smoke in house-help!!

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libertyridge

New Member
Dec 23, 2011
12
maryland eastern shore
I have been noticing more smoke in house than normal.
I have SL300 chimney which draws air from up on chimney to cool.
I went on roof and when blower for stove kicked on, the warm air coming out the vent reversed, and
began pulling cool air in. This certainly does not seem right.
when blower stopped the air slowly reversed and warm air began coming back out the chimney vent.
stove is 2 years old and is primary heat on the house.
 
sorry, not familiar with that brand or set up of pipe. i went on line to try and find more info but not a lot of luck. did it just start doing it? you said there is more smoke than normal....do you normally have smoke smell? i do occasionally but only if i try to shut it down too far and too fast (dragon puff). did you do the install yourself? for it to draw back, something certainly sounds messed up. might have a leak or a place where its not sealed properly. i'm sure someone will pipe up after they get their morning coffee and a couple of splits.

good thing is its going to be almost 60 today here on the western shore. hope you can figure it out as its going to get seasonal in a couple of days.

cass
 
Sounds like some sort of triple wall chimney like they used to have for prefab fireplaces that drew combustion air down the outside chamber of the chimney? That is a question.
 
I believe the SL 300 is a double wall chimney.
It is cooled through the vent up near the peak of the chimney.
A long tube follows the main chimney down and connects to the top of the stove, where i guess it should
be pulling cool air in. I guess i kinda just answered some of my own questions.
I think it should always be pulling air in- still not sure why air reversed when fan kicked on and off.
Smoke in house is minimal but i can smell it and normally dont smell any except when loading.
Maybe chimney is just not pulling like normal since it is so warm outside.
I'm going to shut stove down later today and pull front off. I wont be able to see chimney connection, but at
least i can inspect firebox and surround.
If problem continues i guess i can cut access from closet (wifes walk-in) and take a peak at the connections, front is all stone so no access that way.
Thanks for the help, anyone with SL300 experience or may know if reverse of air flow might be normal in the vent tube would be appreciated.
 
It is double wall but it is air cooled (not good) and you must be pulling air down the chimney, how tight is your house, open a window and see if it does it.
 
At the bottom of your facia, below your air control lever, there is another lever. Is it to the left or the right? It is for the Auxiliary Convection Air Lever (see picture) to allow the blower to draw air from another location. I have mine ducted to draw air for the blower from the basement. Some have it run to the outside for a positive pressure scenario. Do you know if you had either of these situations covered with your install? I am wondering if the air cooling flex pipe has an air leak and if the lever is in the wrong position it could draw air down the pipe.

If you are unsure of your configuration, do you know how many vents you have on the outside of your chase/chimney? The OAK will be a large metal one. The flex pipe will be a small white plastic one like a dryer vent. The auxiliary convection air lever will be the same size as the OAK vent.

As for a smoke smell in general, the only time I smell smoke is when starting or reloading and the doors were left open a little too long. As long as I keep one door closed, no smoke gets in one a draft is started.
 

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It sounds like the intake air for the SL300 may be plugged or that the blower assembly has come loose and is drawing air from the fireplace chase. The first thing to check is the cap. Make sure it is not plugged. While checking, inspect the flue pipe for creosote build up.

If all looks good up top, then check the outside air intake vent for the chimney. Do you have access to the back of this unit? If so, locate the Chimney Air Kit, Part CAK4A, on the top of the stove and follow the intake hose to it's outdoor intake cover. Make sure the screen is not clogged. This should breathe freely, supplying cool air for the chimney to ventilate. Make sure the outside air control on the stove is open too.

If all is ok there, check the The blower intake and make sure it is not plugged. Also check and see if you are getting smoke only when a kitchen exhaust fan, dryer, bath fan, etc. is running.
 
House is very tight.
Closed the OAK this morning as it is very warm and we have all been sick.
I thought I would bring some fresh air in and opened a window, but it got a bit chilly, so I closed it.
I bet you are right, it tried pulling air from the chimney vent, as it is not sealed, it just fits with the collar.

I,m new two burning so I will hopefully figure it out in the years to come.
Thanks for the help
 
Sorry I type slow, just saw two replies above mine.
I have two intakes on my chimney,one for the Oak and one for the chimney, no ACC kit.
I did not do install local stove Co. Did.
I was thinking the metal intake was for the chimney. The metal vent was the one that air direction reversed on when the blower kicked on. It went from being Luke warm to drawing cool air when I heard the blower kick on, and then it when back to being warm after blower stopped. Yes, I did spend quite a few minutes on the roof this AM but the view is so nice and the ridge vent quite comfortable.
Everything I can see looks good no plugs and I just swept chimney in November, no access to the back of the stove at this time.
Also I could not smell smoke in the air from the blower, so I really think the chimney vent pulled the smoke smell in.
 
Is the weather there under low pressure? Do you notice the smoke going more horizontal or sinking? If so, it could be as you mentioned.
 
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