2nd year, 1st fire issue

[Boom Stick]

1st fire tonight. Loaded up stove. No supercedars yet used fatwood. Light it and smoke is comeing out the bottom grate where the warm air blows from. Does that sound like my chimney liner is loose and or disconnected. I blew out fatwood and that is where I am at right now....smoked out living room no fire. Chimney has not been cleaned but burned 4 year old seasoned locust all winter. Plan on cleaning in a couple days. Visually inspected liner from roof and did not seem very dirty at all. Avalon perfect fit insert, BTW.

I am assuming liner is disconnected loose as smoke is coming from a place that the fan circulates the air around.

 

[BrotherBart]

Most likely the smoke is coming from the primary air intake. Usually in the lower back in an EPA stove. Hold a piece of burning newspaper up under the baffle to see if you can get the chimney started drawing. And also turn off any bathroom, kitchen or whatever fans that are running in the house or crack a window.

If it won't draw the smoke from the paper, clean that pipe and get the squirrel or whatever out of it.

Best to not "load it up" for a first fire in a cold stove. Build a small fire to get the flue cranking and build a coal bed for a bigger load.

 

[jeff_t]

Yep. It isn't that cold out. I used to have to burn a sheet of paper to get the pipe warmed up a little. Don't crumple it up any more than you have to, to get it inside. You want it to burn hot and fast.

 

[Boom Stick]

I had my living room fan on....same room. I am starting to think I need to write instructions down for my first fire....like I forgot how to burn.....She lit right up after I turned off fan....drawing well...I did load it up though.. I did notice I have a cracked fire brick in the rear standing up....how critical is that to replace? Thanks!

 

[Boom Stick]

I forgot the burning newspaper in the flue trick......I once smoked out my parents home as a 16 year old while trying to light afire in dead of winter unassisted and really ticked my dad off. You would think I would remember. Thanks.

 

[jeff_t]

Cracked bricks aren't a big deal. It's still doing its thing as long as the chunks are in place.

 

[fossil]

Don't worry about the cracked firebrick so long as all the pieces are still where they belong. What sort of "living room fan" are talking about here? It should have no effect unless it exhausts room air to the outside of the envelope of the building...only then would it be competing with or reversing the gas flow in your flue Rick

 

[BrotherBart]

Cracked brick won't hurt anything. Except they have a nasty habit of falling apart just as you are loading for the night in the middle of January. I just had to replace two in the back of my 30-NC yesterday. They were still standing but I figured it was "pay me now or pay me later".

 

[fossil]

Hmm...this kind of consensus is somewhat unsettling. I'd get that brick replaced ASAP.

 

[theonlyzarathu]

I had pieces of cracked firebrick in my old riteway 37 for years before I got around to replacing it. As long is it remains in place, its sitting on itself and usually the back is against steel or cast iron. Its not a structural issue. Firebrick is only there to insulate the firebox from the heat and keep the heat of the coals intenseling in the stove and HOT. I never had a piece "fall apart" even when I was burning coal and the center was literally molten rock.

 

[BrotherBart]

Yeah busted bricks can stay in place for a long time. Unless they are busted from N/S loading. That is when they decide to take a vacation at the wrong time when they get smacked by the far end of a split.

For $2.50 apiece why not just replace'em.

 

[fossil]

Just keep a box of these on hand...no worries...

http://www.acehardware.com/product/...366795&sr=1&kw=fire+bricks&origkw=fire+bricks