Quadrafire 7100

[jsimonson2006]

I am new to this .. just moved into our new home excited to start using are quadrafire 7100 ...
any pointers to look for with this unit

attached is a photo of the design we came up with

how do i add the photo i can not get it to insert from my computer

 

[Grisu]

how do i add the photo i can not get it to insert from my computer

Next to "Post reply" is a button "Upload a file". Click on it, select the image on your computer and it should upload to the server.

 

[jsimonson2006]

Well here is our first fire of our 7100 about a month ago ...
we love how it came out ..
I am hoping that this was a good investment any pointers on this unit ...

 

[begreen]

I can see why you like it. That's a beautiful job. Nice fire too.

 

[jabram]

Congrats on the new 7100, you will enjoy it for many years. We installed one in a new addition back in 2007 and have really enjoyed the wonderful heat and nice looks of the unit. One tip I might throw out, when you are starting a new fire with no warm coals, leave the door cracked about 1/2" the first 30 minutes or so, the fire will start much quicker with all that extra air being drawn between the doors. We have burned about 2 cords/year for the last seven years, it's worked great. Here is a link with photos that I posted after the installation in 2007.

https://www.hearth.com/talk/threads/new-quadra-fire-7100.23788/

 

[jsimonson2006]

jabram your fireplace setup looks amazing i like the firewood rack where did u buy that at ?

I have a question for you I have been burning for a month now and somedays i can get the house to 75 downstairs and maybe 70 up stairs that is with the fireplace wide open ... and it is 20F outside... am i doing something wrong people keep telling me with this unit on the first floor the upstaris should get 80 and downstaris to hot to even want to be down there ... any suggestions or are all the people telling me are they blowing smoke .... our house is a brand new construction house with a wide open down stairs floor plan ... upstairs 4 bedrooms ... house around 2300 sqft...
any buddy elses can chime in with pointers ...

we spent a lot of money on this unit and i want to prove it to the wife it was not a waste of money ...

 

[Grisu]

that is with the fireplace wide open

What do you mean with "wide open"? Are you not closing the doors or is air control all the way open? In both cases, you are sending most of the heat up the flue. Once you have a good fire going, you want close the doors and then reduce air in stages, maybe a quarter each time. Close until the flames slow down, then wait a few minutes for the fire to pick up again, then close some more etc. You should see how the flames start moving to the top of the firebox and appear to come out of the burn tubes there. With good draft and dry wood the air should be all the way closed or close to it at the end. That will increase the overall temperature of the fireplace and give you a higher heat output while reducing the amount of fuel you are burning.

 

[jsimonson2006]

hello Grisu...
By wideopen i mean the draft lever i have all the way to the right with the outside air open.. after i have the wood catching fire after 15 minutes i close the door and then move the draft lever alittle to the left it is 3/4 open at that point and just let it burn till it needs to be loaded again .. and when i reload it i rake the coal to the front and load from the back to the front east/west...i have a really good draft but i feel that there is more going up then outsometimes... our wood supply is dry... and stack a year two already before we started using it ...

 

[Grisu]

Reduce the air more. With it 3/4 open you are still sending most of the heat up the chimney, especially with good draft. Do you have a way to measure the temperature of the fireplace?

 

[begreen]

It's unfortunate that the Quad 7100 docs are not clear on this. As a matter of fact they simply state more air, hotter fire. Try the method that Grisu has suggested and see if you don't get more heat and longer burn times. Is your 7100 ducted? If so put a thermometer at the output grille and measure the temperature there.

 

[jsimonson2006]

i currently do not have a way to measure the heat on the fireplace ... looking at getting a thermostat to put on the face of the firebox ... one of those magnet ones... or maybe behind the face grill on top where the air blows out of....

 

[begreen]

Yes, it's a challenge. I would try putting a magnetic stove top thermometer centered on the face, directly above the doors.

 

[jsimonson2006]

begreen ty i will give it a try ...

what is the best way to run this unit with loading wood the north south way or the east west

 

[begreen]

The fireplace is designed for mostly E/W loading. N/S would require cutting wood shorter (14"?).

 

[jabram]

jabram your fireplace setup looks amazing i like the firewood rack where did u buy that at ?

I have a question for you I have been burning for a month now and somedays i can get the house to 75 downstairs and maybe 70 up stairs that is with the fireplace wide open ... and it is 20F outside... am i doing something wrong people keep telling me with this unit on the first floor the upstaris should get 80 and downstaris to hot to even want to be down there ... any suggestions or are all the people telling me are they blowing smoke .... our house is a brand new construction house with a wide open down stairs floor plan ... upstairs 4 bedrooms ... house around 2300 sqft...
any buddy elses can chime in with pointers ...

we spent a lot of money on this unit and i want to prove it to the wife it was not a waste of money ...

I purchased that firewood carrier many years ago from a local dealer and don't remember the brand, sorry. The past few years I begin using a Vermont Wood Cart. I just load it at the stacks in the back yard and roll it into the living room, park it beside the fireplace. A cart load of wood will last about 3 days. The cart I have is no longer made, they have modified the design by adding a platform, not sure how useful that would be.
Our home is 1 1/2 story with about 2300 sq ft downstairs & about 700 sq ft upstairs. The 7100 is located on the east end of our house but keeps the downstairs very comfortable. We have no heated ducted work leaving the unit. The wall thermostat reads 70-75F most of the time. I don't have a thermometer on the unit but when its running hot you can't stand closer than about 5 feet. We burn mostly dry oak & hickory. An ice storm ripped up our hardwood trees about 5 years ago and I have been burning standing dead hardwoods ever since. I keep about a 2 year supply split and stacked.
I run the unit with the damper about 50%, usually with a load of 3-4 medium splits. I cut my wood in 18"-20" lengths. From reading your description I really don't know how to advise you. Actually from the room temp you describe sounds like the 7100 is furnishing plenty of heat for your home, why would you need more that low to mid 70's downstairs. Your in a colder climate than I, that will have some effect as well. Like I said, we've been very pleased with our 7100, we run it pretty much continuously from mid-Oct into March. Best of luck!