I just cleaned my liner, and the burns are so much better even though I only got less then a gallon

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mcollect

Member
Hearth Supporter
Jan 23, 2008
130
Garrett County, Md
I have been burning for just one year and the Jotul 550 wasn't drawing very well. OK last year my wood wasn't really dry, so I resplit it and let is cure in the house for two weeks. I got good fires and no smoke out of the chimney. Fast forward to last week, every time I opened to refuel the house filled with smoke. Yesterdat I went ot my great stove dealer and was outfitted with flexible rods and a poly something brush. I cleaned the liner and only got 3/4 of a gallon of crystalline junk out. Looked like klinker. I resealed all the joints let it cure for an hour and fired it up real slowly. No smoke and a really nice fire. So what did I do that caused the major difference, cleaning, resealing removing the internals. It works but I really am at a loss what I did that made that much of a difference. Yes I an a bit of an over analyzer, the kind that wears A BELT AND SUSPENDERS TYPE.
 
Mine 6" S.S. liner does the same thing. I also find it strange. When I start to get puff back I picture a really dirty liner. But when I clean it I get less than a gallon of the dry black Klinker looking stuff. It is a whole new stove after I brush it.
 
Cap was partially plugged?

pen
 
I've never gotten more than a cup of what looks like fine ground coffee so I haven't noticed any difference but I have to wonder if maybe the cap was getting plugged and cleaning the cap was what really made the difference. My cap doesn't have a screen.

If not the cap then I'd have to guess that the creosote was all concentrated at the top and constricted the flue diameter.
 
Usually its a dirty cap screen that's the problem.
 
jtp10181 said:
Usually its a dirty cap screen that's the problem.

Yep. Just cleaned a few days ago. The flue wasn't bad, but the cap was pretty gunked up. Must've been the shoulder burnin'. That was about 2 months into the season. I'll do it again, any time the fire starts getting a little lazy, even though I burn hot at least one/day.
 
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