NEWBE HERE - When stove door is opened, smoke escapes... Why?

In 99% of these instances it's the chimney at fault. Stoves are almost bullet proof...they just burn stuff and don't want to know anything after that. Let your stove go cold and mirror the chimney for any possible obstructions ...like creosote build up.

There are often similar threads here...

With a new chimney install, it's possibly the case that a spark arrestor cap was installed 'by default'. They like to clog up sometimes... even when the chimney itself appears clean. If you have a 'difficult' roof, it might be a good idea to remove the spark arrestor or replace it with a freer flowing cap... when conditions permit.

Just a shot in the dark...

Peter B.

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A guy I work with had this problem about 2 weeks ago. He went out and noticed the cap had iced over and was only getting very little smoke out. I wouldn't recommend this, but his solution was to blast the cap with a 4-10 shotgun. I thought it was pretty funny though. He says he is deathly afraid of heights and there was no way he was climbing up there. You Might Be A Redneck IF.................

Are you taking 30 seconds to open the door slowly or opening it like a refrigerator? If its not back puffing when you start it and it burns well I would doubt you have a draft problem. Was your clothes drier or central forced air furnace running at the time. Sorry I don't have a better answer.

Hi all. Another newb here. I have used this forum quite a bit, but never registered until now. This place is a great resource.

I have the same problem, but usually only when the wind blows ... and only when the insert is cold. Once it has heated up well, I leave the air open slightly more than average and have no problems. Ice usually isn't a big problem here, so I can't comment on that. This morning it happened (third time this winter), but the wind is also blowing at about 25-30mph outside. Now that the insert is hot, I can open the door and it won't leak smoke.

For reference, I'm using a 15 year old (pre-lennox) Country E310, mainly burning almond splits and some white oak.

How much smoke are we talking about?

On my stove, if I open the door while the fire is burning - while there are flames - smoke will enter the house. If I'm careful, and make sure to get a good draft going - open the air all the way & get the burn going good, open the flue all the way, and slowly open the door I can minimize smoke coming into the house. Inevitably I'm not careful enough and my wife smells smoke and asks if I'm burning the house down.

1) If the fire is still going, you really don't need to - some would say shouldn't - reload.
2) If the fire is going & you open the door quickly, you can puff smoke into the house.

If its not a lot of smoke, its probably technique, not setup.

this sometimes happens to me if the stove is smoldering out for some reason. But the remedy, as already stated, is to set the primary air intake full open for about a 1min then open the door very slowly, this usually cures it.

Check the elbow on the rear of the stove - or any 90's in the system, to see if ash and stuff fell down the chimney and partially clogged.
Check the screen on your chimney cap - if you have a screen.

If it's not the cap, your external flue might be the problem if you did not insulate the liner when you did the install. If the gases get cool they lose velocity and you lose draft. Insulating you liner is good idea if it hasn't already been done.

vebsta99 said:

We have a Jotul #3 wood stove that we just hooked up in November. We installed a 25' Flex Stainless Steel Chimney Liner (TCE Brand) in an existing masonry (field stone with tiles) chimney that is on the exterior of the house. We have burned great the last month or so and have burned about a cord of wood.

The problem started right after the holiday, it came out of nowhere, we opened the door to add to the fire (already going) and smoke escaped, we didn't think much of it, but it has been a continuous problem since.

Today, I dismantled the stove, cleaned it and checked the clean out on the liner. The liner has black on the inside, but I can clearly make out the ridges still, so I am assuming, it's not a cleaning issue, but I am stuck, the stove is completely clean.

I have not yet had a chance to go to the roof and check the top, due to the snow/ice on the roof.

Anyone have any thoughts or ideas on what my be causing this?

Thank you-
Steven

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Sounds like the classic chimney cap clogg. If you have rods and a brush you may be able to hit it from the ground since its an outside chimney. Don't shoot it with a shot gun!

Todd said:

Don't shoot it with a shot gun!

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Try a slingshot with snowballs.

Todd said:

vebsta99 said:

We have a Jotul #3 wood stove that we just hooked up in November. We installed a 25' Flex Stainless Steel Chimney Liner (TCE Brand) in an existing masonry (field stone with tiles) chimney that is on the exterior of the house. We have burned great the last month or so and have burned about a cord of wood.

The problem started right after the holiday, it came out of nowhere, we opened the door to add to the fire (already going) and smoke escaped, we didn't think much of it, but it has been a continuous problem since.

Today, I dismantled the stove, cleaned it and checked the clean out on the liner. The liner has black on the inside, but I can clearly make out the ridges still, so I am assuming, it's not a cleaning issue, but I am stuck, the stove is completely clean.

I have not yet had a chance to go to the roof and check the top, due to the snow/ice on the roof.

Anyone have any thoughts or ideas on what my be causing this?

Thank you-
Steven

Click to expand...

Sounds like the classic chimney cap clogg. If you have rods and a brush you may be able to hit it from the ground since its an outside chimney. Don't shoot it with a shot gun!

Click to expand...

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Depending upon weather you are within the city limits with backstabbing neighborers just next door or 10 miles outside of town with no neighbors within 1 mile to report your butt to the authorities , I think that shooting the spark arrester screen with a shot gun is a excellent idea ,
especially when the roof is steep & full of ice & snow & dangerious as hell.

Makes me wish I lived in such a location with no neighbors & had a chimeney cap just so I could shot it!!

Unfortinuately, firearm owners in my state and many other states are now all treated like Al Kadis terrorists until proven otherwise & even after all charges are proven false & one is exhonorated, the bad treatment continues to persist.

State law says that the firearm owner is entitled by law to have a federally licensed firearms dealer sell his firearms for him to a state resident allowed under law to posess firearms , should he (the original firearms owner) be arrested on a firearms related charge but liberal judges frequently legislate from the bench, disregard state law and order guns destroyed
that should have been sold on behalf of the owner so that he could recieve some of his cost of the firearms back.

We give up trying to get the guns back, we just want to get some of our investment back & even that is impossible now.

Give me liberty or give me death.

Its a little bit too late now for the liberity option and time to take a much closer look at the death option.

People that have been down that road know that I speak the truth and those that have not been there wonder what i am talking about, not having experienced it themselves or watched it happen to a close friend right in front of your eyes.

The right to " bear" arms means the police granted priveledge to have a "bear" rifle if you pay for all the proper permits and take all the required safety courses and are approved by all the state and local police & if the state & county & city that you live in allows it.

Russians have more rights than us ,now.

In some states, if you are a firearms owner & the police can find nothing to arrest you for, because you have done nothing wrong, they send you to the mental institute to be evaluated as to the state of your mental health.

Then some quack doctor at the loonie bin says that you should not be allowed to own firearms because you refused to let police search your home without a search warrent.

The right to keep & bear arms, please, dont make me laugh.
You have no rights anymore.

And this thread is off track and derailing fast. . . .

My earth stove insert puffs smoke into the house, if I rapidly open the door, OR if a smoldering log is pointing OUT the door and still gassing off.

also, the chimney cap DOES get some creosote on it, and hampers flow.

I use the sons BB rifle and shoot about a couple of times when I cant get on the roof.

Once or twice a season of shooting the cap, and one cleaning before the burn season, and it seems to stay pretty clean if I dont put anything green in there.

Ya- don't want to get caught shooting the chimney- it's better to put the shell right in the firebox

Adios Pantalones said:

- it's better to put the shell right in the firebox

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...if you're trying for a Darwin award.

I totally could shoot the cap where I live - all the neighbors would want to watch.


The cap is the most likely culprit. Blocked screen.

Do you use a lot of newspaper and do you restart a lot?

I have been lurking for quite a while - this thread gives me the info I need and has a good rant to boot....

also - i forgot thanks for all the great info on this forum I just started burning in November

when my woodstove is full of ash, I like to shoot it with a shotgun .