Sudden draft problem - Alderlea

[Elfin]

Between the moisture meter and the stove thermometer, we will be systematically finding the reasons behind this problem... if it persists then we will have bigger issues to resolve.

I'm thinking this stove is probably not a candidate for small shoulder season fires, however... which is disappointing, but we can live with that.

 

[begreen]

Is this an interior or exterior flue? Can you describe it?

 

[Elfin]

Very straightforward... freestanding stove, installed through an 8 ft ceiling, one-story roofline. No elbows in the pipe. I guess that's an exterior flue, yes?

 

[jimcope]

could it be you flew or tamper

 

[begreen]

Very straightforward... freestanding stove, installed through an 8 ft ceiling, one-story roofline. No elbows in the pipe. I guess that's an exterior flue, yes?

No, exterior would have it heading out the wall. How much total flue pipe, interior and exterior?

 

[Elfin]

Oh, ok... so what's interior flue, then? Thru the ceiling?

It's about 15 ft in total. A standard kit, I believe.

 

[struggle]

The only thing I can think of which may or may not apply is how you start your fires. Do you use a lot of paper or light material to start your fires with that could possibly be sucked up into the cap and the slowly collect creosote?

 

[Elfin]

No... just a small amount of newspaper, and dry cedar kindling... that is a good thought, though, as I can imagine ashy paper bits would definitely clog the screen.

 

[begreen]

Oh, ok... so what's interior flue, then? Thru the ceiling?

It's about 15 ft in total. A standard kit, I believe.

Sounds good. I just wanted to be sure I wasn't missing something obvious. You don't know until you ask.

So far, it seems to be coming down to the wood.

 

[crazy_dan]

I blame the screen
Which is why I do not have a screen well that and it is not required by law where I live

 

[struggle]

No... just a small amount of newspaper, and dry cedar kindling... that is a good thought, though, as I can imagine ashy paper bits would definitely clog the screen.

I know on my basement stove (Mansfield) if I were to start fires with any paper it would suck them up the flue. I have seen it happen witht he older stove I had there. I never use paper to start the fires in it for that reason. Also once the soapstone is running 24/7 we never have to restart it as it just goes on coals from the previous night.

I would for sure stop using paper if possible. There is someone here that advertises super cedars fire starters which people really seem to like. Or use a similar product.

 

[rwilson]

Also once the soapstone is running 24/7 we never have to restart it as it just goes on coals from the previous night.

First year running a Heritage (any stove for that matter), and have seen a lot about running the soapstones 24/7 without letting the stones cool down. So, my question is, how often do you clean out the ashes, and what method do you use to clean them out?

 

[Elfin]

Thanks, BeGreen, I appreciate your interest in the specs just in case there is something goofy with it... it's so straightforward that this should be simple to solve.

Struggle, you really might be onto something with the newspaper. I do have an alternative to try (cedar chips) and will get some of the fire starters... perhaps paper and spark screens simply aren't compatible, somehow?

I think you might be right, Dan... and continue having problems after making sure that we are doing everything 100% perfect with our fires, the screen just might come up missing

 

[crazy_dan]

Just make sure that it not against the law for a screen to go missing in your area.

 

[begreen]

It may be possible to open up the screen with a set of diagonal cutters. It could be converted to 1" screen by cutting out the centers of the screening every inch. That should still comply with the local regs.

I would also take several thick splits and split them in half, then check the fresh surface for moisture.

 

[Elfin]

That's a good idea, BeGreen... hopefully it won't come to that, but what a smart idea...

We already moisture check... this is not the problem here... I know that for certain. This is a cardinal rule that we take very seriously... no exceptions.

We will be using a systematic process to figure this out... I'll report back as soon as I know what seems to have caused it. It's got to be those small shoulder season fires, or the paper, or the screen itself...

 

[struggle]

Also once the soapstone is running 24/7 we never have to restart it as it just goes on coals from the previous night.

First year running a Heritage (any stove for that matter), and have seen a lot about running the soapstones 24/7 without letting the stones cool down. So, my question is, how often do you clean out the ashes, and what method do you use to clean them out?

I bought a metal paint strainer thing that you would hang on a five gallon bucket and bent both sides of it upward and then scope the coals to the side after two days burning and then sift out the big coals to the other side and remove the sifted ashes with a ash scoop.

Then put the coals in the middle and lay the wood on it. Rather simple once you start doing it that way. I do not use the ash dump thing on the stove as it seems to be pretty much useless.

 

[Highbeam]

Crazy Dan and I agree. I blame the cap also. People will give you all sorts of jive making you think you're doing something wrong and you may be, but, as many have found, that stupid screen will plug up all by itself despite the best practices and best chimney setup. Mine plugged up every few months despite clean burning of dry wood so it is now MIA. No problems since and a clean chimney since, see, it wasn't the burning habits but just that screen. I was fortunate enough to be able to easily clean the screen but since you are not I would especially want to get rid of it. Don't forget that a clogged up screen will cause more creosote to form due to the reduced draft than if the screen weren't even there. The large majority of wood chimneys in the world/nation do NOT have such silly screens but if you are required to have it by law then you should leave it and you might want to figure out how you're going to clean it yourself.

To burn any stove 24/7 you'll need to be able to clean a hot stove. This means a glove, a metal shovel, and a metal bucket. Let the fire cool somewhat, scoot the big coals to one side, scoop out the ashes, move the coals back into the new low spot, and clean the rest of the ashes. Be sure to leave an inch of ash on the floor to help the fire. Remove this bucket of hot ashes and set it outside somewhere safe. Hot ashes are more likely to float away and make a mess so be careful not to drop the ashes into the bucket from great height.

Spark arrestors can plug up despite doing everything right. They are a maintenance item often requiring more frequent maintenance than your chimney.

 

[Bigg_Redd]

The past couple of days we've noticed a draft problem with the Alderlea that we haven't had before. It's burning well and all seems fine until we open the door to add more wood... smoke comes billowing out at us.

We've checked a couple of things to try to resolve the issue, and have a couple of other things to try as soon as the stove and pipe are cool enough. We had a fairly deep ashbed, so we cleaned that out, leaving 1". We had recently closed down our foundation vents to insulate for winter, so we opened some of those back up in case the fresh air combusion wasn't getting enough air. No change. So now we are planning to check the fresh air combusion for a critter and the stovepipe for the same.

What else could it be? It was fine until now, and the weather is the same temp... it's not windy... no changes like that like that I can think of. Can the baffle or other "guts" in the stove clog up somehow?

Thanks for any ideas!

If it was drafting fine and now is not, it's in your stovepipe/chimney unless there is some obvious flaw or defect in the stove. But stoves don't typically spontaneously fail, so it's your chimney - assuming you're not burning wet/green wood.

 

[Elfin]

Thanks, Highbeam... your post is really helpful. We're going to keep a close eye on on the screen... we know we burn well, but there are always some adjustments that can be made, so we'll rule out all the options before we put the 100% blame on the screen.

It does cause me concern for newbie burners, too... being that we have considerable experience with stoves, we noticed the backpuffing right away... I'm not sure that someone new to stoves would. And to have such buildup while doing everything as right as we possibly know how... really surprising.

 

[Elfin]

And dammit... the glass isn't even dirty (so much for that being a tip off!)

 

[crazy_dan]

Well that says you are burning hot enough to keep the glass clean. not sure what that means for sure.
My glass stays clean and I clean my chimney once a year and do not get much out of it when I do.
I am not sure it is a fair comparison but I run a summit with a total length of @17' (@5' double wall stove pipe and 12' class A).
I am burning small fires right now. Probably about the same size fire as you 3-4 splits at a time in the 3-4" range.
My chimney cap is not even dark it is still shiny SS.

 

[Elfin]

It sounds like we have a very similar set-up, Dan. I guess the clean glass sort of makes me suspect the paper getting caught in the screen and trapping creosote, like suggested earlier in the thread. But who knows?

Our chimney cap is very shiny still too... though the exhaust slots have turned dull in color. The screen is the only thing that was blackened.

 

[billb3]

Every screen with round holes the size of a pencil seems to get gooey black.
My neighbor was cleaning his twice a year and I offered to clamp some square mesh where his screen was and his black goo problem seems to have gone away. (We did this last February and I'd like some more [identical]test time)
My brother had round hole mesh and he just tossed his . (His required a 40 foot ladder).

I don't know if it's the area left betwen the round holes acting as a sail and doing something to temperature and humidity or what. Square mesh just (likefence) seems to work better.

 

[Elfin]

Thanks for that, Bill, but I do have the square mesh... it's identical to 1/2" hardware cloth. Interesting what you said about those types of spark arrestors clogging up, though...