I Am Now a Proud Hitzer 55 Owner!

 
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JRLearned
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Post by JRLearned » Wed. Nov. 22, 2017 4:47 pm

I had moved away from coal to a rather interesting wood burner for one season. Now I'm back to coal and recently found a great floor model deal on a Hitzer 55. Boy, oh boy, what a difference in the caliber of this stove compared to the Chubby Stove I had. For an economy line stove, this thing is built like a tank, with very decent grade plate steel. Aesthetics are good, nothing fancy, but nothing ugly either, just simple. Two things amaze me with this stove: one is the depth of the firebox and burn times, the other is the ease of shaking down.

I'm going some 12+ hours between tending, that's incredible. I can literally check the thing at 7am and again at 7pm without worrying it will have gone out. With the Chubby stove, it was a constant dread about the fire going out if you even looked at it funny. The 55 just goes and goes and goes.

Shaking down the ash is super simple. Just a few mild shakes with each of the grate handles send all the ash down, given the elongated design of the rocker grates. I've been running for days and haven't worried once about clogging, poking, bridging, dead zones, etc. Absolutely nowhere near the hassle I had with the Chubby.

The greatest part was the price I paid for a floor model, got some $400 off the MSRP, which put this thing in line with half the price of a new chubby, without the blower. Even at full price the 55 is a sharp discount off a new Chubby for, IMO, far better performance and bigger output. Well done HItzer. New fan here. :yes:


 
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freetown fred
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Post by freetown fred » Wed. Nov. 22, 2017 5:20 pm

J, HITZER don't play!!!!!!!!! Nice find my friend. Yep, that tending every 12 hrs. is nice & if ever needed she'll go much longer--12 hrs. is a good consistency kinda thing.

 
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warminmn
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Post by warminmn » Wed. Nov. 22, 2017 5:51 pm

Ive always been impressed with my Dads. About as simple as anything gets. I know a lot of people on here leave that door inside the stove open, but it really works good and more efficient with it closed, unless your fire goes out of course.

 
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michaelanthony
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Post by michaelanthony » Wed. Nov. 22, 2017 7:04 pm

Nice J! Nothing like the new stove smell! H.A. (Hitzer Anonymous), could use another member. :lol:

...time for a new avatar pic ;)

 
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McGiever
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Post by McGiever » Thu. Nov. 23, 2017 3:02 pm

Very good to hear J.

That No.55 has a bigger Brother, if you can believe that.
The Hitzer No.82...bout double the size of the smaller No.55.
cheers2.gif
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Rob R.
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Post by Rob R. » Thu. Nov. 23, 2017 3:48 pm

Great to hear you are happy with the Model 55. Simple and rugged, with plenty of power.

I ran a model 82 for a few winters. Kind of like comparing a 454 Chevy to a 350.

 
CDF_USAF
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Post by CDF_USAF » Thu. Nov. 23, 2017 11:41 pm

What are you heating with the 55? Is it a furnace version or the stand alone? I'm interested in one of those as well


 
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JRLearned
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Post by JRLearned » Sun. Dec. 24, 2017 10:06 pm

Standalone, not furnace. It's Christmas Eve, snowfall tomorrow morning, and I am warm and toasty. Tended twice today, 8a and 8p. Great stove!

 
Hoytman
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Post by Hoytman » Tue. Dec. 26, 2017 12:03 pm

Someone mentioned the depth (top to bottom) of the fire box...

I wonder...seems like many antique base heaters, etc., had deep fire pots as well.

Even some of the best wood burners with the longest burn times have deep fire boxes. Blaze King wood stoves for example, from my research, has the longest burn times of any wood stove.

...I think the stove builders of hold were on to something.

 
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ASea
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Post by ASea » Wed. Dec. 27, 2017 1:38 am

I get 10-12 he burns from the Chubby. It only holds 35lbs of coal. Different animal from the Hitzer that's for sure. Glad you are happy,enjoy the Hitzer.

 
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Formulabruce
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Post by Formulabruce » Mon. Jan. 01, 2018 3:38 pm

I have owned 2 Chubbys. they have NO Firebricks. This IS a Good thing. The Chubby dissipates heat all around. This can lead to people thinking that it goes out if looked at wrong. Not true. IF you have a good draft and fill the chubby full, it can provide a LONG burn. I got a 30 hour burn over Christmas when I was away, and the blower was not on. The Chubby does NOT "Crunch" up un-burnt coal either at the rotational grate. I have a friend with a Hitzer and another with a Keystoker, and they both crunch up coal, and Clinkers. Yes the chubby is a bit more work , but WE do NOT waste any coal. The ash pan is just that, ALL ASH, and its WHITE and LIGHT. IF you could rinse your waste in a colander outside, you would see shiny black un burned coal. The Chubby does have a small capacity, its really not meant for a major heating source, its more a "parlor" stove. Its really hard to compare the Chubby to a Hitzer 55. You upgraded in BTU and capacity to a bigger stove. If it does what you want and you don't mind using more coal to do it, thats Great. Cant Beat the heat from coal :)

 
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ASea
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Post by ASea » Mon. Jan. 01, 2018 4:20 pm

Formulabruce wrote:
Mon. Jan. 01, 2018 3:38 pm
I have owned 2 Chubbys. they have NO Firebricks. This IS a Good thing. The Chubby dissipates heat all around. This can lead to people thinking that it goes out if looked at wrong. Not true. IF you have a good draft and fill the chubby full, it can provide a LONG burn.Cant Beat the heat from coal :)
Well said, I am heating 1700sqft with mine right now. I had it cranking all the way open last night and my LR was in the 70s the rest of the house in the 60s it got cool but the Chubby did the job. It was around -9 here last night. Oil burner never kicked on. Stove was tended about every eight hours.Normally we tend every twelve or so. Try that with a wood stove. I love the cast fire pot. The shaker system leaves a little something to be desired. I did find a nice white ash coal and so don't have to worry about clinkers anymore.

 
lobsterman
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Post by lobsterman » Mon. Jan. 01, 2018 6:38 pm

ASea wrote:
Wed. Dec. 27, 2017 1:38 am
I get 10-12 he burns from the Chubby. It only holds 35lbs of coal. Different animal from the Hitzer that's for sure. Glad you are happy,enjoy the Hitzer.
What he said! The Chubby is a really good 25-40 lb per day burner for "supplemental heat" that will keep the furnace from coming on in a reasonably insulated 2000 sq. ft. house when in the teens outside. Got to love a Chubby. (I guess I don't get the reason for big stoves to burn a lot of expensive coal to keep a house a wasteful 75 degrees.)

 
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windyhill4.2
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Post by windyhill4.2 » Mon. Jan. 01, 2018 6:55 pm

lobsterman wrote:
Mon. Jan. 01, 2018 6:38 pm
What he said! The Chubby is a really good 25-40 lb per day burner for "supplemental heat" that will keep the furnace from coming on in a reasonably insulated 2000 sq. ft. house when in the teens outside. Got to love a Chubby. (I guess I don't get the reason for big stoves to burn a lot of expensive coal to keep a house a wasteful 75 degrees.)
If 75* is comfortable for those who inhabit the house,there is nothing wasteful about having it at 75*. :roll:

If i want to be cold in the winter... i will just go outside. When i am in my house,i don't want to be bundled up to be warm. :)

 
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Logs
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Post by Logs » Mon. Jan. 01, 2018 10:03 pm

My Chubby is in the basement and it heats my house1700sf about 75% of the time. I’m on a 12 hour schedule and keep it at that all the time. When it gets too cold for the chubby to keep me warm , I fire up the wood burner. It’s been burning steady now for about the last 2 weeks. And I must say , I’m plenty warmbut what a pain in the ass. Been burning black locust and honey locust and a bit of Osage orange. I bought the Chubby not knowing much about coal stoves. I like the stove but have been contemplating a larger stove to eliminate the wood burning completely. I do have another chubby and was thinking of putting it where the wood stove is . But not sure how that would be. It’s been single digits last few days. Woodburner temp is around 450 and chubby temp is 400 . I’m interested in what you guys think about this idea. Or should I look for a larger stove?


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