Chubby Efficiency

I have a Chubby (no pun intended). I must say Larry is a swell guy and his stoves are functional and beautiful. My biggest complaint though is the grate...it's not so great! I found a dead spot in the middle where the cross bar was, a lot of ash built up here and it is quite difficult to remove. I also have trouble with the grates warping and eventually rubbing on the support tabs, this makes it difficult to shake. I run my stove on an average between 500-600 in the dead of winter. I felt I wasn't pushing the stove by any means. It can take well over this without blinking an eye, it's solid. Getting clinkers out of the stove is a pita! I do have to agree, nothing but fine powdery ash is left. This stove consumes everything! Overall this little beauty is built like a tank.

The grate, Use the poker inside while you have a smaller fire going and scrape that middle area toward the front and down, I will every few days take the poker and do the "Ash ring" just to get any that didnt fall, then re shake it down. Clinkers can happen on long runs, but I don't bother to remove them anymore, some will get broken up and fall, others are just rocks now that retain heat and keep the coal all snuggly and warm. I have been running mine at around 270 at top side of stove lately. Running one at 600+ Can eventually warp the grate, BUT You may want to put a washer under the middle of the grate, and I would grind the edge of a new grate, put a small flat edge at an angle to help it form Not catching on the side. Also, If you do not have one, a Ash "Ring" is highly recommended. Clean out and load it full will keep stove able to run at slightly lower temps for a longer period of time with less chance of grate warp . Good luck!!

Hells teeth it's so cold I have no choice but to crank her up. She's hangin' @ 600* now but gonna push it a bit higher for a few days as my 200 year old drafty salt-box is gettin cold. Winds are insane. Not too worried about efficiency at this point. I'm mixing some nice big chunks of stove with nut and she seems to be swallowing it with no problem.

Stay warm my Chubby friends.

Will

Its a bit below Zero here and 20 mph wind gusts, I'm running some stove coal as well, and I'm at around 450 degrees, similar draft setting. I do have 2 Eco fans on top and a small crock of water, I may kick it up in temp and turn on the fan, but I really rather be near it to monitor the temps as it can go really low if not kept drafted well. I had my home air duct in it last year, but I want to find a tiny blower thats quiet and only blows 30-50 cfm, constant and leave it on. My drafty house was built in 1862.. and Chubby is up to the mission ! I wish I had a Jr as well !!.. back to bed now..