Serious question about my wood stove insert failing mid-winter

My Blaze King insert quit on me during a -20 snap in Fairbanks two weeks ago. The thermostat rod froze up and the catalytic combustor stopped working right. I had to run a space heater for three days until I could get a repair guy out. Has anyone else had this problem with their catalytic stove?

2 comments

2 Comments

sage_morgan7511d ago

Yep, my thermostat rod froze too. Guess my stove wanted a winter vacation more than me.

kai_bennett11d ago

Read a thread on Hearth.com last winter where a guy from Montana had the same issue with his Blaze King during a deep freeze. He said the thermostat rod got moisture in it that froze and seized up. His fix was to swap the rod with a stainless steel one and add a small heat lamp near the stove base to keep the mechanism from icing. Another guy chimed in saying he replaced his catalytic element with a newer model that had a different baffle design and it ran better in cold weather. Might be worth looking into those mods before next winter hits.