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I've tried to find info on ways one might add a baffle to a Kni-co stove. Boreal Outdoor Innovations makes some that can be installed and removed without tools, but everything Luigi sells is just too plain pricey to me. I had read about and was considering riveting some Ti foil into place, but I wonder if there are other/ better ways. I'm not looking for cheap, but Luigi sells his baffle for about as much as an entire Kni-co stove, and I cannot justify that.
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There are basically two ways you could go about having a removable baffle in a stove, regardless of the brand.
Free-standing- utilizing a tri-fold design or a baffle that is self supported from the floor of the stove. This is the type I have and it works well for my kni-co stove.
The other type requires modifications to the stove itself. tabs riveted or welded on the inside of the firebox to support the baffle. This requires a bit of testing to get the right height and fore-aft adjustment of the baffle.
I would suggest a permanent installed baffle once you've found the sweet spot with a removable one. proper balance of turbulence, draw and firebox volume.
Keep in mind, by design the kni-co stove pipe enters in the stove box fairly deep. the pipe should need modified prior to a baffle, that's just my .02
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One thing you have to watch for with free standing baffles is that you could if not careful lift the baffle up with a piece of firewood, blocking the stove pipe. Seen this happen, surprising how fast someone can exit a tent when they need to. Usually followed by a cloud of smoke!
There was a post on the WT forum with directions for baffle placement in a Knico. I used these on my Trekker and it worked well. Have since sold the stove so can’t measure it unfortunately.Comment
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This is baffling!Comment
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Groan!
A few more details I can remember-
You have to leave a t least a half inch at the back to reduce unburnt wood and help start up. The longer the baffle the greater the problem of unburnt wood. Long baffle may make it harder to store the pipe inside the stove as well
Front edge of the baffle has to be low enough to leave a letterbox at least the same area as the bottom of the stove pipe
Back of the baffle is lower to leave at least an inch below the stove pipe, cutting a shallow bite out of the bottom end of the pipe can help with this.Comment
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As someone who has recently added a baffle to my Kni-co Alaskan, I wholeheartedly recommend doing so. I have noticed an increase in efficiency. Warms fasters, stays hotter longer. Don't expect the stove to stay hot all night, but the baffle does help.
Mine is a 3 sided box, or a steel sheet with two steel sides/legs. Made from 22 gauge steel, it is approximately 3/4 the length of the interior of the box. The legs fold up using piano hinges bolted onto each piece of steel. It sits about 3/4" to 1" below the stove pipe end (not the hole.) I can slide it forward and back if I need the rear of the box to get more air flow, to prevent a charcoal buildup, but I am thinking about building an ash rake for the stove. It has been working out great and I am already designing a more permanent solution involving riveted steel angle iron and a steel sheet with index holes that can slide back and forth depending on need.
If you do build a removable one, keep in mind a major limiting measurement is the door opening. It's diagonal measurement is the widest part.Comment
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I remember the article from Winter Trekker(WT) that Bothwell is mentioning. A few of the key details I remember from it- Have a small gap behind the baffle. This make starting the stove easier.
- Calculate the area of your pipe. The open area between the baffle and stove top needs to be at least that big. Watch out for the protruding pipe, thanks to Heavy Duty pointing that out.
- Use steel rivets, aluminum rivets can melt.
Below are my notes from when I made my baffle for my KniCo Trekker using the design from the WT site. It didn’t work great, I think I might have needed to add some clearance above it, it was too tight and slowed the draft. I don't have the original formulas but hopefully my notes, which are based on them, are enough to rediscover them.
======= Old notes =======
Area of pipe about 7”^2
Gap needed between pipe fling and baffle = .56”
Flange is .5" tall
Pipe extends 1.5" down.
.25” from back
Back should be about 2.1" down
Front should be about 1" down
10” long (front -> back)
9.2” corner to corner in door
9 1/2" x 8 1/2” x 17”deep
Door can handle 9 1/2"
Walls are 22g 1/32" thickComment
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Here are some pictures of a baffle I recently made. I have used it for two weekends now and I can't imagine not having a baffle anymore. This is the first version. In my head, I am thinking through another version, but it will require riveting angle iron to the stove and a sheet of steel that sits on the angle iron, with index tabs. But for now, this baffle works great, even if I think it is heavy.Comment
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