Fire goes out when I open door

[doorguy]

This is my second year burning wood, and its been going really good, have saved $2000.00 in propane and its much warmer in the house. I have a Harthstone II, the glass area is very small and sometimes we like to open the door so we can better view the fire, however I have noticed when the door is open the fire tends to slowly go out, then when I close the door it comes roaring back to life. Is this normal? Just wondering.

Chris

 

[soupy1957]

...............we like to open the door so we can better view the fire.......

My neighbor down the street is a retired gentleman and friend of mine. That said, I've always loved his "Parlor Stove" for its very ornate design. Biggest issue I have with his stove however, is the 3" x 5" window on it.

Personally, I gauge how the fire is doing, by watching it, (I also pay attention to my thermometers of course, particularly the Flue Pipe Thermometer), and appreciate a nice big window glass. If I could turn back the clock to the day you bought your stove, and some how magically place myself at your side in the store, I'd be encouraging you to buy a stove with a good size viewing glass, but...........that's water over the dam now.

As to the quoted portion of your posting (which I realize is not the main point of your post, but I feel the need to comment)........fires in the house are more likely from an open door, as I'm sure you know. I don't think I'd encourage you doing that, very much!!

"Oxygen is your friend" is the phrase I remember. That said, I'd think that opening the door would encourage the fire. Puzzles me too, that you find that it snuffs it down. Something else must be going on in the design of your stove that is not being considered here.

-Soupy1957

 

[begreen]

Check the secondary manifold to be sure it is not leaking or ruptured. If it is, it will act like a blowtorch inside the firebox when the door is closed. You can check this by closing the secondary port on the right side of the stove. If that also snuffs the fire check the secondary tube closely. Also check the door gaskets doing the dollar bill test on them. If the stove has an ash pan, also check the seal there.

 

[logger]

Perfectly normal. The airflow is not as restricted and rapid so the draft is poor.

 

[begreen]

Might not be so normal. The early Hearthstones had their secondary manifold low, right at the back of the fire. It was prone to burnout in this location.

 

[Battenkiller]

Check the secondary manifold to be sure it is not leaking or ruptured. If it is, it will act like a blowtorch inside the firebox when the door is closed. You can check this by closing the secondary port on the right side of the stove. If that also snuffs the fire check the secondary tube closely. Also check the door gaskets doing the dollar bill test on them. If the stove has an ash pan, also check the seal there.

Respectfully, BG, I don't think the OP wasn't asking that question.

sometimes we like to open the door so we can better view the fire

The fire dies down because air velocity drops to next to nothing with the door all the way opened, as "Logger" correct noted. Flow is mostly laminar at that point. Turbulence dramatically increases the chances that smoke particles will combine with oxygen molecules. That's the principle of a stove compared to an open fire. Sit by a campfire and watch how the fire will roar with a good, stiff breeze coming in. You can't do that in an open stove. Also, all the cool air coming in kills the draft, so you need to build a bigger fire in there to get the draft stronger... just like in a regular fireplace. Pretty wasteful, though, just so you know.

 

[bogydave]

Kinda like tuning a carburetor.
Air fuel mixture