Lightning and pellet stoves

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hemlock

Feeling the Heat
May 6, 2009
455
east coast canada
Hello,
I just had my new Enviro installed yesterday, and during the night, we had a wicked lightning storm. It got me thinking about the stoves chimney. It is several feet about the roof peak (so basically a lightning rod). Has anyone ever had their chimneys struck by lightning? I assume it would fry everything electrical in the stove. One other thing I thought about - is a surge protector a good idea for a pellet stove? Thanks.
 
most of us unplug our stoves during the summer months. even with a surge protector u still could get spikes.
 
A "Good" surge protector is a must. Do not just plug it in a standard "Cheapo" strip. Spend $20-$30 and get something that is designated just for the stove (One receptacle). Hope you are enjoying that Mini. Did you ever Fire it up?.. There are some good YouTube videos on Enviros "Flame Pattern" and the adjustment of your Air Damper. To see whether you have a "Lazy" or "blow-torch" Flame. Congrats again.

As far as lightning. I have all vents exiting horizontally. The one in my shop (and basement) has a 5' Vertical, then clean-out T to 36" of Horz.. Main floor Quad in the house is Direct Vent (Straight out). Still have to put the 6" Triple wall up for my Englander, but the Fireplace flue is up just about as high. Never really worried about it, Till Now.... LOL. You should be fine and there are some good surge protectors on Amazon.com. Something over 1000 joules. Here is a pretty good one.

http://www.amazon.com/Monster-Power...0E312X2/ref=sr?ie=UTF8&qid=1307019057&sr=8-14
 
DexterDay said:
A "Good" surge protector is a must. Do not just plug it in a standard "Cheapo" strip. Spend $20-$30 and get something that is designated just for the stove (One receptacle). Hope you are enjoying that Mini. Did you ever Fire it up?.. There are some good YouTube videos on Enviros "Flame Pattern" and the adjustment of your Air Damper. To see whether you have a "Lazy" or "blow-torch" Flame. Congrats again.

As far as lightning. I have all vents exiting horizontally. The one in my shop (and basement) has a 5' Vertical, then clean-out T to 36" of Horz.. Main floor Quad in the house is Direct Vent (Straight out). Still have to put the 6" Triple wall up for my Englander, but the Fireplace flue is up just about as high. Never really worried about it, Till Now.... LOL. You should be fine and there are some good surge protectors on Amazon.com. Something over 1000 joules. Here is a pretty good one.

http://www.amazon.com/Monster-Power...0E312X2/ref=sr?ie=UTF8&qid=1307019057&sr=8-14

I had it going for a few hours yesterday. I think it's going to be a great little unit. I'll definitely get a surge protector for it (hope nothing got it last night - that would be just my luck after one day).
 
I have seen the destruction that a lightning strike can wreak.

If your chimney gets hit by lightning, the least of your worries are going to be the stoves electrical systems.

The enormous amperage of a lightning strike is going to literally melt the chimney as well as almost everything along the path to ground.

A house fire is also a likely happening too.

If you live in an area that prone to nasty T storms, I would recommend installing a "Lightning Rod" that is grounded very well.

Make sure that the lightning rod is higher than your chimney and away from the chimney too.

Here at my house we have some heavy power line towers that are very tall and about 150 yards from the house. Lightning will strike a point that is the easiest to reach ground. (normally)

Unless your house is the highest spot around (No trees or ??) I would not worry too much.

As far as the surge protectors go, most of the units you buy at the electronics shops and or Big Box stores, few are much good at protecting the really sensative electronics.

To get a good surge protector requires some serious $$$$$$$$ be spent.

Been running pellet stoves now for over 20 years, through many winter power outages and such and never had any issues.

I have my stoves plugged right into the wall outlets and just dont worry about them.

A surge protector is not going to even slow down a lightning hit.

Some friends have a summer home up in the mountains and their satellite dish took a lightning hit and the damage was on a grand scale.

The entire TV system was totally fried. Got the Dish, the cables, the control box, the VCR, the TV, the whole system was toasted.


The house structure was slightly scorched in a couple places but not serious.

Lightning is some nasty stuff for sure.

Put up a lightning rod if your worried.

Snowy
 
If you are concerned about a lightning strike to vent pipe, then a surge protector won't help. They protect from surges coming in on the line. The best protection for this as was mentioned is unplugging the stove. This removes the path to ground and essentially makes the stove (and attached pipe) "float", and thus it won't attract lighting.

You should still have a surge protector for the more run-of-the-mill surges that come in on the power lines.
 
I have heard golfing is one of the most dangerous sports because of lightning??? I don't golf but I wonder if you just picked up a club or two and tied them up in a tree and run a ground off of em if that would work. I don't think I could talk a golfer to hang out on the roof through a storm. Would you use a putter or a club? I might just be on to somethin.
 
Not really the lightning to worry about. Lightning hits your home, and Fire should be your biggest concern......... Its the Power outages and "Brown Outs" (Power Surges) that you have to worry about. That what Surge protectors are for. Not a "Direct Hit of Lightning". Get a Good Surge Protector. The new electronics on you $3,000 pellet stove are just as/if not more delicate than the electronics on your $1,000 Computer. So if you have a $15 "Strip" Surge protector for your computer. Spend double that and buy a good unit for your stove.

Not many folks visit the "Pellet Mill" in the Summer months. Ask this same question in the middle of January and 50 other members would give you a "Link" to the model of the unit they have on there stove. You spent a lot of money on your stove. Dont let a Power outage RUIN it.
 
I would definitely plug it into a good surge protector. A power surge can destroy the electrical components in the stove. You should also ground the chimney to reroute a lightning strike to the ground. If you're not sure how to do this properly, then have a professional do it.
 
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