Had the Jotul 12 Firelight (large cat stove) whuffing again tonight. Started about 1 hour after a big reload, in a stove that had already been burning about 2 hours on a smaller load. This is the second time this has happened in my 8-month affair with this stove (read, "any stove"). Situation was same both times:
Outside temp > 45'F
Stove burning > 2 hours
Full load of wood on reload
Air control shut way down
The first time it happened, several weeks ago, I thought it was because I had throttled down the air too quickly. So, I've been lowering it just a bit at a time whenever I throttle down since, taking 10 - 20 minutes to reach min setting. Of course, that did not prevent a re-occurrence tonight, so I started hunting for other possible causes.
So, according to one thread I found here, this problem can happen any timE you have a full load of fuel and a too-low air supply. In other words, all the advice I've received from the local dealer on loading her full and then burning with the air control set to min fir a long burn is not always a safe way to go. I'd not be comfortable leaving this stove set up for a long burn, based on these two incidents. What am I missing?
Stove has proper 6" black steel (approx 5 feet) into 8" round clay (approx 12 feet), which should not be too bad a setup.
Thanks!
Outside temp > 45'F
Stove burning > 2 hours
Full load of wood on reload
Air control shut way down
The first time it happened, several weeks ago, I thought it was because I had throttled down the air too quickly. So, I've been lowering it just a bit at a time whenever I throttle down since, taking 10 - 20 minutes to reach min setting. Of course, that did not prevent a re-occurrence tonight, so I started hunting for other possible causes.
So, according to one thread I found here, this problem can happen any timE you have a full load of fuel and a too-low air supply. In other words, all the advice I've received from the local dealer on loading her full and then burning with the air control set to min fir a long burn is not always a safe way to go. I'd not be comfortable leaving this stove set up for a long burn, based on these two incidents. What am I missing?
Stove has proper 6" black steel (approx 5 feet) into 8" round clay (approx 12 feet), which should not be too bad a setup.
Thanks!