i have a 36 elite. the manual says we should get 8-10 hour burn times when the fireplace is fully loaded. i understand that this would depend on the type of firewood, but even fully loaded with red and chinkapin oak, i am only getting maybe 4 hours of blower run-time. and the last hour or so is on and off time, with cooler air. i ordered a new window gasket as i have a little wear on the top near where the 2 doors meet, but i haven't replaced it yet. even brand new (last winter) i was not getting very long blower run-times. now, if i run the fireplace all day and get a lot of ash, then load up for the night, i will have a good amount of hot coals still 6-8 hours later, buried under the ash, for an easy restart. but i would like to get longer burn/blower times and was looking for some advice. thanks
Fireplace Xtrordinair Owners:
- Thread starter njtuna
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njtuna said:
What are you setting the draft control at during this time?
What is the stove temp when you engage the cat?
Given that you have gasket wear, the stove must have a few years of use. Is it possible that the cat is shot?
Dan
Sorry I have no solution.
I have the exact same problem. The fireplace burns great (good heat) but I cannot get it to burn long enough.
I made the mistake of having my chimney (20+ Feet) placed in an outside chase so getting it to start has always been a problem (not sure if that would have anything to do with burn time?).
I have been burning this for 5 seasons now, replaced my gaskits, door and glass. Did not help.
I even tried removing the grate, That created more unburnt coals which seemed to increase the burntime but was not that much of a increase.
I have been quite proficient with all the practice of starting fires if that is any bonus.
I have the exact same problem. The fireplace burns great (good heat) but I cannot get it to burn long enough.
I made the mistake of having my chimney (20+ Feet) placed in an outside chase so getting it to start has always been a problem (not sure if that would have anything to do with burn time?).
I have been burning this for 5 seasons now, replaced my gaskits, door and glass. Did not help.
I even tried removing the grate, That created more unburnt coals which seemed to increase the burntime but was not that much of a increase.
I have been quite proficient with all the practice of starting fires if that is any bonus.
this is only the second season of use. house is only 2 years old. the gasket wear is very little, and only above the door handles. i adjusted the doors, as per the manuals instructions, to try and get a tighter seal to prolong burn time. i think this tighter position of the doors is what caused the gasket wear. also as per the manual, i would start a fire, wait until it was hot enough that the blower would kick in- usually 30 minutes or so- then engage the cat. when i reload, i would disengage the cat, open the doors, put in some wood and open the air intake to full until the wood gets nice and charred, then reduce the air intake to its lowest point. i have followed the manual to try and achieve an all night burn by opening the air intake to full for 15 minutes, loading it with as much wood as will fit, then letting that burn with full air for another 15 minutes, then reducing the air intake to lowest for the remainder of the night. it doesn't produce a long enough (for me) burn/blower time. not nearly the 8-10 hours the manual claims. i too have some cold air blockage on certain days when starting the fire. i found opening a nearby window while starting the fire allows it to clear much more easily. sometimes some newspaper thrown in will get a nice hot burst to get the air out as well.
To start a fire I need to remove the baffle plate, put in 2 cans with some alcohol and burn that for 3-10 minutes depending on how cold it is outside. Then reverse and light quickly.
It can be a pain but I do it every day.
Someday I may open up the chase and insulate and try to make it part of the home envelope.
Let me know if you find a solution for the burn time. I can't see how they get anywhere near 10 hours.
Thanks and good luck.
It can be a pain but I do it every day.
Someday I may open up the chase and insulate and try to make it part of the home envelope.
Let me know if you find a solution for the burn time. I can't see how they get anywhere near 10 hours.
Thanks and good luck.
i am going to try to contact the company. that sounds like a bit much just to start a fire. i am no expert, but i would have your installation looked at by a professional
njtuna,
Sorry to hear of your issues with burn time. I have a FX 44 Elite and my overnight burns are probably 8-10 hours. It's taken me a while to get a process that works right for me but here is what I do(not to say this is the right way but it's worked for me);
On your load before your overnight load you need to establish a real good set of coals. In the evening I'll try to load/time the unit so I run it wide open to establish a nice bed of coals at 9:30pm. What do I consider a nice bed? I like to see solid red/orange coals around the entire grate area.
Next I load her up, packing tight. Larger pieces on the bottom. I also try to "shift" most of this wood to the left, away from the sensor. Finally, the gaps to the right (by the sensor) I pack full of dry scraps/whatever will fit.
Now I leave the front door cracked for 5 minutes or so until the fire is going well. I then close the doors and engage the cat, I leave it running at full air for about 15 minutes but really until the cat is glowing orange.
Finally I adjust the fan and shut the air control way way down.....just above being closed. If the fireplace is nice and hot, when you shut down the air intake you'll actually feel a kind of "burst" of heat from the front of the unit(you'll hear it as well as the unit heats up).
I usually go to bed around 10pm and when I come downstairs around 7am I still have coals and the fan is running.
I've had my unit for 2 years, the first year it probably took me 2 months to figure out a burn method that worked well for me. Sadly, I'd sit up until 2am on weekends to see what the fireplace was/wasn't doing at night.
The common mistakes I made were;
1. Setting the air too high, the load would be all gone by 3am.
2. Not establishing good coals/fire before shutting air down, fire wouldn't burn completely.
3. Shutting air down before the cat was well engaged, complete burn but not enough heat from fireplace.
I hope some of this helps and you have some better luck.
Y
Sorry to hear of your issues with burn time. I have a FX 44 Elite and my overnight burns are probably 8-10 hours. It's taken me a while to get a process that works right for me but here is what I do(not to say this is the right way but it's worked for me);
On your load before your overnight load you need to establish a real good set of coals. In the evening I'll try to load/time the unit so I run it wide open to establish a nice bed of coals at 9:30pm. What do I consider a nice bed? I like to see solid red/orange coals around the entire grate area.
Next I load her up, packing tight. Larger pieces on the bottom. I also try to "shift" most of this wood to the left, away from the sensor. Finally, the gaps to the right (by the sensor) I pack full of dry scraps/whatever will fit.
Now I leave the front door cracked for 5 minutes or so until the fire is going well. I then close the doors and engage the cat, I leave it running at full air for about 15 minutes but really until the cat is glowing orange.
Finally I adjust the fan and shut the air control way way down.....just above being closed. If the fireplace is nice and hot, when you shut down the air intake you'll actually feel a kind of "burst" of heat from the front of the unit(you'll hear it as well as the unit heats up).
I usually go to bed around 10pm and when I come downstairs around 7am I still have coals and the fan is running.
I've had my unit for 2 years, the first year it probably took me 2 months to figure out a burn method that worked well for me. Sadly, I'd sit up until 2am on weekends to see what the fireplace was/wasn't doing at night.
The common mistakes I made were;
1. Setting the air too high, the load would be all gone by 3am.
2. Not establishing good coals/fire before shutting air down, fire wouldn't burn completely.
3. Shutting air down before the cat was well engaged, complete burn but not enough heat from fireplace.
I hope some of this helps and you have some better luck.
Y
youngstr, thanks for your post. that is etremely helpful. i will let you know how it goes. when you say you shut the air control to just above being "closed", what exactly do you mean? i was wondering if my air control could be adjusted? i thought it might allow too much air even when it is all the way to the right, and that this might be a possible cause for shorter burn times. i read the manual about running the fire on full air for 15 minutes to get it hot, and usually have a nice hot bed of coals covering the whole floor of the fireplace before i fill it up. i've even filled it up with black locust, red oak, and chinkapin oak, and still only get about 4 hours of blower time. i will try to keep the wood away from the sensor, which is a good tip i wasn't aware of. i haven't filled all the gaps with small pieces like you suggested. so maybe that will help too. thanks again
Todd
Minister of Fire
How tall is your chimney and what is the diameter? May not be the stove, chimney could be overdrafting. Do you get a slow lazy looking flame when the cats engaged and on low setting?
30ft chimney, 6 inch diameter i get a slower lazy looking flame when i have it full of oak. but not nearly as slow as the flame in my friend's vc defiant. a faster flame when it is full of red maple, set to lowest air. my chimney on the outside is basically in a plywood box attached to the side of the house and sided, and i do not think it is a double insulated pipe.
Thanks BG just trying to offer my very limited insight.
njtuna, if you slide your air control all the way to the right it is closed. All the way to the left is open. I did a little tinkering when I first got my unit and there really isn't an adjustment mechanism. Essentially there are 2 identical rectangle shaped cutouts. When the slider is all the way to the left(fully open) the rectangles line up. When you slide the control to the right you "offset" one of the rectangles. When the slider is all the way to the right the rectangles are completely offset and the air intake should be completely shut off.
It sounds like your burns are too fast which could be from too much draft or air leakage/infiltration.
On my unit, if I shut off the air(slider all the way to the right) the fire will slowly die out. Do you see the same or does the fire keep going strong?
I consider the air just above closed by sliding the slider all the way to the right and I then move it back to the left maybe 1/8"-1/4".
Y
njtuna, if you slide your air control all the way to the right it is closed. All the way to the left is open. I did a little tinkering when I first got my unit and there really isn't an adjustment mechanism. Essentially there are 2 identical rectangle shaped cutouts. When the slider is all the way to the left(fully open) the rectangles line up. When you slide the control to the right you "offset" one of the rectangles. When the slider is all the way to the right the rectangles are completely offset and the air intake should be completely shut off.
It sounds like your burns are too fast which could be from too much draft or air leakage/infiltration.
On my unit, if I shut off the air(slider all the way to the right) the fire will slowly die out. Do you see the same or does the fire keep going strong?
I consider the air just above closed by sliding the slider all the way to the right and I then move it back to the left maybe 1/8"-1/4".
Y
youngstr, my fire does not nearly look like it is slowly dying out if i move it all the way to the right. there is a definite difference fully open vs. closed though. too bad we can't adjust the intake
njtuna,
Yeah, it sounds like an air infiltration problem. Even if you could adjust the air intake I don't think it would do any good. Turning the air intake off(to the right) should definately shut off your air(and the fire) which sounds like it isn't the case. I don't think you're getting air from the intake, probably somewhere else. I'd look at your door gaskets after that I'm not sure.
Good luck,
Y
Yeah, it sounds like an air infiltration problem. Even if you could adjust the air intake I don't think it would do any good. Turning the air intake off(to the right) should definately shut off your air(and the fire) which sounds like it isn't the case. I don't think you're getting air from the intake, probably somewhere else. I'd look at your door gaskets after that I'm not sure.
Good luck,
Y
did the dollar bill test on my fireplacex. have air leaks in the bottoms of both doors. i tightend the latch end of last season according to the manual by switching the washer positions. is it possible that the top is closing too tight leaving the bottom open? or is it possible that the doors are warped from possible over-firing? the gasket seems undamaged at the bottom of the doors
hey njtuna, glad your getting some good info here! dollar slipped out that easy down below huh?
as i mentioned on the other forum, not familar w/that stove, but how hard is it to 'switch washer postions' back? and then test the seem again.
maybe take the doors off and lay flat if you think they are warped.?
hope this is an easy fix for you.
as i mentioned on the other forum, not familar w/that stove, but how hard is it to 'switch washer postions' back? and then test the seem again.
maybe take the doors off and lay flat if you think they are warped.?
hope this is an easy fix for you.
this is a great site moondoggy. it slipped out very easily. very easy to switch the washer positions back. will do it tonight whne i get home
spoke to the factory directly today. guy suggested adding an extra washer (in addition to the 2 supplied) to try and get a tighter seal on the bottom of the doors. he also suggested, rather strangely, i thought, that i try bending the metal bar that latches to the top and bottom of the fireplace, near the bottom of the bar to try and get the bottom of the doors to seal tighter. then i spoke to the dealer, and he suggested removing the grate, which i believe someone here mentioned they did. we'll see what happens
Hi, I have a hearth retail store and a Chimney business. Any stainless chimneys will get very cold when not in use. The best thing is to keep the fire going but that is sometimes impossible. We have our customers twist up newspaper and try to hold it near the flue exit on the units. I sell five different brands of woodstoves & Insert. To be honest we have trouble reaching the factory burn times on all of them. I have even recently purchased a moisture meter to prove to many of our customers that the wood is not seasoned. Good Luck
i think i solved the issue of short burn times. i noticed that on top of each door, there was some gasket wear where the lock latched itself onto the fireplace. i also noticed soot buildup on the inside of the fireplace near where the worn gaskets were. the i replaced the window gaskets over the weekend, and i get a much lazier flame than before. haven't really loaded up for an overnight burn yet, but i am hopeful
FPX Dude
Feeling the Heat
I have 36 elite, 1st year burning with it. I usually get ~ 3-4 hours "burn" time on a good bed of coals (oak), and probably ~ 4-6 hours total "fan" time on just one load. I'm following all the best advice from everyone and just figured that since this wasn't an actual STOVE and more of an insert that that's about all I could expect. I wish I could get 6-8 hour burns, but I too figured manufactures #'s were overstated. I removed the grate since it was kinda bending I think from the heat ???, and I figured that most stoves don't have one anyway. In the morning, on a restart from overnight, I add 2 pieces kindling to help get air under the load but can mostly start from the coals. Actually, my biggest problem is starting a cold cold stove...YES, I have massive stack effect! Yikes, I have 2 story, FPX on lower level with chimney of 18 feet on outside of house, so chimney height is not enough to get above second story. Cold air just rushes down when I open door, and will even blow-out a lit newspaper if trying to help warm the flue, so I do the hair dryer trick into the cat for about 1 min. then light a paper or two on the baffle, then start the fire. Nonetheless, with all this, I'm still a pyro and love the fire since my other heat is propane and I only had to fill the tank once this past winter.
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