Should I have a pipe damper?

[mfglickman]

We have a fireview 201 and it's very simple. The cat/bypass knob is on the top right rear corner and the air adjuster is a slider on the door - no numbers you just look at how open or closed it is and judge that way.

Been reading the windy night threads today and folks talking about pipe dampers and shutting down draft completely. I can't do that with this stove unless I add a pipe damper...in my setup it would have to be right at the t.

So do I need one? Or so I not have to worry about my 400 stovetop, air and cat closed down, good sized coals taking off on me in the middle of the windy night?

 

[BrowningBAR]

We have a fireview 201 and it's very simple. The cat/bypass knob is on the top right rear corner and the air adjuster is a slider on the door - no numbers you just look at how open or closed it is and judge that way.

Been reading the windy night threads today and folks talking about pipe dampers and shutting down draft completely. I can't do that with this stove unless I add a pipe damper...in my setup it would have to be right at the t.

So do I need one? Or so I not have to worry about my 400 stovetop, air and cat closed down, good sized coals taking off on me in the middle of the windy night?

They are cheap to buy and easy to install. No harm in having one. I have one on the Heritage and I had on on the Vigilant. I use the one on the Heritage on nearly every burn. I would use the damper on the Vigilant every once in a while.

On the Cat VC stoves I have not felt the need for one yet.

If you have a strong draft, the dampers are a minor investment and offer you a little bit of insurance and a piece of mind when operating most EPA stoves... Unless it's a Hearthstone... Then you should seriously consider one in my experience.

 

[jdonna]

We have a fireview 201 and it's very simple. The cat/bypass knob is on the top right rear corner and the air adjuster is a slider on the door - no numbers you just look at how open or closed it is and judge that way.

Been reading the windy night threads today and folks talking about pipe dampers and shutting down draft completely. I can't do that with this stove unless I add a pipe damper...in my setup it would have to be right at the t.

So do I need one? Or so I not have to worry about my 400 stovetop, air and cat closed down, good sized coals taking off on me in the middle of the windy night?

Depends on what your stack temps are running at, chimney height and how well your system drafts. One big thing is that you do not want a constant stream and flames being sucked straight into the cat. If that is not happening and your stove top temps are within the woodstock specs, you should be fine.

Always a good measure to not load up for the night with a full box of wood on a huge pile of coals on a windy night, can be a recipe for an overfire situation unless you know your system well.

I have a turn key damper on my fireview as an insurance policy for high wind days and nights due to the tall interior stack that it is on, even with that, I have really good control when the cat is engaged without having to use the damper the majority of the time. About the only downside I have experienced is a shorter burn time and more frequent loadings when I get high winds.

 

[fishingpol]

I installed one to retain more heat in the stove due to tall interior chimney. It seemed even on a full primary air shut down, I still had a strong draft. It definitely helped, and I get more heat from the stove.

I haven't needed it for high winds yet. Maybe this weekend if weather predictions are correct. High wind warnings posted in N.E.

 

[rkshed]

I love this site.
Never occurred to me that the reason the Garrison was running so hot was the wind. It should have but I also just got into an older stack of wood. Had the inlet valves open only 1/4 turn and it was still running at 400.
I didn't buy any oil this year so it's all good.

 

[HollowHill]

You may want to talk to WS about it. I have and they recommended not getting one unless absolutely needed. My understanding is that they can contribute to creosote development even when open, due to changing the air flow.

 

[Defiant]

The addition of a butterfy or inline damper can help with overdrafting issues. I installed one on my cat stove and only use it in windy situations to keep the temps in the zone. My stove is piped into a 40' air cooled chimney system which draws quite well. If you choose to do this make sure you run the stove at the recommended temps or you will have a creo problem.

 

[Pallet Pete]

I put one on my jotul this morning because we are having to much draft ! Holy cow what a difference it is burning very slowly now and the flam is like nothing I have ever seen before. It slowed the. Fire right down and is keeping the chimney well under 800 right now. We are running at 700 and stove top of 450. I do not know how well it would work with a cat but it seems flames into the cat might not help it much.

Pete

 

[BrowningBAR]

You may want to talk to WS about it. I have and they recommended not getting one unless absolutely needed. My understanding is that they can contribute to creosote development even when open, due to changing the air flow.

This is true if you use the damper on a regular basis for many stoves. But, the OP is asking if he should install one for the rare occasion that winds create a strong draft and he loses some control over his stove temps. In this aspect, nothing wrong with a damper when used liked this.

 

[tcassavaugh]

i guess i'm just old scool. i've used a damper on every one of my stoves i've used through the years, all six of them.....before epa...after epa...cats, no cats and i've never had a problem with them. i probably started using them because that was the way to control a stove years ago when i was growing up. to me, it helps keep the heat in the stove instead of going up the pipe and help with extended burn during the night. yes, you can get creasote if you run it too slow....so you inspect and clean it more often. you get creasote if you burn green wood too. i've always thought that it was a small investment for added control and piece of mind. hardest part of the install was making sure you got the holes drilled properly and directly across from one another so it turned 360 degrees. now, they have a small section you can buy of a bout 6" of pipe with a damper in it so you don't have to drill it. kind a cool. not sure where you pick them up, but i've seen one in upstate n.y.
bottom line, don't have to have one, but it doesn't hurt if you use it right and inspect the pipe a little more often.

cass

 

[begreen]

mfglickman, a key damper never closes off the pipe completely. It is not a tight fit. There are holes in the damper to prevent complete closure. This is for good reason. If it closed the pipe off completely, you would have a room full of lethal smoke in short order. Do you need a damper? If the flue is on the short side, probably not. Can you install a damper? It needs to be at least 4-5" above the joint or it will bind when in the open position. But if the tee is connected to a flex liner, then the answer is no. Flex liner material is too thin.

 

[mfglickman]

mfglickman, a key damper never closes off the pipe completely. It is not a tight fit. There are holes in the damper to prevent complete closure. This is for good reason. If it closed the pipe off completely, you would have a room full of lethal smoke in short order. Do you need a damper? If the flue is on the short side, probably not. Can you install a damper? It needs to be at least 4-5" above the joint or it will bind when in the open position. But if the tee is connected to a flex liner, then the answer is no. Flex liner material is too thin.

That solves it then. I've got a short tee connected to a flex liner and 20 foot exterior chimney. The wind posts just got me thinkin that, short of a fire extinguisher I do not have an emergency brake on this stove. Not that it has ever given me cause to think I needed one - but I was a bit flipped out by those posts about burns on the decline suddenly taking off despite controls being shut down...

 

[Prof]

A pipe damper on a stove is like a seatbelt in a car---most of the time I don't use or need either, but when I need it I'm glad I have it. The only times I've had to use the pipe damper is when the wind gets up over 20 mph.

 

[begreen]

We've burned in winds gusting up to 50mph without a damper. The stove behaved well.