Is this overfiring or normal?

[geofox784]

Just got a Osburn Stratford II ZC fireplace and did my first burn today. For the first burn I loaded it maybe half way and once it was down to coals I loaded it "full" E-W to see how many coals I would have left in the morning. After it got going I closed the air control completely closed. Maybe this was a mistake, but I used dry 2x4s (all full 16" or so lengths, no thin cut strips). After a while it really got going and after noticing a faint glow from the secondary tubes and the air deflector I started to get really concerned I was over firing it. I closed off the outside air intake to no effect. I then sprayed some water on the wood from a spray bottle, which eventually calmed it down.



No glowing anchor plate or anything like that. Max temp on the collar / pipe was around 260F.

Was I over-reacting, or does this look like I was overfiring it?

Should I generally be safe to pack it full, just avoid overly dry wood?

Is there a way to add a temperature probe to the chimney or the fireplace to get a better idea of what is going on?

 

[BillBurns]

I for one never load mine full.....never....I like to be in control of the fire the whole time with smaller more frequent loads. Really dry wood can and will get away from you sometimes, happens to us all unless youre a " Master ". I dont ever aspire to know it all....just enough to get by.

 

[kennyp2339]

Demensional lumber like 2x4's are tough to burn, lots of open faces and either pine or dougfur creates rapid off gassing which makes a run away more likely.
You can burn it, just mix it with your cord wood, or use less.

 

[30WCF]

Auber AT-100 probe in the flue so you can rest easy. Real time, (2second refresh) you can see exactly what’s happening.

 

[geofox784]

Auber AT-100 probe in the flue so you can rest easy. Real time, (2second refresh) you can see exactly what’s happening.

Is there a proper way to add a probe through double wall insulated chimney pipe?

 

[30WCF]

Is there a proper way to add a probe through double wall insulated pipe?

Drill the appropriate size hole for the probe and let the magnet or screw hold it in place.

Honestly, I probably wouldn’t have the dial in the front except I already drilled the hole. I suppose it’s nice for a power loss if you calibrate it, or atleast learn how far off it is from the digital probe.
You can adjust the magnetic dial, but they are usually off at one end or the other. I adjust mine to be more accurate the top end, and just know it’s not quite accurate at the cooler end.

Magnetic bi-metal spring probe



Auber digital probe



Both

 

[kborndale]

I guess you skipped the break in fires.

 

[Caw]

Dimensional lumber will run away from you fast. It's significantly drier than cordwood and has more surface area so you get rapid off gassing that you can't really stop. If you had used regular cordwood it would have been more under control. As said above it's ok to use lumber but mixed with regular wood. People often use it to offset not perfectly dry cordwood.

That said that burn and those temps don't seem like an over fire to me. Looks pretty normal. But I'm pretty sure you skipped break in first lol whoops.

 

[geofox784]

Drill the appropriate size hole for the probe and let the magnet or screw hold it in place.

Honestly, I probably wouldn’t have the dial in the front except I already drilled the hole. I suppose it’s nice for a power loss if you calibrate it, or atleast learn how far off it is from the digital probe.
You can adjust the magnetic dial, but they are usually off at one end or the other. I adjust mine to be more accurate the top end, and just know it’s not quite accurate at the cooler end.

Magnetic bi-metal spring probe

View attachment 320774

Auber digital probe

View attachment 320775

Both

View attachment 320776

Needs to be removed for chimney cleaning though right? I have a fireplace, not a stove, so I won’t have access to the probe to remove it.

 

[geofox784]

Dimensional lumber will run away from you fast. It's significantly drier than cordwood and has more surface area so you get rapid off gassing that you can't really stop. If you had used regular cordwood it would have been more under control. As said above it's ok to use lumber but mixed with regular wood. People often use it to offset not perfectly dry cordwood.

That said that burn and those temps don't seem like an over fire to me. Looks pretty normal. But I'm pretty sure you skipped break in first lol whoops.

I did a smaller fire before this, didn’t let it cool down between burns completely though. Not sure if that qualifies as skipping the break in. I certainly didn’t intend on getting this hot for the second burn though.

 

[30WCF]

Needs to be removed for chimney cleaning though right? I have a fireplace, not a stove, so I won’t have access to the probe to remove it.

Yes. It would need to be removed to clean. I assumed from the infrared image that you had access.

 

[geofox784]

Yes. It would need to be removed to clean. I assumed from the infrared image that you had access.

For now, I will be closing it in a few weeks from now.

 

[EbS-P]

Even surface measurement would be useful. You learn what a good temp is and know when to turn down the air. Auber has washer probes you could attach somewhere. Could one go under one of those screws I see in the FLIR picture? And I’d probably just order two and install both so if one goes bad I don’t have to open anything up.

 

[geofox784]

Even surface measurement would be useful. You learn what a good temp is and know when to turn down the air. Auber has washer probes you could attach somewhere. Could one go under one of those screws I see in the FLIR picture? And I’d probably just order two and install both so if one goes bad I don’t have to open anything up.

Looking at the Flir data, those screws were only at 131F, but I like the idea and may look at finding a spot somewhere inside to do that.

 

[xman23]

I can't speak for your zero clearance fireplace. Is it really built for large high temperature fires? I ask, as my brother had one that he tried heating with. After a few sets of broken glass doors he gave up. The ones I've seen had small fire boxes. I assume to limit how much wood you could get into it.

 

[begreen]

Drill the appropriate size hole for the probe and let the magnet or screw hold it in place.

Auber digital probe

View attachment 320776

That is in stove pipe, not chimney pipe. The procedure is the same, but it likely would void the chimney pipe warranty and would be hard if not impossible to remove the probe for chimney cleaning.

 

[gthomas785]

250F right at the flue collar doesn't sound very alarming to me, I think you're fine...
I definitely agree it's useful to have a flue probe to know what your stove is doing.

 

[begreen]

Looking at the Flir data, those screws were only at 131F, but I like the idea and may look at finding a spot somewhere inside to do that.

Don't burn dimensional lumber as the sole fuel. It is very dry and stacking it provides a lot of air gaps. That is a formula for rapid combustion. They're ok for mixing with some hardwood, but not alone. Instead, load larger 4-8" thick splits and close the air as quickly as possible without quenching the flame.

 

[begreen]

250F right at the flue collar doesn't sound very alarming to me, I think you're fine...
I definitely agree it's useful to have a flue probe to know what your stove is doing.

This is on the outside wall of insulated chimney pipe. It is very hot.
I agree with a probe, for a stove. In this case however, this is not a stove, it's a ZC fireplace.

 

[gthomas785]

I agree, for a stove. In this case however, this is not a stove, it's a ZC fireplace.

Yeah sorry just realized that. I don't know anything about those, disregard my previous post

 

[30WCF]

I have no idea about ZC, so I’ll ask one more question and then probably back out.

Can a probe be installed through the collar, and if cleaning yourself, you’ll know how many rods it takes to get right above the probe. The worst should be up top anyway.
If the probe is low enough, maybe you could hand clean the lower section where the probe is, from below.
I don’t know if this is possible or too much hassle. I just know I like my Auber.

 

[geofox784]

I have no idea about ZC, so I’ll ask one more question and then probably back out.

Can a probe be installed through the collar, and if cleaning yourself, you’ll know how many rods it takes to get right above the probe. The worst should be up top anyway.
If the probe is low enough, maybe you could hand clean the lower section where the probe is, from below.
I don’t know if this is possible or too much hassle. I just know I like my Auber.

I'm interested in that as a possibility too, but would there be any issues of the probe being too close to the fireplace? Aren't they usually a foot or two away?

Another option would be to stick it through the front of the pipe inside the fireplace. You can see / access the pipe from the front with the faceplate off, but then it will be even closer.

If all else fails, I'll just find the hottest spot I can with my Flir and stick a surface probe there.

If I do a thermometer, I may do the Auber SYL-2813AC since it would let me add a second probe to read the temp at the same location as the heat distribution fan sensor.

 

[30WCF]

I’m just going out on a limb here. The placement of the height will tell relevant gas temps. If there were limiting factors for placement, I think it would just change your reference temp. If someone says 850 is too hot on their stove at 18”high, but you are 3” high, your norm might be 1000. You might just have to learn what normal is.
Perhaps direct flames may not be the spot for the probe, you’d have to double check the specs on it.

 

[joop]

how you didn't blow out glass pure luck.put 3 regular size splits in my daughters zc and pow broken glass .glass sucks on these things

 

[geofox784]

how you didn't blow out glass pure luck.put 3 regular size splits in my daughters zc and pow broken glass .glass sucks on these things

Is there anything inherently different on a quality zc vs a quality stove?