Not getting Secondary burn with EPA caddy

  • Active since 1995, Hearth.com is THE place on the internet for free information and advice about wood stoves, pellet stoves and other energy saving equipment.

    We strive to provide opinions, articles, discussions and history related to Hearth Products and in a more general sense, energy issues.

    We promote the EFFICIENT, RESPONSIBLE, CLEAN and SAFE use of all fuels, whether renewable or fossil.
That model Caddy (similar to my old model) had a two speed fan/limit control. I actually used the low tap for summer mode and it worked excellent! The other speed was determined by the heat load in my home. I had the higher blower speed kick in around 120 in the plenum and drop to summer (low) below the set temperature. If you keep the limit at 250, you'll burn a crap ton of wood if there's a call for heat. Lowering it to 150 or so allows the hot firebox to bounce off and close/open the damper. This allows for a hotter, longer burning fire. Otherwise, the damper remains open and the wood turns to coals.

The new Caddy's burn these coals to dust. The grate air allows for a good recovery of heat. I operated our old caddy for quite a bit. Keep a clean burning fire (seasoned wood) and it will heat like crazy.