Do damper settings on my stove effect heat output??

[mrmichaeljmoore]

I have been trying to dial in the damper settings for my Whiteifield Profile 20 stove.

I am currently using New England Wood Pellets....got about 2 tons of them.
Right now, they seem to be burning good.....no clinkers in the grate, ash seems about right.

But compared to other brands I have burned previously (Dry Creek, Hamer's Hot Ones), they don't seem to be burning as hot.

I base this on two things:
1. the basement doesn't feel as hot as it typically does when I run the stove
2. the thermostat upsatirs is not going up at all

I even ran the stove on high heat and high fan all night last night, and when I went downstairs in the morning, the basement felt warm, but in the past with other pellet brands, it would feel like a sauna in there.

I know it's a little colder around here (Fairfield County, CT) than normal, but I don't recall the other pellet brands struggling like this.

So is it the pellets? Or should I adjust the damper to get more heat from the pellets?

thanks.

 

[tinkabranc]

When was the last time you gave your stove a good cleaning?
A dirty stove will definitely make a difference in your heat output.

 

[mrmichaeljmoore]

stove is clean.....

I clean the inside once a week.
And i cleaned the vent pipe this past weekend (using the tap the side of the pipe method)

plus I get it cleaned professionally once a year....

 

[lpgreg]

I found 40 degrees temp. differential using 2 different brands of Penningtons. I used a stove thermometer and a candy therm. to verify this. That is something you could check. If yours pellets are burning fine (no smoke and dancing in the burn pot a little I probably wouldn't adjust it much.

 

[webbie]

I think most of the difference is the weather - you can't imagine how quickly the heat load goes up when the wind is beating against most houses!

The same fire would probably roast you out if it was 35 degrees, sunny and no wind.

 

[mrmichaeljmoore]

I tried to different brands (New England Wood Pellet and Hamer's Hot Ones) on two different days of about the same outside temperature.....
I kept the damper the same for both as well.
Both seemed to burn good, typical amount of ash and little or no clinkers.

The Hamer's were much hotter, warming he upstairs main floor above 68 degrees.....to about 73-74 degrees.
The New England Wood Pellets however were not as hot....they struggled to keep the upstairs at 68 degrees. The furnace kicked on a few times in the night to keep the upstairs at 68.
(Stove is in the finished basement of my small ranch house. Heat and fan on stove were set on high all night)

I assume this is because different brands of pellets have different heat outputs.........

I did notice though, the Hamers seemed to burn quicker. When I got up in the morning, the Hamer's were almost gone.....down to a few handfuls in the hopper. There was a little bit more New England Wood Pellets in the hopper.

mike

 

[investor7952]

I think most of the difference is the weather - you can't imagine how quickly the heat load goes up when the wind is beating against most houses!

The same fire would probably roast you out if it was 35 degrees, sunny and no wind.

I have a dumb question but again very new.On my accentra insert is there only 1 setting ?Is there a damper? I pull stove out and just see a rectanle hole with an orange gasket on stove and that lines up when pushed back in to the outside vent.

 

[Paul D.]

Yes, it is the pellets. I too am burning New Englands and Hammers. The Hammers burn much hotter and a little faster on a lower air intake and heat setting. The ash is finer and softer too.
In My Lopi Yankee Bay insert, The air needs to be set at about 3 and the feed rate about Med high. With the New Englands.

With the Hammers, air is at 1 1/2 to 2, and heat is on low to get the same results.

I have been burning the Hammers on the coldest nights, and the New Englands on the more mild temperture times to cominsate.

Be aware, there are 2 Hammer Plants, one makes soft wood, and the other hardwood pellets.

Having trouble finding someone that will deliver any pellets in south Central CT.