Just Started Burning This Weekend...

...and got a few questions about a few things...

How often does everyone clean their stoves? And, when you do, what do you use to clean it? Whats the deal with these ash vacs are they worth the $200 + for them? Obviously a shop vac would be more versitle, but I need something cause of course my shop vac failed recently. I guess with a shop vac, you just need to let the stove cool some before cleaning it, as I assume you'd have to with an ash vac as well...

Anyone ever get any smoke from their stove? I think I need to change my chimney some as it started to melt my siding very slightly on my house (I have it far enough away as recommended) so I put a heat sheild around it. It's on the side of my house that gets the most or all of the wind, so now the sheild directs the air down the pipe into my stove. It was windy yesterday around my area and it was interesting at times. I'm thinking of adding to 90 degree elbows. On to get farther away from my siding, and then another one to turn it back up...

cac4 said:

what is the venting configuration? does the pipe just come straight out of the house, or does it go into a "T", then up?

If there's a pipe going up, outside the house, how far off of the siding is it?

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Thanks for all the replies... I'll check on the ash vac, as I was reading some of it but figured I'd post it as I posted other stuff...

Anyway, as far as the above. The Mt. Vernan, not sure of other models, has an adapter to center the pipe to bring it straight up the outside (roof) of the house. Not really a T, more like a 90 degree out with a cleanout. The pipe is probably 6" from the side of my house, with a rain cap on. The rain cap is the part that is maybe 3" away. I think the issue is, the wind blows on that side of the house, so it's blowing the heat right against the house... At least until I put the heat sheild on, now that directs the air down my pipe...

Is there another solution, a different cap perhaps???

cac4 said:

From what you've typed, I have no idea what your venting configuration is. do you have a picture?

does the exhaust from your stove go out though a wall, or up through the roof?

the pipe is 6" away, and it melts the siding???! thats a seriously hot pipe.

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Goes out through the roof... Sorry...

Its 5' 'ish' from the top of my stove to the outside. I have a bump out, dog house thing that typically is used for like a gas insert or something that my stove sits back in....

Well the pipe is 6" away from the siding, but the rain cap is only about 3" away... It's on the side of my house that gets most/all of the wind so when a wind or breeze is blowing it's blowing the hot air against the siding of my house. Or, the heat is going up to the rain cap, then disapating from their...

It hasn't totally melted it, just something I checked on and the siding is shinier there and has a bubble sorta... Hope that helps...

millhouselives said:

Read this thread, it has more then enought information to help you decide on what type of vacuum to get.

https://www.hearth.com/econtent/index.php/forums/viewthread/28320/P0/

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Will do, thanks...

Just talked to the place where I bought the stove. The guy said I don't have much of a choice other than 2 - 45 elbows. Said the pipe could only be 25' so I'm at about 4' now, so the extra 2' of elbows won't matter. Other than the $49 a peice price tag...

Anyone know of any place cheaper to get this pipe from??? It's simpson pipe...

cac4 said:

what are the 2 45-degree pipes for?

sounds to me like you've got a vertical install in a place where there should be a horizontal one. You can't have a vertical cap on a chimney unless it goes up above the roof line of the house, and there's a good distance horizontally from the cap....I don't know what the limit is, but I'm sure its WAY more than 3".

how about if you take the cap off, put a 90-degree elbow on that is pointing away from the sidewall of the house...then put a horizontal cap on that. This will make the stove blow the exhaust away from the house, and not back into it. It would also put the exhaust outlet 18" away from the side of the house, instead of 6". (or 3" with the existing vertical cap).

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Yeah, it's above the roof line, however it's a dog house, bump out thing, so it is still close to the house. The 2 - 45's would be to turn it out, then turn it back up... I see your point though with the horizontal cap... Hmmmm...

cac4 said:

does it look like this?

It sounds like you're blowing very hot exhaust gas into the side of your house, with that sort of cap. I wouldn't even THINK of starting the stove until this is fixed.
I looked in the directions, and couldn't find a horizontal space limit for a vertical chimney. I'm sure there is one...maybe one of the pro's can chime in. With a wood burning chimney, that has to be the highest thing around for somewhere in the vicinity of 10 FEET.

Home Depot sells both 90 degree elbows, and horizontal caps.

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Yep, it looks like that... I checked with the place I got the stove and they said in their book from the manufacturer that there was nothing in there, so there were no clearance issues, other then the pipe, which is 3" - I checked it this evening when I got home and everything seems OK, I did get 2 - 45's though to move it out further away...

So I went and got my 2 - 45's to put in place, it was like 20 degrees out yesterday and was snowing. I used heat proof silicone to attach the pipe and cap and all together and yesterday... Pretty much couldn't get it apart, anyone have any suggestions...

I triple checked my siding and it hasn't changed since I put the "LJ Heat Sheild" on...

While I was up looking at this, there was dirt/ash on the roof and around the cap. Not a whole lot, but enough to notice. Is this normal???