pleasant heart 2200 sf non catylist stove

[neksteve]

I have used wood stoves all my life but these new stoves burn so differently. I was told not to use a damper in my stove pipe. I already have one in it. I fired it up. roaring fire. stove pipe got nice and hot. the stove was just warm to the touch. even after closing the door and stoking it up. Wood is dry and plenty of heat except out of the stove itself. I tried the damper in the pipe the next time and gained more heat. Any one have any advice? the top is lines with a special liner, and has pipes for efficiency. would it heat better with out that?

 

[begreen]

An EPA stove runs differently for sure. It sounds like you were trying to burn the old way. Next fire try leaving the flue damper open. Start the fire and when it starts burning well, close down the air control in steps. Maybe about half each time. Close it down until the flames get lazy, but don't go out. Let the fire build up again for say 5 minutes, then close it down 50% more again or until the flames get lazy. Repeat until the air is all the way closed or the flames start to die out. This will induce secondary burning which should directly result in the stove top temps going up and the flue temps going down. You should get a nice light show from the secondary manifold as a visual confirmation. The sweet spot for a long burn is when the flame lazily waft over the wood and out of the secondary manifold.

 

[neksteve]

Thank you. As temps in Vermont go down, time to think wood.

 

[Woody Stover]

the top is lines with a special liner, and has pipes for efficiency. would it heat better with out that?

Definitely not. This assembly is the secondary manifold that begreen mentions above. It introduces oxygen into the top of the fire box to burn the smoke. If you are not seeing flames coming off the tubes, you aren't getting the heat that the stove is capable of producing.
If you are burning the stove as outlined above by begreen, the most common reason for no secondary combustion is that your wood is not dry enough. Wood doesn't dry very quickly unless it is split and stacked where the wind can blow through the stack. How long has this wood been split and stacked?

 

[Sprinter]

the top is lines with a special liner, and has pipes for efficiency. would it heat better with out that?

No. Those features are exactly what make the stove work well and efficiently. What's happening when you turn the air down is that a greater percentage of the air supply goes to the secondary tubes, so more combustion of the excess gasses and smoke can take place while less hot air escapes up the chimney. Begreen is right, the stove will heat up as you turn the air down to a stable condition. Most of the time I operate my stove at nearly fully down and get stove top temps 500-600F (YMMV)

Note that when your control is fully down, there is still air getting through. It's never fully off.

Flue dampers might be useful only when your draft is too great to otherwise control, but that's an unusual condition. It's unlikely that you need to (or should) use it at all.

Edit: Oops. Looks like Woody Stover and I were typing at the same time.

 

[neksteve]

Thank you all for the comments. I will just have to learn the new way of burning wood. So far i haven't had the need for all day fire as it is 30's nights 60's days. My wood is dry and cracked. I'm sure a few pieces that were sitting closer to the ground or the inside row are not fully dry but can be burned later. I have 4 cords now in my basement. I have used kindling and smaller split pieces so far. I guess with every thing new, there is a learning curve. I do like starting the fire. it takes off so easy. no smoke escapes.

 

[Sprinter]

My wood is dry and cracked. I'm sure a few pieces that were sitting closer to the ground or the inside row are not fully dry but can be burned later.

I would suggest that you go ahead and get a moisture meter for around $20. That way you will always know the state of your wood and don't have to guess. It's a lot more important with these stoves than with old ones. You have to split open a piece and probe on a fresh face. You're good to go with 20 - 25% (20 is ideal). Over that you'll need to supplement. Get back to us if you're over and we can help with workarounds.

 

[neksteve]

Any idea where to get a moisture meter for that cheap. online they seem to be all over $100

 

[Sprinter]

Any idea where to get a moisture meter for that cheap. online they seem to be all over $100

This is the one I use. It's been good for 1-1/2 years.
http://www.amazon.com/DUSIEC-Handheld-Digital-Moisture-Content/dp/B004KWAQAI/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1381418155&sr=8-2&keywords=moisture meter

Other choices are General brand from Home Depot, etc. or the one from Harbor Freight. No need for more than about $20. They all work the same. The two-pin type.

 

[neksteve]

awesome. already ordered. Thank you

 

[Sprinter]

awesome. already ordered. Thank you

Push the pins in with moderate force so that they go in at least a mm or two. These things seem to be pretty strong but I wouldn't push it too hard.

 

[neksteve]

THANKS YOU. BE INTERESTING SEE HOW WORKS ONCE I GET IT/

 

[USMC80]

thats a reliable meter, have the same one. Let us know what your readings are

 

[neksteve]

So I received my meter yesterday. Most readings ran 19-20/ a few heavier logs i knew weren't as dry by the feel were 30. This helps take the guess work out of knowing what pieces are ready. I did try the trick of closing it down, reopening the damper then closing it down again in steps. what a Hugh difference woke up to a 80 degree house. Course we still are upper 30's to 40 degrees outside. thank you all for the advice.

 

[Sprinter]

Excellent. Looks like you're all set. You'll continue to learn how to get the most out of your stove and wood supply. Have a warm winter.

 

[neksteve]

So I have another issue looking for advice on. I have a 2 story house. small 650 sf per floor and has a full basement. the stove is in the basement. the chimney is on one side of the house. that side stays 80 to 85 degree's. other side 60-70 degrees'. even in the basement like there is a wall half way and the temp drops. the basement is all open. I have fans going but the heat doesn't seem to go the other half. I leave the basement stairs open and tons of heat goes up the stair which again is same side as the stove. I have put a floor register over the stove. one half way in the kitchen. up stairs is not open concept. then a register up stairs above the stove side. the register in the center of the house actually is cold. i could feel cold being pulled down to the basement from it. I believe it pulls cold from the other side not allowing heat towards that way. any suggestions to get heat to go that way so it evens the heat through out the house better?

 

[begreen]

Do you have a box fan? If so, try this. Place the fan over the kitchen register blowing down on low speed. Close the cellar door so that a convective loop is formed.
Note this will only work if the kitchen register is large enough.

 

[neksteve]

Thank you. have tried. this. my registers are only 12" by 10" which maybe to small. thinking i may need to close the kitchen one and put in a bigger register on outside wall in living room.

 

[neksteve]

rough diagram of my floor plan. sorry failed art in school/

 

[neksteve]

Just an update. This stove did not keep my house warm when we hit below 10 degree's. I just purchased a us stove clayton wood furnace yesterday. in the process of hooking up all the plenum and heating ducts. will update in a few weeks how this works out.
Anyone have one? mine is going to be a stand alone not hooked to any oil furnace. plenum is 13" by 18" and i am going to reduce to a 8" round heat duct.

 

[oldspark]

An EPA stove runs differently for sure. It sounds like you were trying to burn the old way. Next fire try leaving the flue damper open. Start the fire and when it starts burning well, close down the air control in steps. Maybe about half each time. Close it down until the flames get lazy, but don't go out. Let the fire build up again for say 5 minutes, then close it down 50% more again or until the flames get lazy. Repeat until the air is all the way closed or the flames start to die out. This will induce secondary burning which should directly result in the stove top temps going up and the flue temps going down. You should get a nice light show from the secondary manifold as a visual confirmation. The sweet spot for a long burn is when the flame lazily waft over the wood and out of the secondary manifold.

BG, I would love to hear your theory about why my stove does not work that way, high flue temps no matter how I run it, am think about trying a scab piece of pipe to raise the flue 3 feet. I have blistering secondaries with the stove at a low temp which I think raises the flue temp I believe (flames wrapping around the baffle)
I asked in this thread because the OP problem is similar to mine.