Class A Chimney question

  • Active since 1995, Hearth.com is THE place on the internet for free information and advice about wood stoves, pellet stoves and other energy saving equipment.

    We strive to provide opinions, articles, discussions and history related to Hearth Products and in a more general sense, energy issues.

    We promote the EFFICIENT, RESPONSIBLE, CLEAN and SAFE use of all fuels, whether renewable or fossil.
Status
Not open for further replies.

culberson_1425

New Member
Aug 6, 2012
10
Hello everyone and good morning!

I recently finished installing an Englander 13-NC and have been using it for about the last 4-5 weeks. Its been getting into the 20's here at night and the stove does a great job keeping the house around 75-80! Couldn't be happier. I just have a few questions that maybe a more experienced stove owner could answer.

This will be my first season using a wood stove. I've been keeping an eye on everything and have noticed some odd things about the top of the chimney. Its a class-a stainless steel chimney and the first thing I noticed was the very top turning a "rainbow" color. I searched the forums here and discovered this is somewhat normal and it has gone away the colder it has become outside.

The chimney cap itself has started to form a brown flaky residue on it. It is only on the side that is opposite of the direction the wind is blowing. I climbed onto the roof and I can rub the residue off with my finger. Is this normal and is this a form of creosote?

Inside the cap right where the smoke exits the chimney is some stuff that looks like black tar which I am pretty sure is creosote. Inside the chimney is fairly clean and has just a fine layer of what looks like black soot. The black soot also comes easily. How often does everyone here clean their chimneys? I read somewhere that cleaning should be done once a month.
 
Cleaning or at least inspecting the chimney once a month until you are familiar with the stove and with the wood that's being burned is a good idea. So far what you are seeing sounds pretty normal. Creosote will condense on the coolest part of the system. Usually that is on the underside of the uninsulated cap.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.