Newbie with Hitzer 254... help?

At this point experimenting with Oliver’s loading technique there is certainly more than one way to run and load an anthracite coal stove.

For three years now I’ve loaded completely full heaping higher than the bricks. Like most here suggest It works. Probably works really good for those who often run their stove 500F+. I run my stove much lower than that because the stove is over sized for the home, and it does present some “challenges”.

At this point...

Oliver’s loading method is working better than I expected. So much so, I really can’t see a reason to load more than half full anymore. I’ve been getting good 24 hr burns with half a load of fuel, or a few shovels more.

In fact, I’ve pushed the envelope to 48 hr burns with coal still left in the stove. Tending was still quite easy.

Bottom line...
You taught me something new, Oliver.

I like it!

Hoytman wrote: ↑

Sun. Feb. 27, 2022 3:33 pm

At this point experimenting with Oliver’s loading technique there is certainly more than one way to run and load an anthracite coal stove.

For three years now I’ve loaded completely full heaping higher than the bricks. Like most here suggest It works. Probably works really good for those who often run their stove 500F+. I run my stove much lower than that because the stove is over sized for the home, and it does present some “challenges”.

At this point...

Oliver’s loading method is working better than I expected. So much so, I really can’t see a reason to load more than half full anymore. I’ve been getting good 24 hr burns with half a
load of fuel, or a few shovels more.
In fact, I’ve pushed the envelope to 48 hr burns with coal still left in the stove. Tending was still quite easy.

Bottom line...
You taught me something new, Oliver.

I like it!

Well Hoytman, The way I run my 254 is a spin off of the way my uncle runs his Mark-III. It doesn't matter what time of day, or night, his stove is always cranking heat. Fully Igniting very thin layers is key. Stove temp drops very little, with quick recovery. A little different mindset from banking high for the long burn. It kind of makes sense to have the "entire" grate surface burning equally, and uniform in order to reach full stove potential. Air is coming up through the entire bed of coals evenly, burning ash to more of a powder, which makes for easy shaking, and even dropping of spent coal bed. In my opinion, banking high, and leaving a hot spot is not allowing full stove potential. This way of tending is set up for the hot spot to ignite the fresh coal / gasses, and burn back, eventually igniting the whole coal bed. Meanwhile, stove temps drop a lot. Air never comes up throughout the entire coal bed evenly due to sloped / mounded banking.

Completely different from a hopper fed stove. And the difference is; The coal in a gravity fed hopper is pre-heated to the point of ignition by the time it hits the burning coal bed. It catches a little air, and ignites. You are introducing the pre-heated coal to the air for ignition. A leaky hopper door gasket would introduce air to preheated coal, which will burn up into the hopper. With a non-hopper stove, there is no pre-heated coal.