Encore not putting out the heat

[Volcano]

Good evening. About a week ago, I installed a 4 year old non-cat Encore model 1450, replacing a much smaller Trolla stove. After a few days of trying all sorts of variations, I still cannot seem to get hot enough output considering my expectations for this respectable unit. Good, dry, seasoned wood, or EnviBlocks, are not generating anywhere near what i was hoping for. Vermont Castings says I should only keep the damper open for the first stage, then shut it down- "never operate the stove with the damper constantly open except for initial lighting and reloading". I keep the primary air inlet control open wide. After getting a good burn going, and I shut down the damper, the flames dance okay, or sometimes just smolder, either way the heat output drops super low...lower than my little Trolla. The kitchen it sits in only gets kinda warm. If i keep the damper open, I get somewhat better heat, and so far no overburn, but this way I am not using the stove according to manufacturer's specs, and not getting the secondary burn advantages. So, i'm at a bit of a loss. The wood seems perfectly good, the stove seems to be in excellent shape, and there is a decent draft. Any ideas or suggestions would be most helpful. Thanks a million.

 

[raygard]

Good, dry, seasoned wood, or EnviBlocks,

Tell us specifically about your wood. Cause it sounds like a wet wood problem.

 

[leeave96]

I'm no VC non-cat expert, but I believe this stove is a down draft design stove. If that's the case, then you really need a good hot bed of coals going before you shut things down. I would work towards that end and in doing so, gradually lower the damper settings vs taking it down all at once. Also, get you a $20 moisture meter from Lowes, split a piece of wood and if your wood is at or below 20% moisture content, you are good on wood. Above that, then you may have found your problem.

Good luck,
Bill

 

[Volcano]

I hear you re the wet wood, but I have definitely done some burns with year-and-a-half-seasoned-under-cover oak and maple.
I also have been burning EnviBlocks, which should be very low moisture content.
I've just been burning two EnviBlocks this afternoon. They were going great, sitting on a nice hot bed, and when i shut down the damper,
keeping the air inlet open wide, they dropped down to a smolder and the temp on the flue thermometer dropped to about 150F.
I am determined to get the kinda burns that I hear about where I gotta open a window because it's so warm in here.
Maybe my expectations are too high
I will be more vigilant (no pun meant) about dryer wood, and will try to create a good bed of embers before
throwing in the towel. I know it's something I have to finesse.
Thanks

 

[BrowningBAR]

I agree with Ray so far.

1. Tell us about your wood supply.
2. What griddle temps are you getting before you close the damper?
3. What is the stove connected to? (Unlined chimney, lined chimney, Class A?

 

[leeave96]

I hear you re the wet wood, but I have definitely done some burns with year-and-a-half-seasoned-under-cover oak and maple.
I also have been burning EnviBlocks, which should be very low moisture content.
I've just been burning two EnviBlocks this afternoon. They were going great, sitting on a nice hot bed, and when i shut down the damper,
keeping the air inlet open wide, they dropped down to a smolder and the temp on the flue thermometer dropped to about 150F.
I am determined to get the kinda burns that I hear about where I gotta open a window because it's so warm in here.
Maybe my expectations are too high
I will be more vigilant (no pun meant) about dryer wood, and will try to create a good bed of embers before
throwing in the towel. I know it's something I have to finesse.
Thanks

You may also not be able to damper down based on your particular set-up. I've got a non-cat stove and other folks who have the same can set the damper fully closed and get a proper secondary burn. I haven't been able to do it, but can get close. I don't think with my set-up I'll ever be able to fully turn the stove down and that's OK. You may be in the same boat.

Good luck,
Bill

 

[Volcano]

Griddle temps are in the neighborhood of 350-400F before I close down the damper.
The damper seems to only want to be open full or closed full, according to man. specs.
The chimney is about 6 feet singlewall inside to about 14 feet triple insulated.

 

[BrowningBAR]

Griddle temps are in the neighborhood of 350-400F before I close down the damper.
The damper seems to only want to be open full or closed full, according to man. specs.
The chimney is about 6 feet singlewall inside to about 14 feet triple insulated.

1. Get those griddle temps a lot higher before you close the damper. I let me go to 500-600 degrees before I close the damper (mine is a cat version, same design, though.)

2. Leeaves was referring to your air controls, but you are correct. The damper is either open or closed. No inbetween.

3. So, you are at about 20 ft for height. That seems okay.

Get those griddle temps a lot higher and see how it performs when you close the damper.

 

[Volcano]

Thanks all. I will take all this advice and info and do some more dancing with this unit.
It's a handsome stove, and i know I will get some good heat out of it once we get to know each other better.
I really appreciate your help.

 

[BrowningBAR]

Thanks all. I will take all this advice and info and do some more dancing with this unit.
It's a handsome stove, and i know I will get some good heat out of it once we get to know each other better.
I really appreciate your help.

Let it get closer to 600 than 500 on your first go around. That way you know you got it hot enough. Once you get it up and running properly, then play around with it and see if you can close the damper earlier and what not.

At 400 degrees, the sides of the stove are still warming up. Once you get a steady 500-700 degree burn, it really starts throwing some heat.

How big was the other stove? I did a quick search on it, but I didn't turn up much.

 

[Volcano]

That's terrifically detailed advice.
Excellent!
The Trolla was a cute little box stove. Maybe 20 inches deep. Model 104, I believe.
I loved it but I'm hoping to get a little more efficiency and heat from this Encore.

 

[BrowningBAR]

That's terrifically detailed advice.
Excellent!
The Trolla was a cute little box stove. Maybe 20 inches deep. Model 104, I believe.
I loved it but I'm hoping to get a little more efficiency and heat from this Encore.

I have an older Cat Encore and I get 6-10 hour burns out of it depending upon how I load it. 8 Hours is closer to what I can expect consistently when I load it up properly. Sometimes

Not sure how the Everburn is when it comes to efficiency and burn times. It should be close if you have it running properly.

 

[Troutchaser]

You've got to get that stove hotter before closing the bypass. If you cannot achieve 600* stovetop with the bypass open, then you can't possibly get that reburn you're looking for.
Try this (as mentioned above)
Get that stove hot, built up at least a fair bed of coals. This shouldn't take much longer than 30-45 minutes, then load some wood, loosely, onto what you've got burning and close the bypass. Don't kill the air yet. Let it burn and heat up the back of that stove. See if you get a smokeless exhaust. Do you have soft maple? If so, it might be drier and I would use it first in trying this out.

I can smolder a fire in bypass mode even with good air if I don't have enough coals in the stove.