Smoke from chimney smells acrid.

[nascarfango88]

Hello, I'm new to the forum or whatever you call it Anyway I have been noticing that the smoke coming from the chimney this year smells acrid almost like burning garbage. I have been burning a mixture of several years seasoned oak, cherry, and maple (sugar). Some of the maple I have been burning more recently has only been seasoned a year though but it seems to happen with any of the wood I have used so far. Once the stove and flue gets up to normal operating temperature the odor seems to stop. The chimney is steel double wall installed new last year and the stove is an old Englander 18TR pre-EPA. I cleaned the chimney in Sept. of this year and have burnt probably about a face cord and a half so far. I have not yet looked inside the chimney but I'm fairly certain there is no serious build up as I have been burning as hot as possible, but I will look soon to verify. Assuming the chimney and inside piping don't have any serious buildup which I will check soon, what could it be? Incomplete combustion, weather conditions as I noticed the smoke is staying low to the ground lately? Keep in mind the smell is outside not inside I guess I concerned about bothering the neighbors.

Thanks

Setup
Dura vent 9' straight through the roof - Small house
About 5' single wall black pipe to chimney
Englander 18TR pre-epa old

 

[peakbagger]

Generally acrid smoke is a good sign of incomplete combustion which leads to creosote buildup if sustained. If it only occurs at startup and goes away that typically is not of concern. I expect the outdoor temps in combination with relatively short chimney may be contributing to smoke staying low to the ground. If sustained, its also an indication that the stove is being idled with the air damper closed. Ideally you want to control the stove by limiting the amount of fuel but most folks prefer loading it up and cranking the air down.

 

[Corey]

Burning sugar maple has always had an 'acrid' smell to me...sort of like...well...burning sugar. Any chance to eliminate that from the stove burn diet and see if the smell goes away?

Sometimes oak has a bad smell too...almost seems to depend on what soil / where the tree was growing. Sometimes it seems you get into a tree which is a real 'stinker' and others not so bad.

 

[nascarfango88]

Generally acrid smoke is a good sign of incomplete combustion which leads to creosote buildup if sustained. If it only occurs at startup and goes away that typically is not of concern. I expect the outdoor temps in combination with relatively short chimney may be contributing to smoke staying low to the ground. If sustained, its also an indication that the stove is being idled with the air damper closed. Ideally you want to control the stove by limiting the amount of fuel but most folks prefer loading it up and cranking the air down.

Thanks for your input.