Advice on chimney top cap needed

[donmac]

Need suggestions for different chimney top cap. Am using a raincap with screen/wind shield that came with the Olympia Chimney Armor Flex ss liner kit I installed 5 years ago for my PE Summit insert. The cap tends to collect too much creosote because of the screen and shield. Also the cap installs inside of the 6" liner requiring sealing with hi temp silicone each time I remove and clean. Are there caps that fit over (outside) the liner? Will I have to deal with bird issues if I go with an open design cap? A picture is attached. The cap I am using is on the top left of picture. Need specific ideas. Thanks.

 

[bholler]

Need suggestions for different chimney top cap. Am using a raincap with screen/wind shield that came with the Olympia Chimney Armor Flex ss liner kit I installed 5 years ago for my PE Summit insert. The cap tends to collect too much creosote because of the screen and shield. Also the cap installs inside of the 6" liner requiring sealing with hi temp silicone each time I remove and clean. Are there caps that fit over (outside) the liner? Will I have to deal with bird issues if I go with an open design cap? A picture is attached. The cap I am using is on the top left of picture. Need specific ideas. Thanks.

Why are you dealing it with silicone that is completely unessecary. The ones that slide in are much better honestly I would just cut the wind band off of the one you have and use that

 

[donmac]

Bholler; I used silicone to prevent water entering inside of liner. Probably not much would enter as it does fit pretty tight. Thanks for your idea of modifying the cap I have. You always give good advice! Thanks again for you time and thoughts.

 

[begreen]

The Summit burns pretty cleanly. With dry wood the screen should stay clean. Is the wood only partially seasoned?

Also, have you considered bottom up cleaning? This is easy with the Summit using a Sooteater or other rotary cleaner.

 

[donmac]

Begreen: With the warmer winter temps we have been having, I am making smaller fires and probably not getting hot enough fires as consistently as I have in the past when longer colder periods were present. I thought my wood was dry as it is mostly from dead ash trees cut one and a half years ago. I have noticed on some larger splits small damp spots (size of a nickel or so) appear when starting a new load in the firebox. There is no water sizzling out but the wood is darker in this damp area but disappears after about 10-15 min into the start up burn.

This is my first winter using the insert only for heat all of the time ( past winters during milder periods I would let the electric heat pump run), so I have already burned more wood in a shorter period of time than in the past.

I am looking at the Sooteater system for cleaning and was not sure if It would work from the bottom up with the Summit. I assume the kit I should get is the one with the white nylon rods as opposed to the black poly rods?

Removing the Summit baffle is kind of a PIA but I probably should do a mid-season sweep asap since I have identified reasons for increased creosote build up. I certainly do not want a chimney fire. Are there indicators I might find when doing the immediate top down cleaning (before I get the Sooteater kit) that tell me I was at the danger point in having a chimney fire?

Also after this burning season I have an Auber surface sensor I was going to install on the liner right above collar. I have about 6-8" above collar between the stove top and the block off plate. I did not plan on removing block off plate and insulation above it to get higher up on liner which is also insulated with a mesh cover. What temperatures should I strive for measuring at the collar location to tell me I am burning cleanly?

Also Iam going to do what Bholler recommends and modify my existing cap.

Sorry for all the rambling and additional questions, but I am still learning how to safely operate the stove properly. You have been a great help in the past and I appreciate your patience and time. You and others help make this site such a valuable tool to help educate those of us that are inexperienced but trying to do things safely and correctly. Many thanks!

 

[blacktail]

Remove the screen and then fasten a wire screen to the cap in the off season to keep birds out.
A chunk of mesh, two pieces of wire, and 30 seconds is all youneed. .

 

[spudman99]

Get the Sooteater with the white rods. I just got mine last Friday and used it for the first time this past Saturday. Like you this is my first year with the insert, and I have little experience to fall back on. Below is what came out of my 27' liner but only using the supplied 24' of rods. The extra extension rods do not arrive till today. Comments in the BK forum seem to indicate this is a normal volume of soot, just about 1 cord burned in the last 10 weeks, mostly cherry 20% or below.

The Sooteater I got comes with an extra string that mounts to the top of the cone that is supposed to clean the chimney cap. Perhaps try this setup first before you modify the chimney cap. The latter will require you to make 2 ladder climbs to the cap ever year.

 

[begreen]

Begreen: With the warmer winter temps we have been having, I am making smaller fires and probably not getting hot enough fires as consistently as I have in the past when longer colder periods were present. I thought my wood was dry as it is mostly from dead ash trees cut one and a half years ago. I have noticed on some larger splits small damp spots (size of a nickel or so) appear when starting a new load in the firebox. There is no water sizzling out but the wood is darker in this damp area but disappears after about 10-15 min into the start up burn.

It sounds like we run our systems similarly. I run the heat pump in milder weather, it is more efficient and cleaner. When temps drop below around 45º I start burning. A smaller 4-5 split fire can still burn hot enough for secondary combustion. Give it a little more air if necessary.

I clean the T6 with the Sooteater black rods. No issues at all. They make the 90º bend up into the stove pipe at the flue collar without issue. I am getting too old to go up on the roof and no spring chicken, but I still manage the baffle removal. It was awkward at first, but gets easier once you get used to it. One needs to have a replacement baffle gasket on hand and you need to stuff a rag into the secondary supply tube before starting to sweep. A few years ago I made my own baffle gasket out of 3/8" rope gasket. It seems to be holding up well. The whole process takes about 20 minutes with most of the time spent fiddling with the spring-loaded catches on the rods.

It's good that you have a dry wood supply. That is most of the battle. FWIW, if you are running the stove properly, creosote accumulation is going to be low. I get about 1/2-3/4 cup for every 3 cords burned. I wish I could tell you what the best reading will be on your Auber. I just put one an Auber with a probe in our stovepipe over the holidays. It is re-educating me on flue temps. Your situation will be different because it is surface reading and near the flue outlet. You may end up instructing us. Let us know what temps you are reading just above the stove door and the corresponding Auber temps and if possible a photo of the fire at the time of reading.

 

[donmac]

Thanks to all, good advice and ideas. Ordered a Sooteater. Next year, will keep all posted with correlation between the PE Summit insert front surface temp readings vs readings from flue surface readings with Auber kit taken at the collar liner junction. Again this site is such a good resource for expert advice and friendly, helpful people. Such a rare find!