Smoke or no smoke? I guess I don't understand how my insert actually works...

Welcome. If you don't mind please post some more information about your insert. Do you know what model it is? Is it a cat or non-cat? And just for kicks what's your chimney and wood like?

Please do. We love pictures.

Cat vs non-cat refers to how an EPA approved unit burns the smoke that comes off the fire. Non-cat units use baffling and hot air injection to accomplish this. Catalytic units actually pass the smoke through a catalytic combustor to do the job. How to use them depends on which type you have.

Here's a good primer on the subject:

http://www.ec.gc.ca/cleanair-airpur/videos/Woodstove_mgt-Eng.wmv

Cheesy but worth a watch.

Ha. That's nearly about what my wife looks like now.

I'm guessing your insert is non-cat. It seems to be the norm now. The basic idea is to burn good, dry wood. Leave the air control wide open until the fire is well established and the wood is charred. Then, start slowly closing off the air supply. How far exactly depends a lot on your particular situation. My stove likes about 20-25% open for a longer burn and 30-35% open for a hotter burn. The basic idea is to close the air control off enough enough to slow the burn down and have nothing but heat waves coming from the chimney. There's usually a "sweet spot" you will find.

These stoves need to burn HOT in order to work properly. For your situation this may be as simple as keeping the air control open longer. Smoke coming form the stove when it's open may be of concern. That shouldn't happen. Have you swept your chimney recently?

Uh... your chimney is not "precast concrete" I can clearly see in the pictures it is the correct pipe for the Northstar which is SL300 double wall metal chimney.

Also, if it is running good you will not see any visible smoke coming out.

You do not have a CAT, it is a secondary burn unit.

You should go on www.heatnglo.com and download the newest manual and read through the operations section, it will tell you a lot.

I'm glad I'm not the only one trying to learn about this secondary burn method!