Newbie seeking advice - Isle Royal burning fast and hot

[jpl1nh]

Damper.. yep!

 

[happyman]

That's great news. Good test. Usually the only place that air gets in via the ash pan is the door. Carefully check the ashpan door gasket seal all the way around.

PS: You should not have to be doing this. It's a new stove. Who and where's the dealer in this sale? You've already gone above and beyond the call of duty.

The gasket on the ash pan door looks good. I went ahead and adjusted the hinges in so it would fit a bit tighter as well, but that didn't seem to make a difference. (I did that before the foil test). The Quadrafire support guy actually said that the ashpan sealant often times develops air leaks when in transit, which is why he suggested I try the foil test.

About the dealer... Actually, I bought the stove used. (It's an 05, but had only been used one season before the previous owner sold his home, and sold the stove separately.) So, although there's a local Quad dealer, they have no responsibility in the matter.

So, I think I need to go looking for some fiber cement...

Blaine

 

[begreen]

Hmmmm. Are you the one that beat me to that ivory stove on craigslist last year? That was one sweet deal. ;-)

If the gasket seal is suspect I would remove the old one completely and replace it. Glue it on in a bed of high-temp rtv silicone. Let it cure for 24 hrs.

 

[happyman]

Hmmmm. Are you the one that beat me to that ivory stove on craigslist last year? That was one sweet deal. ;-)

If the gasket seal is suspect I would remove the old one completely and replace it. Glue it on in a bed of high-temp rtv silicone. Let it cure for 24 hrs.

I wouldn't buy a stove out from under you!

Actually, I just picked this up on Craigslist a couple of weeks ago. It was in Lacey and I ended up getting it for $1,200. I need to post a pic. It's just a matte black one with no options.

If anyone is interested there is a brand new Woodstock Fireview in the area as well. (Gig Harbor.) It's listed for $2k, but the owner offered it to me for $1,750. Never had a fire in it. I was torn between the Isle Royal and the Fireview, but in the end I went with the Isle Royal as my house is 3k sq ft and the Fireview is rated at 1600. I don't need everyone jumping on and telling me I made the wrong decision.

I just installed a chimney damper and am trying that in conjunction with the foil test. I packed it full of maple and it's staying right around 600, which is good. (It's completely closed down, chimney damper and primary air.) Even with the foil test, I hit 800 last night with the maple-packed firebox, so I was a bit bummed.

I'm actually on the Kitsap Peninsula. I see you're in the area as well. Howdy ho neighbor.

Blaine

 

[derbygreg]

Happyman,

Did you get the fiber cement and did it work?

 

[happyman]

Happyman,

Did you get the fiber cement and did it work?

I haven't. I was going to follow BeGreen's suggestion and just pull the whole ash pan off and use high-temp silicone.

Hopefully I'll be able to do that this weekend...

Blaine

 

[derbygreg]

Happyman, how did you fare from the storm? I assume it was in your area.

 

[happyman]

Happyman, how did you fare from the storm? I assume it was in your area.

Yes the storm was in my area. We weren't underwater like what you've probably been seeing on TV, but we did get about 8 inches of snow one day only to have it hit the mid fifties the next (thus melting all the snow very quickly), with torrential rain. Wind gusts were very strong as well. (Lots of tree blow-downs, etc.) Many roads were closed due to flooding and blow-downs.

Our power was out for a good spell (better part of two days) and we were thankful for wood heat. We also got a chance to experiment a bit with cooking on the Isle Royal. We had spaghetti and beans with home-made pull-apart cinnamon rolls (cooked in a dutch oven in our open fireplace).

Things are mostly back to normal around here. Some local stores are still closed because of water damage, however, we fared much better than other areas of Western WA.

One odd thing that happened is that we were in the local Wal-Mart when its power went out (our home's power was out already). The store went dark and the emergency lights came on. The employees ushered everyone to the front of the store. All cash registers were open and they said they had 15 minutes to ring everyone up before the cash registers went down. I've never been in a Wal-Mart (or any store) when power has gone down.

It's amazing how much we take power for granted.

I'm thankful to be safe, healthy, happy, and that we heat with wood.

Happyman