Hi John;
Once you build your J tube properly, it will last 7 years plus. Mine did before I replaced it with a batch box. I know of several others from Donkeys that have gone that long as well.
I did rebuild mine 3 times before I got it right...
As these are DYI stoves chances are you will build something off or not sturdy
enough or you want to make it better
Lots of reasons to do a rebuild/changes.
I know the whole process seems daunting before you build one. To read about all the rebuilds is quite disheartening!
Have no fear... when your working with clay the ONLY "bad" part is the dust you create. Beyond that rebuilds are super easy. I literally have done them in the dead of winter1 Fast fast fast. Bricks knock apart easy, clay mortar rehydrates in just moments. If the mass is dry and warm you can rebuild a core... cover everything in sopping wet
cob and fire that
dragon up! It will dry out in a few hours and be 100% in no time.
Batchboxes on the other hand seem to need more care and maintenance. The secondary air tube needs to be built as a quick change or with an RA330 stub on it.
The box itself can be fragile so you must load
wood carefully. Unless you buy a Pisla or a Dragon tech door you will be having door issues. Roof's are a big issue that can need repair.
Both my batchboxes will get rebuilds this summer.
Metal box stoves (never heard of a weed stove... lol) will warp, if they have firebricks they will crack , They start out strong but show their weaknesses in a few years.
They also send most of your heat directly out the chimney and they cost sacks full of money.... hmmmm rebuilding sound's not so bad anymore...