Flame Question (video)

[69_Eliminator]

Hello All! I was sitting on my couch watching tv and I looked over at my insert and through the glass I saw a flame slowly dancing on the side of the insert where there was no wood. After a few minutes this slow, long, lazy flame was "floating" across the top baffle plate. Was the flame possibly the smoke burning? What does this type of flame indicate?

I have attached a youtube video link. The video didn't show it like it was in person. The flame was much slower in person than how it looks in the vid.

 

[DAKSY]

Looks to me like you got a secondary goin on, in there. I don't know your insert, but it's a good thing to have in an EPA clean burning stove...

 

[Corey]

Sounds like the smoke / other gasses from the wood burning to me. If you have secondary air in the baffle, then it's likely true 'secondary combustion'. If it's just an insulating baffle, then it's likely you just trapped enough heat and had the air just right to light the gasses.

IMHO, when the flame is completely detached and 'floating' it's somewhat of an unstable combustion. A tiny bit more or less air and you can snuff the flame out. Sometimes it will start pulsing / flaring where you have a huge ball of fire erupt across the top of the baffle, but that disrupts its own air flow and almost puts itself out, so the flame almost dies out...but that lets more smoke build, then it flares off again. Ideally, you'd want to have at least a little flame coming off the wood. This sort of acts like a 'pilot light' to keep the smoke burning stable. Otherwise, it's like trying to burn a candle, but keep the flame about an inch off the wick.

 

[69_Eliminator]

Looks to me like you got a secondary goin on, in there. I don't know your insert, but it's a good thing to have in an EPA clean burning stove...

I thought it also looked like secondary burn, but my stove is an old smoke dragon without any clean burn technology.

 

[69_Eliminator]

Sounds like the smoke / other gasses from the wood burning to me. If you have secondary air in the baffle, then it's likely true 'secondary combustion'. If it's just an insulating baffle, then it's likely you just trapped enough heat and had the air just right to light the gasses.

Yeah I thought it may have been the smoke/gasses burning since the flame wasn't attached to anything and just crawling on the side and top baffle. I don't have any secondaries since this a non-EPA stove, but adding secondary air might be a project for this summer!

IMHO, when the flame is completely detached and 'floating' it's somewhat of an unstable combustion. A tiny bit more or less air and you can snuff the flame out. Sometimes it will start pulsing / flaring where you have a huge ball of fire erupt across the top of the baffle, but that disrupts its own air flow and almost puts itself out, so the flame almost dies out...but that lets more smoke build, then it flares off again. Ideally, you'd want to have at least a little flame coming off the wood. This sort of acts like a 'pilot light' to keep the smoke burning stable. Otherwise, it's like trying to burn a candle, but keep the flame about an inch off the wick.

That makes sense on being an unstable combustion because I think the air was choked down pretty far when it was doing that. So when burning should I have the air adjusted so that there is always a flame?

Thanks for the reply!

 

[BrotherBart]

My old stove would set up secondary burn up under the baffle. It got the air for it from spaces at the top of the door glass that were a crude attempt at air wash.

 

[69_Eliminator]

My old stove would set up secondary burn up under the baffle. It got the air for it from spaces at the top of the door glass that were a crude attempt at air wash.

That was one of my other thoughts. The front door seal needs to be replaced, I will be replacing that in the next few days, but I was thinking maybe it was getting air in around the door gasket and setting up a secondary burn.

 

[Osage]

I get secondary burns almost all the time on my Lopi M520.