Newbie - Are my Jotul Winterport insert heating expectations out of line?

[Gray Rock Farm]

I recently purchased a jotul winterport for my 1966 cape in metrowest Boston, MA. While the insert is on the small side, it was all that would fit inside my fireplace. My dealer assured me that I would be very happy with the heat output. The house is about 16 sq ft total. The fireplace is on an outside wall in the living room (12' x 14 ft' - and the room is open to the kitchen/dining area. Just to be clear, I am using the insert for supplemental heat only. As part of the install, I put in a new SS liner as well.

I have been burning for a few weeks now, and to be honest I am disappointed with the heat output. With a theromometer on the metal divider of the glass, the hottest temp I can get it about 380 deg - this is with well seasoned wood that my neighbor gave to me (he burns and said it was the best wood he has) after burning for about 5 hours with the air supply at 100%. Even with the circulation fan blowing, the insert just doesn't seem to warm the room all that much!

I am not sure if I am doing something wrong, or if my expectations are just too great. My neighbor has a low cost insert, and it seems his has a much bigger impact on heating his home.

I appreciate any thoughts you may have. I spent a lot of $$ on this baby!

 

[jbroich]

You're packing the firebox as much as you can?
Folks are gonna ask you if you installed a lower block-off plate and what kind of draft you're witnessing.

 

[Gray Rock Farm]

Yes - firebox is as full as I can get it.

Not sure what you mean by blocking plate? Is that the metal plate that closes off the flu outside of the ss liner that runs up the chimney? My dealer said that I did not need to install if I ran a liner all the way up to the top of the chimney.

Overall, drafting is excellent. When we used the fireplace, we always got a lot of smoke in the house. With the insert, I get none - it all gets sucked right up the chimney. Are there any other ways to gage draft?

 

[Gray Rock Farm]

BTW - house is 1600 sq ft - not 16 - whoops!

 

[woodgeek]

FYI, 100% air is not the highest heat setting. There is an optimum air level required for clean combustion (no smoldering). More air than that and the excess air cools the box. Once its going good, try seeing how far you can run the air down (in small steps separated by a few minutes) before you start getting bluish flames and smoke out your stack (too far). Just short of that point, you should get a lot more heat.

Shouldn't be too hard to heat 16 sq ft.

 

[Cearbhaill]

the hottest temp I can get it about 380 deg - this is with well seasoned wood that my neighbor gave to me (he burns and said it was the best wood he has) after burning for about 5 hours with the air supply at 100%.

All your heat is going up the chimney in that rush of air.
Once it gets going, close the air down.

 

[begreen]

The fire should not be burnt at wide open air settings. If that is required to get a good burn, the wood may not be fully seasoned. If you put a new split on a hot coal bed, how long before it is full aflame? Does it sizzle on the ends for a little bit before finally catching fire?

As for the flue, was the liner insulated? You are going to get the best heating out of the stove by having an insulated liner and an insulated block-off plate. Otherwise a good percent of the insert's heating capacity is heating up outdoors.

 

[jadm]

I have been burning for a few weeks now, and to be honest I am disappointed with the heat output. With a theromometer on the metal divider of the glass, the hottest temp I can get it about 380 deg -

I have the 550 Jotul and know from threads here to get an accurate temp. read you have to put the therm. in the opening right on top of the firebox where blower air comes out. Check out threads by Mike Wilson who has the 450 - I think there are even pictures in one of the threads. You will have to dig because I read them last winter in Jan. or Feb.

If you are getting 380* where you have the therm. now I imagine if you move the therm. you will find it is more like 600*. I ended up getting an IR therm. because it is easier for me to get a more accurate read. I use the magnetic one just for reference - ie. temps. are rising,holding or falling - a visual that I can see from across the room. When I need a more accurate read I then use the IR.

Be patient. ONce you get the hang of your insert you will be well pleased. I am still learning and on days that all goes smoothly it's a dream-beyond my expectations. On days that aren't smooth it is very frustrating but I always learn something new and am very grateful for all I read here.

Hang in there. :coolsmile:

 

[Gray Rock Farm]

Thanks everyone for your support. I'll try backing down the air supply and see how much improvement I can get.

How much difference does the blocking plate make? I can put one in, but my insert was so tight I would rather not pull it out if I don't have to.

-Gary

 

[JimmyMood]

I also have the Winterport, setup similarly with an uninsulated SS liner in an exterior chimney with no block off plate. My house is approximately the same size.

It was in the low 20's last night here, and my living room was around 73-74 until I went to bed. The upstairs hallway was about 70. I don' t think you have an unsolvable problem here, it is just something with the wood or burning technique. I run the air control at about the 1/2 way point for the best heat output on my setup. Maybe your neighbor can try loading and running the stove, see if he has any suggestions..

 

[jgoodnow]

I have a Jotul 450 Kennebec and I run my temps up to between 500 and 600 degrees before backing off on the air. This is with the thermometer on the top of the firebox in the Mike Wilson location. I like to get it to about 550 for every new fire or new load of wood before turning down the air. If I burn continuously I can keep the temps between 75 in the room with the Jotul and 65 in the most distant rooms. I lihave a 1600 sq. ft. colonial in suburban Boston, I don't have an open floor plan and I don't do anything special to move air around the house.

I think your wood is suspect despite what your neighbor says. The only way to know for sure if wood is dry and properly seasoned is to prepare it yourself. You could try some compressed sawdust logs such as SmartLogs, BioBricks, Enviro-Logs, or something similar. These are completely safe for burning in wood stoves. I always use one at the core of my fires. G.V. Moore Lumber in Ayer, Webster, Chelmsford, and Nashua, NH has SmartLogs. Grocery stores have Enviro-Logs which are larger but much more expensive. I would not put more than three logs into a fire at once.

I don't know what motivated you to install your insert but if you are trying to save money on fuel (as I am), then you ought to be at least as interested in the insulation and air sealing of your house as you are in your heating appliances. Do you have an idea of how well-insulated and airtight your house is? Between insulation, replacement windows, and burning wood for heat, I have cut my natural gas bill almost in half from two years ago.

 

[oconnor]

When I installed my C450, I had to learn to run the first fire of the day really hot to get my flue and stove warmed up. I run mine to 700-750 in the position descibed above (Mike Wilson location), then reload, get it hot again, tehn start to turn it down.

Looking at the Winterport manual, it will be tough to get a good read there, mostly 'cause it will be hard to see. I essentialy start every day with a fire of 12 or so 2-4 inch softwood splits. If it is dry wood, I can get 700 degrees in 15 mins. If it isn't, then I stall around 500. Because the first fire is the critical one for me to get a draft established, I've started splitting my spruce kindling from large splits 2 weeks in advance, and letting it dry inside the rest of the way, and I'm getting 18-25% on my meter now, vice 25-30 before.

On a side note, I do wish someone out there made a thermometer that we insert owners could use. I'll post an idea on the board to see if some of you have any ideas.

 

[JennyB]

Curious how things are going for you with your Winterport? I also installed a winterport this year and was somewhat disappointed but have become increasingly less so. Learning that good wood is important and can increase heat output significantly. Also have realized that my house is pretty drafty and have begun trying to stop some of the leaks between doors/windows which seems to be making a difference. Have block off plate but also may look at insulating SS liner in the future. Good luck.