Hitzer 55 Questions

Post Reply
 
coalder
Member
Posts: 1493
Joined: Mon. Dec. 16, 2013 1:48 pm
Location: somewhere high in the catskill mountains
Hand Fed Coal Boiler: harman sf 160
Coal Size/Type: Nut
Other Heating: wood parlor stove

Post by coalder » Mon. Jan. 19, 2015 6:21 pm

Hey gang, As some of you may be aware, I have a son in the Army; currently stationed at Ft. Drum. He is anticipating a transfer within the next year, possibly a little longer. If he has his way he is going to put in for Alaska. As he is so busy he asked me to research a decent wood/coal stove for that area. I have no idea what the coal is like there or what stove to recommend. I did a bunch of research on this forum and read every page of the 55 and all pages of the Alaska thread. Seems the Alaska moderator "Valley Trash", is kind of recommending the 55. But I have some questions. Apparently the Hitzer 55 is a wood/coal combo, with a down draft re burn system making it conducive to bit coal. I even talked to Cliff at Hitzer and he also confirmed that the 55 was a good choice; and that a lot of these stoves are shipped to AK. A particular question I have is with a firebox so large, how come only rated 60K?? Is it because stove is 16 GA?? He doesn't want to get elaborate because the stove will come and go with him. Hitzers seem to be very popular up there only no hopper allowed. Now I know the virtues of a combo stove; but my son is very smart but also very THICK!!! :D And he is an experienced wood burner. So if all else fails he can still burn wood; and this unit seems very economical. Also because you have to open the ash door to shake, will that create excessive dust? I believe that as long as a healthy fire is established, and MPD is wide open it won't. Anyway I realize that this may be a bit premature; however I would rather find out now Than ask in August. As always, Thanks in advance.
Jim

 
User avatar
ONEDOLLAR
Verified Business Rep.
Posts: 1866
Joined: Thu. Dec. 01, 2011 6:09 pm
Location: Sooner Country Oklahoma
Hand Fed Coal Stove: 2014 Chubby Prototype
Coal Size/Type: Nut/Anthracite
Contact:

Post by ONEDOLLAR » Mon. Jan. 19, 2015 7:59 pm

J F Graham wrote: Also because you have to open the ash door to shake, will that create excessive dust? I
Are you sure that the door needs to be open to shake down the 55? I can see opening the ash door to take a peak but not to have it open while shaking down. Or needing it open to shake down. I watched a Hitzer video on another unit and they kept the ash door closed during shaking down. I know that it isn't the same stove as the 55 but I find that the door needing to open be "odd".

http://www.hitzer.com/products/stove/Model-55/

From the pics on the website the shaker handle is on the right side of the stove or am I missing something? (Wouldn't be the first time! :? )

A BIG THANK YOU to you son as well for serving this GREAT NATION! Hope he gets the posting he wants in Alaska. :D

 
User avatar
warminmn
Member
Posts: 8108
Joined: Tue. Feb. 08, 2011 5:59 pm
Location: Land of 11,842 lakes
Hand Fed Coal Stove: Chubby Junior, Efel Nestor Martin, Riteway 37
Coal Size/Type: nut and stove anthracite, lignite
Other Heating: Wood and wear a wool shirt

Post by warminmn » Mon. Jan. 19, 2015 8:06 pm

Yes, you have to open the ash door to shake it. The handle on the right side is for the downdraft. It connects to a sliding door inside. I thought the same as onedollar when we ordered the stove.

In my Dads stove, ash was never an issue when shaking. That was with some coal burning but a lot more wood. He heated his fairly large home for over a month on one pickup load of really top rated good dry burr oak which I thought was amazing. He only shook one side a little bit with wood, leaving as much ash as possible on the grate, and of course used the spinner on the door. Keeping the down draft closed really worked well for him. Hit the sides with a rubber hammer once in a while as it keeps the creosote and ash off.

The stoves steel on the outside does seem rather thin, but it seems to work fine. It reacts to temp change fast because of that, which is likely how it gets efficiency.

I have no idea how well it will burn the sub bit they have available up there. Its a no frills stove.

2 strong service men could move this about anywhere they want too.

 
User avatar
ONEDOLLAR
Verified Business Rep.
Posts: 1866
Joined: Thu. Dec. 01, 2011 6:09 pm
Location: Sooner Country Oklahoma
Hand Fed Coal Stove: 2014 Chubby Prototype
Coal Size/Type: Nut/Anthracite
Contact:

Post by ONEDOLLAR » Mon. Jan. 19, 2015 8:18 pm

warminmn

THANKS for the info on the 55 shake down! It is true....... :geek: If you open your eyes and ears you can learn something new everyday! :funny:

 
User avatar
warminmn
Member
Posts: 8108
Joined: Tue. Feb. 08, 2011 5:59 pm
Location: Land of 11,842 lakes
Hand Fed Coal Stove: Chubby Junior, Efel Nestor Martin, Riteway 37
Coal Size/Type: nut and stove anthracite, lignite
Other Heating: Wood and wear a wool shirt

Post by warminmn » Mon. Jan. 19, 2015 9:26 pm

ONEDOLLAR wrote:warminmn

THANKS for the info on the 55 shake down! It is true....... :geek: If you open your eyes and ears you can learn something new everyday! :funny:
I was pretty surprised when we removed the stove from the box as I had thought the same. But then again, its a simpler stove this way. Maybe not simpler to use, but simpler in an Amish way. My Dad loves that stove.

We do learn a lot on here!


 
User avatar
freetown fred
Member
Posts: 30293
Joined: Thu. Dec. 31, 2009 12:33 pm
Location: Freetown,NY 13803
Hand Fed Coal Stove: HITZER 50-93
Coal Size/Type: BLASCHAK Nut

Post by freetown fred » Tue. Jan. 20, 2015 7:08 am

Jim, sounds like in the boys projected situation, he won't find a better stove then the 55 :)

 
coalder
Member
Posts: 1493
Joined: Mon. Dec. 16, 2013 1:48 pm
Location: somewhere high in the catskill mountains
Hand Fed Coal Boiler: harman sf 160
Coal Size/Type: Nut
Other Heating: wood parlor stove

Post by coalder » Tue. Jan. 20, 2015 8:07 am

freetown fred wrote:Jim, sounds like in the boys projected situation, he won't find a better stove then the 55 :)
Fred, kinda what I was thinking. I know he is gonna burn wood and he can gradually go to coal when he wants. I really like the downdraft system and it seems pretty popular in AK. Because it's sheet steel, 16 GA I was wondering how it would hold up?
Jim

 
User avatar
McGiever
Member
Posts: 10130
Joined: Sun. May. 02, 2010 11:26 pm
Location: Junction of PA-OH-WV
Stoker Coal Boiler: AXEMAN-ANDERSON 130 "1959"
Hand Fed Coal Boiler: BUCKET A DAY water heater
Hand Fed Coal Stove: Warm Morning 414A
Coal Size/Type: PEA,NUT,STOVE /ANTHRACITE
Other Heating: Ground Source Heat Pump and some Solar

Post by McGiever » Tue. Jan. 20, 2015 10:18 am

55 is a smaller version of a 82

 
User avatar
warminmn
Member
Posts: 8108
Joined: Tue. Feb. 08, 2011 5:59 pm
Location: Land of 11,842 lakes
Hand Fed Coal Stove: Chubby Junior, Efel Nestor Martin, Riteway 37
Coal Size/Type: nut and stove anthracite, lignite
Other Heating: Wood and wear a wool shirt

Post by warminmn » Tue. Jan. 20, 2015 10:49 am

J F Graham wrote:
freetown fred wrote:Jim, sounds like in the boys projected situation, he won't find a better stove then the 55 :)
Fred, kinda what I was thinking. I know he is gonna burn wood and he can gradually go to coal when he wants. I really like the downdraft system and it seems pretty popular in AK. Because it's sheet steel, 16 GA I was wondering how it would hold up?
Jim
My Dad is real careful about over firing but I do know the temps can jump real fast. How they would hold up if they turned red hot, I don't know. Probably a matter of learning the stove, and maybe not firing it as hot if he is going away.

 
coalder
Member
Posts: 1493
Joined: Mon. Dec. 16, 2013 1:48 pm
Location: somewhere high in the catskill mountains
Hand Fed Coal Boiler: harman sf 160
Coal Size/Type: Nut
Other Heating: wood parlor stove

Post by coalder » Tue. Jan. 20, 2015 11:37 am

Warminn, how long has your dad owned the stove? And is it the 55 or 82? I really like it, and think it's ideal for my son. Not bad wood consumption either 1 pickup load of wood is less than a cord. How many sq ft is he heating?
Jim


 
User avatar
warminmn
Member
Posts: 8108
Joined: Tue. Feb. 08, 2011 5:59 pm
Location: Land of 11,842 lakes
Hand Fed Coal Stove: Chubby Junior, Efel Nestor Martin, Riteway 37
Coal Size/Type: nut and stove anthracite, lignite
Other Heating: Wood and wear a wool shirt

Post by warminmn » Tue. Jan. 20, 2015 1:03 pm

Its a 55UL, the one without a jacket. I think Nov of 2011 he got it. He used it for all heat the first year, most of his heat the following, not as much since. Its just getting harder for him as arthritis kicks in. I cant say for sure how many square feet but his house is well insulated. It was the downdraft that saved on the wood, is what he and I both thought. He was just using a few pieces a day, letting them simmer away. The pickup load was as good as wood gets, but still I couldnt believe he went a month with it.

The 82 is a huge stove. If he has a super large area it may be a better stove.

 
coalder
Member
Posts: 1493
Joined: Mon. Dec. 16, 2013 1:48 pm
Location: somewhere high in the catskill mountains
Hand Fed Coal Boiler: harman sf 160
Coal Size/Type: Nut
Other Heating: wood parlor stove

Post by coalder » Tue. Jan. 20, 2015 1:22 pm

warmin, Thanks for all the good info. For all practical purposes the 55 is my pick. The firebox is quite good size, and I feel that the BTU's are on the conservative side; 2 guys can easily move it and it won't break the bank. Again THX for the info.
Jim

 
Serge
Member
Posts: 122
Joined: Thu. Jul. 24, 2008 7:57 pm
Location: Thetford Mines, Que, Canada
Hand Fed Coal Stove: Hitzer 50-93
Coal Size/Type: Blaschak nuts

Post by Serge » Sun. Nov. 20, 2016 2:01 pm

First season with my Hitzer 55, running with coal since over one month now in my garage with great success. Earlier this fall try it with wood, success was quite poor a lot of creosote, had the feeling that the stove did not have enough air to operate correctly. My question: how do you control air entrance on this stove? Do you close the rear air inlet and use only the front spinner to control the combustion?

 
User avatar
SWPaDon
Member
Posts: 9857
Joined: Sun. Nov. 24, 2013 12:05 pm
Location: Southwest Pa.
Hand Fed Coal Furnace: Clayton 1600M
Coal Size/Type: Bituminous
Other Heating: Oil furnace

Post by SWPaDon » Sun. Nov. 20, 2016 3:40 pm

Serge wrote:First season with my Hitzer 55, running with coal since over one month now in my garage with great success. Earlier this fall try it with wood, success was quite poor a lot of creosote, had the feeling that the stove did not have enough air to operate correctly. My question: how do you control air entrance on this stove? Do you close the rear air inlet and use only the front spinner to control the combustion?
Inside of the rear air inlet, is there a baffle plate in there, partially covering the opening, that is held in place by one bolt? If so, remove that for use with coal, that was put there to control the wood burning.
The flap at the back is supposed to control the air with the bi-metallic thermostat. The spinner on the front would be for over the fire air when using wood or bituminous coal.

Post Reply

Return to “Hand Fired Coal Boilers & Hot Air Furnaces/Stoves Using Bituminous”