F3CB new install burns too hot

[thefaf]

Hi experts,

In my "new" house, I had installed a brand new Jotul F3CB in a fireplace with a stainless flue liner and cap. This is a ranch and the total chimney length is about 16 feet. I am burning seasoned hardwood which I purchased in October. The wood is split fairly small for the most part. The draft is great, maybe too great. The good part is the stove is real easy to light, but once it gets going, it burns hotter than I'd like. Even with both air controls closed to the max, the top temp tends to get to 700 degrees plus. I am used to catalytic stoves that you can almost snuff out with the air shut down. There don't seem to be any obvious air leaks, the gaskets seem to fit, the doors close with the proper amount of "snugness". There is definitely a difference when closing the main air control. It goes from a roaring fire to a normal hot, but a bit too hot, fire when closed.

Is this normal operation for the F3CB? Do I need to concentrate on using the largest possible logs to slow the fire down? Jotul recommends a top temp of 400-600, but I suppose a bit over won't hurt much. What am I missing?

 

[begreen]

Have you checked the gaskets with the dollar bill test? Especially test the ash pan gasket and be sure that ash is not building up behind the ash pan to the point where the door can't close tightly.

Pack it tighter, with one or two medium splits. Once the coal bed is established, put in 4-5" splits, then use smaller one's to fill in the gaps. Also, don't reload it on a large, hot coal bed. Instead, put on a single smaller split on the hot coals and open up the air to burn down the coals a bit more before reloading.