New Quadra-Fire Explorer 2 install, seems like too much fresh air and/or draft. Any options?

[echap]

I am new to woodstoves, although when I grew up, my parents had one. So total newb here.

My wife and I built a cabin in Northern Lower Michigan this year and installed a new Quadrafire Explorer 2. Luckily, I am not new to firewood as I have always tried to have awesome campfire wood, and as such have a bunch of Oak (seasoned for 4-5 years, stored indoors last 6 months) and Ash (seasoned a year and cut from standing dead due to Ash Bore’s. All the bark had fallen off, so it’s super clean wood). I have also been reading here for at least a year when I was planning, so I know good, dry wood is key which I believe that I have one hand. This stove will be our main heat source, but we do have electric baseboard to keep cabin from freezing as we live downstate and won’t be there except on the weekends and maybe week between Christmas and New Year’s.

Have had a few fires now as it’s been cooling off, but man this thing really burns with a ton of fresh air. I used a duravent pipe straight up thru roof, with a 30-degree offset to get behind the roof ridge. Total flue pipe is about 16-17’. The fire burns great, and the logs have completely burned down, but it seems like there is just a ton of fresh air even with the lever at the min. I have not really loaded it up as it’s not been that cold, but with this much fresh air, there is no way I can see that it would last thru the night.

Is this just how the EPA stoves work these days? Is there anyway to slow the burn down these days? I would really prefer a slower lazy fire, but the air coming in is like a blow torch, lol

I put a couple oak logs in there Friday night and they were gone in less than an hour. Maybe I just need larger splits, as these are probably about 3x4x16 or so, so not huge. The fire is nice to look at as there is a bunch of flame to see thru the glass, but I was really hoping to get an overnight burn on this. Any and all advice is appreciated. We still need to finish the trim and stove, but pic shows general install. Cabin is 24x36 and insulated to current code, was stick built 2x6 sidewalls, and R38 in ceiling.

Thanks,
Eric

Here are a few pics of install and almost final project. Here is the offset thru the trusses.

Exterior shot showing the flue, it's about 3' or so above the ridge.

Here was first fire


And an interior shot, all flue pipe is double wall.

Oh yeah and my woodshed, Oak is inside barn, didn't take a pic of it

 

[begreen]

Welcome. As you've found out, two small splits are not going to last very long. Thicker pieces of wood and a full stove will provide a much longer burn time. However, it's ok to build up familiarity with the stove first with smaller loads. With a full load of fuel it is important to cut back the air sooner than later. Don't wait 30 minutes before turning down the air. Start turning down the air as soon as the kindling catches the main wood on fire. Turn it down just enough to slowdown the fire, but not squelch the flames. Then let the fire regain strength and turn down the air some more until the flames get lazy. Repeat again closing the air all the way if possible. This creates a vacuum in the firebox which pulls unregulated air in through the secondary tube ports.

A probe, flue thermometer is super helpful for guidance and timing. You can start turning down the air when the flue temps reach about 400ºF. Condar sells a good one.

 

[echap]

Since I installed double wall pipe inside, does a magnetic thermometer work ok, or should I install the drill a ole in the fluepipe type like Condar FlueGard Thermometer

 

[begreen]

Yes, double-wall stove pipe requires a probe thermometer with a hole drilled like the Condar Fluegard. Read the directions first. You actually drill the probe hole first through both layers of the pipe, then a slightly larger one for the probe collar.

 

[Highbeam]

It's really easy to install the probe meter.

I'm a little weirded out by the decision to put those bends in the class A but I suppose you didn't want to go out through the ridge?

 

[Ludlow]

If the two smallish splits are truly dry, yes they will go fast. Try mixing in a less dry split with the other two dry ones.
A ridge flashing would have worked great with those trusses. No need to offset.

 

[echap]

yeah, I had to offset the ridge as it is a steel roof and the ridge it vented, so it wouldn't work. Why does that "weird you out". Seems to have awesome draft and I spoke to an engineer at Duravent prior to doing this. And I think I figured out my extreme air flow issue. It seems that my ACC control was locked open. Hopefully the next fire I have will be more to what I was expecting.

 

[Ludlow]

Shouldn't the ACC have clicked back off if it worked right?

 

[echap]

yeah, the owners manual directions are somewhat confusing in the (broken link removed) they read:
"This function is performed by pushing the control all the way back until it stops and then pulling forward to the front of the appliance until it stops. This activates the ACC system and opens the front air channel and allows air to enter the front of the appliance for approximately 25 minutes " which, to me is opposite of what I think it should say. To me "push" mean to push it into the stove, and "pull" means to pull it away from the stove. On page 7 is shows a pic with that control pushed "in" and a note saying "high" and another pic showing pulling it out for low.
I then read in another part of the manual that by pushing it in, then pulling it out, which is what I did, locks it open. I will check it out the next time I get to the cabin and make sure I am doing it correctly. I believe I had it backwards, and locked it open, instead of setting the timer. I guess it's all part of learning this. I have only had a couple of small fires to cure the paint at this point, so still lot's to learn.

As far as wet wood as mentioned above, I really don't have any that's not very well dried. Maybe I can pick some stuff up from the ground, but I thought I wanted it to be as well seasoned and dry as possible. My campfire wood supply is well seasoned and I always had way more than I needed as I was planning on a wood stove when we built the cabin.

 

[Ludlow]

I didnt mean wet wood. Maybe a split that has been live cut and seasoned a year versus the nearly kiln dried stuff you are privileged to have now. Standing dead and then seasoned a year is pretty darned dry. You can cut and burn standing dead immediately if it didn't punk yet.

 

[echap]

ah OK, I see. I will be tinkering more as it cools off.