My first overfire

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beermann

Feeling the Heat
Jan 16, 2017
318
canada
No damage done as this stove is only 2 months old and creosote has not had time to build up. Here is what happened.

Threw some wood in the same way i have been doing for over a month now....must have gotten to some exceptionally dry wood because my regencyi1100s temp went up to 700 Fahrenheit....assuming my stove top gauge is not 100% accurate and under reads the temps I promptly cut off the air supply....Very relieved that the wood was far enough into the burning process that secondary burn didn't keep it alive I did hit 750 Fahrenheit (In the past at 450+fehrinheight I've been able to shut the air all the way down and run secondary for about an hour while temps rise to a good 550+)

I have no idea what type of wood I put in. But damn!

Posting this so newbies know to be careful.

I too not have a flue temp reading. Only stovetop.

*Edit: it appears I was just worried about re temp and everyone reassured me 700 is fine. I'll check the manual and get an ir gun to be on the safe side.
 
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Perhaps the stoves are different, however, with my 30nc, a 750 degree stovetop is normal operating temperature.
 
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My Kent Tile Fire has a magnetic thermometer on the top (under the grill) and is in the white "good burn" zone. Digital thermometer reads almost 700 F. Just above where liner is connected to stove is 450-500 F. Seems normal to me.
 
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Yeah, 700 shouldn't be a problem I don't think, but I would check the stove over when you get a chance. You could always use your phone timer in case you get distracted tasting the beer, mann. ;)
 
Yeah, 700 shouldn't be a problem I don't think, but I would check the stove over when you get a chance. You could always use your phone timer in case you get distracted tasting the beer, mann. ;)

I am measuring the temp almost every 2 hours or so on both stoves. Too afraid I will over fire the stove and get in trouble.
 
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Why don't you have a flue temp thermometer? They seem to be basic equipment to me. I had one in with my first install and have never been without, bought an ir for the stove top.....rarely use it.
 
One reason not use a flue temp gauge is if you have to use double wall stovepipe. I put my guage right where the flue exits the stove, and have run the stove long enough to know where normal is. Yes, you could drill the pipe and use a probe pyrometer, but on a tube stove, I see little reason to. On a cat stove, proper instrumentation should be included with the stove.

Tube inserts also don't usually use a flue temp guage for obvious reasons.

We usually get a runaway once a year or so if the weather conditions are just right when the wind kicks up. If I keep an eye on the forecast, I can usually predict when excess draft will be an issue and compensate for it with a reduced fuel load. Unfortunately, those conditions are usually when I need more heat.

If you installed with proper clearances, keep it under 7-750 and you'll be fine.
 
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What you are reporting should not be an overfire. You should be alright....
 
Yes, you could drill the pipe and use a probe pyrometer, but on a tube stove, I see little reason to.

Why not? Monitoring both stovetop and stovepipe is best. But if only one is going to be monitored I always recommend stovepipe. As that's what's actually going into your chimney. Too many people get their stove up to a moderate temp of say 500f and cut their air back hard because they're so hot right? But the stove could stay 'hot' for quite awhile while your stovepipe gases fall flat on their face and you're creosoting up the chimney.
 
This year I picked up an IR gun. On my stove the manual says to measure stovetop temp on the flat above the center of the door. I usually see 650 degrees or so there. When I measure in the dead center close to the flue collar it's around 800-825.
 
I don't think you had an over fire, just a hot fire. On occasion I've run mine up to 750F with no ill effects. If anything glows then you are truly in an over fire situation.

As a side note my temperature gauge says anything above 600F is over fire which is not the case for a stove top location.

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Again, if you want to, go ahead. I see no reason not to. If you do it for customers, that's fine too, so long as they are trained as to where the guage should read. There is nothing wrong with more instrumentation.

Visual verification of secondary combustion is what I do, and have been quite successful with. So long as I have a stable secondary and my stovetop is within range, I really don't care too much about stack temp, it's where it needs to be. I also check my stack monthly, because feedback is good, and I have a camera inspection done once a year.

On my stove, if the stove stalls, you loose temp quickly, say within 10 minutes. There is a lot of ambient temp air still coming in through the secondaries. This rarely happens, I'm heating the house with the stove (so the stove is cranking with a good coal bed) and my wood is 2-3 years dried. Additionally, the stove is monitored after a reload to ensure it settles in.

Again, this is what works for me, but every installation is different and everybody's comfort level is different.
 
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Sounds like you are a very conscientious burner. Monitoring your stack with great scrutiny as well as your fire/burn.

A lot of people aren't so careful. This forum has I bet a very high percentage of good thoughtful woodburners just by the nature of having enough interest to sign up and participate. But still I always recommend a stovepipe thermometer if possible. And a flue probe thermometer is probably your most accurate and quick form of temperature monitoring available. A non starter with a insert though, most can only measure face temps or if you're lucky stovetop temps.

You are right though. No amount of thermometers is going to guarantee the operator doesn't smoulder their fire regardless.

But despite being a woodburning nutbar myself, I still love my thermometers. I'm considering a remote digital readout one for my insert, or possibly going with a wifi and datalogger setup like another member here has done. I'm just fascinated by all aspects of it, the thermometers are just another tool in the bag. I know I could run just fine without them, but I feel they help me edge towards even greater efficiency and safety. There are so many variables in wood burning that once you start to consider all or even many of them, wood, weather, temps, size of load, desired heat, length of burn, etc, etc. You can really tailor your burning a lot more than if you're just chucking wood in a stove. That's when woodburning crosses over into something more than just simply heat. For me at-least.
 
Haha, trust me, I get it.

At work, I can remotely monitor hvac burner egts, rack suction pressures, every case temp etc. all remotely. For multiple locations. It's great when you are the on call guy, and someone calls in a rack/hvac alarm. You know, thedo I have to leave the house at 2 AM or can it wait until morning thing.

I also used to service a type of wood fired bakery oven, and I still service gas bakery equipment. Lots of legacy stuff. I tell the new guys that the old equipment will tell you what's wrong, you just have to know what to look for.
 
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Thanks guys. I'll get an ir gun to read the liner temps to gauge where I'm at. And also test the accuracy of the thermometer.
Is this is for the Regency 1200 insert? If so, it may not have been overfired, just close and a bit exciting.

Could you go into your account settings -> Signature and add your insert to the signature area? That way it will show up in all postings and will help avoid some confusion.