Smell from cold pellet stove

[curt-in-mass]

Finished off odd bag of pellets,vacuumed out stove and threw in bag of new pellets and only fired up for short period of time...so havent used for few days and noticing a smell from stove and believe air coming down metal chimney and seeping back out into living area.Have shut fresh air inlet but not much can do about exhaust...is this a common featue/problem on pellet stoves where air seeps back in,today more because of periods of heavy rain....any thoughts and possible solution....using a Danson/pelpro Model# HHPP2BD...is a used stove and im new to burning pellets.....but wont know unless i ask...THANKS

 

[curt-in-mass]

HERES A PIC OF STOVE

 

[PJPellet]

Hi, I am new to pellet stoves too (Feb 2011 install). I'm not sure what kind of smell you are referring to but back in late spring when I finished burning for last season I had a smell for the first few humid and/ or rainy days. It went away about 2-3 weeks after I had finished the last burn. No smell since then.

 

[jtakeman]

Curt,

Hopefully you have a working CO detecter?

Please discribe the "metal chimney" and maybe snap some pictures. You should in no way be getting flue gasses back into the dwelling. I highly recommend you shut down the stove pronto until this is corrected!

 

[curt-in-mass]

Its not the smell i get from burning pellets and when hot...but is an after burn kinda smell....running stove through a burn now to see if maybe before when i fired up didnt let burn long enough and smoke smell remained....no idea

 

[curt-in-mass]

Metal chimney is all Insulated Simpson Duravent pipe and fittings made for pellet stoves....pipe runs up interior wall to about 6.5 feet {tall cielings} and out about 18 inches from exterior wall....inspected by our building inspector in our town and all passed installation requirements....and pipes and fittings all sealed with requires sealant.Have shut stove down and will see if odor returns...its not a light odor and can be bothersome...not same but sorta like how ashes smell after getting wet at house fire or along that idea....no water coming in here..already checked that...if common might block exhaust pipe till real cold sets in.And on fresh air inlet is a cover to prevent air gusts from blowing in that way.

 

[SmokeyTheBear]

"And on fresh air inlet is a cover to prevent air gusts from blowing in that way."

Are you saying you have an OAK installed?

What fans are in operation and how tight is your house in terms of drafts etc ... ?

 

[curt-in-mass]

PJPELLET, weve been in a humid and rainy spell for awhile now,possibly your on to it...but is a strong smell.

 

[curt-in-mass]

Inferno...yes an outside air supply...with cover designed to help prevent gusts from entering...and smell is coming in when stove is cold...no fans on in stove or in home and home was totally remodeled from top to bottom 5 years ago...is an old home late 1800s and there are a few drafts possibly...but think i would prefer a few"minor" air leaks

 

[curt-in-mass]

Should have wrote as smell not constant but stronger if raining etc...so thought rain forcing air off ground to come into exhaust?....Wheres Bill Nye the Science guy?...only kidding.

 

[SmokeyTheBear]

Inferno...yes an outside air supply...with cover designed to help prevent gusts from entering...and smell is coming in when stove is cold...no fans on in stove or in home and home was totally remodeled from top to bottom 5 years ago...is an old home late 1800s and there are a few drafts possibly...but think i would prefer a few"minor" air leaks

Have you checked your door gasket, the ash pan gasket, and the seal where your OAK run connects to the stove?

Here is where I was going with the request about how tight your house is and the fans, sometimes it is possible in a tight house to easily cause a negative pressure situation which reveres the normal flow of air in a pellet stove's exhaust system. It is even possible for smoke to enter the room the stove is in through things such as the air wash, heat exchanger tube scrapper rod holes, gaps caused by bad gaskets, and even the air intake. If smoke can get through so can smells.

These are all places to check.

 

[curt-in-mass]

Inferno...was just thinking..the few times we have used stove was cool mornings outside with windows open a tad at night, so used stove just to to take chill off,,,but lately been warm and wet and humid and have had a few windows half open upstairs....you think with windows open its sucking air back through exhaust??creating an air flow upstairs through home...that makes total sense to me.. and smell more evident with humidity..who needs Bill NYE...LOL

 

[SmokeyTheBear]

It is always in the airflow with a vented heating device that burns wood.

I'd check those gaskets etc... chances are something isn't closed or sealed the way it should be.

It is even possible that there is damp ash outside of the stove, it would only take a little bit to produce an odor. Funny thing about aromatic combustion byproducts, a very small amount can be detected by the human nose.

 

[curt-in-mass]

Greatly appreciate your responses...opened a window downstairs halfway..bet that will ease pressure on stove...will report back....Great forum!

 

[tjnamtiw]

Cold damp air outside (heavy) and warmer, less humid air inside (lighter) = downward flow of air in chimney to try to equalize. Could also be changes in barometric pressure inside and outside. It occasionally happens to me and, with my Quads, there is no such thing as a sealed system.

 

[smalltown]

I get that occasional "ashy" fire odor when the stove is shut off. I always thought it was the outside air kit.
If you have your OAK blocked it must be outside air migrating backward into the stove through your exhaust pipe and dragging some stale fire pot smell into the room.

Mine does it so rarely that I never thought it was much of an issue, but I know it when it happens!

 

[curt-in-mass]

Dont seem to have smell this morning..windows closed...guess with windows open upstairs was creating enough pull to pull air back through stove....i like easy fixes!