New Hitzer 254, New to Coal

 
RRBoy
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Hand Fed Coal Stove: Hitzer 254
Coal Size/Type: Sometimes you feel like a nut.....

Post by RRBoy » Mon. Oct. 24, 2016 3:20 pm

Hi,

As the title says I have a new 254, and have never burned coal. I grew up around wood stoves, fire pits and fireplaces. I learned to light my grandma's kitchen wood stove and cook bacon eggs and toast on it when I was five. I've always liked having a good fire, inside or out.

I've stocked up on dry hardwood kindling and nut anthracite. I've read the owner's manual half a dozen times, and searched 'coal burning tips' etc on Google. I have a CO2 detector, as well as smoke detectors.....I'm just waiting for the temps to drop, and the letter from my insurance Co, or them cashing the check for the additional $97 a year on my premium.....

I have everything to code with a tile and hardibacker hearth. I made myself a stove loader from an old 3' section of black pipe with a cap and a handle, and fashioned a riveted pipe loading funnel out of some old flashing, I've even begun construction of an 8x8 woodshed with a 400w solar array on the south side....but that's another story.....I can't wait to burn something!!!!!

Does anyone have any experience with this stove, or any 'must do' advice or 'must haves' for a newbie?

Thanks


 
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davidmcbeth3
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Coal Size/Type: nut/pea/anthra

Post by davidmcbeth3 » Mon. Oct. 24, 2016 5:51 pm

For a first time coal burner .. I would recommend running this thing hot (get an IR gun to measure the top plate~I would say 250-300F is "hot" for the purposes of this post) for about 1-2 days (use the old window-stats for temp control) as the paint will give off odors upon first burning.

I put some wood pellets in with some scrap (untreated) wood and start it up ... when the fire is going, I then add some coals and wood on top of that layer .. and then, over the course of an hour to 4 (depends on draft and outside temps how quick and hot the stove gets) fill up the box via several adds of coal.

Once the paint is cured and the stove is humming along, then you can adj. to a temp you like.

 
Den034071
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Post by Den034071 » Mon. Oct. 24, 2016 6:27 pm

R B go look at Hand fired coal stove the title Basics of A Hand Fired Coal Stove .Scroll down to Lighting A Coal Stove .Tons of information .You can us e wood or charcoal .Read Quick Starting a Coal Stove .Good Info . jack

 
coalder
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Post by coalder » Mon. Oct. 24, 2016 6:39 pm

Another option is to get a bag of match light charcoal. Spread it evenly on the grates & light it. Give it about 15 minutes to catch good & then layer about 1 inch at a time till it catches real good you should see strong blue flames. Then layer some more. Keep your load door cracked as volatiles can't build up & will be flushed by the fresh air. Keep layering slowly till you have a full bed. Coal likes a deep bed. When you are up to top of firebricks, with a slight pitch from rear to front, you are good to go. Word to the wise, do not shut feed door till strong blue flames are burning after last load. Also get yourself a poker so you can rake the coal bed prior to shaking at each reload. This will settle the ash. Now each time you reload, usually 12 hrs on average leave a corner of hot coal exposed & the feed door cracked, Until blue flames appear. The exposed area of hot coal will help burn off volatiles & the cracked feed door will also help with exhausting same. Hope this helps
Jim

 
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lsayre
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Post by lsayre » Mon. Oct. 24, 2016 7:00 pm

Forum member 'Lightning' gave me some great coal burning advice which I'm linking here:

Comfortmax Instructions Deficient in the Coal Burning Dept.

You will find this of great benefit.

 
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coaledsweat
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Post by coaledsweat » Mon. Oct. 24, 2016 7:03 pm

Once you get it going fill it all the way up. All the way up every time you start a fire, it doesnt burn like wood. High or low fire, it must be full.

 
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Lightning
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Post by Lightning » Mon. Oct. 24, 2016 7:19 pm

lsayre wrote:Forum member 'Lightning' gave me some great coal burning advice which I'm linking here:

Comfortmax Instructions Deficient in the Coal Burning Dept.

You will find this of great benefit.
Thanks Larry, I should go back and read my own advice sometimes. Maybe I wouldn't have lost my fire yesterday hahaha. Although, I didn't cover anything about starving stove size coal thru a burn cycle in that post :lol:


 
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warminmn
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Coal Size/Type: nut and stove anthracite, lignite
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Post by warminmn » Mon. Oct. 24, 2016 8:04 pm

I think the 254 uses the same or close to same size firebox as the 30/95 hopper model, so some of the advice about that model will work too, the shaking part anyway.

The paint brand that Hitzer uses isnt quite as toxic to burn off as most paints are but still bad. Slow fires cure it well, as was mentioned earlier. If you have a window near the stove, a fan drawing the smell out with a window open on the other end of house will be sufficient.

Dont ever be scared of calling hitzer with questions. They answer their own phone and you wont get someone from India answering it. They are top notch helpful. I had to call once on my Dads stove and had my answer in 5 seconds.

 
RRBoy
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Location: Dover De
Hand Fed Coal Stove: Hitzer 254
Coal Size/Type: Sometimes you feel like a nut.....

Post by RRBoy » Tue. Oct. 25, 2016 1:08 pm

Thanks for all of the replies, tips, links etc. everyone. I just fired it about two hours ago with wood only. It lit up real quick and was blazing away in no time with just a little kindling. I had two windows open so I had a good cross breeze. The smell is gone now. I'll probably have a few more small break-in fires over the next couple of days. My dog has a new 'best friend'!!! She's still sprawled up near the hearth soaking up the heat.

I noticed in the manual it said not to load it over the top of the firebrick, which would mean coal can be loaded higher than the bottom of the fuel door...that's odd for an old wood burner like me!
I guess you just mound it up away from the glass?

I have already called Hitzer, and was impressed that a real person in the factory was answering the calls. I am also very impressed with the stove, it's built like a tank.

 
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freetown fred
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Post by freetown fred » Tue. Oct. 25, 2016 1:50 pm

RR, do yourself a favor & forget EVERYTHING you know about burning wood!! Trust me on that one. :) Yes, HITZER is the best customer service wise. Kudo's for Dean.

 
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warminmn
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Other Heating: Wood and wear a wool shirt

Post by warminmn » Tue. Oct. 25, 2016 3:11 pm

Yes, you bank the coal towards the back. You don't want coal touching the window or door. Read up here on various posts on the shaking, as that is the trickiest part to learn, and if you lose your fire that is often the problem. Usually, the problems occur for a newbie on the 3-4th day, so if you get past that your doing it right.

 
RRBoy
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Hand Fed Coal Stove: Hitzer 254
Coal Size/Type: Sometimes you feel like a nut.....

Post by RRBoy » Wed. Oct. 26, 2016 12:48 pm

We had a light frost on the ground in central Delaware this morning and the house was a bit chilly. I fired up some chunks of seasoned oak which burned for about an hour. There was still a slight stove smell, but much less than the first time. I'm going to wait for it to get a bit colder before trying my first batch of coal....it's 53 out now and I'm in a t-shirt and shorts!

 
RRBoy
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Posts: 68
Joined: Mon. Oct. 24, 2016 2:50 pm
Location: Dover De
Hand Fed Coal Stove: Hitzer 254
Coal Size/Type: Sometimes you feel like a nut.....

Post by RRBoy » Wed. Nov. 09, 2016 2:38 pm

It still has not been cold enough for a coal fire. But I did discover a few things while having a few small wood fires. My 254 says a damper is not needed, but is recommended. The installation instructions don't call for one either.

I did not initially install one but it looks like I need one. A call to Hitzer confirmed my suspicions that I had a strong chimney which was causing the magnetic snap damper to flutter and making it hard to control the fire. Once again, their customer service was top-knotch.

It took me about 15 minutes to take the pipe down and put the damper in....so come on cold weather!

now I just have to get off my butt and put down the new laminate floor and finish of my 'stove room'....what else do you call it when your freaky house has two living rooms? :lol:

 
titleist1
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Post by titleist1 » Thu. Nov. 10, 2016 11:09 am

RRBoy wrote:now I just have to get off my butt and put down the new laminate floor and finish of my 'stove room'....what else do you call it when your freaky house has two living rooms?
Pretty soon you'll be calling it the WARM room!!!

Welcome to the forum....seeing you're in central DE, not to far from me, where are you sourcing your coal? I am always curious about possible new suppliers.

 
RRBoy
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Posts: 68
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Location: Dover De
Hand Fed Coal Stove: Hitzer 254
Coal Size/Type: Sometimes you feel like a nut.....

Post by RRBoy » Mon. Nov. 14, 2016 12:53 pm

I got my coal from Yoder's Greenhouses in Pearson's Corner De. Blaschak nut at about $5 a bag. Byler's down the road sells it also, but I think it's a bit higher.

I get my starter wood from the sawmill on Pearson's CRN rd. It's dirt cheap. $20 for a huge scoop...a few big pieces that I have to split, but 90% burnable like it is.

I have been trying to contact a guy out of PA who delivers bulk coal to this area, but can't get him to call back.


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