Need help circulating air with an enviro boston 1700

[Erinu2025]

Hi

I justhad this enviro Boston 1700 installed on Saturday. My house is a ranch pole barn build out. It’s 2000sq GT and this wood stove is supposed to heat 3000 sq ft this is the reason we went with the larger one. I was told it should be able to heat my full house as my only heat source. My house does have vaulted 18 foot ceilings in the great room area. Basically my house is just one giant great room wide open there is a hallway that is in the pics it’s down the side of the kitchen in the hallway there is a bedroom and 2 bathrooms. There is another bedroom on the other side of the house but we keep the door closed to that room. I’m very disappointed right now as we have not been able to get the house warm at all. the highest we have been able to get it is 67 near the kitchen area and 64 on the other end of the house and 50 in the bedroom that was during the day yesterday and it was in the low 50’s out over night it was in the mid 30’s and the heat in the house dropped down to 62 in the kitchen area, 59-60 on the other side of the house and 55 in the bedroom. The ceiling fans in my house are about 8 feet lower than the ceiling height and do not operate all the time as I am off grid. I need an option to move heat around the can be plugged in. The fireplace is by the kitchen on the orange wall. I have a box fan I layer pointing up towards the ceiling to try and move some hot air don’t know if it’s working at all. We are burning red maple and I have the blowers on high with the air control basically all the way open if I close it down it gets colder.

Thanks for any
I found some fan options one mounts on a doorway corner the other two are floor or wall mount air circulation fans not sure if these will help at all or what the right placement would be. My house is a little different as I don’t have many doorways. The ceilings in the the bedrooms and bathrooms is 12 feet high Sheetrock non vaulted.

 

[rwhite]

I would never trust the sqft heating ability that is claimed. But even if it is close its sqft, not cuft. It appears your trying to heat the equivalent of 2-3 homes with those open ceilings. Being off grid is a problem as well. At this point your biggest gains will be getting the ceiling sheetrocked and insulated.

 

[kborndale]

Put a fan on the floor of the coldest room blowing towards the stove to start a loop. Easier to blow the dense cold air to the stove, and hot air will replace the cold air that is blown out.

 

[Mech e]

You shouldn't have to be running the stove with the air control wide open all the time. If you are having to do that to keep the stove hot, I think your wood is a contributing factor here.

 

[weatherguy]

Tell us how you're loading and a typical burn and what's your stoves temp?

 

[begreen]

This is typical for a new stove owner. We hear this complaint frequently. Please take this advice as helpful. Don't blame the tool, it's the operator that needs some tweaking. You have a very good stove, but it will take a little time to get used to running it well.

Peaked ceilings are notorious heat pockets. They must have some way of moving the air back down. Typically this is done with ceiling fans. Get up on those trusses and measure the temp at the peak of the roof. I think you will find it is warm and toasty up there. As others have noted, the house cubic footage is high. While the stove may heat a 3000 sq ft home with 8' ceilings in Maryland, that doesn't mean it will do the same in Quebec. As noted, the vaulted ceiling adds a lot more volume to be heated.

You definitely don't want to run the stove with the air wide open. If that is the only way the fire will burn then the wood is not fully seasoned. Burning with the air wide open does not make the stove get a lot hotter. Instead it sends much of the heat up the flue liner, which could shorten its life. Closing down the air once the fire is burning well creates a vacuum in the firebox. The draft then sucks air from the secondary tubes over the fire which mixes with the unburnt gases coming off the wood. As it burns these gases it dramatically raises the firebox temperature which puts more heat into the home. With proper draft and good, dry wood, you should be able to run the stove with the air closed 50 to 80% closed. For an illustration of how the air control affects stove temp, see this thread.

Starting a fire and running an EPA stove

Questions about starting a fire and avoiding a runaway stove come up so frequently I decided to document starting our stove. This is a Pacific Energy Alderlea T6 with about a 3 cu ft firebox. The stove is connected to a straight-up, 20' interior flue. The outside ambient temperature is 34ºF. The...

www.hearth.com

There doesn't appear to be a lot of wood in the firebox. Have you burned any full loads yet?

Was a block-off plate added above the insert to seal off the damper area?

 

[tadmaz]

Use your real primary heat source for now, leave the thermostat at 66.

 

[Erinu2025]

Tell us how you're loading and a typical burn and what's your stoves temp?

We place 3-4 logs at a time crossed over each other. We just got a stove thermometer and it is saying in the 200’s for some reason we can’t get a real good roaring fire going in it. Not sure what we are doing wrong. This is our first time with a wood stove so we are beginners

 

[Erinu2025]

This is typical for a new stove owner. We hear this complaint frequently. Please take this advice as helpful. Don't blame the tool, it's the operator that needs some tweaking. You have a very good stove, but it will take a little time to get used to running it well.

Peaked ceilings are notorious heat pockets. They must have some way of moving the air back down. Typically this is done with ceiling fans. Get up on those trusses and measure the temp at the peak of the roof. I think you will find it is warm and toasty up there. As others have noted, the house cubic footage is high. While the stove may heat a 3000 sq ft home with 8' ceilings in Maryland, that doesn't mean it will do the same in Quebec. As noted, the vaulted ceiling adds a lot more volume to be heated.

You definitely don't want to run the stove with the air wide open. If that is the only way the fire will burn then the wood is not fully seasoned. Burning with the air wide open does not make the stove get a lot hotter. Instead it sends much of the heat up the flue liner, which could shorten its life. Closing down the air once the fire is burning well creates a vacuum in the firebox. The draft then sucks air from the secondary tubes over the fire which mixes with the unburnt gases coming off the wood. As it burns these gases it dramatically raises the firebox temperature which puts more heat into the home. With proper draft and good, dry wood, you should be able to run the stove with the air closed 50 to 80% closed. For an illustration of how the air control affects stove temp, see this thread.

Starting a fire and running an EPA stove

Questions about starting a fire and avoiding a runaway stove come up so frequently I decided to document starting our stove. This is a Pacific Energy Alderlea T6 with about a 3 cu ft firebox. The stove is connected to a straight-up, 20' interior flue. The outside ambient temperature is 34ºF. The...

www.hearth.com

There doesn't appear to be a lot of wood in the firebox. Have you burned any full loads yet?

Was a block-off plate added above the insert to seal off the damper area?

Definitely not blaming the stove. I read a lot before we made the purchase and had to look all over to get this brand and model stove. I am a beginner and know it will take some time to figure it out. I live reading all the replies and posts from others to get advice and it is all welcomed. I have purchased a stove magnetic thermometer but know they are not always accurate so we also ordered a digital heat thermometer to check the air in the vaulted parts of the ceiling. I am looking into the best fans to circulate the air around to all the rooms. While figuring out if I need to replace my propane free standing fireplace with a wood freestanding on the opposite side of the house. Propane is expensive and we own over 100 acres so we have tons of free wood.

 

[begreen]

More wood and turning down the air once the fire is burning well should help.

Was a block-off plate installed?

 

[DuaeGuttae]

Beautiful insert. I’ll just repeat Begreen’s advice. Take advantage of the large firebox. Load more wood, and close down the air control in stages. Our Kodiak cruises for hours fully closed.

If closing the air snuffs the fire, your wood probably has too much moisture. Try finding compressed wood blocks at a place like Tractor Supply Company, load on coals, and see if it burns hotter.

There was a thread earlier this year that I thought might be helpful to you that I’ve linked below. The poster has a smaller insert, but there’s still good information and references to other helpful threads.

New to Wood Burning and Overwhelmed

I keep mine on the stove top of my insert. Easy to read there, maybe a bit higher reading than on the front. Different insert. Many inserts have convective tops which will read much cooler.

www.hearth.com

Do you have plans to insulate and sheetrock the ceilings? We have high ceilings in our home, and heat does get trapped up there. We use ceiling fans on low in reverse. I also have a fan like the Lasko circulator that you linked. We use it to blow cool air along the floor, but I just turned it on pointed at the ceiling to see if it made things drafty. It may be because I’m not in a huge room, but having the fan on makes me feel a bit cool because it moves too much air down my walls. You need something that can get air off the ceiling but isn’t so powerful that you feel drafts. (Now maybe if the air on my ceiling was significantly warmer, it wouldn’t be a problem.)

It will be interesting to see what temperature readings are on your ceilings. If you aren’t managing to build big enough, hot enough fires, they may not be as hot as you’d think. What is your experience with that box fan pointing up? Do you feel heat move, or is it just cold air blowing down the walls?

 

[Erinu2025]

When do you remove them and how much do you remove? I have so many coals in the firebox that it’s basically half way up the fire bricks. We take some ash out everyday but afraid to take to much out. The installer said to remove ash every few days and only a scoop or two. How is that possible? I feel like I have so much coals and ash that if I put 2-3 pieces of wood it’s above the fire bricks and touching the top of the tubes. I am also not getting good burn times but still trying to do research and figure it out more.

 

[Erinu2025]

Beautiful insert. I’ll just repeat Begreen’s advice. Take advantage of the large firebox. Load more wood, and close down the air control in stages. Our Kodiak cruises for hours fully closed.

If closing the air snuffs the fire, your wood probably has too much moisture. Try finding compressed wood blocks at a place like Tractor Supply Company, load on coals, and see if it burns hotter.

There was a thread earlier this year that I thought might be helpful to you that I’ve linked below. The poster has a smaller insert, but there’s still good information and references to other helpful threads.

New to Wood Burning and Overwhelmed

I keep mine on the stove top of my insert. Easy to read there, maybe a bit higher reading than on the front. Different insert. Many inserts have convective tops which will read much cooler.

www.hearth.com

Do you have plans to insulate and sheetrock the ceilings? We have high ceilings in our home, and heat does get trapped up there. We use ceiling fans on low in reverse. I also have a fan like the Lasko circulator that you linked. We use it to blow cool air along the floor, but I just turned it on pointed at the ceiling to see if it made things drafty. It may be because I’m not in a huge room, but having the fan on makes me feel a bit cool because it moves too much air down my walls. You need something that can get air off the ceiling but isn’t so powerful that you feel drafts. (Now maybe if the air on my ceiling was significantly warmer, it wouldn’t be a problem.)

It will be interesting to see what temperature readings are on your ceilings. If you aren’t managing to build big enough, hot enough fires, they may not be as hot as you’d think. What is your experience with that box fan pointing up? Do you feel heat move, or is it just cold air blowing down the walls?

We had planned to put bead board up along the insulation and keep the beams exposed. Out house is still a work in progress. I am waiting to get the temp gun to check the temps by the ceiling to see how to move the air from the ceilings down. I didn’t notice much from the box fan and my husband said he was going to kill himself on my contraption so he took it down. I’m still learning and trying to read as much as possible. I am not having food burn times or heat either. I have so many coals in my firebox and just don’t know how much to remove and how much to leave in. I’m going to order a moisture meter for the wood and I’m also going to try and get some dry wood or wood block as you have mentioned to see if it works better.

 

[rwhite]

We had planned to put bead board up along the insulation and keep the beams exposed. Out house is still a work in progress. I am waiting to get the temp gun to check the temps by the ceiling to see how to move the air from the ceilings down. I didn’t notice much from the box fan and my husband said he was going to kill himself on my contraption so he took it down. I’m still learning and trying to read as much as possible. I am not having food burn times or heat either. I have so many coals in my firebox and just don’t know how much to remove and how much to leave in. I’m going to order a moisture meter for the wood and I’m also going to try and get some dry wood or wood block as you have mentioned to see if it works better.

Ash or coals? Coals need to stay in the stove and burn down, ash needs removed. If you have a stove full of coals you are burning wet wood. Just shovel out the ash and leave about an 1" or so.

 

[Erinu2025]

Ash or coals? Coals need to stay in the stove and burn down, ash needs removed. If you have a stove full of coals you are burning wet wood. Just shovel out the ash and leave about an 1" or so.

Thanks! It’s basically all coals. I just purchased a wood moisture meter to check the wood. I’m going to try and go to the store and buy a bag of wood from the supermarket or Lowe’s some people recommend trying that. I am also assuming that is why my burn times are short and not very hot.

 

[john26]

Icic....i didnt know they were still making new stoves.

Thanks! It’s basically all coals. I just prefer a wood moisture meter to check the wood. I’m going to try and go to the store and buy a bag of wood from the supermarket or Lowe’s some people recommend trying that. I am also assuming that is why my burn times are short and not very hot.

I would try bio blocks or a pressed wood product most of the bundled firewood around here especially super markets and gas stations maybe dry but not seasoned

 

[shortys7777]

Mix in some pallet wood. Burns great and its free all over the place. Only takes 5 minutes or so to cut it up.

 

[Erinu2025]

Mix in some pallet wood. Burns great and its free all over the place. Only takes 5 minutes or so to cut it up.

They charge for pallets near me.

 

[Erinu2025]

I would try bio blocks or a pressed wood product most of the bundled firewood around here especially super markets and gas stations maybe dry but not seasoned

What is the difference between dry or seasoned and dry?

 

[shortys7777]

You should start splitting and stacking wood now that way you are good to go in the fall.

 

[john26]

What is the difference between dry or seasoned and dry?

some of that wood that is bundle at gas stations super markets etc is "green wood" that has been dried in a kiln the center can still have moisture in it depending on the temp of the kiln and how long it was in there. Around here the stuff shrink wrapped at the gas stations are the worst the box stores tend to have soft wood seems to be dry but most of this stuff is intended for fireplace use.

 

[begreen]

When do you remove them and how much do you remove? I have so many coals in the firebox that it’s basically half way up the fire bricks. We take some ash out everyday but afraid to take to much out. The installer said to remove ash every few days and only a scoop or two. How is that possible? I feel like I have so much coals and ash that if I put 2-3 pieces of wood it’s above the fire bricks and touching the top of the tubes. I am also not getting good burn times but still trying to do research and figure it out more.

That also can be a sign of poorly seasoned wood. To burn down the coals, open the air about 50% and put a couple of skinny (2-3") sticks on top of the coals. Let them burn down for an hour or so.

They charge for pallets near me.

Ask around, there are lots of places that get shipments on pallets and can't use them. Try nurseries, hardware stores, etc. Not just the big box places. Also, scout out construction sites and see if you can get clean 2x4 and 2x6 cut offs.

 

[Erinu2025]

How do I get this large pile of coals to burn down so I can reload? I keep moving them around to reactive Fha dark ones in the back and they go to flame. I keep raking them forward and then trying to put them into a mound of the center I have the air open all the way. This is good dry seasoned wood that we finally got from a friends dad so it’s burning great and I’m able to finally start seeing temp over 300-400. Just need to know how to get the coals to burn down faster.

 

[kborndale]

That pile of coals is still producing some considerable heat.

 

[Erinu2025]

That pile of coals is still producing some considerable heat.

It’s down to 250 now.