Anyone running an Englander without OAK?

[mainelen]

Anyone running an Englander without OAK?

 

[MCPO]

Oh yes,
I know of 2 and they are runnng just fine. I fully susbscribe to the use of an OAK but I `m not gonna argue with other folks successes.

 

[mainelen]

I'm hooking my second one up tonight, venting out my 8" fireplace flue. I want to try it without the OAK.

 

[JBlank912]

I understand what an OAK does, but what I was wondering is, what would be the symptom of not using an OAK? My Lopi Yankee was installed this week and the installer forgot to order an OAK. He will return with one and put it in, but if needed I am going to burn in the mean time without it as it is not required but recommended. My wife has asthma so I felt the OAK would be better for her breathing. Would there be an odor if one was not used? I would wonder since it is bringing in fresh air not putting out fresh air?

 

[MCPO]

The OAK supplies combustion air only and will have zero effect on the air she breathes.
It stays isolated from the room air.

 

[imacman]

The OAK supplies combustion air only and will have zero effect on the air she breathes.

I agree 100%.

 

[SteveT]

The OAK supplies combustion air only and will have zero effect on the air she breathes.
It stays isolated from the room air.

I'd offer one caveat. Right now there is reasonably humid air inside and out so an OAK has little or no impact.

In the dead of winter the outside air is very dry but the inside air is humidified to some degree by showers, cooking, respiration (and possibly a humidifier). An OAK doesn't use that moist air for combustion. So that lack of an OAK won't put anything into the air but it will have an effect in that it will lower the humidity. Certainly not a safety issue but it could become a comfort issue....

 

[JBlank912]

Let me ask this, I have a new stove. As I said earlier the OAK is still not installed. My wife has a very sensitive sense of smell and she says she smells wood burning. Not an oil or paint burning smell which I would expect from a new stove but some wood smell. In the store we did not smell it. I smelled it at first also, but the stove has only been used a little. Is this normal or not? When the installer comes to put in the OAK I will have him recheck the vent joints inside carefully. The outside vent does draw smoke well as, when the stove first lights and the inside fills with smoke before burning, that smoke is drawn out the vent. The vent is about 8 feet up to the pipe end from the T that comes out of the house. :long:

 

[SteveT]

I don't think you ever get to no smoke smell whatsoever. Just opening the door for loading gets a bit of smoke smell into the house. Especially now with the warmer weather.

The smoke smell will diminish with colder weather and better draft but it won't go away.

 

[JBlank912]

The original house was from the 60's but many upgrades. The room the stove is in is an addition. After running it all afternoon and evening, my wife says the smell seems diminished, so hopefully it is just some burnoff. I just looked at the vent seems in the house and see no smoke from them but that to me is probably a poor test. I will still ask the stove guy to recheck everything just to be sure. The answer that you will always have some smell may be the only issue at this point. Its new for me so I'm still in a learning stage.

Thanks for the help and information. I've been readint this forum heavily since I started looking for the stove and once I ordered it I got totally hooke (addicted). I learned more here then anywhere else I looked or read! Great forum! :coolsmile: