Had this stove about 6 years..Its the worst, doesnt put out much heat. House is unfinished so no floor insulation right now..You can be 6 feet from the stove and be cold. I do have ceiling fan. Burn mostly oak. A lot of the time I have to have side door of stove cracked a lil so it burns hotter. Done plenty of flue cleaning. I had a Jotul 400 in Alaska that would burn you out of the upstairs. Only difference now is the ceiling above current stove is pitched, but the fan is right there to bring air back down...Only burned spruce and birch in Alaska. The Oslo is quite a step up from the 400 I had before..Its like burning wood for nothing with the Oslo now..
Jotul Oslo
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Simonkenton
Minister of Fire
Do you have a stove top thermometer? Need to learn what your stove top temps are.
I have an Oslo and it is a great stove. Something is bad wrong with your setup.
What is your pipe like? Does it go straight up through the ceiling, and the roof, or do you have a horizontal run going through a wall, and then going up on the outside?
Oak is, of course, great firewood. Do you have an electric moisture meter? What is the moisture content of your wood? How long has your wood been set out to dry?
For you to be having such problems with an all-star like the Jotul 500 you have a serious problem with either the wood or the pipe.
Oh, by the way, my house is new and I don't have any floor insulation either. I have a solid concrete block foundation, my basement is about 55 degrees and to be honest floor insulation is of little benefit. I just left it out.
We have carpets on half of the floor anyway, but, I don't think your problem is lack of floor insulation, unless you have a column foundation and the cold north wind blows underneath your house.
I have an Oslo and it is a great stove. Something is bad wrong with your setup.
What is your pipe like? Does it go straight up through the ceiling, and the roof, or do you have a horizontal run going through a wall, and then going up on the outside?
Oak is, of course, great firewood. Do you have an electric moisture meter? What is the moisture content of your wood? How long has your wood been set out to dry?
For you to be having such problems with an all-star like the Jotul 500 you have a serious problem with either the wood or the pipe.
Oh, by the way, my house is new and I don't have any floor insulation either. I have a solid concrete block foundation, my basement is about 55 degrees and to be honest floor insulation is of little benefit. I just left it out.
We have carpets on half of the floor anyway, but, I don't think your problem is lack of floor insulation, unless you have a column foundation and the cold north wind blows underneath your house.
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The pipe comes out of the back of the stove and up thru the ceiling, all inside the house...I have a temp gauge on top of stove..runs around 350 or so unless i crack the side door about an 1/8" or so, then it will get up to about 500 or so... The oak was from standing dead trees, split, stacked on pallets for about 10 months and covered. My crawl space is much colder then yours..
350 is a very low stove top temp, a sure sign of under seasoned wood if that’s the best it can do. This stove will run away to 800 if left unattended on high, can’t imagine what would happen with the cracked...
As a side note: don’t insulate your floors, that’s the wrong approach. You need to keep the cold air from getting in the crawlspace at the source. Look up crawlspace conditioning. It’s the best thing you can do.
As a side note: don’t insulate your floors, that’s the wrong approach. You need to keep the cold air from getting in the crawlspace at the source. Look up crawlspace conditioning. It’s the best thing you can do.
Simonkenton
Minister of Fire
That wood ought to be dry enough, but you never know, you need to go to Lowes and buy a moisture meter, costs about $30.
How high, in total, is your stove pipe? Perhaps your pipe is not high enough. Something is wrong with your setup because I can run my Oslo right up to 600 degrees and on the rare occasions it gets that hot I immediately back down on the air.
How high, in total, is your stove pipe? Perhaps your pipe is not high enough. Something is wrong with your setup because I can run my Oslo right up to 600 degrees and on the rare occasions it gets that hot I immediately back down on the air.
From the outlet behind stove to top above roof is probably 13 feet or so..This stove was installed by a dealer who sold Jotul and other brands, from Springfield, MO.
I know Missouri has lots of humidity, I dont know if a guy can get it any dryer..But I go to my neighbors house who has a cheap woodstove..uses dry and green wood and it burns great and is nice and warm in house, even away from the stove...Mine you can be 8 feet away or less and feel the temp is chilli
My stove will never hit 600 unless that door is cracked , which of course the wood burns fast..
Right now the stove is 450 degrees and door is cracked about 1/8"..There is probably 4-5 inches of bright red embers and logs too in the stove..
Simonkenton
Minister of Fire
The Oslo needs at least 16 feet of pipe. Are you using the 6 inch pipe?
Also there is a rule, somebody else will chime in if I have it wrong, but you need to measure from the top of the pipe, horzontally across towards the high point of the roof, you need to measure 10 feet. The top of the pipe needs to be 2 feet above the roof that is ten feet away.
You have brought up an interesting anomaly in wood stove use. Your neighbor has a cheapo and burns green wood and the stove loves it.
Yes. I have had several cheapos, including one stove I really liked, I built that bad boy from a 55 gallon drum with a Sotz kit.
What a huge firebox! And that Sotz stove would burn anything, I would dry wood for 6 months and the Sotz ate it up, and I would deliberately put green wood in there at 11 pm, to make for a long overnight burn.
But these expensive new stoves dislike green wood, it won't burn worth a crap in them. Need to get the moisture meter and make sure it is around 17 percent moisture or less.
But, I suspect your flaw is a pipe that is too short. Get this bad boy tuned up and you will love your Norwegian stove. You got access to lots of that standing dead oak you have got it made.
I am surprised you have put up with such poor performance for 6 years but you have come to the Promised Land here on this forum. There are plenty of guys on here that know more than I do, and we will get you straightened out believe me.
Also there is a rule, somebody else will chime in if I have it wrong, but you need to measure from the top of the pipe, horzontally across towards the high point of the roof, you need to measure 10 feet. The top of the pipe needs to be 2 feet above the roof that is ten feet away.
You have brought up an interesting anomaly in wood stove use. Your neighbor has a cheapo and burns green wood and the stove loves it.
Yes. I have had several cheapos, including one stove I really liked, I built that bad boy from a 55 gallon drum with a Sotz kit.
What a huge firebox! And that Sotz stove would burn anything, I would dry wood for 6 months and the Sotz ate it up, and I would deliberately put green wood in there at 11 pm, to make for a long overnight burn.
But these expensive new stoves dislike green wood, it won't burn worth a crap in them. Need to get the moisture meter and make sure it is around 17 percent moisture or less.
But, I suspect your flaw is a pipe that is too short. Get this bad boy tuned up and you will love your Norwegian stove. You got access to lots of that standing dead oak you have got it made.
I am surprised you have put up with such poor performance for 6 years but you have come to the Promised Land here on this forum. There are plenty of guys on here that know more than I do, and we will get you straightened out believe me.
When customers contact me and describe symptoms like this it's almost always either:
draft problem
wood problem.
In your case it may be both, and being underinsulated isn't helping. Perfect storm?
Might try running either some wood you KNOW is dry, esp. softwood or bio blox or something. See what happens.
draft problem
wood problem.
In your case it may be both, and being underinsulated isn't helping. Perfect storm?
Might try running either some wood you KNOW is dry, esp. softwood or bio blox or something. See what happens.
The pipe is 6" for sure...Ill go up and measure how far above nearest roof line it is above this week..I also will mention, most of the time when I open side door to load more wood I get puffs of smoke coming in the house..And , that is with the damper wide open, and inches of red hot coals in the stove.
In the Ozarks with all the humidity can you really season your wood here to get it down to a decent moisture content for burning.
I get it done in southern Indiana. Hardwoods like oak and hickory need 2 years to properly season. Stacked Out in the sun and wind, then brought under cover for a few months prior to burning.
RandyBoBandy
Minister of Fire
Humidity here in st.louis is no less then southern missouri. And I get my wood under 18% pretty regularly. Just depends on the type of wood and how long I let it season.
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It sounds like a case of wet wood. If you have to have the side door cracked to get temp up to 350, its the wood. Has this recently started? You mentioned you've had it for 5 years- has it just started this issue? Its a clogged flue or wet wood, prob the fuel. Best luck.
Random thoughts . . .
Usually when folks say their new stove doesn't heat worth a crap it comes down to a) the wood isn't fully seasoned to the moisture level needed by these "new" stoves, b) the draft isn't adequate, c) the stove is faulty (although this is the least likely) or d) folks aren't running their stove correctly.
I can understand why you're not getting much heat . . . by keeping the side door ajar you're letting a lot of the heat go up the chimney. Now I can understand why you may have to do so if you're getting smoke in the home when you reload . . . which to me seems to indicate either a problem with the draft or unseasoned wood.
Incidentally, my Oslo has been my main source of heat here in Maine since 2008 . . . and has been keeping the bulk of the house quite warm the last few days with temps dipping well below zero.
I am going to go out on a limb here and assume you realize that with stoves like this you want to bring the stove up to temp -- generally 400-600 degrees F and then slowly throttle back the air control lever . . . this in effect does two things. 1) If the temps are good and the wood is decent you should start seeing a secondary burn which maximizes the burning efficiency of the stove and 2) Less heat is going up the chimney and your stove begins to really pump out the heat while at the same time burning for a decent amount of time (how much heat and how long a burn depends on the type of wood, how much you've packed into the fire box, etc.) Again, the key is to close down the air . . . but only once you're up to temp (Side note: I tend to rely on my probe style thermometer in my double wall pipe more often to gauge when I should start closing down the air control lever.)
While anything is possible, 10-month old oak may not be quite ready for prime time . . . or it may be fine as you mention it was standing dead. What does the wood do when you attempt to light it . . . if it is sizzling and spitting water out the ends, this is a problem.
I am also assuming the stove is not in an uninsulated basement or in a room with zero insulation on the walls . . . a lack of insulation in the walls or an unheated basement can lead to issues with the stove generating heat, but it being "sucked" up.
Final thought . . . keep with this . . . I think I can count on one hand the number of folks who have had an Oslo and not liked it . . . it's a real power house heater and once up to speed it really pumps out the heat.
Usually when folks say their new stove doesn't heat worth a crap it comes down to a) the wood isn't fully seasoned to the moisture level needed by these "new" stoves, b) the draft isn't adequate, c) the stove is faulty (although this is the least likely) or d) folks aren't running their stove correctly.
I can understand why you're not getting much heat . . . by keeping the side door ajar you're letting a lot of the heat go up the chimney. Now I can understand why you may have to do so if you're getting smoke in the home when you reload . . . which to me seems to indicate either a problem with the draft or unseasoned wood.
Incidentally, my Oslo has been my main source of heat here in Maine since 2008 . . . and has been keeping the bulk of the house quite warm the last few days with temps dipping well below zero.
I am going to go out on a limb here and assume you realize that with stoves like this you want to bring the stove up to temp -- generally 400-600 degrees F and then slowly throttle back the air control lever . . . this in effect does two things. 1) If the temps are good and the wood is decent you should start seeing a secondary burn which maximizes the burning efficiency of the stove and 2) Less heat is going up the chimney and your stove begins to really pump out the heat while at the same time burning for a decent amount of time (how much heat and how long a burn depends on the type of wood, how much you've packed into the fire box, etc.) Again, the key is to close down the air . . . but only once you're up to temp (Side note: I tend to rely on my probe style thermometer in my double wall pipe more often to gauge when I should start closing down the air control lever.)
While anything is possible, 10-month old oak may not be quite ready for prime time . . . or it may be fine as you mention it was standing dead. What does the wood do when you attempt to light it . . . if it is sizzling and spitting water out the ends, this is a problem.
I am also assuming the stove is not in an uninsulated basement or in a room with zero insulation on the walls . . . a lack of insulation in the walls or an unheated basement can lead to issues with the stove generating heat, but it being "sucked" up.
Final thought . . . keep with this . . . I think I can count on one hand the number of folks who have had an Oslo and not liked it . . . it's a real power house heater and once up to speed it really pumps out the heat.
I never turn the air damper down till bed time...Without it wide open you can feel the heat drop only 6 feet away...The door is 1/8" ajar to help it get to maybe 500 degrees on top of stove...and thats reading from the center..
Issue has been since first winter I owned it..I dont whine as much when its not a cold winter..heh..i can get around 500 degrees with door ajar 1/8"..i clean the flue maybe 2 times during the short winter here..burn from November till march.
I'm not sure you understand. With the door open all your heat is going up the chimney. If you can not get the temps up in the stove with the door closed then your wood is wet or your draft is bad. Or your stove is really messed up.
Try grabbing a bunch of 2x4, 2x6, 2x8 scraps from lowes/depot/where ever and burn that and see if there is any difference. That or get some compressed logs from tractor supply/buchheits/Rural King.
There may be a few problems here.
First off, Jotul recommends stove top thermometers be placed in either of the four top corners. In my case I found the right rear corner generally showed the hottest temp.
I might also respectfully suggest that once you get the stove up to 500 degrees F or so, close the side door and wait. If the heat stays about the same and the fire doesn't die out, drop the air control lever back to maybe 3/4. Wait. The fire may or may not die down, ditto for the temp. After a few minutes when the fire seems to stabilize (i.e. not die and is back up and roaring), dial it back to half way . . . repeat the waiting . . . and then dial back to 1/4 open.
If the fire dies down and doesn't recover (sometimes the fire will dampen down for a few minutes) your problem is most likely with the fuel source (not dry enough) or draft.
Good luck . . . stick around and we'll get you warm again.
.Yes I understand the heat will be lost...its ajar 1/8" down to nothing using the side door of the stove..Ill try the 2x4 idea tomorrow.
Incidentally to help rule out the wood as your issue you may be able to get some dimension lumber, pallets or kiln-dried firewood at the local hardware store and try to burn as I directed.
A few words of caution . . . I wouldn't stuff the firebox to the gills with dimensional lumber as this can overfire the stove.
If you find a pallet and the wood is light in color and not gray it may be freshly made and not really all that suitable for our test here. Also be sure the pallet isn't treated . . . other than perhaps heat-treated (i.e. HT). Again, I wouldn't stuff the firebox full and touch it off as it can potentially over fire the stove.
Finally, some of this kiln-dried firewood reportedly isn't kiln dried to a level where it burns really well in the stoves . . . some folks here have said it is heat treated just enough to kill off any bugs. I'm not really sure how you could tell if the local kiln dried wood in the stores would meet our needs here for the test . . . generally I've stuck with the pallets or dimensional lumber.
Looks like RickB and I had the same idea . . . at the same time.
A few words of caution . . . I wouldn't stuff the firebox to the gills with dimensional lumber as this can overfire the stove.
If you find a pallet and the wood is light in color and not gray it may be freshly made and not really all that suitable for our test here. Also be sure the pallet isn't treated . . . other than perhaps heat-treated (i.e. HT). Again, I wouldn't stuff the firebox full and touch it off as it can potentially over fire the stove.
Finally, some of this kiln-dried firewood reportedly isn't kiln dried to a level where it burns really well in the stoves . . . some folks here have said it is heat treated just enough to kill off any bugs. I'm not really sure how you could tell if the local kiln dried wood in the stores would meet our needs here for the test . . . generally I've stuck with the pallets or dimensional lumber.
Looks like RickB and I had the same idea . . . at the same time.
..Door has been closed for an hour or so..damper wide open...temp gauge in rr corner..it read 375 stove is full of red hot coals and some wood about burned down to coals
