It has been warm enough the last few days that I had let the stove die out. That changed yesterday with the temps dipping into the 30s. My wife calls me and said she is going to light a fire...I walk in the door a few minutes later and walk over to check the stove and noticed that both the pipe probe and cat probe are 180 degrees out of position? I start to scold my wife for messing with them when she said she had not and then she proceed to tell me that upon lighting the fire a sparrow flew out into the room! lol She opened the front door and he flew outside...currently there is not a screen on the cap...but there will soon be.I didn't want to put mesh on the cap although I knew spring time will bring nesting birds and I just put it off...1/2 in mesh should work? I don't want to go to fine...
Fire surprise....
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You are not alone! Guessing it is rather normal to be gifted with these intruders. Looking like I will be burning straight through until the weather gives up. No problems while running naturally. Might actually remove my cap and seal my pipe this year to keep moisture out of my stove. Not real sure how I will get that accomplished! I would think your 1/2" mesh would be fine. Believe I'd try to remember to get it off in the fall.
Ashful
Minister of Fire
Yes, 1/2" to 3/4". If you don't live in fire country, there's not a need to stay as fine as 1/2". Mine is 5/8", I think.
I had a squirrel get into mine, before I installed the cage, and luckily I managed to not let him into the room. Just imagine what a soot-covered squirrel could do to your furniture and draperies.
Remember, area matters. It should be a drum around the flue, maybe 6" high, with a roof. Don't just put a flat piece over the top of the pipe, as this will effectively reduce your pipe cross-section.
I had a squirrel get into mine, before I installed the cage, and luckily I managed to not let him into the room. Just imagine what a soot-covered squirrel could do to your furniture and draperies.
Remember, area matters. It should be a drum around the flue, maybe 6" high, with a roof. Don't just put a flat piece over the top of the pipe, as this will effectively reduce your pipe cross-section.
Many times that actually makes moisture issues worse. Warm damp air will still go in through the stove and into the chimney then cool the moisture will condense out and the cool air will drop back down to be replaced by moor warm moist air over and over again. Let a little air flow
Had also planned on lifting my telescoping pipe off the stove and setting a "decorative" bucket/pail under it. I'd like to isolate this particular stove entirely from outdoor moisture. Not sure if this will be hard on my pipe? Likely to find out. Really don't want any aqua potabla in this stove.
Highbeam
Minister of Fire
If you plan to remove the screen before burning in the fall that's fine but I would never want to go back to cleaning a flue filter every month in the winter. The bk stoves need a strong draft and that filter, even clean, kills draft.
Go big if you're leaving it all year. No less than 3/4" mesh and it should be corrosion resistant.
Go big if you're leaving it all year. No less than 3/4" mesh and it should be corrosion resistant.
I have no intention of leaving it on during burning season...its just a pest preventative.
If it's just for summer you can use conventional window screen. That will keep hornets and wasps from nesting in the chimney too.
CentralVAWoodHeat
Minister of Fire
If you burn well seasoned wood you should have no problem leaving a larger screen on. Like everyone is saying, in the 1/2 inch to 1 inch range. I put one over my cap two seasons ago and it is still as clear as the day it was put on after running about 7 cords through the stove.
I have bats in my oil fired furnace flue. At some point before I bought the house a stainless liner was installed when the gas water heater was replaced. They live between the old clay liner and the new liner. Occasionally one will go down the wrong one and come out the furnace damper in the basement. The fireplace flue has a cap. They are usually very easy to get out of the house, I just open the basement door and sit in the living room. They’ll fly upstairs and will quickly find an open door or window. Growing up we would have an occasional bird get down the fireplace flue or the wood stove flue, just open the damper and they drop down and fly out an open door. This spring I’ll make a cap for the top of the furnace flue with a PVC escape pipe rigged in such a way that the bats can get out but can’t get back in. Once they are all out I'll put a screened cap on The furnace flue.
Highbeam
Minister of Fire
I've had to release a few birds from the firebox of my shop stove. Turn the lights off, open the front door. Like an insect they will fly to the light.
I would much rather do this a few times every summer than have to climb on the roof several times per winter to unclog a filter in the chimney cap. And no, burning dry wood will not prevent this from happening. That's not the reason for cloggage.
I would much rather do this a few times every summer than have to climb on the roof several times per winter to unclog a filter in the chimney cap. And no, burning dry wood will not prevent this from happening. That's not the reason for cloggage.
CentralVAWoodHeat
Minister of Fire
Highbeam
Minister of Fire
It's a filter. And worse, it's located right at the point where your humid warm smoke hits the bitter cold outdoors. Lots of us have had problems with brown crunchy stuff plugging the screen but the flue itself is spotless.
All chimneys emit stuff that can condense into filter clogging debris. Your specific installation, appliance efficiency, flue temperatures, fuel type, and fuel quality, and even cold start frequency can all factor in to whether the filter becomes clogged.
Some folks have no problem with this but many who do have problems also use very dry wood. In all cases, removing the filter eliminates clogging of the filter.
I went about 6 years with no issues at the cap screen. Then a few years back I had a couple cords of maple that didn't dry out properly due to a leaky tarp cover. I had no choice but to burn the wood. After a month of burning the screen was clogged. The chimney had buildup inside, but nothing terrible. After cleaning the chimney I removed the screen and had no issues through the rest of the winter other than reduced heat from the splits that had gotten wet.
I agree in many cases a screen will work just fine with no clogging but in others even with good wood and proper techniques it will still clog. And I see that the op has a cat stove which are even more prone to problems due to their low exhaust temps.
Both ends of the stove get sealed this summer oak and flue along with pulling a couple bath fans and makeing sure the back draft dampers are functional. last summer was so humid around my place I could barely hold 60% in side on the main floor basement was actually a bit dryer. portion of the yard behind home is so wet that ya need water wings to get to the wood stacks ( they are up on a ridge).
Haven't but barely started April showers. Same kind of weather as about 6 years back this spring.
Haven't but barely started April showers. Same kind of weather as about 6 years back this spring.
jetsam
Minister of Fire
It'd take a seriously determined bird to infiltrate my flue. My stove hasn't gone out yet (except for the time I measured the insides for that thread last week, and I'm not sure that it counts as 'out' since it cooked the paint off my tape measure. 
I don't know that I'll miss loading the stove this summer, but I will miss sitting by it and basking, and the convenience of 24 hour Stove Tea.
I don't know that I'll miss loading the stove this summer, but I will miss sitting by it and basking, and the convenience of 24 hour Stove Tea.
jetsam
Minister of Fire
I like my stove tea neat, with ice.
If you put ice in it it's no longer neat.
They do sell polished stone cubes for that purpose though.
Ashful
Minister of Fire
Received some of those as a Christmas gift, several years ago. I used them, once.If you put ice in it it's no longer neat.
They do sell polished stone cubes for that purpose though.
They're the stove fire screen of the spirits world.
jetsam
Minister of Fire
Yeah, I have a set in a box somewhere too. I just decided to prefer room temperature.
I still think they're a good idea, mind you... temperature adjustment without adding water... but in practice, too much extra work to actually use them.
Once battery techology comes along sufficiently, a peltier glass might be cool, though. Not sure I'd want a corded one.
Ashful
Minister of Fire
Anything good enough to drink neat is better and room temperature, and anything bad enough to need water and ice is best served too cold to taste.
CentralVAWoodHeat
Minister of Fire
I'm assuming too that the likelihood of clogging is proportional to the size mesh screen used.
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