Need a little help.

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klacy01

New Member
Jan 14, 2010
1
RI
My dealer has long gone out of business so I am on my own.

I have a Vermont Castings Intrepid (porcelain finish and approximately 5 years old) that produces a small amount of fluid (Perhaps a tablespoon on one side and less than a teaspoon on the other side.) from the back of the stove when it is first lit. I have taken the heat shield off the back and I can see that on each of the upper corners at the back of the stove is a part called a secondary air cover which after taking it off I can see covers an entry point into the back of the stove of about 1 inch wide by 1.5 inches tall. I can't see very well where it goes due to the proximity of the stove against the masonary wall, but these entry points do appear to have some depth to them. They may be going into the secondary air manifolds but I don't know enough about how the stove is built to say for sure.

I had a cap installed on the chimney to eliminate rain from coming down the flue and the flue is swept yearly.

Has anyone heard of this before and, more importantly have any ideas as to how to solve the problem?

Ideas I have thought of and not tried are to tilt the stove slightly forward (maybe an 1/8 of an inch), place some gasket material at the bottom of the entry point to absorb the small amount of fluid until the stove gets warm enough to evaporate it, or build the bottom of the hole up slightly with masonary cement.

I would appreciate any suggestions on how to solve this problem.

Thank you,

Kevin Lacy
 
Is the stove rear exhaust? Have you taken off the stove pipe to see if there's water in it? Sounds like water is getting in somewhere and seeping down into the stove or it could be liquid creosote from burning wet wood?
 
You say it is at start up, so my vote is that this small amount of liquid is condensation, and once you start the stove it forms a bit more & runs until the stove gets up in temp & it then drys up.
The inside front vertical steel corners of my insert will condense when I first start the stove from a cold start. I know for a fact inmy case it is moisture in the firebox, which then condenses as it first is lit and the first part of heating up, then it goes away. Just a thought, your issue may be different.
 
I've got the same stove but have never had this issue.
Look in your owner's manual or google the exploded parts diagram. That'll help you understand what you're seeing back there.

How often is the stove run?
Is it set up as a top exit, not rear exit pipe? If it's top exit and the stove's been idle for a week or so, I'm guessing you're getting some sort of condensation running back down the pipe into the stove.
Do you leave the damper and primary air open when not in use? If so, try keeping them closed when the stove is not running. That may minimize warm moist air escaping up the flue and condensing there. Or, vice versa, if you always leave them closed try leaving them open instead.
 
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