Progress Hybrid Catalyst Condition

[bsw]

In January 2024 I installed a new Progress Hybrid and burned pretty solid for about three months. The unit performed well for the majority of the season but right at the end I started getting some unpleasant odors coming out from under the top cooking plate. I figured it was a bad gasket and didn't give it a whole lot of thought but I did contact Woodstock over the summer and they recommended I clean the catalyst and see if it solved the problem.

I put off the cleaning until late October and when I finally got around to removing the catalyst I realized that it had some moderate warping that I would consider excessive. I sent an email to Woodstock two weeks ago with some pictures and haven't heard anything back. I feel like I followed the burning directions provided with the stove as well as anyone could be expected to and ran every burn with a stovepipe and stovetop thermometer. I followed the temperatures pretty closely for cat engagement and am nearly certain it never spent any significant time in the danger zones and was engaged around 300 on the stovepipe consistently. My firewood is acceptable quality - mostly 2 year old mixed maples with random cherry, poplar, and oak thrown in. This isn't my first wood stove but it is my first catalyst stove.

My questions are: What does your catalyst look like after some use? I'm sure some warping is to be expected but I feel like there are actual gaps around mine which may be contributing to the odor issues I was experiencing last year. Regardless, I'm not impressed with the condition after three months of use.

Any thoughts on possible causes of warping?

 

[huauqui]

I would give Woodstock a call. I would guess they are swamped this time of year, and email may be taking a back seat. That does appear to be warped, but that much may be normal. I have no experience with the Progress hybrid.

Usually, I would think a warped cat would not cause a smoke smell in the house, but since they sent you directly to clean it as a possible cause, maybe it could contribute. Let us know what you come up with.

huauqui

 

[bsw]

It's not so much a smoke smell as it is a sour smelling odor that's kind of difficult to compare to anything else. I agree I'm going to have to call them though as I was able to get the cleaned catalyst back in the stove and it didn't solve the issue.

I had issues contacting them between October and November last year for several weeks during the ordering process and was eventually told they were basically overwhelmed.

 

[Todd]

Did you ever get an answer from Woodstock on this? That warping looks like it could allow smoke and gas to go around the cat. Is there supposed to be a gasket wrapped around that cat? Or is there a gasket behind it? Maybe the warping is causing the cat to not seat in the exhaust properly?

 

[bsw]

There's a rope gasket that runs around the catalyst between the metal lip and the stove body where it seats. I agree that the warping could very likely cause smoke to spill around the catalyst.

Unfortunately, solving the issue has taken a back seat to other obligations over the past several weeks. I was able to set up a little clamping jig on a fixture table and overbend it in the opposite direction to get it straight enough to replace in the stove and it seems to be functioning. I've had a few instances of the odor originally described but haven't investigated any further and haven't tried to call. To be honest, I'm fairly irritated they never responded to the e-mail and photos I sent at the beginning of November.

 

[stoveliker]

Even if the cat housing would allow for some gases to bypass the cat, you should still not smell anything in the home if the stove is properly sealed.