Hearhstone Equinox Newbie

[jlow]

Just got finished installing a Equinox. I have never had a wood burning stove and after five days it has been a roller coaster. I guess my biggest problem involves getting a long overnight burn. I purchased a temp gauge to register surface temp and I have gotten it up to 600 degrees in the daytime. What would be average? I have tried it at different burn rates to get a feel for what works. My home is a two story 2900 sq. ft. I had the temp downstairs at 70 most of the day. Our bedroom was 67 at bedtime. The temp drops 7 degrees avernight. We are not running the furnace. I would really appreciate any input.

Thanks, Jeff

 

[Todd]

Nice install. Have you tried raking all the coals forward, then reload your wood sideways or east/west from back to front, burn on high air for 15 minutes or til wood is charred good, then slowly turn it down to lowest setting while still maintaining a small flame. It should burn overnight with that big firebox, if not maybe your chimney is too tall and you could use a pipe damper to slow her down?

 

[jlow]

Thanks Todd,

My chimney is 16 feet and sometimes I can hear a whistling sound. What do you think?

 

[begreen]

The whistling sound "might" be an air leak. When it warms up a bit examine the stove stones carefully for cracks, inside and out. Also do a dollar bill test on the door and ash pan gaskets to be sure they are sealing tightly. When you close the door on the dollar bill, there should be resistance as you pull the bill out. If the bill pulls out easily, it could be the gasket has a problem or that the latch needs adjustment.

PS: Greetings. That's a nice looking setup! Is that what the fire looks like normally, or just after a refill?

 

[bokehman]

That looks a fair old bonfire you've got going on there.

Regarding the overnight burn, apart from what BeGreen has already said, can you tell us some more about how you are running it? You should be able to get about 80lbs of oak or similar wood in that firebox. Load it across the stove (east/west) for longer burns. And most of those splits want to be big (24" * 6"). Put the biggest ones right at the back and pack the ones in front in tightly to defend the big ones from the early stages of the burn cycle.

 

[edthedawg]

Ever so slightly OT but all i can think of looking at that pic: "Loadbearing Woodstove"

Sweet setup. You're only 5 days in? You'll master overnight burns soon enough - give yourself time. Hearthstones take some time before you get to know them. keep a decent ash bed, and don't be surprised that turning the primary down results in a hotter, and/or longer-burning fire.

 

[Defiant]

Nice set-up, the chimney height is right on for that stove, seems like an air leak is possible, follow BeGreen's advice.

 

[snowtime]

Also check the "glass" gasket. Use a match if you have nothing else. The flame will pull into the stove if theres a leak.

 

[jlow]

Thanks for all the replies.
i know it looks like it is holding up the wall, but, it is non-load bearing and has a 12" header. The photo was taken yeaterday evening and was a reload. Do you think a damper will help with longer burns?




















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[edthedawg]

Yes but - with only 16 feet, be careful to monitor for overtemps. And be wary enough to measure more than just one spot... It looks like your Rutland is way over front & left? That's not the hot spot. Keep it close to the stack and don't let it get over 600, or cruise over 550. Right around 500-ish cruise should melt most of your furniture...

 

[wellbuilt home]

I have a EQ and i think the damper helps alot . I have a 30'+ flue . My stove will burn for 12 hrs with the damper closed and air turned down to about 1/4 . watch your temp. John

 

[FireWalker]

Nice setup, beautiful home! Much like my setup, I have many full height windows and no matter how well installed, and what quality you are going to have big time heat loss. I really have to work my stove to maintain over 70 temps when dealing with below 0 temps. As a test, run the stove tonight with a full load full air setting for 20 minutes then throttle back to 1/8 open and go to bed and report back tomorrow.

 

[karri0n]

My guess would be that you aren't closing the air down as much as you could be. You can probably close it close to all the way shut if not all the way shut. Other than that, take a look at begreen's advice. You don't necessarily want the whole load burning all at once. Just keep at it, and you will get a good feel for your stove/setup, and be getting overnighters in no time.

edit: it's been said, but... Beautiful home and beautiful stove setup. Did you do the install or was it professionally done?

 

[doug60]

I preheat to 375 /400
fully close the damper.
fully close primary air
The stove temps will rise to 500 .
I wake up 7 hours later , the stove top 300/ 325 & glass is clean.
Plenty of coals , pack it & preheat & repeat.

Enough coals for a restart 10 hours later.

I figure as long as the glass stays clean its getting enough air.
This works when temp are in the teens .
When temps are warmer I adjust for more air.

 

[jlow]

Thanks for the compliments. I did it myself. I tore down the wall between our 4 season sunroom and the family room. I replaced the gas insert fireplace and used the existing chimney chase. It all passed city inspection. One question concerning wood placement. Is it best to keep the logs in the rear. I notice a better overlapping flame. I built a pizza/bread baking oven in my backyard and it burns hard for two hours and will retain heat for 24 hours. The flame is pushed to the rear and the chimney is in the front. Is the opposite effect needed with this stove? Flame in front and chimney in rear. I really appreciate all of your inputs. I kinda threw caution to the wind with this and I want it to work out well.

 

[dgisme]

That pizza oven is beutifull ! Do you work with stone for a living ?

 

[jlow]

Not in the stone business. My wife is from Europe and I like a challenge. Learn by doing

 

[edthedawg]

Great work again.

Your chimney / firebox exit is at the back of the box, then the baffle and tubes make all combustion gases go past the front of the stove and across the top to get out. You want your flame to progress front-to-back for longest burns. I always put the biggest, heaviest wood in the back of the box, leave the pile minimally air-gapped, and let the fire work its way thru the load.

 

[karri0n]

Thanks for the compliments. I did it myself. I tore down the wall between our 4 season sunroom and the family room. I replaced the gas insert fireplace and used the existing chimney chase. It all passed city inspection. One question concerning wood placement. Is it best to keep the logs in the rear. I notice a better overlapping flame. I built a pizza/bread baking oven in my backyard and it burns hard for two hours and will retain heat for 24 hours. The flame is pushed to the rear and the chimney is in the front. Is the opposite effect needed with this stove? Flame in front and chimney in rear. I really appreciate all of your inputs. I kinda threw caution to the wind with this and I want it to work out well.

This sounds like you might not be loading the firebox full. You can load her completely to the gills, so you will have logs in both the front and the rear. Loading her up all the way is how you get those overnight burns. Just put your bigger splits(or rounds if you got em) in the back because those will be your endurance fuel. Put your smaller stuff towards the front of the box, as more air will be getting here and this is how you will achieve higher temps in a quicker fashion. For the really long burns, it's best to burn a smaller fire first to get a (relatively)small amount of coals, and push these all the way to the front of the box. Then, load your big huge splits or rounds into the back of the firebox, and stack your small/medium splits in front of that. Put the smallish stuff in the very front, right on top of the line of coals you made, and turn the air up all the way. This will ignite the wood in the front, and let the flames slowly creep back to the larger stuff for the long haul.



edit: when I say "small", I'm not talking toothpicks. 2-4" at the largest cross-section is what I qualify as small. Others may have different criteria, but you have a monster of a stove on your hands compared to some others.

 

[jlow]

Thanks for the advice everyone I will be installing a damper on Saturday, but, how high from the stove should it be. Also, will I be better served if I keep ashes at a minimum. I do hear a barely audible whistling sound coming from stovepipe where it connects to stove. Should I caulk or is it maybe from a crimp? This is day 8 of my stove and I would really like longer burns. I am back at work and my wife is in charge of monitoring stove. Not her strong suit

 

[begreen]

I don't know if there is a right answer for the location. Some folks like it up a little for starting draft. But with a straight up interior installation I don't think that is an issue. Your choice, it can be right above the stove or close to it. On our Jotul 602 it was about 18" above the stove. On the Castine it was right at the stove.

Is the connector pipe Simpson DVL? If so, they make a double-wall starter piece that comes with the damper installed.

 

[karri0n]

Thanks for the advice everyone I will be installing a damper on Saturday, but, how high from the stove should it be. Also, will I be better served if I keep ashes at a minimum. I do hear a barely audible whistling sound coming from stovepipe where it connects to stove. Should I caulk or is it maybe from a crimp? This is day 8 of my stove and I would really like longer burns. I am back at work and my wife is in charge of monitoring stove. Not her strong suit

I would put some furnace cement along where the pipe connects to the stove. It sounds like an air leak to me, and that very well could be contributing to the issue. You should make certain it's coming from that collar, and not from somewhere else before proceeding.


Caulk won't have the heat rating, unless you are getting the furnace cement that comes in a caulk gun style tube.

 

[jlow]

How do I confirm that it is coming from the pipe connection? Flame test or the good old ear.

 

[edthedawg]

if it's whistling due to air leakage, then it's drawing IN air at the spot. get something smoky (think: incense) and move it around - wherever it is sucked into the stove or flue, there's your leak. If you're hearing the main air inlet, that's another story. Focus on the doors, the pipe collar, and the pipe seams. good luck!

 

[karri0n]

I think the incense test is usually a better indicator than the flame test. Don't forget that there's quite a bit of air movement coming off of a stove due to the air being heated and moving towards the ceiling.