Once I get a good steady cat burn on my VC stove the stack temps remain very constant in the perfect zone but the stove top temps always gradually climb too high. If I cut back on the air enough to reduce the stove top temps to a safe level the cat eventually goes out and I get lots of chimney smoke. My only remedy so far has been to keep a large fan blowing on the stove and full air. What am I doing wrong? I usually burn mostly bone dry locust as it's plentiful here.
VC intrepid too hot
- Thread starter Kenneth Kline
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Sounds like you're getting a lot of secondary burning at the griddle top before it gets into the cat. Old or new Intrepid? I just bought the new flexburn model (to replace an Encore) and would like to hear more about the stove. Not many threads on this model. Maybe I should start one. Keep us posted.
Temps go well into the red zone (700+). I've had to put pans of cold water on top at times. It will always cool down if I close down the air some but like I said, that will always cause the cat to quit after a short time. I have to constantly keep an eye on it or a fan blowing on it with the cat burning.
It's 3 years old.
It's 3 years old.
RandyBoBandy
Minister of Fire
Whe N is the last time you checked your gaskets? Especially griddle top and glass gaskets. As well as ash pan door for that matter. How do you know your cat is stalling?
rScotty
Member
When the cat goes out both thermometers will start dropping quickly to the cold zone (until I open the damper) and I get a lot of smoke out the chiminey. No smoke at all when it is burning right. Also I can hear it when it is and isn't burning.
The gaskets are still good as far as i can tell. The stove is usuallly only used on weekends.
RandyBoBandy
Minister of Fire
I pull it ot at the beginning of each season and vacuum it out. I think if was clogged I wouldn't ever get it to burn, right?
RandyBoBandy
Minister of Fire
On the older Intrepid the ash pan is inside the stove firebox, not underneath like the new 18' model or the Encore or Defiant. So no gasket for that. I don't understand how a too strong a draft would affect the cat so can't comment on that. Would check the adjustment on the primary air linkage and the thermostat that's with that to make sure its set right.
Re-reading the original OP post thinking maybe more of a cat not working as it should. Pull it and check for broken/missing cells or if it appears that it's not lighting off at all for some reason. Should have a ashy brown color to it. If its black it not lighting off at all. If you do a process of elimination, I would replace the cat first and go from there. After three years it may have deteriorated even if only used on weekends/evenings and the like. Chimney/stove pipe cleaned recently?
That internal thermostat makes more sense than anything. I think it's supposed to control the cat temperature only. I have a spare but looks like a bear to change so it's still in the box. Might be a weekend project soon. The cat itself is still in good shape and the chiminey is cleaned every year.
Depends. I just nudge it over until I see it result in something but I've also had tto slam it shut after I've forgotten to check on it for awhile.
My chimney clogged almost 100% 2 months after it was cleaned this fall. Apparently the cat wasn't active enough and creosote still built up in the flue. So just because you had it cleaned early in the fall maybe doesn't mean by any means that it is clean now. If your burning only on weekends and/or evenings your starting a lot of fires in a "cold" stove/chimney. You'll get creosote formation from that in and of itself.
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