Vermont Castings( Encore)Best Surface Temperatures for All Night Burn

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jotulburner

jotulburner

Member
Sep 9, 2010
81
maine
Just getting to know my new wood stove. I had an old Jotul # 3. With the Jotul I would keep the burn indicator thermometer between 450 and 550. We recently moved and in the new house where I have a Vermont Castings Encore. This stove is a very different animal from my Jotul. The owners manual for the Encore says an efficient burn is between 500 and 700. That would have left my Jotul glowing and seems a little to hot to me. I am new to this stove and am just figuring out its quirks and the nuances of the draft in my new house. Will I get a better burn from higher burn temps?
Also I had an issue with back puffing as I backed the stove off last night for bed. I spent half hour backing down the air intake but at some point the flames in fire box slowed then whoosh ignited sending smoke out from under the Encore's griddle. I opened damper and gave it a little more air and it went away. I am guessing it was caused by user error. After a little research it seems like this can be a problem with the Encore. I never had any issues like that with my Jotul or with the Stoves I had in the past. My question is are the newer EPA designs more prone to this and what can I do to keep it from happening. Thanks.
 
jotulburner said:
Just getting to know my new wood stove. I had an old Jotul # 3. With the Jotul I would keep the burn indicator thermometer between 450 and 550. We recently moved and in the new house where I have a Vermont Castings Encore. This stove is a very different animal from my Jotul. The owners manual for the Encore says an efficient burn is between 500 and 700. That would have left my Jotul glowing and seems a little to hot to me. I am new to this stove and am just figuring out its quirks and the nuances of the draft in my new house. Will I get a better burn from higher burn temps?
Also I had an issue with back puffing as I backed the stove off last night for bed. I spent half hour backing down the air intake but at some point the flames in fire box slowed then whoosh ignited sending smoke out from under the Encore's griddle. I opened damper and gave it a little more air and it went away. I am guessing it was caused by user error. After a little research it seems like this can be a problem with the Encore. I never had any issues like that with my Jotul or with the Stoves I had in the past. My question is are the newer EPA designs more prone to this and what can I do to keep it from happening. Thanks.
Click to expand...

I have found from others here that the back puffing seems to happen, for the most part, if:
Your chimney is not lined
You adjust the air controls too quickly
Using extremely dry wood.

Is your chimney lined with a 6" or 8" liner?
 
I don't see how using extremely dry wood would cause backpuffing. The opposite would cause more of that.

Perhaps a picture of the stove and flue would give more information as will knowing about the chimney and about the wood you are burning.

The new EPA stoves require good dry wood. Anything less and it will cause problems. Easy fix: get the wood ahead of time so it has time to dry properly.
 
Backwoods Savage said:
I don't see how using extremely dry wood would cause backpuffing. The opposite would cause more of that.

Perhaps a picture of the stove and flue would give more information as will knowing about the chimney and about the wood you are burning.

The new EPA stoves require good dry wood. Anything less and it will cause problems. Easy fix: get the wood ahead of time so it has time to dry properly.
Click to expand...


For the most part, wet wood is not the cause of backpuffing with the Encores. Using extremely dry pallet wood has been known to increase the probability of backpuffing in Encores.

Also, like I said, unlined chimneys and overly aggressive air control usage can cause this.
 
This is interesting and I'd like to hear more. Why is the Encore different in this area?
 
My chimney has 6 inch liner.
instal paper work states PIP SS Flex Kit 6 x 35 w TEE, Encore 6" flue collr, So it is 6 inch installed into fireplace opening
 

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jotulburner said:
My chimney has 6 inch liner.
instal paper work states PIP SS Flex Kit 6 x 35 w TEE, Encore 6" flue collr, So it is 6 inch installed into fireplace opening
Click to expand...


Explain what type of fire you had in the stove and how you adjusted the air controls.
 
Fire Box was 1/2 way full had been burning 5 hrs nice bed of coals surface thermometer around 475-500 Damper closed CAT engaged air intake 3/4 open. I was just shutting down Air intake to get longer burn for night backed it of to around 1/4 turn from closed did this over about half hour. Flames began to die out a little mostly Glowing embers a few flames but not roaring. then all of a sudden it went dark no flames and whoosh it flared up 5 or 6 times 30 to 60 seconds apart each time releasing smoke from under griddle.
 
I then opened CAT and gave it a little more air and it seemed to stop. It was about 25 degrees last night no wind and crystal clear outside.
 
jotulburner said:
I then opened CAT and gave it a little more air and it seemed to stop. It was about 25 degrees last night no wind and crystal clear outside.
Click to expand...

Do you have a weak draft? How tall is the chimney?

VC's stove seem to suffer from back puffing more frequently than other stoves... or, VC owners vent their frustration more. Not sure. Most of the time it can be determined as to why it is happening.

It seems like you were using the air controls in the correct fashion. The burn temps seemed normal. Your wood supply seemed fine based on your description. I ask about your chimney height to rule out weak draft. Was it windy out?

Next time this happens, try keeping the cat engaged but just give it more air. See if it clears it up in the same way as giving it more air and disengaging the cat.
 
Thanks for the help. It seems as if wood burning is more of an art than science each stove, flue, wood, and temp has its own characteristic all of which affect the burn. Hearth.com is such a valuable resource for a novice like myself.
 
jotulburner said:
Thanks for the help. It seems as if wood burning is more of an art than science each stove, flue, wood, and temp has its own characteristic all of which affect the burn. Hearth.com is such a valuable resource for a novice like myself.
Click to expand...


I have a lot of interest in VC cat stoves. Depending upon how the next two years play out, I could end up with three VC cat stoves to heat my home. When someone has an issue with a VC cat stove it peaks my interest so I can learn from it. Hopefully this back puffing you experienced is a rare occurrence for you or you can determine the factors that created this issue.
 
I hope that as in many problems I encounter that the back-puffing is only user error and with experience I will be able to be as comfortable with the encore as I was with my old Jotul. thanks again
 
My experience with back puffing is something is normally starting to go wrong with the stove. I would check to make sure the chimney is clean and CAT is clean. CAT might be more likely than the chimney - something to block air flow. Also the secondary air flap could be loose and swinging out rathen then up and down letting in puffs of air.
 
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