Staying in temp Housing. Chose in part because of woodstove which I asked about and made sure I could use. Filled it for first time today... Thank god I was sat in same room and noticed the smoke!!
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OMG - THIS is why you follow code
- Thread starter nEWRfire
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mstoelton
Feeling the Heat
jatoxico
Minister of Fire
Almost real temporary housing. Who on earth thought that was a safe way to install? Glad you saw it and are safe.
Nick Mystic
Minister of Fire
DO you think I could of burned it too hot? I had it on high until it got going well then put down to med then low
BigFir
Burning Hunk
jatoxico
Minister of Fire
Can't tell really well from the pics how close it is but I think you need min 13" from the corner to a combustible and that looks more like 3-5" (?). Looks like single wall which needs 18" (?). If 13" was observed that would put the single wall out where it belonged.
Nick Mystic
Minister of Fire
I wasn't intending to infer that you burned the stove too hot and that you caused the problem. It certainly appears that proper clearances aren't being met. I just wanted to note that N/S loading with such a full load can really heat up fast and hot compared to E/W loading on a stove like that with the doghouse right up front. The only time I ever had a run away fire in my Jotul F600 was with a similar load as in your photos. The stove wasn't even at 300 F when I noticed the T-connector starting to glow red hot! The fire was burning so vigorously that the flames were shooting straight up over the top of the baffle and blasting the back of the Tee before shooting up the flue.
So glad that this didn't turn out worse. Jotul's cast iron stoves are highly radiant. Our Castine exceeded corner clearances by 3" and I still was uncomfortable with wall temps. And that was with double-wall stove pipe.
Noticed you packed it full. No fault there, that's what serious wood burners do
But. I suspect previous use was a fireplace log bought at the supermarket. That's probably what saved the previous user
On hearth we sometimes forget most people are not centered on wood stve heat above all
But. I suspect previous use was a fireplace log bought at the supermarket. That's probably what saved the previous user
On hearth we sometimes forget most people are not centered on wood stve heat above all
CentralVAWoodHeat
Minister of Fire
Yep, that's why it's good to use a flue meter on the pipe, 12-18" above the flue exit. This meter can react a lot faster that a stove top meter will, especially with a roaring fire. I avoid a blazing inferno and opt for just a bit of lively flame at the most when ramping up to temp. That burned area seems to indicate heat coming off the connector pipe.
At least you didn't make the more common mistake of trying to burn wet Oak....that window trim was probably plenty dry.
That load looks like it may have been pretty dry as well, with that bark loose and falling off.
Random thoughts . . .
-- It's often hard to tell from pics, but that stove sure looks mighty close to the combustible walls. Me . . . I made sure I exceeded the minimum distances . . . and even after running my Jotul for a few years my wife and I opted to build a wall with Durock and tile since the heat level was still pretty hot . . . or at least hotter than she liked to see.
-- It's rare that I would ever load up a stove like this with smaller splits . . . normally once I have a fire going I'll have 3-4 splits in the Oslo. When starting the fire from a cold start I typically have about the same amount.
-- I'm not seeing any thermometers on the stove or flue . . . having thermometers helps a lot in knowing if the stove is getting too hot . . . and when to close down the air control.
-- All's well that ends well . . . chalk this up to a learning experience.
-- It's often hard to tell from pics, but that stove sure looks mighty close to the combustible walls. Me . . . I made sure I exceeded the minimum distances . . . and even after running my Jotul for a few years my wife and I opted to build a wall with Durock and tile since the heat level was still pretty hot . . . or at least hotter than she liked to see.
-- It's rare that I would ever load up a stove like this with smaller splits . . . normally once I have a fire going I'll have 3-4 splits in the Oslo. When starting the fire from a cold start I typically have about the same amount.
-- I'm not seeing any thermometers on the stove or flue . . . having thermometers helps a lot in knowing if the stove is getting too hot . . . and when to close down the air control.
-- All's well that ends well . . . chalk this up to a learning experience.
Yep, if you're not familiar with this particular stove, or wood burning in general, start with small load and/or big splits to control the gassing. Start cutting the air early, before you get too much gassing and have a hot stove that's hard to slow down.
bfitz3
Feeling the Heat
I'm glad you are okay, but with today's world, I would fear that this incident isn't over. I'd be certain to take pictures of everything you can at every angle with a tape measure in every photo that shows how close the stove is to combustibles. Be sure to get images of make/model numbers of all the equipment. I'd hate for you to get sued for damage to the house after using something that clearly isn't installed properly.
Have you told the owners what happened? Wondering what their take is on the situation and most importantly, if they will commit to fixing the situation or removing the stove.
Have you told the owners what happened? Wondering what their take is on the situation and most importantly, if they will commit to fixing the situation or removing the stove.
pyroheater
New Member
kennyp2339
Minister of Fire
As a fire fighter I can so wow that's a close call, but now the scientist in me has a question.. Suppose the landlord moves the stove to the correct clearance, will it totally eliminate the hazard? I don't think so, my reasoning is that the wood has become compromised, especially the studs behind the sheet rock (which often gets over looked) I think now the wood that was effected has a low ignition point due to a change in its chemical make up. If anyone here has more knowledge about this (thinking of pyrolysis) please chime in either to correct me or better explain what I'm thinking.
Agreed. Pyrolysis would be my concern. The ignition point for the materials behind the stove has been lowered.
WoodyIsGoody
Minister of Fire
I think you're right here, at least for the wood trim. The studs, maybe/maybe not. I doubt the studs behind the sheetrock got any hotter than a normal lumber kiln.
But I'm in disbelief that any one would be stupid enough to mount such a stove so close to the wall and window frame. Maybe they thought someone above was taking care of everything. It's almost as if each generation becomes a little dumber.
nEWRfire, this is not your fault! Stoves mounted properly can be over-fired without threatening to burn the house down! That's what code is for. And it's not even clear that you over-fired it.
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