Er. . .I can't speak in the long term yet, but I did install a
propane Force 10 in Katia Sofia a month ago and it is certainly going
to be adequate for the climate near Seattle. It is definitely a
pleasant little stove, no smell, no smoke etc. I suppose one
explosion at sea would probably offset several bouts of flaring or
smoking or smelling bad however. The original owner had installed a
propane cooking stove (also a Force 10, but they are a local firm so
it's not surprising) and in so doing, he created a one-bottle locker
on top of the after deck, faired nicely into the aft part of the
cockpit coaming. Since I'd never seen a Vega before I didn't at
first realize it was an add-on. Force 10's suite of safety
precautions (low oxygen sensor/shutoff, standing pilot light/shutoff
etc) cover all the reasonable safety issues except for a leak
upstream of the appliance. A sniffer will cover that eventuality to
a degree. If I suddenly stop communicating I guess you'll know what
the problem is. grin
I had originally (a year ago) installed a friend's gift, an otherwise
excellent little kerosene burner using the same flue as the Force 10,
but with an integral fuel tank of about a quart and a half. . .it was
perhaps 20 years old, stainless, rather squarely good looking and
really, quite effective (same principle as the Force 10, a primus
burner). However, the brass of the tank had (as I found out later)
fractured along the bending radii as it was formed (presumably the
fractures came years after the initial fabrication). Anyway, it
would hold the required 15 lbs of air for a whole week without
showing any loss on the gauge. It began, however, to drip kero into
the bottom of the stove housing when it warmed up. The resultant
fire was not at all pleasant to deal with, though it was entirely
contained in the stove itself and I got it out before it scorched
anything. Moral here. . .check the pressure tank visually if you
find a beautiful old stove to use. . .
Ken Preston, Seattle area
propane Force 10 in Katia Sofia a month ago and it is certainly going
to be adequate for the climate near Seattle. It is definitely a
pleasant little stove, no smell, no smoke etc. I suppose one
explosion at sea would probably offset several bouts of flaring or
smoking or smelling bad however. The original owner had installed a
propane cooking stove (also a Force 10, but they are a local firm so
it's not surprising) and in so doing, he created a one-bottle locker
on top of the after deck, faired nicely into the aft part of the
cockpit coaming. Since I'd never seen a Vega before I didn't at
first realize it was an add-on. Force 10's suite of safety
precautions (low oxygen sensor/shutoff, standing pilot light/shutoff
etc) cover all the reasonable safety issues except for a leak
upstream of the appliance. A sniffer will cover that eventuality to
a degree. If I suddenly stop communicating I guess you'll know what
the problem is. grin
I had originally (a year ago) installed a friend's gift, an otherwise
excellent little kerosene burner using the same flue as the Force 10,
but with an integral fuel tank of about a quart and a half. . .it was
perhaps 20 years old, stainless, rather squarely good looking and
really, quite effective (same principle as the Force 10, a primus
burner). However, the brass of the tank had (as I found out later)
fractured along the bending radii as it was formed (presumably the
fractures came years after the initial fabrication). Anyway, it
would hold the required 15 lbs of air for a whole week without
showing any loss on the gauge. It began, however, to drip kero into
the bottom of the stove housing when it warmed up. The resultant
fire was not at all pleasant to deal with, though it was entirely
contained in the stove itself and I got it out before it scorched
anything. Moral here. . .check the pressure tank visually if you
find a beautiful old stove to use. . .
Ken Preston, Seattle area