Limit of stove top temperature on NC30

[begreen]

You burnt the load up in 2.5 hours and even lost a degree or two?
I would switch back I guess.

Keeping the air open is going to keep the fire cooler and waste a lot of heat up the flue. The air needs to be closed down once the wood is fully aflame and a good secondary burn temp is reached. How far closed will depend on the draft, but usually it is somewhere between 1/4 open to all the closed.

 

[HotCoals]

Well he said the other stove did a better job.
I assumed he knows how to get the most and or run them.

 

[mywaynow]

I open the air once the load has burned through the gases. Meaning, there are no flames at the current settings (or very few) which were set once the load took. I would say the primary is set 35% open when the load takes (comes to temp and secondaries are active). I leave it that way until the flames die down. Temps are usually 300 flue and 425 top then. In the case like today when I am behind on the house temps, I open the air to raise the top temp. I understand I am loosing heat up the pipe, but what choice am I left with? Air will get the temp up and burn off the coals allowing for the next load.

 

[oldspark]

Well these new stoves for the most part are not going to heat the house up as fast as the older heat monsters and many have said that, you are not going to learn how to run the stove as quick as you like, my old Nashua was a no brainer and it put out a ton of heat no matter what I did, these EPA stoves are a thinking mans stove.

 

[HotCoals]

I open the air once the load has burned through the gases. Meaning, there are no flames at the current settings (or very few) which were set once the load took. I would say the primary is set 35% open when the load takes (comes to temp and secondaries are active). I leave it that way until the flames die down. Temps are usually 300 flue and 425 top then. In the case like today when I am behind on the house temps, I open the air to raise the top temp. I understand I am loosing heat up the pipe, but what choice am I left with? Air will get the temp up and burn off the coals allowing for the next load.

Sounds reasonable to me!

 

[mywaynow]

Well these new stoves for the most part are not going to heat the house up as fast as the older heat monsters and many have said that, you are not going to learn how to run the stove as quick as you like, my old Nashua was a no brainer and it put out a ton of heat no matter what I did, these EPA stoves are a thinking mans stove.

Let me think about that.......... no offense taken. :-/

 

[HotCoals]

Cat stoves are for dummies like me!

 

[begreen]

No, something is amok. myway said that after 2.5 hrs he had the air all the way open, burning down coals. When burning a full load of good dry, 5-8" split hardwood, at 2.5 hrs, our stove is still putting out 650+ heat and will continue to for at least another few hours. It takes about 6+ hrs to get down to 400F without any touching of the air control. This is burning a locust/madrona mix. However, when burning fir or soft maple, cut those times in half.

 

[oldspark]

Well these new stoves for the most part are not going to heat the house up as fast as the older heat monsters and many have said that, you are not going to learn how to run the stove as quick as you like, my old Nashua was a no brainer and it put out a ton of heat no matter what I did, these EPA stoves are a thinking mans stove.

Let me think about that.......... no offense taken. :-/

That's not what I ment! I went through the same thing. :lol:

 

[begreen]

Cat stoves are for dummies like me!

Your stove is more than just a cat, it has a feature that I suspect is in play here, an automatic thermostat. That has a lot to do with the set and forget it nature of the BK. When it's cold out and the stove is being pushed, the difference between a cat and non-cat is a moot point IMO. A 4 cu ft belly on the other hand contributes a lot.

 

[certified106]

It's gonna take way to long to burn down a bed of coals like that. Try Oldsparks method of 3 or 4 splits lincoln log method and get them ripping then start shutting the air down to about a third of the way. within about 20 minutes you should have the stove top starting to push 650-700 and keep it going like that to get the stuff burnt down. This will help heat the house as well as getting the coals burned down! If your is anything like mine you should aim for flue temps around 600 and stove top around 700-750. Then the flue temps will start to fall off while stove top stays high for a while.

I really think you need to get the coals burned down and retry another load like I suggested. I know when I first got the T6 I had the same problem as you I would off gas the whole load which would leave me a massive bed of coals 5 or 6 inches thick to deal with and it can be frustrating! BeGreen set me straight and it has been smooth sailing ever since. When it burns good front to back it will leave just a thin bed of coals and by the time you get to the back of the firebox the front coals will be gray ash. Then you just rake the hot stuff forward to the front third of the stove and pack her full again. Hang in there once you figure it out it's easy.

 

[HotCoals]

Cat stoves are for dummies like me!

Your stove is more than just a cat, it has a feature that I suspect is in play here, an automatic thermostat. That has a lot to do with the set and forget it nature of the BK. When it's cold out and the stove is being pushed, the difference between a cat and non-cat is a moot point IMO. A 4 cu ft belly on the other hand contributes a lot.

I agree with all that you said..except for the t-stat..I usually have it set so low id does not come into play.
Now when it's real cold after the stove and cat reach temp I adjust the t-stat till it just closes..then way into the burn after the stove cools some it will open a little and get her going.
But I can assure you..that t-stat is not that sensitive..far from it.

 

[certified106]

Cat stoves are for dummies like me!

Your stove is more than just a cat, it has a feature that I suspect is in play here, an automatic thermostat. That has a lot to do with the set and forget it nature of the BK. When it's cold out and the stove is being pushed, the difference between a cat and non-cat is a moot point IMO. A 4 cu ft belly on the other hand contributes a lot.

I agree with all that you said..except for the t-stat..I usually have it set so low id does not come into play.
Now when it's real cold after the stove and cat reach temp I adjust the t-stat till it just closes..then way into the burn after the stove cools some it will open a little and get her going.
But I can assure you..that t-stat is not that sensitive..far from it.

No offense intended but you have posted the same thing on about ten different threads this week can't we just keep it to helping MyWay with his problem instead of discussing your thermostat

 

[HotCoals]

Cat stoves are for dummies like me!

Your stove is more than just a cat, it has a feature that I suspect is in play here, an automatic thermostat. That has a lot to do with the set and forget it nature of the BK. When it's cold out and the stove is being pushed, the difference between a cat and non-cat is a moot point IMO. A 4 cu ft belly on the other hand contributes a lot.

I agree with all that you said..except for the t-stat..I usually have it set so low id does not come into play.
Now when it's real cold after the stove and cat reach temp I adjust the t-stat till it just closes..then way into the burn after the stove cools some it will open a little and get her going.
But I can assure you..that t-stat is not that sensitive..far from it.

No offense intended but you have posted the same thing on about ten different threads this week can't we just keep it to helping MyWay with his problem instead of discussing your thermostat

I did not bring it up in this thread..maybe you should read back..thank you...for your consideration.

Besides if your reading comprehension was better you would notice I knock the t-stat more then anything...just sayin'.

 

[Huntindog1]

I wanted to add here a mind set to have with these stoves. You got to get the heat built up in them before you shut them down. Some times in problem situations you may not get the heat up with big splits. If your having problems then focus on getting the heat built up in the stove better and quicker so as not to burn up all your big splits in the stove for long burn times. Try using some really good quality kindling out of really dry wood and wood thats high btu like white oak. I used to use polar but it doesn't perform like dry white oak kindling , kind of hated having to split into kindling 1" pieces of my good white oak. By raking coals right or left or to the front your last row of loading pile that row with the
really good small kindling then put on try to wedge in a fire starter some where in there around the kindling even if its hot coals as what I have seen that a fire starter will by flaming up quickly will gets those coals fired up quickly and then the kindling is a blazing and the heat will build quick. If you have enough small stuff you can get the heat up pretty hot with the white oak kindling split small. Its all about getting the heat up and get the heat built up a little high as once you turn that stove into a smoke burner from the high heat its going to perform for you , if you try to use it as a wood burner by not getting the heat up in the top of the stove its not going to perform for you, its got to be a smoke burner. Also you got to start with a full load of wood stacked up close to the tubes with about 2" space up there as these stoves to get to those high temps fast need a samll burn area up in the top so as to be able to build heat up there fast and kick into a smoke burner mode. partially load stoves if you have not so good wood or not so good flue setup will be a pain to get going , thats why you use good quality kindling and a fire starter on coals to kick the stove into gear. If the stove isnt performing let the heat build higher before you completely shut it down. The art of it is knowing when to start slowly moving the air intake closed in small increments so as to limit the air but not limit it so much that you kill your fire . As too much air will keep things from heating up but not enough will cool the fire down. Thats where the kindling is so key it will burn fast and hot at a lower air intake setting so your able to reduce the air intake but still have that the small split kindling thats high quality putting out high btus burning hot and fast with the lower air setting, big splits dont do this at startup unless they are super dry or your coal bed is super hot.

 

[trailrated]

Yesterday temps dropped to mid/low 30s, and overnight was 27 with high winds. Loaded the 30 at 9 pm e/w 7 pieces. 6:30 this morning house 65 degrees, 2 gallons of coals in the stove. Only thing I think I could have done differently was a n/s load, since the stove took a long time to come up to temps loaded e/w with the coals to the front. Don't think it would have made a big difference. Top was at 600 when I walked away for the night. Must say the stove just does not seem to be up to the task at hand. It appears I either have a shoulder season stove or a stove for sale.

Have you ever tried a N/S load? I have a feeling your stove will perform much better loaded N/S

 

[SmokeyCity]

2 1/2 hours after the load and the air is wide open, top is 440. ugh....

This has the earmarks of less than dry wood.

 

[mywaynow]

Wood is in 3rd year of c/s/s with tarp on top. They are dry.

 

[rdust]

No, something is amok.

X2, not many EPA stoves that are going to be bigger than the 30's 3.5 cubic foot fire box, if it's not getting it done I'm not sure what else can.(at least on a 6" chimney) Can you either post video from start up to running or at least a pictured step by step. Maybe we'll be able to see something that is being missed?

I still think it's a matter of learning a new stove, we see these posts every season when someone switches from a Pre-EPA to an EPA unit.

For me it also reinforces the reasons why heating from the basement is so difficult.

 

[Agent]

Have you tried reducing the air coming into the secondaries? You may need to install a damper if your draft is too strong and pulling excessive air through the secondaries.
My poor 30 will spike at 850+ if I'm not careful.

 

[Seasoned Oak]

My son has a 30 on a brand new 25 Ft masonry chimney. His stove top will go to 900 very quickly if he is not careful,no matter what he is burning. My 2- 30s are on older, larger chimneys
They usually top out at 650-700 after about an hour from a cold stove. Unless its 45 degrees outside then figure an extra 20-30 minutes to get these temps.

 

[mywaynow]

Have you tried reducing the air coming into the secondaries? You may need to install a damper if your draft is too strong and pulling excessive air through the secondaries.
My poor 30 will spike at 850+ if I'm not careful.

All I have read about reducing secondaries has been in an attempt to reduce overfire issues. I am not having those problems. It seems more that i can't get long term scondary burns thta maintain >650 temps. Stove has been into the current load for 45 minutes today. I have just adjusted the primary to where the spring handle is about 1 inch beyond the ash lip toward the body. Getting about 50/50 secondary burn to primary burn. Top was 600 when I set this, flue 410. Going to monitor and will update.

I can see before even posting that my secondaries are fading. Going to let it run for a bit.

 

[mywaynow]

Hour and a half later, stove top 460 flue 325. Some secondary activity. Not hot enough. Eased the primary out a half inch to see the reaction.

 

[oldspark]

My Summit doesn't work like others and so far it seems like your 30 does not work like others have reported with their 30's, we can try and help you all day long and not sure we can get there from here and thats what I have found out with my stove. My stove works fine but can not duplicate what others have so its been a long drawn out process for me. This is not much help but maybe some moral support, I dont get secondaries that last forever on 2 splits with 700 stove top (I swear there was a post that stated that) but I just keep burning and learning and seem to be getting more satisfied with the stove as time rolls on.

 

[mywaynow]

Next check stove top 400 flue 290. Frustrating. Need heat so I piled the 2.5 gallons of coals in the center and added 4 good size splits, 2 on the sides of the coals n/s, 2 straddling e/w. Temp to 500 and damped all the way to see secondary activity. Went to no flames in 2 minutes. Sound right?? From what I have read here the secondaries should draw on their own when the primary is shut down? Opened the primary 40% and will check in 15.