My Setup, So Far (Suggestions?)

[WriteNoob]

O.K.

Here's what I have going, as of tonight. Changes are still happening, some minor, others a bit bigger. So far, things are working much better than I expected, being so new to the EPA stoves. The house, excepting the kitchen, bath, and laundry, is very evenly heated. Those rooms are 5-10* cooler. I'll just post the pics and comments, and you all can chime in with any suggestions, if you're willing.

First the stove (Drolet Baltic). Love this workhorse. I'm getting 7 hours, on straight pine, with the stove top at 500-600 for a few hours, then slowly coasting down to about 200, at reload, on a nice large bed of coals. The chimney, at least until the liner arrives, is about 22' (from stove top) of internal, clay lined, 7"x12". The 6" insulated liner should be hear within 10 days. The stove pipe is Selkirk double wall, about 6' from ST to thimble. Actually, I can't believe how well this thing drafts, being what it is. Even cold, I can feel and hear the draft, with an open stove door. No OAK, yet.



Just got the humidifier. We had two little ones, like you might use in a nursery, but they only seem to last year or two, and can't really keep up. This one's rated for twice my square footage, and has raised the relative humidity by six points, with fans moving the air out of the room, in the last few hours.


This little fan does wonders, getting the warm air into the farther reaches. Will need to drop another $15, to get one for the kitchen. Can hardly hear it run, on low, which does the job, nicely.


This curtain lets us shut the main stairwell, when we aren't upstairs. Temps up there drop about 15*, and we can warm the downstairs fast, if needed. We just open it, about a half hour before bed time.


Finally, the kitchen area. Its warm enough, for me, but the wife likes things a bit hotter. Going to get another fan, in hopes of evening things out. I think the 90* turn is causing the issue.


Well, that's about it. If I'm missing something, please feel free to clue me in, but I'm really happy with how things are going, up to now. Thanks to all who took the time to get me this far, over the last year. You folks are awesome.

Mike

 

[Bigg_Redd]

Looks like you're doing it right. Carry on.

 

[Cory S]

Looks good. One thing though (It doesn't hurt), you don't need a pipe damper with EPA stoves. The primary air control will choke down the airflow plenty, to keep the majority of the heat in the firebox.

 

[WriteNoob]

Looks good. One thing though (It doesn't hurt), you don't need a pipe damper with EPA stoves. The primary air control will choke down the airflow plenty, to keep the majority of the heat in the firebox.

Yea, I didn't figure I'd need it, in the end. But with the open top, masonry stack, I thought I'd be better safe, than sorry. Turns out, it was twenty-some bucks I didn't need to spend.

Sounds stupid, but we always had them, when I was a kid, so I like the look. As long as it doesn't adversely effect anything, after I install the liner, I'll probably keep it. And just as probable, never actually use it. ;-)

Sentimental I am.
Thanks for the suggestion, though.

 

[BobUrban]

I thought I'd be better safe, than sorry

No better words could be said when starting and maintaining a fire INSIDE your home. Not paranoia, but a solid respect and a "check it - double check it" plan is always a good practice no matter how seasoned a wood heat burner you are. In the event of an "oops!" moment that key damper may save your shorts from a little mess one day

If you leave the key wide open the only time I see it being an issue is when cleaning the pipe - just a PIA I would imagine.

You also may find an OAK unnecessary depending on how tight(or not so much) your home is. I have thought about adding one to my 30 but really don't think it would change anything at all. My home is rather drafty with not so great insulation at this point and a doggy door that opens and closes periodically throughout the day. Run the stove for a bit and see - may be an option you can forgo and in some way recoup the cost of the damper.

Beyond that I suggest some fire tools upgrade - at least something better than a poker/coal stirrer made of kiln dried pine.

 

[WriteNoob]

Beyond that I suggest some fire tools upgrade - at least something better than a poker/coal stirrer made of kiln dried pine.

Got a set coming. Hopefully, by the weekend, I'll have them. All the different things I went over, again and again, and I actually never thought of fire tools, until I was ready for that first burn.

Guess we can add dense, to sentimental.