Leaking stove? Do all old stoves leak?

  • Active since 1995, Hearth.com is THE place on the internet for free information and advice about wood stoves, pellet stoves and other energy saving equipment.

    We strive to provide opinions, articles, discussions and history related to Hearth Products and in a more general sense, energy issues.

    We promote the EFFICIENT, RESPONSIBLE, CLEAN and SAFE use of all fuels, whether renewable or fossil.
Status
Not open for further replies.
So this sounds like it happens to all stoves. Which is what I was told years ago. It kind of sucks that you get 5 good years out of a stove and then it craps out. The manufacturers should make them easier to rebuild or maintain. Is there a stove out there that does not suffer from these issues, or is it just the natural course of things?

Hehheh . . . 5 years . . . bought my stove in 2008 . . . still running it 24/7 in the winter . . . and haven't had to even change a gasket. Stupid stoves always breaking down and needing replacement. ;)
 
I'm confident just about all stoves soot up the glass on an overnight burn.

. . ..

I wouldn't take that bet . . . unless the person was closing down the air too much, too soon or was burning wood that was too green.
 
Sorry, it appears that you have a steel stove and the joints should be welded. Nothing at all like a cast iron stove, where sections are bolted together. No, you should not have problems after 5 yrs unless the stove has been abused but as mentioned, sometimes interior sections on poorly designed stoves will disintegrate or warp. My problem was after 30 yrs. of steady 3 season use, plus I aim for much higher temps than many on this forum use, so quite different. Very similar symptoms though so I would have someone check it if you can't find the problem yourself. It should last much longer.
according to LOPI, their boxes are stamped out of one piece of steel. And by its looks, I'd say so. There are no joints to be welded. I think I need to start a new thread on how to properly moniter the temperature of the stove. What's the best way?
 
Stick around Bill Wallace . . . lots of good folks . . . if you're open to their advice they may be able to help you out and you'll be happily burning (and staying warm) in no time.
 
Reading this, I am wondering whether your insert is finally operating as it should be. I say that because:
- I don't have dirty glass in the morning,
- my insert throws a lot of heat,
- three logs would never last me through the night,
- and I never have unburnt wood in my stove the next morning.

Has your wood always been split and stacked for three years before burning? Do you have a stove thermometer to see if it really runs "too hot"?

Modern (secondary burn) stoves/inserts inject pre-heated air into the top of the firebox to burn up all the volatile gases and unburnt particles coming from the wood. They do that to reduce smoke emissions which contributes to respiratory diseases and air pollution, to increase the efficiency of the stove from 40% of old-style "smokedragons" to 75%, and to reduce the risk of creosote accumulation in the chimney that can lead to a chimney fire. With closing the air control I see secondary flames in the top of firebox which tells me I burn efficiently and cleanly. My insert often reaches 700 F on the top without ill effects and heats my home nicely.
When you say it's reaching 700 on the top, where exactly and how are you monitoring the temp? What kind of thermometer? Where is it placed?
 
Have you had it looked at by a pro? It is not normal other than gaskets for a stove to be that leaky that soon. Did you check the glass gasket?




Absolutely not true most newer stoves do not soot the glass badly
Never checked the glass gasket. I am assuming the glass has its own gasket. Thanks for the tip. I missed that in the manual. I'll check it for leaks. Thanks again.
 
according to LOPI, their boxes are stamped out of one piece of steel. And by its looks, I'd say so. There are no joints to be welded. I think I need to start a new thread on how to properly moniter the temperature of the stove. What's the best way?
It's impossible to stamp a box with that size and thickness out of one piece of steel without using welds. I used to work in a press room in a former life. Quarter plate is an sob to work with.
 
If there are no simple answers, like the bypass is not working or a clogged cap screen, then there should be a more thorough examination for flaws. There could be a defect like a manifold weld failure. We have seen a few of these on Lopi and Quad stoves. If it has cracked to the exterior then smoke can leak.
 
When you say it's reaching 700 on the top, where exactly and how are you monitoring the temp? What kind of thermometer? Where is it placed?

For an insert an infrared thermometer is usually best. I measure the temp of mine from about 3 inches away pointing above the door in the center of the insert. I have found that this spot is about 100 F lower than the top during the early burn and about 50 F lower after approx. 1 hour into the burn. To figure that out I pulled off the surround to expose the fireplace. I removed the top of the convection deck of my insert (which was easy in my case, may not be in yours) to expose the actual top of the insert. Then for a few days I was running the insert as usual but with the blower off. At various points during the burns I checked the temp on top and compared it with the temp on the hottest spot in the front. That's how I got those differences. Then I put everything back together and now I check only in the front.
 
I would let it cool and give it a thorough cleaning then look at things like bypass and primary air seal. Could possibly be ash has worked its way into one or both of these areas and no longer allows you to shut air flow off completely.

As far as the bypass is concerned regarding your question about how can this even be a problem?? Air cannot ever be completely shut off on your stove without custom modifications as with all EPA stoves(mentioned above) so there is an equilibrium effect going on. Similar to a "key damper" in the pipe - if you slow the air going out the flue you slow the air coming into the secondaries. So much so that many here with basement installs and tall chimneys have elected to utilize key dampers on their flue systems.

So,if you are not controlling the air on either end(or both which the case may be) you will be burning faster and with less control. Check those two places for build up and clean them up really good before burning a test fire. Something changed so starting with the more obvious and simple solutions will at least eliminate them from culpability. Obviously in the process of clean up check for broke, cracked and warped parts that may be allowing a change in your equilibrium and subsequent control of the air flow.

In similar situations many have run into your issue when the ash pan gets clogged and cannot fully close - it does not take a big air leak to change things dramatically with a tall chimney or any sort of mega draft. ie. it does no have to be obvious as in the primary air "looks" completely closed but maybe it is not.

Just a couple thoughts
 
Status
Not open for further replies.