Fan boosted air intake?

[Daveesrig]

I'm finding it hard to start fires and have had some backdraft problems with the resulting cold smokey first hour of my burns in my new Pacific Energy 30. My wood is not perfectly seasoned and I know that's part of the problem. But, clearly, the fire starts much faster when the door is cracked. The air intake is above the box at the back of the chimney housing. Has there been any discussion in this forum about increasing the fresh air flow into the box by adding a fan to the intake? (I couldn't find any). Frankly, it seems easier than super seasoning my wood. Assume my exhaust flue/chimney is built strictly according to manufacturer's specs.

Thanks!



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[Daveesrig]

Just to clarify, the PE30 is an insert and so my air intake feeds directly into the unit.


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[webby3650]

You do not want to force air into the stove...
Everyone struggles their first year with a new stove. Just gotta get ahead on your firewood, buy or cut next years wood now! That’s the only problem here, the wood...

It’s ok to leave the door cracked for a bit, just don’t forget about it.

 

[Daveesrig]

Thanks, I'll just leave the door open until it gets going.


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[Squisher]

If it's mild right now where you are. Expect to see stronger draft when it gets colder. The temperature differential between inside and outside is what drives draft potential. So when it's mild out, draft is weakest.

My rule for myself is never walk away from a stove with the door cracked. If you are going to leave it unattended a timer is good to use to never forget. As goofy as it sounds, It's easy to have a strong routine broken by unpredictable circumstances. So having a baseline of fail safe 'rules' around stove safety goes along ways.

And yes, don't try to force air into the intake.

 

[Daveesrig]

If it's mild right now where you are. Expect to see stronger draft when it gets colder. The temperature differential between inside and outside is what drives draft potential. So when it's mild out, draft is weakest.

My rule for myself is never walk away from a stove with the door cracked. If you are going to leave it unattended a timer is good to use to never forget. As goofy as it sounds, It's easy to have a strong routine broken by unpredictable circumstances. So having a baseline of fail safe 'rules' around stove safety goes along ways.

And yes, don't try to force air into the intake.

Good advice -- I would remain in the area as well.