Stove acting up.

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Ctwoodtick

Minister of Fire
Jun 5, 2015
2,110
Southeast CT
I have been using my Jotul 550 Rockland for 6 seasons now. I have had a couple of accidentally overfires. Slight glow to stove top for short period of time. A few yrs ago I noticed that face of stove bows slightly outward. This is noticed when looking down at stovecwith door open. My chimney guy says it looks fine. I wouldn’t think that those brief overfiring ms would cause damage.
Earlier this season I was noticing fires becoming harder to control and temps beginning to exceed 800 as measured on stove top front in slot where the warm air comes out. To rule out things properly I replaced the door gasket and stove became much more moderate with temps and I figured I was good. The last few nights I have been noticing that same old pattern with temps getting high (around 800). Of note is that when I start up with a super cedar fire starter in the beginning, the first small load of wood burns with controlled moderate heat about 600. In last couple of night I have been doing warmer to hot reloads with splits about 3-4 inches in diameter. Filling stove about 2/3 full. I could definitely wait to reload longer but i feel like I could have done the same hot reload a month ago with no problem. Tonight I had turned air down early as a bit of a test. Initially there was no flame. Flame very slowly progressed. Short while after secondaries kicked in the flames really got going with blooms of flame up front that would flare up every few seconds. Looked similar to problems I had earlier in season. While it took a while to get going, the fire progressed to in the area of high 700’s to 800 I have 2 stove top therms, each a couple inches off of center and about an inch from the front. I have air turned down all the way when doing this. Chimney is only about 14 ft tall.
I am really disappointed that this stove has that slight warping in the front. I suspect that is the issue causing door to not seal completely as designed. This front face of stove is cast iron and rest of stove body is steel. For all the good reviews on Jotul, I have to say this doesn’t seem like my experience. Way past warranty when I first noticed this.
I know that Jotul sells the replacement stove face and door but it’s over 1k.
What are people thought on this? Thanks in advance. Not sure if video I attached is viewable to all but it was taken when flames seemed to be at their highest tonight.
 

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What does a dollar-bill test of the door gasket reveal? Did you put a straightedge across the door to confirm that it is bowed?
 
3529BEDD-8424-44FB-A27F-B2877C243C09.jpeg View attachment 242584
What does a dollar-bill test of the door gasket reveal? Did you put a straightedge across the door to confirm that it is bowed?
Results from this morning:
Dollar bill test shows that the right half of the door, I can’t pull the bill out at all. The left half of the door, I can pull the bill out with varying degrees of effort. This stove has the “knife edge” where door gasket meets stove face. In no spot does the bill just fall out though.
I have a 12 inch straight edge so couldn’t measure across the whole face of stove. However, my straight edge showed that stove face is not a straight line. About 1/16 inch wiggle room, if that makes sense.I have used the straight edge before on it with similar results.
 
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my straight edge showed that stove face is not a straight line.
I'm having trouble comprehending what I'm seeing the pic?? I can see that the cast piece appears to be bowed, though.
I suppose that if the door was warped, it could also be leaking air past the glass gasket...
I suggest that people use their phone timers to avoid an overfire when ramping up a new load...but I don't always follow my own advise without fail. I need to make that a habit, before I get "burned." :oops:
 
I'm having trouble comprehending what I'm seeing the pic?? I can see that the cast piece appears to be bowed, though.
I suppose that if the door was warped, it could also be leaking air past the glass gasket...
I suggest that people use their phone timers to avoid an overfire when ramping up a new load...but I don't always follow my own advise without fail. I need to make that a habit, before I get "burned." :oops:
Thanks for the advice. I definitely hope this be remedied without expensive replacement of face or stove. I feel like the stove is a lemon, but unfortunately one that was discovered outside of warranty time.
 
I feel like the stove is a lemon, but unfortunately one that was discovered outside of warranty time.
If you overfired, I don't think you can necessarily blame it on the stove...
 
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True true
 
I noticed the bowing after one overfire though. I t would have been good to have survived one like many others typically do. I had one more small overfire early this season that I believe was a direct result of the bowing. Especially given this stove is said to particularly durable and I’m pretty diligent overall with it, it’s frustrating. I guess it’s its just spilled milk though.
I may try to place a screw in the doghouse air inlet to see if that buys me some time before a more expensive replacing of this or that.
 
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So I’m experimenting with putting screws in the doghouse air holes to see if that can help keep temps in the stove lower. Started up about 25 minutes or so ago. Wow! Never realized how much air cones through that doghouse. Startup had a lot more smoke in the stove and startup was almost painfully slow. Secondaries lit up about 6 or 7 minutes ago.
Now, about 30 minutes in, initial load cruising nicely at 500 degrees. Man what a difference. Well hopefully this keeps going well.
 
I wonder if you could take the front somewhere that could lay it on a flat surface and torch it hot enough that it relaxes flat? Just spitballing. My bright ideas arent always the greatest for pursuing. Maybe a thicker gasket will take up the gap.
 
I wonder if you could take the front somewhere that could lay it on a flat surface and torch it hot enough that it relaxes flat?
Not with cast, I don't think...
 
About 2 hours in, and after reloading about 20 minutes ago, stove cruising at about 600 stove top. Nice slow secondaries that look very controlled. Well, I guess keeping the screws in the doghouse holes will be the thing for now, as it seems to quiet the stove down.
 
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Stove top at about 670, still looking well controlled overall. I don’t think temp will go much above this tonight. Decent outcome I think.
 
Stove still cruising, temp shot up to about 720, but is falling a bit now. I can deal with temps in the 700’s.
 
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