Have Caddy Wood Furnace- will not burn wood down, keeps building up in the fire box

[wyllson]

I have a caddy furnace that came with the house, approx 3 yrs old. I am having trouble in getting the wood to completely burn up. End up having to open the ash tray in order to burn up the remaining wood residue. Any sugestions

 

[Clarkbug]

Sounds like either your wood is not completely dry, or you have some issues with the airflow into the combustion chamber.

How long has your wood been split/stacked/seasoned? Any sorts of controls on your combustion air?

 

[wyllson]

The wood is very dry. I also believe that it is a draft problem. I am unable to figure out the air low pattern. The diagram supplied by the manufacture is not very helpful. when I use small loads, 2 or 3 pieces then there does not seem to be a problem. It is when I fill up for the night that this problem develops. The air intake , which is at the top of the firebox does have a damper on it but it is wide open. the concept apparently is the the fire is suppose to burn from the front to the back.

 

[laynes69]

How long has your wood been cut, split and seasoned? What is the height and size of your chimney, sq footage of home and build ( drafty, insulation, etc,). The ash pan is not made to open to burn down the load. You'll cause damage to the furnace that way. If your not getting enough from the coal bed, then it could be too small for the home. With an excess amount of coals, pull them forward and place a piece of softwood across the coals and open the damper. This will produce a bit of heat and burn things down. Have you measured draft? We are heating with a Caddy.

 

[wyllson]

How long has your wood been cut, split and seasoned? What is the height and size of your chimney, sq footage of home and build ( drafty, insulation, etc,). The ash pan is not made to open to burn down the load. You'll cause damage to the furnace that way. If your not getting enough from the coal bed, then it could be too small for the home. With an excess amount of coals, pull them forward and place a piece of softwood across the coals and open the damper. This will produce a bit of heat and burn things down. Have you measured draft? We are heating with a Caddy.

Thanks for the reply. Still trying to establish the air flow. From what I can see so far, the air enters above the door and also through the sm hole just below the door. There appears to be two square holes just below the door , one on each side. When you review the manual on line it shows the air kit that you can purchase for an outside supply attached to one of these holes. I blew air through them and it just came out the other side without any noticeable effect on the fire. I will definitely have to see if I can get a vacuum reading. The problem with the bed of coals is that they will not burn hot enough to keep the fan going

 

[laynes69]

Those inlets on each side of the loading door control the secondary air located above the fire in those 4 tubes. Your primary air is located above the door. That air will burn down the coals. There's a few things that could be going on, poor draft, unseasoned wood or pushing the furnace too hard. If the furnace is sized correctly, you should be able to ride out with a coal bed for a while. Knowing some details on your setup would help troubleshoot things. We had that problem in the past, it was from unseasoned wood and poor draft.

 

[wyllson]

Those inlets on each side of the loading door control the secondary air located above the fire in those 4 tubes. Your primary air is located above the door. That air will burn down the coals. There's a few things that could be going on, poor draft, unseasoned wood or pushing the furnace too hard. If the furnace is sized correctly, you should be able to ride out with a coal bed for a while. Knowing some details on your setup would help troubleshoot things. We had that problem in the past, it was from unseasoned wood and poor draft.

The wood is well seasoned so I am now sort of leaning toward drat problems. Thanks for the info regarding the secondary burning. that is a bit more that I now know regarding the operation . I will pay more attention to the hole under the door as well .