oldspark said:
Some stove have that in the owners manual and it is still fairly warm, have you seen all the posts from the people who start fires with the door open?
Sure. Lots of people start fires with the door open. Lots of people drive without wearing seatbelts too.
Point is this - you'll never have a fire caused by a door left open at the start of a burn if you don't leave the door open at the start of a burn.
This reminds me of a guy who was having an intractable issue with his car. Couldn't diagnose it for the life of him. I walked up to the car, after listening to the symptoms, and said, "aha, I know what your problem is." Guy says, excitedly, "oh what's that?" I say, "it's a Ford. Get yourself a Honda and this ----- won't happen anymore."
Point is this - a stove should not need to be jury rigged to get it to start burning, as it presents a fire risk. Stoves and ventilation systems should be designed and built with that at the forefront. Any manufacturer that instructed the use of the "cracked door" technique would, to me, warrant avoidance.
If you have to start every fire with the door open, then I'd suggest a different stack, a different stove, or both.
Regarding the OP's issue, holy canolee - scattershot approach works great on the 79 dodge with the tricky high tension problem, not so much on stoves.
You say that you bought the stove used?
It's been modified?
You're not sure of the mods?
4x8 whatsee-hoo-zee baffle HUH?
My advice is this - sell the stove to your brother with the advice that Frank Ivy wouldn't use it as an outdoor Maple Syrup boiler.
Go buy yourself a PE or other top-brand stove that doesn't say to jury rig the door to get it started.
Improve your vent pipe to triple wall (best way to go), and make sure that you have a tall enough stack.
Regarding your house, it sounds unhealthy. If it's that tight, you ought to leave a window open through the window, minimum. Better yet, put in an air exchange system.
Houses should have 4 or 5 complete air volume exchanges everyday.
Good luck.