Pacific Energy Alderlea T5 Insert Baffle/Secondary Burn Problem

[Sreg4444]

Hello all,
Just bought and had installed a PE Alderlea insert about a month and a half ago and it has worked great so far except for about a week ago ....

Stupid me jammed a log into it and lifted the baffle up quite a bit on one side, so far that the opposite side almost fell off the rail that holds it up on the side.

Ever since then I am having trouble getting good secondary burn like I have in the past. No change in wood or anything. Wood has been C/S/S for 3 summers and measuring 15-18 percent on the MM after a fresh edge is split and exposed.

A good majority of the secondaries that I am able to achieve is in the way back of the baffle, not around any of the drilled holes but rather between the bottom of the baffle and the back rail that it looks like it is sitting on where the key to remove the baffle is.

Here are some pics to show what I am talking about....

I have yet to take the baffle out of the stove to see if I messed some sort of gasket up or something. I figured I would post here to see what everyone's opinion was before I remove it.

Thanks for any help,
Scott

 

[begreen]

The baffle should have a pin in the back that holds it in place. Let the fire go out and the stove cool down. Then take a flashlight to check how the baffle is sitting on the side rails and in the rear. Is it laying flat all the way around? Is it centered on the side rails? Is it all the way to the rear or did it get lifted off of the secondary supply tube in the center rear?

 

[Sreg4444]

Begreen,
Sorry for the late reply, been busy with the family for the 1st and such. I decided to just take the baffle out once the stove cooled as everything looked fine with it visually. Here is what I found .... The gasket was torn in half which explains why I was getting secondaries in the back of the stove. I was able to get a new one from my local dealer for $6.00 and installed it and everythings working good. (some minor secondaries in the back but all looks well)

I would like to try hogs gasket to see if it would hold up a little better in the future.

https://www.hearth.com/talk/threads...-custom-baffle-gasket-shes-cooking-now.23717/
https://www.hearth.com/econtent/index.php/forums/viewthread/40803/


The one that comes with the PE stoves are cheap IMO. I would like to of had two to try out doubled up to provide a better seal but the dealer only had one available. Will most end up trying hogs for the next burn season as I still have a few secondaries in the back. These replacement gaskets seem kind of expensive for a wear item ....

Thanks for the help

 

[begreen]

Yes the dealer price did seem a bit high for this simple gasket. I put them in doubled and have not had an issue so far.

 

[Starstuff]

The secondary air tube gasket and baffle insulation material on the PEs really leave much to be desired. Pretty disappointing considering how well the rest of the stove is made. I don't understand why PE skimped on this. Those components are both very important The Hog gasket works good, and I also replaced the baffle insulation with good, 1" thick kaowool easily found on eBay.