BK Ashford Insert small amount of smoke

[dafattkidd]

Hi all,

I have a BK Ashford 25 insert. The unit performs beautifully. I would recommend it to anyone. I am very happy with it.

One question: I regularly have small amounts of smoke coming from the chimney even when the cat is fully engaged and well above necessary temps (540°-580°). The wood is all very dry. See the pictures for your reference.

My non cat secondary burner at my other house definitely burns with less smoke than this. I don’t really care very much. I’m just curious of this a normal amount of smoke for this unit?

Thanks.

 

[begreen]

Could it be steam. Even at 15% mc, wood still has water in it. If the smoke is white and dissapates within a few seconds, it's steam. If not, check the cat to make sure it's ok and the bypass gasket to make sure smoke is not leaking past it. The other possibility is that a some point the amount of smoke and wood gases being generated exceed the cat's ability to burn them. Very dry wood can do this.

 

[Eman85]

I get smoke like that and or steam until my cat really heats up closer to 1,000 degrees early in a load.

 

[dafattkidd]

I get smoke like that and or steam until my cat really heats up closer to 1,000 degrees early in a load.

My cat never gets that hot. It heats up to 550-600, then cools off slowly. What is your process to get up to 1,000°?

 

[Eman85]

My cat never gets that hot. It heats up to 550-600, then cools off slowly. What is your process to get up to 1,000°?

You can look at the Vermont Castings section, a lot of discussion on temperature. I am not familiar with your stove but my knowledge of catalysts is they are not doing anything until past 600. I have a K type thermocouple in my stove that monitors catalyst temps.
Basically on a cold start I let it burn until I get 500 STT and then engage the cat. I let the cat get to 1,000 and then cut the air back. Left to it's own devices it will run to over 1600, not where I want it. It will run up to 1400 with the air cut back and slowly drop as the wood burns and the off gassing slows.

 

[Highbeam]

My cat never gets that hot. It heats up to 550-600, then cools off slowly. What is your process to get up to 1,000°?

How do you measure your cat temp? Your insert doesn’t have a thermometer for this?

My Bk cat temperature is almost always above 1300 when cruising.

 

[dafattkidd]

How do you measure your cat temp? Your insert doesn’t have a thermometer for this?

My Bk cat temperature is almost always above 1300 when cruising.

I use a laser thermometer. I shoot it straight into the cat through the glass. Not sure how accurate my readings are, but 500° the cat engages, but almost never goes very much above 600°.

 

[begreen]

I use a laser thermometer. I shoot it straight into the cat through the glass. Not sure how accurate my readings are, but 500° the cat engages, but almost never goes very much above 600°.

That is not an accurate reading due to the difference in emissivity and the reflection/interference from the glass. A probe thermometer for the cat will be much more accurate.

 

[dafattkidd]

That is not an accurate reading due to the difference in emissivity and the reflection/interference from the glass. A probe thermometer for the cat will be much more accurate.

Is this something I can do with my unit?

 

[Highbeam]

I use a laser thermometer. I shoot it straight into the cat through the glass. Not sure how accurate my readings are, but 500° the cat engages, but almost never goes very much above 600°.

I also believe the face of the cat would be much cooler than the back where the cat meter measures the temperature.

With these inserts you lose the ability to monitor cat temperature whether that’s really important or not. In theory, the stove design limits peak temperature to safe levels if your gaskets and draft are good.

 

[begreen]

Is this something I can do with my unit?

Good question. I don't know if a probe could be fitted in place of the one for the built-in simple analog meter. BK says that if it's in the red zone and no smoke out of the flue, then the cat is ok.