Stove Issue - Help

[Vinelife]

Ok, here is the situation. I own a Sante Fe, had it installed this last feburary. My exhaust tube that goes outside is about 2-3 feet out straight and then curved. I live in the woods in the middle of nowhere, so I though I would cover the hole of the tube so I dont encourage wasps or insects from getting inside the stove. So what I did is put a small towel over the tube and rubberband it to keep it secure. I say that to say this, I'm seeing some spotting of rust on the inside of the stove. I'm thinking its because of the towel and the stove isn't getting good air. Especially when its raining and that towel has to dry out there. Seems like its causing a moisture issue. So I took the towel off to let more dryer air in. I'm in northern michigan and we haven't been too humid so far this season.

Any suggestions would help....

 

[imacman]

I'd would either duct tape the end shut, or use a heavy plastic bag and use either rubber bands, or the duct tape to seal it....keep as much moisture out as possible.

My 2 cents.

 

[stoveguy2esw]

the rust is going to be surface patina , not pitting rust at least if its caught early. either bag it as described , or if you are in a climate where simple open circulation is ok , just zip tie a piece of vinyl screen over the opening. just remember whichever way you go , put a note in the hopper to remove it before you put the stove into use.

BTW a box of arm and hammer in the burn pot (like in a fridge) will help absorb moisture(and odor) as well

 

[tsmith]

Keep the end of the pipe tightly wrapped and also did you spray the inside of the stove with oil? I use PAM cooking oil and spray the entire surface inside to prevent rust, works very well.

 

[Vinelife]

Does anyone else concure with the oil thing ??? I will do it, I just wanted some other opinions on coating with oil.

 

[smwilliamson]

Does anyone else concure with the oil thing ??? I will do it, I just wanted some other opinions on coating with oil.

You can spray the whole inside with WD-40, the WD in the name stands for water displacement....it's what the stuff was designed for.

 

[little_hawk_59]

if you are really up for it messure the outside of the pipe and go to like a home depot and get a rubber plumbing termination that has a clap and place it on there it is water tight and will keep bee out

 

[gbreda]

Some great suggestions here.

Personally, I am going to try a combo of the rubber termination and arm and hammer in the firebox.......Coating with oil might be a last effort if needed. But I would need a complete cleaning first. Knee surgeon says carefull kneeling for the next 4 weeks or so.

 

[Vinelife]

Water cannot get into mine from the outside. I think my problem is having a cloth over the outside vent pipe and then having a cloth stuffed into my intake air. When it rains, the cloths get wet and then it gets warm and moist. And then that humid moisture goes back into the stove. So i'm going to take off the cloths, and go get a mesh screen so it can breath good on both exhaust pipe and intake air vent. And also do the arm and hammer thing. I think good air circulation will fix me. Does anyone have any suggestions on how to get rid of the rust that formed on my two back plates on my sante fe ??

 

[gbreda]

Water cannot get into mine from the outside. I think my problem is having a cloth over the outside vent pipe and then having a cloth stuffed into my intake air. When it rains, the cloths get wet and then it gets warm and moist. And then that humid moisture goes back into the stove. So i'm going to take off the cloths, and go get a mesh screen so it can breath good on both exhaust pipe and intake air vent. And also do the arm and hammer thing. I think good air circulation will fix me. Does anyone have any suggestions on how to get rid of the rust that formed on my two back plates on my sante fe ??

From what I ready early last season on this subject, as long as it is light surface rust, it will burn off once you start firing again. If you want to feel better about it now, some light steel wool or even those green abrasive pads can take off the heavier surface rust.

I would definately take off the cloth plugs. If you are not in a humid climate, you might get away with leaving them open, but I would tighten those areas up. Just my 2 pennies

 

[imacman]

Does anyone else concure with the oil thing ??? I will do it, I just wanted some other opinions on coating with oil.

Not me....I have 2 of these dessicant packs (silica gel) that I put in the firebox after burning season is over & stove is clean. They can be "re-activated" simply by putting them in the oven at 300 °F until color strip turns back to blue. Last forever.

www.amazon.com/Pelican-1500D-Peli-Desiccant-Silica/dp/B0018O035O

 

[gbreda]

Does anyone else concure with the oil thing ??? I will do it, I just wanted some other opinions on coating with oil.

Not me....I have 2 of these dessicant packs (silica gel) that I put in the firebox after burning season is over & stove is clean. They can be "re-activated" simply by putting them in the oven at 300 °F until color strip turns back to blue. Last forever.

www.amazon.com/Pelican-1500D-Peli-Desiccant-Silica/dp/B0018O035O

Like that.....thanks imacman

 

[imacman]

Does anyone else concure with the oil thing ??? I will do it, I just wanted some other opinions on coating with oil.

Not me....I have 2 of these dessicant packs (silica gel) that I put in the firebox after burning season is over & stove is clean. They can be "re-activated" simply by putting them in the oven at 300 °F until color strip turns back to blue. Last forever.

www.amazon.com/Pelican-1500D-Peli-Desiccant-Silica/dp/B0018O035O

Like that.....thanks imacman

I got your PM...glad I could help!

 

[Vinelife]

So when you buy those packs your talking about, do you have to put them in the oven to activate them right away or are they good to go ??

 

[tjnamtiw]

Does anyone else concure with the oil thing ??? I will do it, I just wanted some other opinions on coating with oil.

I did it on my Sante Fe and Castile stoves and so far so good. I sealed my stove with plastic sheeting at the clamp in the exhaust. I have 17 vertical feet of pipe.

 

[imacman]

So when you buy those packs your talking about, do you have to put them in the oven to activate them right away or are they good to go ??

They are ready to go when you get them. When the indicator window turns pink, THEN you dry them out in the oven. They theoretically will last forever.

 

[corkman]

i disconnected my pipe outside and bought a Fernco termination cap at the depot.comes with a clamp so it works awsome.i did notice a little rust in my stove so i used a Damp Rid.hoping this works.wd 40 is probably next

 

[smwilliamson]

Does anyone else concure with the oil thing ??? I will do it, I just wanted some other opinions on coating with oil.

Not me....I have 2 of these dessicant packs (silica gel) that I put in the firebox after burning season is over & stove is clean. They can be "re-activated" simply by putting them in the oven at 300 °F until color strip turns back to blue. Last forever.

www.amazon.com/Pelican-1500D-Peli-Desiccant-Silica/dp/B0018O035O

I remember seeing a a product, kind of like a frog for a vase, made from this same material that you put inside the burn pot. For some reason I thought I remember it being offered through a Quad dealer. Thought it was a good idea at the time but forgot to bookmark it. Something like..."burn pot friend" or something...

 

[Vinelife]

Well, today I'm putting mesh on the outside exhaust area and the intake. Like I said I took the moist towels off so air could circulate. I also put a box of that baking stuff in the stove also. I dont live in an overly humid area, so the towels were the culprits. I will see how this does.

 

[SmokeyTheBear]

There is a cat litter that is porous silica, it is called Mini Litter it comes in a 4 pound bag. Likely it too can be heated to drive off any of the moisture it traps (and does it trap moisture, etc. )

I know about this sort of stuff because I have a good sized male kitty.

 

[Vinelife]

Thanks for everyones input and help.....

 

[humpin iron]

The rust is simply humidity. The towel has nothing to do with it. Quad recommends you remove the back plates, clean well, paint the heat exchanger (cheap spray paint), then the plates, reinstall and spray the rest of the inside of the stove. The paint acts as a barrier for the summer and the first fire removes it in the fall.

 

[pelletkrzd]

I have to agree with humpin iron----this was my second burn season with Mt. Vernon AE several weeks ago gave stove a good once over. Cleaned exhaust pipe, exhaust blower, convection blower, removed burn pot for a thorough cleaning ( at which time I noticed burn pot deteriorating at bottom near ignitor, NEW POT WAS COVERED UNDER WARRANTY. Replaced gaskets gave interior of stove a good vac. job, scraping, and good coat of paint. After all was said and done, stuffed a tshirt in clean out behind of stove (inside of house). DOnt know what opinions are of others but this may even help with moisture a little more because even if you cap exterior exhaust temperature fluctuation outside can cause condensation in exhaust pipe (dont know for sure just a guess). I figured by stuffing rag closer to stove itself it might limit the condensation to some point. My final cu de gra against the fight of the rust forming was a little advice from a wood burning friend. He suggested taking a pair of my wifes pantyhose, OBVIOUSLY WHEN SHE WASNT HOME, cutting off the legs knotting one end filling with cat litter than knotting the other end, then placing them in stove. This should provide quite a bit of surface area to absorb any moisture that may accumulate. I must say its been 3 weeks since I closed it up and not a spot of rust anywhere, SO FAR ANYWAY. Hopefully this will work out for me, figured I would give it a try for my closing for the season. Hope this helps.

 

[Vinelife]

I'm going with the baking soda and letting it breath more.