Correct Flu Temp for an NC30

[dboone]

I know there are some other threads about like this, but it seems like everyones situations & setups are always a little different. I just installed a Condar probe thermometer about 20" above the stove top into the 6" single wall pipe. When first firing up I will sometimes see spikes of up to 1000 F. If that happens I try to quickly calm it down by temporarily shutting off the air completely. After a little while it will then start to drop down to 400 - 600. At the moment it is at 450 which is about 1 hr after reloading this morning. I struggle to get a meaningful stovetop temp since I have a blower running most of the time. If I put the thermometer on the stovetop the moving air tends to distort the actual temp. I have a magnetic thermometer on the side towards the top and it is at also at 450 right now. Since the black pipe hooks into a masonary tile flu I want to make sure the temps are in a normal range. Does this sound about normal to you?

 

[M1sterM]

Don't forget, when you are "shutting the air completely", you are really allowing the secondary air to take over (can't control that air). That's the way the stove is designed to run. I have the same stove, and I have the air open for the 5 or 10 minutes it takes to get up to temp (anywhere from 300-600) with the magnetic thermometer about 10 inches up on the single wall pipe), and then I "shut the air completely" to let secondary burn take over. In the past couple of years, I left the air control open 1/4 to 1/2 of an inch or so, as I didn't trust the secondary air to provide enough for combustion, but now I'm burning nearly fully seasoned wood, and I find that I can close it all the way down and get a good burn.

 

[dboone]

Thanks! That is very good to know. I thought that if you closed it completely it would eventually smoother the fire. Being in my first year of this I don't have my wood as seasoned as I hope to next year. Next year maybe I can increase my heat output & the burn times by shutting it off completely.

 

[SlyFerret]

I never close down the air all the way on my 30. I usually only ever close it down to about 20%-25%. Pushing the air lever all the way in tends to cut the air back a little bit too much, and the secondary combustion dies out. As you play with it more, you'll find the right cruising location for your setup.

-SF