Coalpail.com Forum

Hitzer Hopper

I have a few questions for anyone who has had a Hitzer stove for a while.

Is the hopper made of steel or cast iron?

How is the hopper holding up, especially where the hopper contacts the hot coals?

Is there any warpage or melting of the edge?

I just got a used a SAEY with a cast iron hopper and the edge that contacts the hot coals is warped and I could have one made of heavy steel plate for the cost of materials. but I was wondering about the life span compared with buying a cast iron one.

Good question Beemer. I'm hoping to hear replies on your questions. I'm planning on getting a hopper fed Hitzer 50-93 in the next few months.

I purchased a used 13 yr old 50-93.

The hopper is made of steal. The bottom part of the hopper is protected by a hopper "ring". Its a big chunk of metal the wraps around the bottom part of hopper that slides up from the bottom part of the hopper and bolted. The bottom part to this hopper ring pointing down towards the hot coals is welded together. This weld takes the heat much better than regular steal.

My hopper ring needed replaced when I purchased it. The previous owner admitted to over heat the stove and didn't keep up on the cleaning of it. This created a small warpage on the bottom edge to the hopper ring. It wasn't a big deal and it had very little effect to the coal coming down the hopper. I called Hitzer and ordered a new hopper ring (very reasonable price). Its held on by four bolts and it came with all new hardware. Again the hopper itself is in solid condition and because of this protective hopper ring, its NEVER in direct contact with the coals.

I also had to replace the inside frame that holds the cast iron grates and firebrick in place. There was a metal bar that is between the two grates that had burned out over time. This is because of previous owner NOT cleaning the ash pan, allowing hot red coals to overheat the bottom and top to this bar. Again NO biggie replacing this item out. I called Hitzer and ordered it new again very reasonable price. Simply remove firebrick and the grates and it lifts right out of the firebox. (pulling out is a bit tricky but is doable)

Again call Hitzer and they have same excellent tech help to answer these questions. I pretty much had a new 50-93 once I got done rebuilding it at half the cost of a new unit.

Hope this helps.

I may take a ride to the local Hitzer dealer and take a few measurements and pictures. If I tell them I want to see if it will fit in my stove I'll bet they will let me.
A new hopper for my SAEY is around $350.00, I know I can have one made of steel plate for a lot less.

Hi Beemerboy, unless the warped hopper is restricting the free-flow of coal down onto the fire, I wouldn't worry too much about it. Unless you plan on running the stove very hot all the time, the warping will probably not get any worse.

If the warping is affecting the flow of coal, then I would go with a steel hopper, not only will this be less costly,it will be more durable and easily repaired or reinforced..

Other than for the warped hopper, how do you like your 'new' stove over your previous one??

Greg L

The hopper warpage (is that really a word?) is not that bad and not restricting the coal flow. I'm just planning for the future. I'm like that.

Over the last few years I acquired two other Franco-Belge stoves for parts just because they were available and cheap. So now I have extra grates and parts along with a mostly complete stove to get rid of..

The F-B is a good stove but I was trying to use it as the only source of heat in my house and I finally got tired of 45 degrees in the winter (took me long enough ) . This "new" SAEY Hannover 1 is great, there is only a little very light surface rust on the sides. I lit the coal about 11:00 Sunday morning and because the cast iron is so massive and heavy, even with a good bed of lit coal it took until about 2:00 before there was any real heat coming out. The stove seems to maintain a nice even temp. So far I've put about a hundred pounds of coal in it.

WARM AGAIN! WARM AGAIN! PRAISE THE ALMIGHTY, WARM AGAIN!

I'm trying to decide what color I want to paint it. Right now, it's between a dark red or a slate gray high temp paint. More on that later.