VC Encore everburn will not control

[marc nichols]

Is anyone having any success with this new technology?

I've been reading the posts for a year and it appears this design is defective. No matter what I do, I find little control over the burn rate in our stove though of course, I can control varying the amount of fuel in it (duh). With seasoned oak or more usually a mix of oak and pine, all I can get is four hours of burn time. A friend with an old steel stove gets a full night on three chunks and my old (@20 years) VC stove would burn all night too. I don't like to fully load this thing and go to bed as it has gotten far too hot a few times and there is no facility to shut/slow it down. The primary air control only controls a portion of the intake, the rest being permanently open.

Is there a solution? Are there any factory updated parts to make this thing work reliably? My local installer has done all they can.

 

[webbie]

I really doubt that there is anything from the factory - have not heard about it, and I assume our users would have!

You can always call CFM customer care and see what they say.

At first glance it would appear that you have an overdraft.

Check this thread and the link to Gullands article:
https://www.hearth.com/talk/threads/13170/

All that said, we have had a number of users of this technology that have been less than happy. Others are pleased to some extent, and VC and other claims that the great "silent majority" are not having problems.

As far as modifications by the maker, this is almost impossible due to EPA and test lab requirements. They would have to 100% retest everything!

 

[North of 60]

You can try PM ing (sweetzall) a member here. Spelling? I think he has also been feeling your pain. He my have a few tricks up his sleeve by now. ;-)
I know he also preferred his old VC. Good luck.

 

[marc nichols]

Thanks. I'm not adept working around the site but will try to find him for a PM. The link above proved exceptionally interesting. It begins with ...."can't get it to burn more than four hours" and references inability to control the burn. It all relates to the technology of the EPA non-cats. Now, when I look at sales info from VC, they say "up to ten hours of burn time."

So, tomorrow I'll speak with the owner/GM of my stove retailer. I want out. This is not acceptable and I believe a legal remedy is to be had if that becomes necessary.

 

[North of 60]

TYPE in search forums upper left hand side of this page ( swestall ) . You will see his name posts in one of the threads. Click on it then you will find PM on his profile. Sorry for the earlier sp on his name. Again, hope this helps.

 

[marc nichols]

Thanks North, I found and PM's him.

 

[swestall]

I actually picked up on your question in the forum, I'll answer here and there so everyone can benefit.
It's a BIG STORY...First, different folks have different problems with the Everburn. Some, like me, can't get the thing to burn consistently at all. At the beginning of the season, I could hardly get it to go into secondary mode. This is because my flue is 8X12 clay and has an underdraft for the design point of the stove. From what I can tell, you have the opposite problem, overdraft for the design point.
So what is the design point: the article Craig suggested gives a good summary of how they got a design point, but what it is is this: the primary air is controlled directly by the flap just above the windows; you can open it or close it and it will control how much air is coming in to wash over the windows, etc. The secondary air is siphoned in through the holes in the refractory shoe (That ceramic block in the back bottom of the stove). When you close the primary damper, the draft pulls/siphons air into the stove through those little holes, and, given that the stove is hot enough to light off (also you have to have a good bed of coals to preheat the gas) that refractory assembly burns up the smoke/gasses.
The problem is that the siphon is according to a fixed formula (which only CFM knows) that allows so much air in based on how hard the draft is pulling. Yours is pulling hard, mine is pulling not so hard, but still pulling.
Now, I have found that as it gets colder, I am actually able to burn much better, because my draft has gotten stronger due to temp differential. (good burn below 25F)
Still, I have to have good coals and a fair air path from front to back of stove to get it to go well.
You are having the opposite problem. To simplify all this, I think if you install a flue key damper, as shown in the article Craig pointed to, you will be able to reduce the draft and optimize your burn time.
You need to get the thing going well and then you can load it up, get the secondary burner going and damp it down a bit. I do not think VC's burn time of 10 hours is well defined. I can get 10-12 hours if you include a good bed of burning down coals. (which keep the griddle temp up to 450-500F). The splits only burn about 6-8 hours at the most, they then become coals that burn much longer and are still hot. NOW, recall, I have a moderate draft: so you can get these burn times if you damp yours down to around where mine is.
I hope this helps you and others: if you need more help: just let me know.
Steve.