first making sure to leave some red coal showing, open the ash door and wait till I have some blues. Then I take out the front plate and ash carefully so as not to drop the coals all the way to the grate. Then I put the plate back, open the ash door and let it fluff up. That is always a good time to check messages. I have my laptop on the dining room table and the stove is in the dining room. I had a runaway fire one time because I opened the ash door and forgot about it. I smelled the stove. No damage but it taught me a lesson to always check the ash door. Then I finish topping off and let it sit. Most of the time within an hour or so it will have blues all the way across and putting out heat. I have used this to bring a fire back where the coal had a feeble orange glow in the center and I brought it back. Haven't lost a fire yet this winter. :)

PS I also keep about a half dozen very dry and well aged logs (oak and maple) in the basement for those moments where I let it go too long and adding coal would snuff it out. I use a maple right on the feeble coals and place an oak across at it's middle to make a small V, let them catch then add coal around them. Works every time.

 
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Rich W.
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Location: Newport County, Rhode Island
Hand Fed Coal Stove: Vermont Castings Vigilant Multi-Fuel (coal for me); Vermont Castings Vigilant 2310 in the shop
Coal Size/Type: Nut
Other Heating: System 2000 Oil Burner; VC Resolute Woodstove (sold) Jotul 8 Woodstove (sold)

Post by Rich W. » Mon. Feb. 15, 2016 10:36 pm

I don't use the slicer at all. After the initial shake I go in through the grill with a long 1/4" rod, down through each grate slot, and lift the pile lightly to free up bottom ash. I shake again and watch the unleashed air heat things up. Then I add fresh coal.

I do the same thing with both Vigilants (1400 and 2310) with good results. The 2310 has deeper grates, but the technique still works for me. Here's a photo of the rod I use propped up on my new 2310 in the shop. I have no idea where these handy rods came from; they were just hanging around when I got the 1400, so I put one to use. Then the 2310 came along, so the second rod is now in service. Note the ball shaped handle on the end. It makes it easy to poke and lever.

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VigIIPeaBurner
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Post by VigIIPeaBurner » Thu. Feb. 18, 2016 7:59 pm

I used a rod for quit a while too. That's what's in use in the picture 3 posts up. Started to use the flat stock knife when I realized it's also a "mobile" shaker grate. After I insert it, slice down, and lift, I twist the knife on its axis. This twisting motion replicates a rocker grate like so many box stoves use. I finish up with a few more shakes to even out the bed.


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