Question about my VC Encore

[Shaun]

I have a VC Encore Non-cat that was installed about two years ago. The other day, I was cleaning up the stove and noticed that their is a gap where the chimney connector goes into the flue collar. I believe that when the stove was installed, the installers put some type of furnace cement or something in there to seal it up. Does that gap need to be filled in? If so, what should I use?

 

[jtp10181]

How big of a gap? Can you get a picture of it? There should not be any gap in there really, the components should fit together quite snugly. Stove cement usually becomes brittle after a lot of heat and breaks up and falls apart so that's not really a good solution unless someone can recommend another product. Also, I'm not familiar with that line of product, is this is a stove or an insert? A sweep might need to disconnect that joint to clean the chimney.

 

[webbie]

Black furnace cement is usually used in such a gap - it is usually placed in from the inside and then the pipe lowered into it - you might be able to reach inside and do this from there.

 

[Gooserider]

Agreed, you need to have that gap sealed - if you search the threads here, you will find that other VC NC Encore stove owners have had problems that were helped by sealing that gap. However you really shouldn't have a gap in that joint - what sort of pipe are you using? At least with single wall, there is a common problem where the corrugated flange on a factory end is longer than the opening in the flue collar on the stove so that the corrugations still show and make a gap.

The rule is that EVERY joint shold be fit together so that the corrugations go all the way into the pipe joint so that the little bulge just above them buts up against the adjacent section. This also applies at the stove - pipe joint. They make special "stove connector" peices that can be used in this spot and come with a shorter corrugated peice, or you can simply trim the corrugated part on the existing pipe so the distance between the end of the pipe and the bulge is about 1/8" less than the depth of the stoves flue collar. Then verify that you can slide the pipe in all the way so the bulge touches the collar. Then pull the pipe out, run a bead of furnace cement around the inside of the collar then slide the pipe back in, and secure it with the required three screws. This should seal the gap the way it is supposed to be.

Let us know how it works out or if you have any questions.

Gooserider

 

[elkimmeg]

Goose the problem is the stove collar has a dept of only 1" crimped ends are 1.5" and a bit more to the rib part of the pipe what I do it cut the crimping
so that the rib makes contact with the flue collar and apply a little gasket cement to the joint prior to the final fitting.

His situatuion is probably, the installer decided that refractory cement was the final solution and not cutting the stove collar pipe corrrect..

Remember the crimping has valleys where air is drawn into the fire and was one of the reasons of problems controling the stoves.

Then we had the discussion VC should state this in the installation manual. Well I don't know abou the rest of the working world but if I saw the crimping,
I could figure out what is happening. I first would stick a ruler to measure the flue collar stops to figure it out before proceeding.

Got to love caulk everything to cover up mistakes, instead of doing it correct

 

[Gooserider]

Goose the problem is the stove collar has a dept of only 1" crimped ends are 1.5" and a bit more to the rib part of the pipe what I do it cut the crimping
so that the rib makes contact with the flue collar and apply a little gasket cement to the joint prior to the final fitting.

His situatuion is probably, the installer decided that refractory cement was the final solution and not cutting the stove collar pipe corrrect..

Remember the crimping has valleys where air is drawn into the fire and was one of the reasons of problems controling the stoves.

Then we had the discussion VC should state this in the installation manual. Well I don't know abou the rest of the working world but if I saw the crimping,
I could figure out what is happening. I first would stick a ruler to measure the flue collar stops to figure it out before proceeding.

Got to love caulk everything to cover up mistakes, instead of doing it correct

More or less the same thing I said as to both problem and the fix - from memory of the prior discussion... I see your point about the fix being sort of obvious, but at the same time at least a DIY installer might not realize it IS a problem. I would be somewhat inclined to say that the stove maker could have made the collar the right depth to fit a standard pipe - they don't gain that much by making it short, iron is cheap... So "obviously" if the manual just says to slide the pipe into the collar, and doesn't say anything about trimming it "must" "supposed to be like that".... An installer has less excuse, but I can see a DIY person making this mistake in an honest and sincere effort to do a craftsmanlike job... Adding a short paragraph and maybe a photo to a manual would eliminate the confusion and any excuse for the error (on both the pro and the DIY's part...)

Gooserider

 

[Highbeam]

Is there a possibility that Shaun has a double walled connector pipe? There is supposed to be a gap at the bottom of that and fililng it would be a boo-boo.

So Shaun, is the pipe single wall or double?

 

[Shaun]

The 1st piece of pipe that I am referring to is single wall VC oval to 8" round adapter. I will try and take some pictures and post. I will also take some measurements to see if that piece needs to be trimmed.