Is this a problem with all BK cat stoves? Honestly, I haven't heard that many people with your model stove complaining about a smoke smell. If I were you I would keep looking for the problem. Hopefully with the help of other owners on this forum you will get this problem figured out.
I have noticed this smell too. It's very faint and only happens at times. Not always. It's hardly noticeable at all, I also noticed this smell with the Leyden, which is a downdrafter. I just expect some odor when burning wood, you have to be standing over the stove to notice it. It doesn't smell up the house or anything. I have a very sensitive nose, but I'm not allergic.
That's the smell! It's entirely related to draft, or in a some cases, a down drafter that's starting to have problems. Which I'm sure you are aware of.
Webby, my Progress Hybrid came from the first production batch that was sold. It to had a smoke odor problem. I contacted Woodstock and they told me approx. 10% of the first production models had the issue and they were working on a fix. They also told me that it was a design issue exasperated by poor draft or negative house pressure in 10% of the homes. In my case it was negative house pressure. About 3 months after I notified Woodstock they sent me a newly designed loading door gasket system and a modification to the door hinge system, plus a video on how to make the modifications. For owners who lived closer to Woodstock, they came to your house and rebuilt your stove. However, I lived too far away, and was handy enough to make the repairs myself. (I posted all this on a thread regarding Woodstock Progress Smoke Issue on Hearth.com). Anyway, it turns out the main problem was a small channel on the loading door for the hinges were causing a siphon which was drawing out some smoke smell. Fortunately, the modifications totally fixed my smoke problem. I still had a slight negative pressure issue which was solved by installing an OAK system. However, it was the hinge modification and new door gasket system that did the trick. Today I do not have a smoke smell problem. The only time I ever smell smoke is if I turn the air input totally off and the stove back puffs. Then if I just open it a tiny crack, the back puffing stops. Believe me I know how frustrating this can be if you are sensitive to smoke. For a while I thought I was going to have to trade my Progress in for a Fireview or a refund if there was no fix. But the fix did come and I am now very happy. If enough people have this smoke smell issue, you should bring it to BK's attention and maybe they can come up with a solution. It's worth a try.
That's awesome that they took care of the issue! What a great company! Blaze King is also a fabulous company and is very helpful. If there were to be an issue, they will make it right.
My point is that in order for good manufacturers like Woodstock and BK to make things right, they have to know about the problem in the first place. And customer constructive feedback is an important part of the process. If I and the other 10% of Progress Hybrid owners had not told Woodstock about our smoke smell problem, we would still have it. In the BK case it may well not be a stove problem....but I would still let BK know about the issue. If they see a large enough trend, it might highlight something they can pass on to the owners.
