Cold Stove, Wood Smoke Leaking into Home

[Parallax982]

I have a Pacific Energy Anderlea T5, brand new. We've used it a number of times. Really happy with its performance.

It's for use when the electricity is out and when the temperature outside drops too low for our heat pump. So it's been sitting for the last two or three weeks. One day, my wife said she smelled smoke. It turned out that some ash sitting on the lip of the stove, just under the door, was the culprit. I cleaned that up and the smell went away. Then last night, again with the stove not used in weeks, I smelled it again. This time the only ash was inside the stove. This morning, when we woke up, the whole downstairs smelled like wood smoke. It dissipated soon after. But I don't get what's causing it. Might we have a leak from the stove into the house.

The door gasket is brand new, as is the stove. I have the cold air intake hooked up. Maybe that's forcing air through the stove and some of it is leaking out through the stove pipe. I'm thinking that a lot more likely than it getting through the sealed door.

Has anyone run into anything like this? If so, how would you suggest dealing with it? Thanks.

 

[begreen]

Sounds like a similar issue as with the previous stove. It could be that there is negative pressure in the house and draft is reversing when the stove goes cold. Is there a strong kitchen exhaust fan in the house?

 

[Parallax982]

Sounds like a similar issue as with the previous stove. It could be that there is negative pressure in the house and draft is reversing when the stove goes cold. Is there a strong kitchen exhaust fan in the house?

Yes and no. The other one had trouble with draft when running. This one does not. The other one didn't seem to leak smoke into the house when not running. This one seems to be. How can it be addressed? Is there a way to cut air down the stack when the stove is off? Or a way to cut air in through the CAI?

 

[Rickb]

If i burn my stove to low and leave some wood that didnt burn completely, and if i get a bit of reverse draft i get this. It usually only happens when its warmer outside so im burning super low and then we get a bit of negative pressure. IE happens a few times in the fall and spring. If it does i usually start another fire once i get the draft going right with my torch or grill gun and i dont tunr it down so much so i get a complete burn.

 

[begreen]

Look for causes of negative pressure. This could be a window opened upstairs, or a bath or kitchen fan, or a clothes dryer.

 

[Parallax982]

If i burn my stove to low and leave some wood that didnt burn completely, and if i get a bit of reverse draft i get this. It usually only happens when its warmer outside so im burning super low and then we get a bit of negative pressure. IE happens a few times in the fall and spring. If it does i usually start another fire once i get the draft going right with my torch or grill gun and i dont tunr it down so much so i get a complete burn.

Thanks. Starting hasn't bee a problem. Just avoiding the smell when it's not running.

 

[Parallax982]

Look for causes of negative pressure. This could be a window opened upstairs, or a bath or kitchen fan, or a clothes dryer.

Thanks. There's going to be negative pressure in the house sometimes. When showering in the morning, we run fans in the bathrooms. That's probably it. Do you know of a way to temporarily close off a stove pipe? Like the flue that gets built into fireplaces?

 

[moresnow]

I have the cold air intake hooked up.

how is this configured?
Outdoor Intake location?
Route line takes to stove connection?
Can you post a picture of this by chance?

 

[stoveliker]

Thanks. There's going to be negative pressure in the house sometimes. When showering in the morning, we run fans in the bathrooms. That's probably it. Do you know of a way to temporarily close off a stove pipe? Like the flue that gets built into fireplaces?

That closing of a flue is never sufficiently air tight to avoid air being sucked in. Not for fireplaces, and not for anything finagled for stove pipes.

 

[Parallax982]

how is this configured?
Outdoor Intake location?
Route line takes to stove connection?
Can you post a picture of this by chance?

The cold air intake is behind and near the bottom of the stove. It passes out through the wall behind the stove at pretty close to the same level. I've attached some photos. Noticed this morning that the smell was strong when I stepped next to the stove to take those photos. So just behind the stove and to the left.

 

[Parallax982]

That closing of a flue is never sufficiently air tight to avoid air being sucked in. Not for fireplaces, and not for anything finagled for stove pipes.

This morning I tried running just one exhaust fan when I took a shower, rather than the two that are in the master bath. The house is dry this time of year so one should be more than adequate. Still have some smell downstairs this morning. Maybe not as much. I might try cracking a window in the bath tomorrow so that the air gets pulled in from there rather than from across the house.

 

[moresnow]

Just for kicks (harmless experiment) try sealing off your outdoor intake for a test when you have no plans to burn. Tape it closed etc.
Only if the stove is completely out/cold.

If you get time let us know if this has any positive result.

 

[Parallax982]

Just for kicks (harmless experiment) try sealing off your outdoor intake for a test when you have no plans to burn. Tape it closed etc.
Only if the stove is completely out/cold.

If you get time let us know if this has any positive result.

Will do. When I get a chance.

 

[Parallax982]

Alright, I covered over the cold air intake with a heavy piece of plastic on the outside of the house. Over the vent in let. I'm not noticing any difference. Was downstairs in that room watching a movie tonight and I smelled the stove the whole time. It was not running. It seems the smell is not coming from the stove but from the stove pipe.

Anyone have ideas on what can be done to stop the downdrafts when the stove is cold? I wonder if a warm house below and cold air above make these down drafts inevitable. What do others do to prevent them?

 

[moresnow]

Uncover your intake experiment.
Seems hard to argue you don't have negative pressure indoors that allows air to be drawn down through the stove into the home. House almost has to be venting conditioned air outside somewhere allowing this condition. Find out where. Best guess.

 

[Parallax982]

Uncover your intake experiment.
Seems hard to argue you don't have negative pressure indoors that allows air to be drawn down through the stove into the home. House almost has to be venting conditioned air outside somewhere allowing this condition. Find out where. Best guess.

Why do you say I should uncover it?

There are no major air leaks in the home. I have many skylights, so there's at least heat loss through them and perhaps a bit of air. No home is completely air tight. I assume every window, door and skylight contributes to a bit of leakage. But this house is way tighter than much older construction.

 

[bigealta]

Are there boost air ports, or secondary air inlets on the stove that are not connected to the oak?
Air could be coming out of them and also any small gaps in the stove pipe.

It's not actually smoke you are smelling but more like ash, or creosote smell from the chimney correct?

One solution is to have more fires.

 

[sneefy]

If you have a tight home, you should have a fresh air duct for the home, usually in the utility room that is good for passive pressure equalization.

If you have one of these and still have negative pressure, you may need to have a PPV system installed.

 

[Parallax982]

Are there boost air ports, or secondary air inlets on the stove that are not connected to the oak?
Air could be coming out of them and also any small gaps in the stove pipe.

It's not actually smoke you are smelling but more like ash, or creosote smell from the chimney correct?

One solution is to have more fires.

Would an occasional fire keep the smell down after the fire had burned out? I don't want to have to run the stove 24/7.

 

[Parallax982]

If you have a tight home, you should have a fresh air duct for the home, usually in the utility room that is good for passive pressure equalization.

If you have one of these and still have negative pressure, you may need to have a PPV system installed.

There's a fan with a timer in the utility room. We keep it turned off. I assumed that running it would increase the back pressure down the stove pipe. Are you suggesting I let it run?

 

[bigealta]

Would an occasional fire keep the smell down after the fire had burned out? I don't want to have to run the stove 24/7.

When the flue is warm any negative pressure should be reversed. So even a warm chimney should stop neg draft.

But yes maybe a fire a day.

 

[bigealta]

There are lots of things that create neg pressure. Gas or oil Furnace, bath fans, kitchen fans, gas water heater, Dryer. Attic fan or vents etc.

 

[Parallax982]

When the flue is warm any negative pressure should be reversed. So even a warm chimney should stop neg draft.

But yes maybe a fire a day.

That's not going to be a good solution for us. Better to shovel out the ashes real well and see if that helps. Could vacuum out any remaining dust. Even wipe the burn box out with a wet rag. But the soot in the stove pipe alone may cause the smell. If that happens, I'm not sure what to do.

 

[begreen]

That's not going to be a good solution for us. Better to shovel out the ashes real well and see if that helps. Could vacuum out any remaining dust. Even wipe the burn box out with a wet rag. But the soot in the stove pipe alone may cause the smell. If that happens, I'm not sure what to do.

I doubt any of those steps will address the smell happening with draft reversal. The smell is mostly from the flue system at that point.

 

[Parallax982]

There are lots of things that create neg pressure. Gas or oil Furnace, bath fans, kitchen fans, gas water heater, Dryer. Attic fan or vents etc.

I'm at a loss. The smell is happening with no fans running. We have no gas or oil fireplace, the water heater is gas (the instant kind) but it's in the garage. There's no attic, as we have vaulted ceilings. I guess the dryer could be the culprit. I'll track that to see if it correlates.