Shelter SF2631 Wood Coal Furnace

[Wisneaky]

Hello all. I wanted to post a little about this furnace because when I was looking for reviews on it I couldn't find anything about it. Previously I was using a Drolet Tundra which had some cracking issues and SBI was kind enough to give me instore credit so I decided to buy the Shelter furnace because I wanted to start burning coal also. The Shelter furnace is built very well with thicker steel when compared to the tundra and the welds are much thicker, the way it is designed even at full on burn the sides are cool to the touch so the fire box retains a lot of heat. This furnace is made by HY-C which is built in the USA and they also make the Fire Chief brand furnaces which are basically the same design, but they have a few minor changes and longer warranties. The furnace comes with a 3 speed blower which is actually adjustable by a knob, whereas the Tundra you had to move a wire. The Shelter has cast iron shaker fire grates, an ash pan, a draft inducer and a secondary burn chamber which actually does work because I can see the flame going in there and no smoke coming out the chimney. The furnace when reloading will smoke for about 20 minutes, but once it is hot enough and you push in the by pass lever there is usually no smoke coming out the chimney. I know the furnace isn't an EPA like the Tundra, but when I called and spoke with Shelter they said they will be having them tested soon to comply with the new regulations. The shelter rep that I spoke with was very knowledgeable about the furnace design. The draft inducer even though mounted over the fire it has a front plate in the firebox that diverts some of the air under the fire which helps with burning coal. I am heating my main floor and my basement which is about 1900 sq ft. I over sized the furnace because I can always build smaller wood fires. It has a very large firebox and can take up to 28" long pieces of wood and will handle about 50 pounds of coal. While burning wood I have been getting 12 plus hours of burn time while using white ash and sometimes a half log of coals are left before I refill. While burning Anthracite coal I have been getting 24 hour burn times with about 20-25 pounds left for refill, if I let the coal burn completely out it would be about 48 hours of total burn. Here is a couple pictures. I have a plenum mounted on top of it that is then fed into my existing lp furnace plenum.

 

[Whitespider]

Congrats... That furnace will make a ton of heat for ya'.

I've looked at the Shelter furnaces, the FS2631 is the Fire Chief 700E with a different grate system and the added "fan shield" to deflect some draft induction to the lower part of the fire rather than over it... most all of the other parts, including the "shell" (firebox), are interchangeable (same part number). I believe the "shelter" badged variants are only available at Menards... or at least it appears that way. It's the same basic design as my DAKA, including the "secondary combustion chamber" (DAKA calls it a "secondary heat chamber") above the sliding bypass damper... and yes, if the furnace is run correctly that chamber does burn the smoke without any additional "secondary air" supply (be prepared to argue about that on this board ). The biggest difference is the DAKA directs all of the induced draft under the grate... the Shelter/Fire Chief provides a spinner draft control on the ash door to get more air under the fire if needed.

Enjoy.
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[stihly dan]

So which one do you like better? Broken stuff aside, if they where built equal which would you prefer?

 

[Wisneaky]

So which one do you like better? Broken stuff aside, if they where built equal which would you prefer?

I like the Shelter better. The Tundra was a good furnace, but it took me months to figure it out. The Tundra is really picky with wood. I really liked being able to watch the fire through the glass door, probably a little too much. Many nights I'd just sit and watch it with a cold one. The Tundra did really good down to zero temps, but lower than that and it struggled. The Shelter has a much bigger firebox, I like the shaker grates, I like I can burn coal, I like the draft inducer. Overall I just like it better. If it had a glass door I'd be set.

 

[Whitespider]

It really surprises me there ain't been more comments made in this thread... but then again, maybe it shouldn't surprise me.

I gotta' say, when the 'stovace' was installed, the glass door was handy for a quick check of the fire. Yet, at the same time, the DAKA furnace don't really need to be checked... pretty much load 'n' forget. I mean, there ain't anything to check... no adjustments to make... no fire to stir... just load in the morning, evening and top-off before bed (shrug). Bein' it was in the basement we never really sat and watched the fire (oh... maybe a couple times when it was first installed). The truth is the glass allowed too much heat in the basement and I ended up hanging an aluminum reflector in front of it anyway.

Honestly... I'd trade the glass door for the grate system, quick 'n' easy ash removal, and the convenience of load 'n' forget any day of the week. The bottom line of my signature ain't meant to be a joke; in my mind, burnin' it should be the easy part... it should be really easy. An appliance that requires adjustments, fire tending, and maintenance during the heatin' season ain't worth it to me... just not interested. I work all week, sometimes on the road, and durin' the heatin' season it's dark when I leave in the mornin', dark when I get home... I don't wanna' be screwin 'round with my heatin' appliance, I just wanna' kick my boots off and open a cold one before supper.

Some guys say I'm missin' out (shrug) I see it the other way... they're the ones missin' out.
Everything is a trade-off... to gain something ya' haf'ta give somethin' up... different priorities... different choices... different strokes...
But it really will be a sad day when these sort of appliances are removed our choices... no matter what your "stroke".
Unless something changes drastically, the day is soon comin' when the only real choice will be the badge riveted to the box... and that flat ain't right.
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[flotek]

The only thing I would say is your going to go through twice the wood with a design like that . I'm sure the shelter is built well I'm sure it will put out more heat on frigid nights but remember that firebox is twice the tundra to do same thing. I believe your going to miss the efficiency of a modern EPA design I know I would . I got a refund on my drolet also but I bought the MAX caddy EPA furnace to replace it . Heats 3,000 sq ft ..Takes 26" wood and burns cleanly for over 15 hour stretches. Knowing what I know now I would not personally go back to an old school furnace design with draft fan 7 sq ft firebox and shaker grates

 

[Wisneaky]

The only thing I would say is your going to go through twice the wood with a design like that . I'm sure the shelter is built well I'm sure it will put out more heat on frigid nights but remember that firebox is twice the tundra to do same thing. I believe your going to miss the efficiency of a modern EPA design I know I would . I got a refund on my drolet also but I bought the MAX caddy EPA furnace to replace it . Heats 3,000 sq ft ..Takes 26" wood and burns cleanly for over 15 hour stretches. Knowing what I know now I would not personally go back to an old school furnace design with draft fan 7 sq ft firebox and shaker grates

I'd rather be warm on those frigid nights. Plus I'm going to use pretty much straight coal next winter.

 

[laynes69]

I'm with Flotek, but if your happy that's what matters. If you want to burn coal, that will be your saving grace. Otherwise, if your furnace is oversized, you may be forced to either burn small loads hotter or let it go out to keep from filling your chimney. I guarantee you won't have to worry about being cold. Also the shaker grates are very convenient. I removed our grate cover the last month of the season and it will stay off. It has not affected the coalbed because there is no under grate air. I wished I tried it years ago.

 

[Whitespider]

The only thing I would say is your going to go through twice the wood with a design like that.

There it is
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[aokpops]

Doing the reverse . I used the shelters for 2 years did a nice job . The big problem was cleaning the chimney to often a chimney fire an walking a snowy roof is not fun . All of the wood is at least 5 years old split an stack . Burnt wood for over 30 years an cleaned the chimney maybe twice a year . I want to get back to clean the chimney on a good day hoping to get the added bonus of burning less wood . Whatever happen to a 8 inch chimney ?

 

[brenndatomu]

Doing the reverse

So you are taking the Shelter out?

 

[aokpops]

Yes . Waiting for the heating season to end I want to raise the drolet up at least a foot . An make some kind of stand . Next year will be interesting shelter verse drolet

 

[stihly dan]

Then the year after you will be taking the tundra out because it crapped the bed like the rest.

 

[flotek]

Based on what I've seen having owned a drolet heatmax and watching sbi and how they respond and update their products I'd say they got the bugs worked out and the person buying the newer upgraded ones is going to get a good EPA furnace for the money . The older style bigger furnaces will put out more heat and especially more radiant heat but at a cost .

 

[Whitespider]

The older style bigger furnaces will put out more heat and especially more radiant heat but at a cost .

Cost?? There's a "cost" (or trade-off) to everything.

If the extra heat is needed or required the extra "cost" is totally meaningless. It don't make much sense to work your butt off makin' firewood if the appliance burnin' it can't do the job required. The OP lives in the upper Midwest... I live in the upper Midwest... when a 10-day arctic blast hits a ton of heat is needed to keep up with demand, especially on a windy night. Burnin' 15%, 20%, even 25% more wood don't mean sour owl crap when you're shiverin'. When ya' need more horsepower... ya' need more horsepower... and that always comes at the cost of more fuel (all else bein' equal)... it-is-what-it-is.

(Yes, I know... insulation, new windows, ya-da, ya-da, ya-da... but we're talkin 'bout matchin' the appliance to the demand... it-is-what-it-is.)

It's no different than ownin' and drivin' a v-8 powered pickup; it uses more fuel than a tiny 4-cyl car... but the tiny 4-cyl car can't make the horsepower to pull the trailer when required. I mean, ya' could haul your firewood 20 pounds at a time, but ya' don't.. do ya'?? The a v-8 powered pickup uses more fuel (and emits more planet wreckin' exhaust) durin' everyday drivin', but not all that horrible... still, that don't change the fact that on Sunday ya' need the extra horsepower to haul the firewood or boat, does it??

Do ya' buy a grass cuttin' machine with enough horsepower to do the job 80% of the time?? Or do ya' make sure it has enough horsepower to get the job done even if weather forces ya' to let the grass get a bit long?? I sure as heck don't need the 24HP on my grass cutter most of the time. I could get easily get by with 10, even 8HP most of the time, but when the grass gets long 'n' tough in late summer I don't wanna' haf'ta struggle with the job. Do I burn a little more fuel durin' mid-summer?? Sure. But that don't change the fact that sometimes I need more horsepower... and I've got it when I need it.

Everything is a trade-off... there's a "cost" to high combustion (fuel) efficiency also...
But when ya' flat need raw horsepower... ya' need the horsepower... it-is-what-it-is.
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[flotek]

White spider

I realize you live in the coldest spot in the universe you have the highest winds and you walked up hill to school barefoot 10 miles both ways as a kid and your daka burns clean for 20 hours on a handful of match sticks .. You stressed the labor intensive nature of heating with firewood . Dragging Cutting splitting stacking and restacking .. My point earlier was the idea if your burning up twice the wood to heat the house what have you gained aside from a lot more work for yourself ? Most would say more heat .. I agreed it will provide more overall heat output into the house ~ but at a cost and the cost is far more labor and dirtier burns . For those who love to process 8 cords in a year God bless you ..If that is a trade off the op can be happy with then more power to him . No sense in arguing over that. Back on topic I see 24 hour burns on coal . That would be pretty cool to have the ability to do that . Around here in northern pa coal prices have jumped in last 5 years up to 330$ a ton for bagged anthracite . Still many around here still burn it . My neighbor has no duct work or fan he uses a new style Amish coal stove and heats 2,000 sq ft as a stand alone stove

 

[Whitespider]

My point earlier was the idea if your burning up twice the wood...
...more heat... the cost is far more labor and dirtier burns.

Twice the wood?? Hardly. Maybe when you're runnin' it at maximum output... but that's only a few days out'a the year. I get really tired of the "twice the wood" (or "half the wood") argument... if that is true, it ain't 'cause of the appliance, it's the guy runnin' it‼ Your exaggerations add nothin' of value here... I don't burn matchsticks. The OP posted he gets over 12 hours burnin' ash, I can get longer burnin' oak, depending on heat demand‼ When ya' need more heat, you're gonna' burn more wood... and that's true of any wood-fired heatin' appliance, even an EPA certified‼ Comparing the "best case scenario" of one unit against the "worst case scenario" of another ain't a comparison... it's foolish justification.

More heat?? I thought that was the point... heatin' the home. If it requires more heat to heat your home... then it-is-what-it-is.

Labor?? Well labor, time, and money are closely related... you labor for certain amount of time for a return, usually money. Using that justification, you better get rid of that v-8 powered pickup you're(?) drivin'... every extra gallon of gas is costin' you labor‼ And 8 cords a year?? Really?? I didn't burn 8 cords this past season heatin' my entire home 99.999779% with wood (I turned the gas on the other mornin' ), including what I burned in the shop stove... but I burned over 8 cord the one year I tried heatin' my home with an EPA firebox. The type of box has little to do with how much wood you'll use... but using the wrong type for the requirements does. There ain't no friggin' magic... never has been... never will be.

Dirtier burns?? Again, you're using a "best case" to "worst case" justification... not makin' an honest comparison. Plenty of guys right here on this board have posted pictures of plugged-up chimneys using EPA certified boxes. The OP posted he does not get "smoky" burns other than for a short time after reloading... same with my furnace. If these new-fangled boxes burn so clean, why is it necessary to clean the heat exchanger?? An EPA firebox does not guarantee cleaner burns... it just makes it less likely for the idiot runnin' the thing to screw it up. I won't argue that if both are run correctly, the EPA box is more tree-hugger friendly... at a cost. I don't hug trees, and I ain't gonna' start... but if I was to start huggin' trees, the last thing I'd worry about is some guy burnin' wood to heat his home.

Your exaggerations add nothin' of value here... I don't burn matchsticks... I use a Bic Lighter.
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[Wisneaky]

The trick to using less wood is to make sure your wood is nice and dry. A person can use half their wood energy just trying to boil the water out of it. People who are using an excessive amount of wood are either burning wet wood or their chimney draft isn't right and they are sending all the heat up the chimney. Also two reasons a chimney creosote's up is wet wood and running flue temps lower than 212 degrees. This is why I highly recommend people use a baro because with one you can control how fast the wood burns, it keeps the heat from going up the chimney, and you can use it to regulate your flue temp to keep it at or above 212 degrees to prevent creosote from forming.

 

[Whitespider]

So Wisneaky, according to flotek you should be burnin' twice as much wood since switchin' from the Tundra to the SF2631... and your chimney should be packed solid with crap.
Can you confirm please??
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[Wisneaky]

So Wisneaky, according to flotek you should be burnin' twice as much wood since switchin' from the Tundra to the SF2631... and your chimney should be packed solid with crap.
Can you confirm please??
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Of course not because I know how to run it properly. If I was using wet wood, letting my draft get out of hand, and keeping my pipe temp too low than I would be using twice the wood and causing a chimney fire.

And as laynes69 suggest that if your furnace is oversized, you may be forced to either burn small loads hotter or let it go out to keep from filling your chimney. That statement is completely false. On warmer days I can throw a few small pieces on and it will last most of the day without burning it hot. I keep my pipe draft low which keeps the heat in the fire box and keeps my pipe temp above 212 degrees.