Englander 13 Maintenance Cleanout?

I'm having a little trouble this year with the NC13. This is the 4th season since we installed it. I can't seem to get consistent control like the last 2 yrs. Once I get a fire finally going it's OK, but you better have a BIG bed of coals to relight from. Years past I'd be able to rake the last few embers into a pile no bigger than a coffee cup right in front of the zipper, throw a couple of splits on, and it would relight in 20 mins or so. If in a hurry I'd crack the door a bit, get a good char, and then leave the control rod about a 1/2" out and walk away for 4-6hrs. The wife is even having trouble and she runs it better than me.

The only thing that's changed is the wood but it should be well seasoned. I'm currently burning 2 standing dead hickories that's been cut, split, and stacked in the sun for more than a year. It was dry when I bucked it up and throwing sparks. I don't have a meter, but it "clinks" and doesn't "thud" when you knock pieces together. I really don't think it's the wood but it's the only thing different from last year..

Are there air internal intake passages I need to clean? I pull the upper tubes and baffle board to clean the flue. I've knocked the fly ash out of the tubes and the board is back where it should be. The board is rounded of about 1/2" on the one corner, but other than that looks original. I need to do some caulking around the windows but haven't worried about it as it's plenty warm in here so I don't think it's a draft issue, no dryer running when it acts up, etc. The zipper is still zipping, but overall the draft seems weaker and the stove is starving. I have thought about putting an outside air kit on but I haven't needed it in yrs past?

- JP

It was starting to do this a bit end of last season too. I just got done cleaning the smoke pipe and chimney and it still does it. I pulled out a little over a quart of dry flaky creosote granules which is about normal for about 3 months of burning. I have had some larger flaky stuff fall down on the baffle board and partially block the draft, but that's not the case this time.

I just wondered if there was some internal passages that I could possible vacuum out or something?

- JP

No weatherization has been done to the house. Stainless Steel chimney out through the roof, all connection seems tight, have 4 screws, and the stove hasn't been moved.

I understand it would be going against the flow to plug with ash, I just can't figure this out. I know the zipper is an intake and their is airwash for the glass. Does the air come in from above or below the glass? We don't use the worthless ash drawer so sometimes the ash has gotten built up deeper than it should. Could it have blocked an inlet somehow? Worse case I guess I can haul it outside and really clean/blow it out.

- JP