Wood burning stoves tested to destruction

[Jacob]

Would be interesting to know. 10mm would be massively OTT I would have thought.

Haven't got one to measure at the moment, maybe 8mm?
Why OTT if it does the job as claimed?

 

[highwood122]

Would be interesting to know. 10mm would be massively OTT I would have thought.

not really it distorts a lot when heated.the thinner it is the more it pants and warps

 

[Phil Pascoe]

Would be interesting to know. 10mm would be massively OTT I would have thought.

It's 8mm iirc. And no, it doesn't warp.

 

[Spectric]

The thicker the better as it would retain heat, to warp steel plate would require some temperature and stoves should not be glowing red hot !

 

[Fergie 307]

Haven't got one to measure at the moment, maybe 8mm?
Why OTT if it does the job as claimed?

Only in so far as not much more than half your original 10 mm thickness estimate would probably do the job.
One of the advantages of a fabricated steel design is it could very probably be lighter than cast iron for a similar capacity.

 

[Fergie 307]

not really it distorts a lot when heated.the thinner it is the more it pants and warps

Agreed if it's only 2/3 mm thick.
8mm still seems a bit heavy duty, but may well be to avoid it taking on a glow, which might be disconcerting for the customer

 

[Fergie 307]

The thicker the better as it would retain heat, to warp steel plate would require some temperature and stoves should not be glowing red hot !

Agreed but why make it heavier than necessary. I would probably have expected it to be something like 1/4 inch in old money.

 

[Jacob]

Agreed but why make it heavier than necessary. I would probably have expected it to be something like 1/4 inch in old money.

sez 'ere; "We use heavier gauges than any other stove on the market for a multi-fuel stove, 8mm upper body up to 25mm for the grate plates."
Seemed to work well in the two stoves I had before.
One was a 12kw rated Sumo and I'd guess the body was more than 8mm, the sides of the ash can a lot less.

 

[Fergie 307]

Can certainly see where they are coming from with the grate plate, always the first thing to sag. 25mm ought to do it

 

[Phil Pascoe]

The grate plate is a solid sheet, too, not a grating. They said in their marketing blurb when I bought mine that they'd never had to repair one in all their existence, so 30+ years at that time but if one ever needs repair any competent welder could do it.

 

[Fergie 307]

I would have thought the rest of it would be a shapeless blob long before a 25mm plate was getting too bothered by the heat

 

[Jacob]

I would have thought the rest of it would be a shapeless blob long before a 25mm plate was getting too bothered by the heat

Stop worrying about them!
I've had two of them and neither turned into a shapeless blob and neither of them were big enough to need 25mm grate plate. They were rated 8kw (Firebug) and 12kw (Sumo) and as far as I know are still going strong.

 

[Fergie 307]

It was what I think is commonly referred to as a joke Jacob. Never mind.

 

[Jacob]

Stove arrived ready to install.
Just looking up a spec before getting a quote.
Old fireplace - 5" pipe going into a straight-up flue, all fairly simple.
I'm wondering about an insulated liner for better draught and quicker heat up.
The last one we had had double skin insulated SS going through rooms. It never needed cleaning (had it done but hardly any dust or soot) and drew very well.
Hoping to get same effect from liner in existing chimney. Has to be flexible to get it in. Smooth bore?
Any particular suggestions of best practice?

 

[Krome10]

Are you talking only about the liner that will be in the chimney breast? Or also the rigid piece of flue connecting it to the top of the stove?

Burning just wood?

 

[Jacob]

Are you talking only about the liner that will be in the chimney breast? Or also the rigid piece of flue connecting it to the top of the stove?

Burning just wood?

Stove in old fireplace, short piece plain steel pipe through a plate, connecting to flue pipe up existing chimney.
Actually multi fuel stove if necessary but will be burning wood.

 

[Krome10]

I don't know so much about the liners, other than the 316 vs 904 grade steel choice. But presume you're already aware of that choice difference?

How much total run of flue will it be from stove to cowl? Many bends? I'm no expert, but I would be going for single if possible so that there's more heat transfer to the chimney breast which can - it turn - act as a thermal mass to a certain extent.

I think some people are keen to insulate flues with newer eco design stoves, which can be harder to start due to flues taking longer to heat and therefore longer to draw. But can't imaging that being a problem with a Dowling.

 

[Jacob]

I don't know so much about the liners, other than the 316 vs 904 grade steel choice. But presume you're already aware of that choice difference?

yes 904

How much total run of flue will it be from stove to cowl? Many bends? I'm no expert, but I would be going for single if possible so that there's more heat transfer to the chimney breast which can - it turn - act as a thermal mass to a certain extent.

I think some people are keen to insulate flues with newer eco design stoves, which can be harder to start due to flues taking longer to heat and therefore longer to draw. But can't imaging that being a problem with a Dowling.

No it's not a problem but being quick on the draw can be a big advantage in that you can get heat from a handful of loose sticks or sawdust much more quickly, if you just want to give the room a quick warm up.
Found this out from previous stoves.
Also Dowlings are not sealed with gaskets etc so a good positive draw is extra essential.

 

[Krome10]

Also Dowlings are not sealed with gaskets etc so a good positive draw is extra essential.

I might be missing something but I can't see the logic on that. You need a lot of air flow to get things going, hence why all controls go to fully open and many even have the door ajar to begin with.

being quick on the draw can be a big advantage in that you can get heat from a handful of loose sticks or sawdust much more quickly, if you just want to give the room a quick warm up.

That makes sense though. Mental note taken.

 

[Jacob]

I might be missing something but I can't see the logic on that. You need a lot of air flow to get things going, hence why all controls go to fully open and many even have the door ajar to begin with.

There needs to be no risk of any sort of blow back with say a smouldering fire etc. Maybe not something to worry about.

That makes sense though. Mental note taken.

What we found with our last one that it would heat up the room much faster than the central heating and probably as fast as a gas fire, just by having a fast burn of loose stuff to get it going, rocket stove style. Cast iron and firebricks not so good.