Forge & Flame Intrepid FlexBurn

The Forge & Flame Intrepid FlexBurn, crafted with Vermont Castings, heats about 950–1,850 square feet. It's a compact, all-cast-iron stove for a cottage, a den, or a smaller home that still wants the features of a bigger model.

FlexBurn lets you run the stove without a catalyst or add the optional catalytic performance pack, sold separately. The catalyst creates a third burn of leftover smoke and, per the manual, can raise efficiency up to 15% on low burn while cutting certified emissions from 0.6 to 0.3 grams per hour.

Cut logs to 14 inches or less for its 1.31 cubic foot firebox, and expect about 6–8 hours per load. You load from the top by lifting the cast iron griddle, which keeps smoke contained, and the front doors also open for adding an occasional log.

You set the primary air control by hand, and a bi-metallic thermostat then adjusts the air on its own to hold heat output steady over the life of the burn. A separate bypass damper stays open for start-up and reloading, then closes once the stove and flue are hot.

Unlatch the ash door and it swings the ash pan out of the stove, even while the stove is hot. Slide on the cover, lift the pan out level, and close the ash door before carrying it away. The manual says you'll typically empty it every one to three days.

Yes, in the US only, and not in Canada. It can't go in a sleeping room, and it needs outside combustion air, a #8 copper ground wire to the frame, the Mobile Home Bracket Kit #0003264 (sold separately), and a UL103 HT chimney or a full-length 6-inch UL-1777 liner.

It vents through 6-inch single- or double-wall pipe from a top or rear exit. On a combustible floor, the bottom heat shield must sit over non-combustible spark and ember protection, with no R-value required. That protector extends 8 inches to each side of the loading door, 6 inches behind, and 16 inches in front in the US, or 18 inches in front in Canada.

With a top exit and single-wall pipe, it needs 15 inches to a side wall, 12 inches to the back wall, and 6-1/2 inches in a corner. Double-wall pipe cuts that to 11, 10, and 6 inches, and a rear exit needs 15 inches at the side and 13 inches at the back.