Smoke leaking from the joints on the metal chimney.

[techieguy]

My wife and I had a new Blaze King Princess install this fall and it has been working great until this last week of so. When we try to start a fire the joints around the stove, chimney pipe and the two 45 bend are leaking smoke and the fire just doesn't want to take off. Yesterday I cleaned the inside of the stove throughly and popped the stove pipe loose to check the flu. I could only look up the chimney to the 45 bend, to me it look fine, I could see some little popcorn flakes aheard to the inside of the pipe but if wasn't coated in this creasote. I have a fresh air intake going though the hearth pad.
The weather has change quite a bit in the last week (cold front with some snow). Has the weather cause a build up of creasote above the roof line? Is my fresh air intake blocked? What is causing the stove to suddenly stop functioning?

Thanks in advance!

Charles

 

[techieguy]

Well I climbed up on the snowy roof to take a peek... The spark arester was plugged with fluffy creosote! I know the wood I'm burning is less than ideal (mostly Ponderosa Pine, but some White Oak and some Dougless Fir) How often does should the flu and spark arrestor need to be cleaned? I was under the impression that a cat stove would only need the flu clean once a year. Experts please chime in...


Thanks

Charles

 

[roac]

Experts please chime in...

Well definitely no expert here but here are some ideas. How dry or seasoned is the wood? Less than 20%? Did you burn some slick flyer's while in bypass mode lately? How small are the holes on your spark screen? It sounds like you did something different or the weather changed to affect the burn. Do you know the flue temps while the cat is engaged? Not a lot of help I know but maybe the bump will help.

 

[LLigetfa]

I was under the impression that a cat stove would only need the flu clean once a year.

A cat stove can burn more efficiently but is no substitute for dry wood. The operation of the cat isn't idiot proof either.

I'm not saying you're an idiot for burning wet wood.

 

[webbie]

A screen can also get plugged way before a chimney get's very dirty.
I suspect your screen is too small or else you are just going to have to check it every few weeks.

 

[techieguy]

Experts please chime in...

Well definitely no expert here but here are some ideas. How dry or seasoned is the wood? Less than 20%? Did you burn some slick flyer's while in bypass mode lately? How small are the holes on your spark screen? It sounds like you did something different or the weather changed to affect the burn. Do you know the flue temps while the cat is engaged? Not a lot of help I know but maybe the bump will help.

roac,
The wood is seasoned, I've checked the wood three or four different time since burning this winter and it all under 20% (mostly 10-15%) What has changed is my work schedule, normally I work day shift but I had to go to graveyard...so my wife has been tending to the stove so maybe she has been burning some slick printed paper while starting the stove??? The wire mesh for the spark arrestor is slightly less the 1/4"

Thanks for the input!

 

[techieguy]

I was under the impression that a cat stove would only need the flu clean once a year.

A cat stove can burn more efficiently but is no substitute for dry wood. The operation of the cat isn't idiot proof either.

I'm not saying you're an idiot for burning wet wood.

LLigetfa,
The wood is seasoned... I should have mentioned that. It just that Pine has a lot of pitch and doesn't burn as hot as Oak or Madrone. I'm just using the wood from the trees that I must cut down because they're dying or overpoppulated in that stand. The wood was bucked up all summer, then split in August... In late September it was moved into the wood shed and under the carport. I just check a piece of wood from the wood pile and it was still <20% after being resplit.

And hey...I've been called worse ;-)

 

[Backwoods Savage]

techieguy, with 1/4" or less on that screen I'd say that could be a constant problem. It will simply plug up fast.

 

[techieguy]

Backwoods,
In your opinion, should I pull the screen out or change to 1/2" screen? I assume that I should have a screen in to keep bird and such out of the chimney in the spring/summer.

 

[pyro68]

my advice would be to take the spark screen off while burning the stove, replace it in the spring. If you've had a run of warmer weather, burning the stove lower, and then it gets cold quickly you will often see creosote problems immediatly after. I'm guessing it's the screen though.

 

[Highbeam]

Stupid screens. I took mine out and have never been happier. Mine was clogging every couple of months despite good burning and dry wood. You can expect to regularly clean that screen long if you keep it. You're in southern OR so possibly wildfire country. Do check with the local enforcers to see if there is a law requiring that the screen be there. If not, then get rid of it. You don't need it for anything else. If a bird flies into your stove then the cat will get it! Also, the 1/4" holes are way too small. The regs are very specific about the size but as I recall they need to be betwen 1/2" and 3/8" holes.

The partially plugged screen is also slowly reducing your draft. Like clogged arteries the condition slowly gets worse and worse until one day you die. Or in this case, your fire dies. While the screen is partially clogged you are suffering from reduced draft and reduced draft can cause a good chimney to perform poorly.

 

[Backwoods Savage]

We used to have 1/2" screen but I finally did away with it...and have had no problems. The only thing that gets in the chimney during summer is yellow jackets. For some reason the smell must draw them because I've never seen a summer without them. That's a good reason to plug the flue at the bottom; right inside the stove is the easiest. Just push some insulation into the flue so no insects can get in.

Or you can do like pyro68 states; just take it off and put it back up during the summer.

If you leave it on and if you can reach the cap from the ground with the brush and poles, it does clean off easy so you can brush it on the outside rather than running it up the flue.

Hope this helps. Good luck.

 

[techieguy]

Thanks for the replies. It sounds like I should pull the screen. I'll check with the local BLM office and Fire dept and see if there is some reg for the screen in the chimny cap.

Charles

 

[LLigetfa]

The wood is seasoned...
The wood was bucked up all summer, then split in August...

I'm sure there will be variation based on species and geographic region, but I'd consider that to be marginal although it will be getting better every day. I usually stay two years ahead but my supplier let me down and I find myself burning wood I bucked last Winter, split this Spring, and stacked in my shed late Summer. I can sure tell the difference between the new stuff and what I had left over from three years ago.

Take the screen off the cap and try to run the stove a little hotter and you should be fine.

 

[DAKSY]

Wet wood could be one cause, but it sounds like you've determined that your fuel is adequately dry
Maybe you damp the unit down too much...THAT will muck up your spark screen & your flue just as fast as wet wood.
I installed a RG I3100L in my sister's FP with a 6" SS liner & not only the spark screen in her cap got full of crap, but, because she absolutely refused to burn wide open for the first fire of the day, she ended up turning her 6" liner into a 1" flue in less than 2 months.
She called me to complain about smoke back-puffing , so I clambered up & took a peek & couldn't believe how plugged she'd gotten the liner...
There was 2-1/2 inches of creosote on each side!
I got to be the the chimney sweep, too...
Lucky me, huh?

 

[DAKSY]

Wet wood could be one cause, but it sounds like you've determined that your fuel is adequately dry
Maybe you damp the unit down too much...THAT will muck up your spark screen & your flue just as fast as wet wood.
I installed a RG I3100L in my sister's FP with a 6" SS liner & not only the spark screen in her cap got full of crap, but, because she absolutely refused to burn wide open for the first fire of the day, she ended up turning her 6" liner into a 1" flue in less than 2 months.
She called me to complain about smoke back-puffing , so I clambered up & took a peek & couldn't believe how plugged she'd gotten the liner...
There was 2-1/2 inches of creosote on each side!
I got to be the the chimney sweep, too...
Lucky me, huh?

 

[DAKSY]

Oops! Didn't mean to double-post, but I got the error message & didn't think the first one went thru...
My bad... :red:

 

[techieguy]

Wet wood could be one cause, but it sounds like you've determined that your fuel is adequately dry
Maybe you damp the unit down too much...THAT will muck up your spark screen & your flue just as fast as wet wood.
I installed a RG I3100L in my sister's FP with a 6" SS liner & not only the spark screen in her cap got full of crap, but, because she absolutely refused to burn wide open for the first fire of the day, she ended up turning her 6" liner into a 1" flue in less than 2 months.
She called me to complain about smoke back-puffing , so I clambered up & took a peek & couldn't believe how plugged she'd gotten the liner...
There was 2-1/2 inches of creosote on each side!
I got to be the the chimney sweep, too...
Lucky me, huh?

My wife doesn't like to run the stove as hot as I... I have asked her not to turn the damper down as far as she has. The Blaze King has a thermastat damper with a range of 1-5. I have asked her not to turn it down past 2 and see what that does...I still need to call Fire District and BLM and see if I'm required to have the screen.

 

[Highbeam]

Yeah cat stoves are a little different. As long as the cat stays "active" then there should be little or no smoke since the cat is eating the smoke. The BK should burn clean even set to low.