Have a new problem with my 4 year old stove.

Well my money is on something is stopping your draft from where the smoke exits above the door to the pipe on top of your stove.
Is the pipe down into the stove to far by any chance?

Is there a chance he is only getting air to his secondary's and if so would it cause the prob he is having?

And you are sure that the pipe going to the chimney from the stove is all clear?

Its amazing how a small layer of build up like that on the pipe can slow it down.

If it is single wall pipe to the breech, you loose heat from that as well. Double wall pipe will help keep the temp and speed up on the exit.

A cold 8x8 clay will be tough to keep warm as well. Re-line with appropriate liner and reep the benefits.

If there is a 90 elbow in it, try 30 or 45 elbows instead. Helps to reduce loss in velocity.

Install fire 1 said:

Its amazing how a small layer of build up like that on the pipe can slow it down.

If it is single wall pipe to the breech, you loose heat from that as well. Double wall pipe will help keep the temp and speed up on the exit.

A cold 8x8 clay will be tough to keep warm as well. Re-line with appropriate liner and reep the benefits.

If there is a 90 elbow in it, try 30 or 45 elbows instead. Helps to reduce loss in velocity.

Click to expand...

All very good advice.
It prolly is not just one thing messing up his draft but a combination like you are referring to if there is nothing wrong with his stove.
But he did go 4 years with his setup..that's whats baffling.

It has been very cold this year, and have personally seen trees and other factors, which are out of our control, grow and fill out which we as people may not notice in 4 years, and have a negative effect on draft.

I went back to an install that my dad did 20 years ago. It was a resolute non-cat, worked fine and started giving trouble this year. Had to dismantle interior and clean as well as extend the chimney, ( which was proper height) an extra 2 feet because the trees had grown in that time and changed the way the stove drafted.

Just a thought.

The tree problem is one of the environmental issues that I was considering - a tree that has grown out - or been cut down - a neighbor that added an addition or a second / third level to their home - a wind break of leeland cypress that grew 5 feet last season - a sound barrier wall that was put up next to the road to stop sound from traffic (common around Baltimore - the beltway is lined with them, I don't know about other parts of the world)

Obviously, these a rare and sometimes extreme cases, but we're all grasping at straws here trying to find an answer to this one!

Maybe some pictures of the complete setup will reveal something - is it possible to post some pix of; stove, stove pipe, thimble, chimney top and bottom?

I can't wait to find out what the answer is here.

Could it be you reinstalled the baffle incorrectly?
My real vote since you say this is the coldest winter you've seen is the masonry chimney has cooled down to the point of interfering with draft. You should line this chimney and extend it a couple of feet.

Three weeks ago, we were dealing with some serious wind around our area. Did you guys get that too? Also, lots of ice and snow.

If the smoke is coming out of your stove, the short the matter is that something changes that makes your house a better chimney than your chimney. A change is stack pressure could do this. Also, a change in make-up air.

If you had that strong wind a few weeks ago, is there any chance the wind caused some damage that is changing the stack characteristics of your house? I had an issue once when the wind from hurricane Ike came through that I opened the garage door, and enough wind channeled into the house fast enough that the air pressure actually lifted the attic access panel in the upstairs hall ceiling out of place.

Just a few things i'm thinking of off the top of my head...

Are all your attic access panels closed?
Are all the upstairs windows closed and locked (for sure?)
Did you make any changes to the house in the last three weeks?
3M plastic window kits?
Caulking, door sweeps, etc?
Did you add any new bathroom or dryer vents?
Do you have a vent fan somewhere stuck ON (bathroom, kitchen, etc?)
Do you have snow drifted up against the house sealing an area where make-up air would have found its way in?
Do you have ice sealing up any vents or places that make-up air would have found its way in?

If it started suddenly and then went away suddenly, I'd guess maybe it was something having to do with weather. Wind, barometric pressure, temp, etc... But since it started suddenly and has persisted, It really makes me thing as if something happened/changed that caused the problem, and will continue until you find it.

-SF

Any chance you can post photos of:
- view of stove in fireplace
- inside view of the insert such that we can see the inside firebox?
- the top of the chimney

Just to confirm, this is a non-insulated liner in a exterior brick chimney. Also, you are having these problems when it is < 20* outside.

Has the temp ever risen to > 30* and if so, did the insert have same problem?