Jotul F500 secondary tubes glow - common?

[mossycup]

I have searched for other posts regarding this occurence and found that it is quite common on a couple other manufacturer's stoves, but I have not found much regarding Jotul behavior during a high (500-600 degree) cruising temp.

The other night, after knocking the air control down to the <25% setting for the night I flopped down on the floor with the cats (who were playing dead in front of the stove;-) and noticed while the front two secondaries were pushing out the fire from hell, they and the front edge of the baffle plate had a nice orange glow to them. The left side of the deflector above the door also had the beginnings of a very faint glow that subsided as the temp settled in at about 525+/- per the stove top therm. The secondaries continued to glow until a while later when the stoves cruising temp decreased to about 450-475.

My Condar Chimguard STOVE TOP thermometer is in the right rear corner of the top plate (per Jotul manual options) and typically for an overnight burn I will load some hickory, cherry, or sugar in the back with some other junk up front on a nice established bed. After the stove top temp moves past 450 I will turn the air down to 75%, as it reaches 500-550 I will go back to 50%, and in about another ten minutes I will take the air down to the 25% area or just a tad below. The stove settles in at about 525-550 and just cruises beautifully for the night.

I know that the thermometers are not ultra reliable, but the stove seems to be operating ideally with all things considered.

Have other Jotul owners observed the orange glowing secondaries as a fairly regular occurance?

 

[Blue Vomit]

1st year with the Oslo but I have noticed the tubes glowing when it is over 500 degrees. This thing throws out heat!

 

[skytow]

With the fire cranking and loaded with nice dry wood... perfectly normal.

JD

 

[ansehnlich1]

nothing unusual about glowing tubes

If you have a stove top thermometer, and it hits 650, you should probably think about backin' 'er down a tad. I think I've seen mine at 700 onces or twice.

I like to run it up to 600 daily just to keep the pipe clean. I sweep the chimney every other year.

 

[firefighterjake]

Never had it happen to me . . . but I have heard of others having the glow . . . usually I either end up with the Portal to Hell in my stove with billowing flames . . . or I get the Northern Lights . . . I don't think I've ever had the Propane BBQ grill effect either.

 

[Shari]

Never had it happen to me . . . but I have heard of others having the glow . . . usually I either end up with the Portal to Hell in my stove with billowing flames . . . or I get the Northern Lights . . . I don't think I've ever had the Propane BBQ grill effect either.

No glow here but have the blue flame on a normal basis and have had the BBQ effect. Love the Northern Lights effect also (Ghost Flames).

 

[logger]

Ya, Im in the no-glo category as well. Wonder why some do that and some do not.

 

[Stump_Branch]

First time last night. Coldest night so far, after closing off the air completly it just ran up to 575 propane grill flames, bluish turning to orange yellow. Never had a stove do that was sweet to watch. I have seen the baffel kinda get an orange tinge to it in spots, thats it though, not sure ive seen the tubes do that.

Im guessing that wrapping my liner with 1" kaowool and adding 2feet must have helped. Still think im on the lower end of ehat the oslo needs.

 

[My Oslo heats my home]

Interesting... I lay down in front of the stove with my two dogs on occasion and have enjoyed the secondaries many times but I can't say I have ever seen any glow on the inside while looking at the glass. However, I reported last week on another thread the stove top got to 825ish and the Oslo oval had some hints of Orange. That doesn't happen often.

 

[begreen]

One thing I am wondering about is whether this possibly relates to the older design vs the new one with the insulation board? Don't know, so this is an open question.

mossycup, for peace of mind, check the door gasket with the dollar bill test, especially at the upper left. And inspect the door glass gasket. It's a thin gasket, so just make sure it is in place between the door frame and the glass in that location.

 

[mossycup]

I did the dollar bill test and with moderate tension I can pull it at the left edge of the door, below the latch. It does not move around the rest of the door.
I also drove it up to 550-600 again and can acheive the same tube glow but the intensity and baffle plate edge glow seems to be dependant on the load distribution and how the more intense flames pass over a specific path over the front of the wood. It occured just to the right of the center this time. I could not see any air deflector glow occuring this time.

Just for reference, are hot spots a symptom of a poor fitting gasket?

 

[Beave]

Not a Jotul owner, but my secondary tubes glow when over 500 degrees, directly above the most intense combustion areas. Definitely gets more intense as I choke down the air, and the fire is being fed most from the secondary air.

 

[begreen]

I did the dollar bill test and with moderate tension I can pull it at the left edge of the door, below the latch. It does not move around the rest of the door.
I also drove it up to 550-600 again and can acheive the same tube glow but the intensity and baffle plate edge glow seems to be dependant on the load distribution and how the more intense flames pass over a specific path over the front of the wood. It occured just to the right of the center this time. I could not see any air deflector glow occuring this time.

Just for reference, are hot spots a symptom of a poor fitting gasket?

If the fire is getting extra oxygen it can burn imbalanced. Moderate tension on the dollar where you noted it is ok.

Check the side door and ashpan door too. Another thing is to check for impacted ash at the very back of the ash pan receptacle. Use a flashlight and a poker. Buildup there can push the ashpan forward enough to prevent the ashpan door from making a good seal against its gasket. It doesn’t take too much to do this. Inspect the ashpan door gasket for embedded pieces of charcoal while looking.

 

[Green Energy]

I haven't noticed a significant orange glowing on my tubes. I get my stove up to 600 F regularly, sometimes 650 F and even push 700 F. That when I am thinking about shoving some alum foil into the air intake.

But i have not really been examining it. Also, I have the fiberboard baffle (vermiculite) not the cast iron. The secondary combustion area should be in the 1000 F to 1200 F. 1200 F is close to the temps that would cause metal to glow. However, the secondary air coming through the tubes should help to moderate the tube temps (at least the interior surface of the tubes).

If you are getting good secondary combustion coming off each set of tubes then you should be get good secondary air flow. However, if the front tubes are not producing secondary combustion very strong, and glowing, you may not have as much air flow coming through them. Haven't thought about this before. But you may want to consider this if you have uneven secondaries combined with glowing tubes. Otherwise I would not worry about it as long as the glowing is not real bright. Just my 2 cents - for what is worth

 

[mossycup]

I performed the dollar test on the ash pan and side door as well. Ash pan gasket = no tug...side door = one spot similar to that of the front door.
I am very diligent about the ash pan and keeping underneath and behind it clean. I also pay really close attention to all three doors and their gasket/stove mating surfaces. I never use the front door except to clean the glass or do a thorough cleaning. When loading I use my glove to wipe any ash that may get onto the lower edge of the side door opening. Big peices get swept off the ash lip before closing the door.
I've have been accused of starting the vac filter on fire once...so things are kept purty clean;-)
I'll try the flame/smoke thing around the doors next.

I just ordered an Infrared Thermometer for some other projects at home and work, I can't wait to try it on the stove. Maybe I'm getting higher stove top temps than the stove top therm is reading.

 

[begreen]

When you say no tug, do you mean the dollar bill came out easily? Or did it not budge?

 

[mossycup]

When you say no tug, do you mean the dollar bill came out easily? Or did it not budge?

No tug, basically no budge.

With the stove running at a rolling, 450 degree fire and the air control at 25% I took an incense stick and ran it around every nook and cranny on the stove seams, doors and the only draw I got on the smoke was at the rear intake (and at a slip joint connection between my rear vent stove pipe and the cleanout T...not much I can do about that IMHO).

The stove runs beautifully and I can get really good overnight burns so everything feels just dandy. I guess the tubes just like to glow when she gets cranking on a full, hot load. Now I just need to knock a couple walls down to get the air moving better throughout the house;-)