Insert Complete...Tons more questions!!

[DSaulnier]

Hey Guys,
So I got my Quadrafire insert this weekend, conned a few friends of mine with beer and pizza, and got it installed....only now I think I have more questions than when I started...Some of this might just be newbie stuff so please try not to get to angry...
First off....For the block off plate, I had it all made and cut, however I could not get self tapping screws or even a drill bit through the metal in the fireplace, literally tried several bits, and probably 20-30 minutes of trying to get that thing fastened, until I gave up and just secured a bed of roxul insulation in the top of the chimney based on some other posts that I had seen on here. Is this going to be okay, or any suggestion to get that block off plate secured?

Second...The liner went down the chimney like a dream...had to use a little muscle to get it through the damper opening but it didn't need to ovalize to get through....however my connection to the stove was a little more tricky. The back of my fireplace is on an angle so the connection of the liner to the flue connector wasn't straight. Now It's all installed and the stove is pushed back to an acceptable place in the firebox (i'll have to rig up something to cover the gap between the trim kit and the brick...) but there is a very slight crimp in the liner where it connects to the flue connector on the stove....is this acceptable? I was able to look up the chimney while the stove was in place and you can see up the chimney fine and i can get my hand up there, it feels ok but im just wondering if that crimp is absolutley terrible...it seems to burn fine...and i have a great draft...any comments??

Third...when i performed a burn on high...it seems that the draft literally sucked some of the flames up into the chimney a little....is this ok??? The liner makes some ting noises in the beginning of the burn but they seemed to stop after the stove got hot...also the very first burn in there...where the back of the liner inside the chimney box touched the roxul insulation...seemed to actually glow slightly on the break in burn....but it didn't do it at all yesterday while i was burning most of the day...anyone know what that was all about??

Sorry for the long post and all the questions...I just want to make sure my installation is safe...it's not burning now and i didn't do any burning without closely monitoring everything Saturday and yesterday any input to help put my mind at ease or let me know if I should do something different would be appreciated

Thanks all!!

 

[DAKSY]

Not sure I get what you're saying about the "crimp" in the liner and the flue connector. I assume you mean the flex to rigid (FTR) adapter. Did you use the straight FTR adapter? If your liner didn't seat properly maybe you should've used one of the angled ones like on this page:
(broken link removed)...

As far as the flames being sucked up into the flue, is your baffle positioned correctly? It should be as far to the back & sides so the the flames pass the secondary air tubes before they get to the flue.

The sounds are normal.

The glowing roxul could mean the the flames are actally hitting that area of insulation, maybe where your connection to the adapter is questionable.

Maybe sketches or pix may make all of this a little clearer to me (us)...

 

[Dave A.]

but there is a very slight crimp in the liner where it connects to the flue connector on the stove....is this acceptable?

If you have to bend the liner, you're supposed to do it gradually, it will ease into a curve, or if necessary use an angled fitting. A crimp does not sound good. If you really want to know what others think about it, take a pic and be prepared for honest opinions.

You say you're seeing the roxul, so that sounds like you didn't just put it at the top of the chimney, but also where you would've put the block-off plate, so that sounds better than no block-off plate at all. If you can't drill into the metal (and it usually is masonry -- or did the masonry stop too low?) you might try attaching with a high temp metal epoxy at a few points, and 500F silicone all around it, holding it in place with few supports until everything sets.

Also agreed with Daksy's point about the connection possibly being a problem area.

 

[DSaulnier]

Not sure I get what you're saying about the "crimp" in the liner and the flue connector. I assume you mean the flex to rigid (FTR) adapter. Did you use the straight FTR adapter? If your liner didn't seat properly maybe you should've used one of the angled ones like on this page:
(broken link removed)...

As far as the flames being sucked up into the flue, is your baffle positioned correctly? It should be as far to the back & sides so the the flames pass the secondary air tubes before they get to the flue.

The sounds are normal.

The glowing roxul could mean the the flames are actally hitting that area of insulation, maybe where your connection to the adapter is questionable.

Maybe sketches or pix may make all of this a little clearer to me (us)...

I have attached a sketch to be a little more clear...As for the baffle, everything is in place as it should be. The flames actually come all the way to the front of the stove and up the flue in front of the baffle plates and cermaic blanket

I did use a straight connector that came with the kit, I inserted it into the cast piece provided by quadra-fire then inserted the liner into the stainless connector and used the hose clamp on it to tighten down real nice and tight. Let me know if the sketch helps..

Thanks,
Dan

 

[DSaulnier]

If you have to bend the liner, you're supposed to do it gradually, it will ease into a curve, or if necessary use an angled fitting. A crimp does not sound good. If you really want to know what others think about it, take a pic and be prepared for honest opinions.

You say you're seeing the roxul, so that sounds like you didn't just put it at the top of the chimney, but also where you would've put the block-off plate, so that sounds better than no block-off plate at all. If you can't drill into the metal (and it usually is masonry -- or did the masonry stop too low?) you might try attaching with a high temp metal epoxy at a few points, and 500F silicone all around it, holding it in place with few supports until everything sets.

Also agreed with Daksy's point about the connection possibly being a problem area.

I did line the entire fireplace with roxul...figured it help keep a little more heat in. The fireplace box is definitley metal and it turns to bricks right above the damper for about 2-3 feet then it's terra cotta tiles up to the top from there. I Think i'll try your epoxy idea tho...I can't seem to penetrate that metal for the life of me!

Thanks for all your help so far guys

 

[weatherguy]

A lot of insert installs are made easier by using a small 15 degree adapter, I couldn't drill into my metal either, use some epoxy and like stated above put something to hold it in place until it dries. The other stuff I can't help you with.

 

[DSaulnier]

Not sure I get what you're saying about the "crimp" in the liner and the flue connector. I assume you mean the flex to rigid (FTR) adapter. Did you use the straight FTR adapter? If your liner didn't seat properly maybe you should've used one of the angled ones like on this page:
(broken link removed)...

As far as the flames being sucked up into the flue, is your baffle positioned correctly? It should be as far to the back & sides so the the flames pass the secondary air tubes before they get to the flue.

The sounds are normal.

The glowing roxul could mean the the flames are actally hitting that area of insulation, maybe where your connection to the adapter is questionable.

Maybe sketches or pix may make all of this a little clearer to me (us)...

I attached a sketch to the post below, thinking I'm going to just get the 15 degree elbow evening if is a slight crimp ill sleep better at night knowing its not there.
As for the glowing I don't think it was he roxul glowing but the chimney liner itself only on the back.

 

[Nick Mystic]

I think you are smart to try to remove the crimp in your flex liner, particularly if you are burning fires hot enough to make the liner glow red hot as you showed in your sketch. I'd like to hear a few more comments from other forum members as to their thoughts on the glowing liner at the point you indicated. I know I'd be getting nervous if I looked at the T-connector hooked to my flue collar and saw it glowing since it generally doesn't get above 400 - 500F when I hit it with my IR thermometer.

 

[DSaulnier]

I think you are smart to try to remove the crimp in your flex liner, particularly if you are burning fires hot enough to make the liner glow red hot as you showed in your sketch. I'd like to hear a few more comments from other forum members as to their thoughts on the glowing liner at the point you indicated. I know I'd be getting nervous if I looked at the T-connector hooked to my flue collar and saw it glowing since it generally doesn't get above 400 - 500F when I hit it with my IR thermometer.

Yep Id rather have it done right. I'll spend the 40 bucks and 20 minutes of time to feel better about the whole thing...as for the glowing, after the first "break in" fire I had a nice roaring fire going the next day for quite a while and I didn't see it happen again, I checked it frequently too so im not sure what's going on there. Hopefully a couple more people can chime in with a few suggestions, and maybe the 15 degree elbow will alleviate the whole issue...or maybe that's just wishful thinking....

 

[BrotherBart]

Put a fixed, not adjustible, elbow in and done. What I did with my stove sitting in the fireplace.

 

[DSaulnier]

Put a fixed, not adjustible, elbow in and done. What I did with my stove sitting in the fireplace.

View attachment 118096

Do you know where I can purchase one of those online? I like the hose clamp style connection as its pretty tight at the top of my chimney

 

[BrotherBart]

Check with hartshearth.com. They are the only dealer that has never screwed up my order. If you call them they ask the right questions to make sure you are really getting what you need. They make me prove I know what I am talking about before they will fill my order.

 

[DAKSY]

Put a fixed, not adjustible, elbow in and done. What I did with my stove sitting in the fireplace.

View attachment 118096

Lookin GOOD!