High Valley 2500 problems

[Bill Salty]

I recently purchased a High Valley 2500 stove and this is my first stove. Growing up my parents had a stove but that is my only experience. The issue is that the stove is not burning hot and the fire seems to die when i close the door. If the door is cracked, the fire flames up and there seems to be plenty of air. Could there be a blockage in the intake? More info as follows:

The wood I am burning was cut 2 months ago - I tried burning wood that has been seasoned for 2 years and did not show much improvement

The stove was installed by basically placing it into my existing fireplace and attached the siding

The chimney is a double flue with a fireplace on the other side of the wall.

I was really hoping this unit would be as least as effective as the big buck i grew up with but so far it will not even heat the tiny room it is in, much less the house...

 

[Woody Stover]

The stove was installed by basically placing it into my existing fireplace....I was really hoping this unit would be as least as effective as the big buck i grew up with but so far it will not even heat the tiny room it is in, much less the house...

Welcome to the forums, Bill. I think this stove is similar to the Buck 91 that I run at my MIL's house, so yeah, it should toss big heat. Did you install the stove yourself? Is there a stainless liner all the way to the top of the masonry chimney? How tall? Any pics you can get may be useful....

 

[jatoxico]

Bill welcome aboard. What you describe sounds like a slammer install and depending on how the existing flue system is plumbed, possibly a particularly problematic one with a dbl flue. Search slammer here on the forum. If this describes your install folks here will strongly suggest you make it right first. In your case it sounds like it may not even draft well enough to get going. Bad draft and slammer install would = trouble/danger.

 

[Tenn Dave]

Burning wood that has been seasoned for just 2 months is just plain wrong...........

 

[mellow]

That is one issue I have with Stoll is they did not revise the owners manuals for the HV stoves when the bought them, they actually show a slammer install as being ok in the manual.

Despite this, you need to have an 8" stainless steel liner (preferably insulated) installed from the insert to the top of the chimney.

You have a well known draft issue that will not get better until you install a correctly sized stainless steel liner.

 

[Bill Salty]

Thanks so much for the help. I installed myself by literately just putting the stove into the existing fireplace and sealing it to the wall using the plates and insulation. The existing chimney has no liner. I can post pics if that would help.In the manual the instructions describe a "slammer" install as if that is the correct procedure. The chimney is around 25 feet tall and goes through the roof.

One thing to note is that when burning fires without the insert in place everything works fine and I get no smoke at all into the house. Also, if there is a problem with the draft and not the intake on the stove, why does it pull so well with the door cracked? Logically, it seems that a draft problem would linger smoke into the house with the door open? I am new to this so please excuse the questions. I really appreciate the help.

If I do in fact need to install an 8" liner, is this something I can self install?

 

[TheRambler]

When you have the door open you are giving the stove a very large intake to draw from. When the door is closed the stove only has its tiny(in comparison to the door) air intake to draw from. And with a weak draft it is not getting enough air on its own.

Even if you fix the draft by installing a liner your next issue will be trouble burning the wood since its only 2 months seasoned. Ideally, dependjng on the wood type, it needs to be cut split and stacked for at least 1 year, some woods take 2-3 years.

 

[TheRambler]

A liner is fairly easy to install, you just need to get on the roof to put it down the chimney, and you may have to cut out the existing damper with an angle grinder etc for it to fit. You need to measure the inside dimensions of the chimney to see what size liner will fit.

 

[Bill Salty]

Ok great. I am going to post some pics on here when I get home to see if you all think a self install is feasible. The wood I am burning is a very old pecan tree. Is this good wood? how long should it be seasoned?

 

[TheRambler]

Its good wood, but burning it after it has been cut for only 2 months is bad. It needs at least a year, maybe more. You want wood to be less than 20% moisture if possible, split a piece and check a fresh face with a moisture meter. They are like 20-30$ at most hardware stores etc.

 

[WoodpileOCD]

Did the same thing with my Buck 91 a few years ago because that was how my old 'smoke dragon ' was installed for many years. Buck manual showed it as an option as well. After a year of total dissatisfaction I got edumacated here. Installed a liner myself and it was a COMPLETELY different stove. Now it's a heat monster. I have an old thread on the process if you want to see what's involved. At least with mine. Every setup is a little different. Not the easiest job I ever took on but not the hardest either.
Plus I'm cheap. Used stove and did liner myself. ~$1,000 total in the whole setup.

 

[mellow]

This is a great how to install video, check it out and see if you want to take it on:

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Many good online sites to get a liner from, I prefer http://www.rockfordchimneysupply.com/

 

[mellow]

Another one showing the connection to the insert:

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[Bill Salty]

One more thing. If I were to go get a used "Big Buck" old school insert and installed it would that stove work with only the "slammer" install or would I run into the same draft problem until installing a pipe?

 

[jatoxico]

One more thing. If I were to go get a used "Big Buck" old school insert and installed it would that stove work with only the "slammer" install or would I run into the same draft problem until installing a pipe?

Slammers installs really should be avoided. I don't think they meet code any where in the US but I'm no expert on that. Lots of things to go wrong. Flue gases into house, dangerous if you have a chimney fire to name a few. Its not simply about getting it to work most of the time.

 

[Woody Stover]

One more thing. If I were to go get a used "Big Buck" old school insert and installed it would that stove work with only the "slammer" install or would I run into the same draft problem until installing a pipe?

Did you buy the High Valley new? Going "old-school" is a step backwards; You already have a superior stove in the 2500. With an old smoke-bomber, you are going to burn a lot more wood, and not solve your problems, namely, weak draft and wet wood. Then there's chimney cleaning to consider; A liner all the way to the top is a breeze to clean, a slammer is almost impossible to clean, so corners will be cut and chimney fires are more likely. Your house is gonna stink of creosote with that setup, and your stove may back-puff from weak draft. Installing a chimney liner all the way to top (positive connection,) or at least to the masonry clay liner (direct connection) will give you a much more pleasant burning experience. (broken link removed to http://www.woodstove.com/pages/guidepdfs/Masonry%20Chimneys.pdf)

 

[WoodpileOCD]

Woody. Your PDF link doesn't seem to be working.

 

[Woody Stover]

Woody. Your PDF link doesn't seem to be working.

Huh. Works when I click on it. The link is on the main page at woodstove.com, right side under "Chimney Articles," last article is "Masonry Chimneys."

 

[Jacyte]

I also have a High Valley 2500 and its been great so far. I installed it with ridged oval liner with a 36" section of flexible liner through the damper. I went with what they consider 8" pipe but I suspect its more equivalent to 7" or so. Very easy to install and pre-insulated with aluminized outer shell so it slid down the chimney without worries of damage. I have a 15' chimney from the bottom of the firebox but with the liner I have to be cautious opening the door with a fire going because you can actually hear large coals getting sucked up the pipe. Heat output is awesome and it will bake us out of the room with sub 20 degree temps outside. With my thermostats set at 65 my boiler has not kicked on since I started running the stove in November.