New and some questions - <One year later...>

[cherryredcutie]

Hiya guys,

I am new to the forum and have some questions regarding my woodstove .

We're moved into our first house a couple of months ago and it has a woodstove installed. It was installed under an old chimney (we live in England, our house was built in the 1950's). The chimney is not lined, there's just a short pipe going up from the stove. We have made a fire a few times and it works fine, it's got an air supply at the bottom where you can collect the ash as well and there is a grate above that on which you place the wood, it also has 2 air supplies at the site at the top and glass doors. I have attached a pic of the stove and one for the chimney.

We now have the problem that when the stove is not on, cold air is coming down the chimney which makes the living room chillier than it should be. Is there anything I can do about it and if so, can you tell me what to do?

Your help would be very much appreciated!

Kind regards,
Anne

 

[woodconvert]

The best way to keep your living room from getting cold is to keep the fire lit!.

The cold can radiate from the stove and there isn't much you can do about it. Cold air sinks and your stove is on the bottom of the chimney. You can keep it from leaking out of your stove by checking all the gaskets (door, ash pan, etc.).

Your house was built in the 50's??. That's brand new by European standards isn't it?. I know a fella that lives on the Isle of Jersey and his house was built in the mid 1600's...sweet house too.

 

[cherryredcutie]

The best way to keep your living room from getting cold is to keep the fire lit!.

The cold can radiate from the stove and there isn't much you can do about it. Cold air sinks and your stove is on the bottom of the chimney. You can keep it from leaking out of your stove by checking all the gaskets (door, ash pan, etc.).

Your house was built in the 50's??. That's brand new by European standards isn't it?. I know a fella that lives on the Isle of Jersey and his house was built in the mid 1600's...sweet house too.

Hiya,

well, the stove is not the problem, the air comes from above the stove down the sites as the chimney is not closed off at the bottom, I can look right up the chimney if I stick my head next to the stove lol. Can I close the gap around the pipe somehow or does it need to stay open if I need my chimney sweeped?

Well, there are a lot of old houses in England lol, I am orginally from Germany so everything in England seems to be ancient compared to there .

 

[Todd]

Welome,
You say your chimney is not lined? Could be a dangerous situation if you happen to have a chimney fire. I would line it all the way to the top with a stainless steel liner the same size as the stove flue collar, this will give you better draft and stove performance. Then install a metal block off plate with insulation where the stove pipe starts into your chimney flue to keep the cold air out.

 

[woodconvert]

"sides as the chimney is not closed off at the bottom, I can look right up the chimney if I stick my head next to the stove"

Ah, gotcha. Yes, you will need an adapter plate that goes from your stove pipe to the chimney opening that will seal off the openings. Are there any chimney sweeps in your area??. They could inspect it and maybe help you out finding just what you need.

 

[Jags]

I think I would really start off with a block off plate. The attached explains better than I can.
https://www.hearth.com/econtent/index.php/articles/making_a_block_off_plate/

 

[cherryredcutie]

Hi Guys,

thanks a lot for all your helpful replies, I really appreciate it! I'll have a look where I can get that metal block of plate from and next year we might get a liner for the chimney when it has been swept.

Take care,
Anne

 

[webbie]

Cherry, here is advice on how to build a fireplace block off plate - although yours is not the same, this should give you an idea. You can also insulate the top of the plate with mineral wool.

https://www.hearth.com/econtent/index.php/articles/making_a_block_off_plate/

 

[Gooserider]

Your setup as you describe it does sound potentially dangerous. I certainly would want to have a blockoff plate around your stove pipe at a minimum, and think it would be wise to have a sweep evaluate your setup for what other repairs it might need. The ideal would be to do an insulated full liner to the top of the chimney, but at the very least you should try to get your setup sealed to the point where the only air entering or leaving the chimney is going through the stove itself. This will help the stove performance when burning and reduce your cold infiltration problem when not. (close all the air vents when the stove is not burning)

I don't know what code requirements are in the UK, but it sounds like what you have now would not be considered safe or legal in the US.

BTW, that stove looks like it might be designed more as a coal stove than a wood stove, if so you may want to try to track down a manual for it to see if there are differences in the way it is burned when using wood instead of coal.

Gooserider

 

[cherryredcutie]

Hi Gooserider,

thanks a lot for your reply. I have been reading a lot about woodstoves etc. during the last few days because I want to make sure that ours is safe to use, coz I don't wanna burn the house down. I will definately have the chimney and woodstove checked out by a sweeper at some point, I checked yell yesterday and found one quite close to us.

Any idea where I can find a manual for the stove?

Thanks!
Anne

 

[wg_bent]

I'd bet a good sweep could build the block off plate for you. When you call around to find a sweep, ask them about it.

 

[Gooserider]

Hi Gooserider,

thanks a lot for your reply. I have been reading a lot about woodstoves etc. during the last few days because I want to make sure that ours is safe to use, coz I don't wanna burn the house down. I will definately have the chimney and woodstove checked out by a sweeper at some point, I checked yell yesterday and found one quite close to us.

Any idea where I can find a manual for the stove?

Thanks!
Anne

No idea on where to find a manual, I would probably start by looking the stove over real carefully for any names or other info on it. There may be a data plate on the back that will tell you something. If you can find a name then see what Google turns up. If you can't find a good ID, then it's going to be a lot harder.

As to the safety issue, I would be concerned at least as much about the risks of CO poisoning from smoke coming back into your house through that open bottom chimney - some ways that seems more of a risk to me than fire. If you don't all ready have one, I would strongly reccomend purchasing a Carbon Monoxide detector as well as a smoke detector. (They also make combination units in the US, I don't know what's available in the UK) Even after you've had things checked over by the sweep, it is still a good idea to use detectors. (Most modern building codes require them)

Gooserider

 

[cherryredcutie]

No idea on where to find a manual, I would probably start by looking the stove over real carefully for any names or other info on it. There may be a data plate on the back that will tell you something. If you can find a name then see what Google turns up. If you can't find a good ID, then it's going to be a lot harder.

As to the safety issue, I would be concerned at least as much about the risks of CO poisoning from smoke coming back into your house through that open bottom chimney

Gooserider

Thanks for the info, I will check the stove later and see if I can find a name or sth. We have smoke detectors on all floors, I will have a look at a CO detectors as well, I was already thinking about getting one .

Take care,
Anne

 

[cherryredcutie]

Hi guys,

I have found out what kind of stove I have got It's a Villager and comes closest to the Chelsea Duo Multifuel Stove (I probably got an older model). I have been to the Villager website and they had some manuals to download which I am reading right now .

EDIT: Just e-mailed the manufacturer and they say it's an early Chelsea Mk1.

 

[begreen]

Hi guys,

I have found out what kind of stove I have got It's a Villager and comes closest to the Chelsea Duo Multifuel Stove (I probably got an older model). I have been to the Villager website and they had some manuals to download which I am reading right now .

EDIT: Just e-mailed the manufacturer and they say it's an early Chelsea Mk1.

Way to go, congratulations.

 

[cherryredcutie]

Mhhh maybe, well only the two left tubes are ours, the other ones belong to our neighbours but they don't have a fireplace as far as I know. It might be that the smoke just comes out of one tube, I have to check next time I light the stove up.

You were right by the way Gooserider, in the manual it tells you how to set up the stove for mainly woodburning, you can remove the grate so you have more room for the wood and close the primary airvents, but I would have to put some firestones at the bottom of the stove first. Thanks for the tip again!

Anne

 

[cherryredcutie]

So, I have read the manual and now I have found out that the baffle plate that goes at the top inside the stove is missing . Can someone tell me what the baffle plate is for? And do I need a new one?

Thanks,
Anne

 

[jqgs214]

You need a new one, the baffle redirects the path of the fire throught the stove taking it longer to exit the stove and threfore keeping the heat in the stove longer and give more of a chance to burn more cleanly. Its NECESSARY!!)

 

[cherryredcutie]

Thanks wxman, I will ask the manufacturer where I can get a replacement from .

 

[Gooserider]

Great, sounds like you are making good progress in learning more about your stove and how best to operate it safely and efficiently.

Now all you need to do is figure out just what is going on with your chimney and how best to fix it.

Gooserider

 

[cherryredcutie]

Great, sounds like you are making good progress in learning more about your stove and how best to operate it safely and efficiently.

Now all you need to do is figure out just what is going on with your chimney and how best to fix it.

Gooserider

Yes, and it's really fun . I have emailed Villagers and they say a replacement baffle will cost £19 plus VAT and they also gave me the name of a local stockist who is just up the road from where I live.

 

[Gooserider]

Great, sounds like you are making good progress in learning more about your stove and how best to operate it safely and efficiently.

Now all you need to do is figure out just what is going on with your chimney and how best to fix it.

Gooserider

Yes, and it's really fun . I have emailed Villagers and they say a replacement baffle will cost £19 plus VAT and they also gave me the name of a local stockist who is just up the road from where I live.

Sounds like a good deal, that seems a quite reasonable price for something like that. I know that a lot of baffles for US stoves are closer to $100, so even allowing for the exchange rate differences that sounds like a bargain.

Any word on finding a good chimney sweep?

Gooserider

 

[cherryredcutie]

Hiya,

yeah, I think that's quite a good prize, too! I have found a chimney sweep in the yellowpages, dunno if he is any good yet lol. I'll ask the fireplace shop if they can recommend me a good one in the area, I am sure they know some!

Take care,
Anne

 

[Hogwildz]

Anne,
Pardon me if it has already been touched upon. But are you sure the chimney is not lined? Is that a terracotta liner sticking out the top of the chimney?
Or do you mean it hasn't been relined with a stainless steel liner, but there is a terracotta liner? A block off plate is not something that can be bought pre made and ready to install. It will have to be fabricated out of some sheet metal (galvenized, steel, or stainless steel), and is hand made on site. Once you have that on and sealed correctly, that will stop much of the draft you are now experiencing. If there is in fact no liner at all, meaning just brick, block or stone and no terracotta, then you really should consider a s.s. liner in the near future. How tall is your chimney roughly? And how wide are the inside dimensions of the chimney?
Welcome btw.

 

[Gooserider]

Best I've been able to figure from the description, The stove goes straight up w/ what sounds like the equivalent of black stovepipe a short distance into a clay lined chimney that goes straight up, and is significantly bigger in cross section than the pipe. There is no blockoff plate of any sort, if you look alongside the pipe you can see daylight. I would say it's equivalent to a Direct Connect, but without the code required blockoff plate.

It appears the stove drafts OK when running, but there is some backdraft when it isn't. This worries me for the potential CO issues if it starts to backdraft before the fire is completely out...

Gooserider