Wood stove doesn't heat

[joegreen]

Hi there.

I have a 25 year old Drolet, Model: Gemini 1500 in my basement. Last winter we noticed that it doesn't heat well. It probably heats about 5 feet area around it. Any idea where the heat is going? Is all the heat going up the chimney? The stove doesn't have an electric blower. I used Ecofan and it worked OK for 2 years and then it stopped working.

When I think of a wood stove, it's just a meal box. Do I need to buy a new wood stove or one I have can be made energy efficient?

Joe

 

[begreen]

Basement heating can be tough. If the basement is uninsulated a full third of the heat can be heading outdoors through the walls. A second problem can be the wood being burned. If it is not fully seasoned then the heat output can be poor.

What condition is the baffle in? Is it intact?

This may be a simple baffled stove. Is there a secondary tube system under the baffle?

 

[skinanbones]

Drolet can sometimes be finicky to get heat out of them. My geuss would be that stove is plain just wore out now due to it's age. Whens the last time you changed the both gaskets in the door?

 

[Ashful]

Is this an old install for which performance has recently changed, or a new install?

Don't know anything about the Gemini 1500, but if it's a radiant heater, you're going to get next to zero out of installing it in an un-insulated basement. Radiant heaters push their energy line-of-sight into the objects surrounding them, and in the case of a basement, those objects are masonry walls with a very good thermal path to the earth around your home. It's a recipe for a cold family, but happy worms.

Basement installs required either insulated walls, or a highly-convective heater, with some hope of efficiently moving that heated air upstairs.

 

[tarzan]

Your post is rather vague. Are you saying the 25 year old stove did heat well until last winter? If so, it shouldn't be hard to figure out . Baffle, wood, blower, or chimney. Pretty simple circuit.

Is the baffle corroded to the point there is a hole in it?

Was your wood seasoned in the past, but not last winter?

You mentioned an ecofan that is no longer working, not a chief suspect but a blower can be of great assistance in some situations.

When is the last time your chimney was cleaned? A clogged chimney will much hinder your stoves performance and at worst, burn your house down.

My "guess" is on the chimney based on my take of the info you provided. That being said, wood stoves have advanced profusely in the last 25 years and you would not hurt yourself to shop around.

 

[kennyp2339]

Do you have any type of thermometer? either stove top or smoke pipe? if so do you monitor your temps?
When I ran my epa tube stove I had a smoke pipe thermometer and I always shot for 500deg stack temp (single wall pipe) that put the needle pretty much at the noon one o'clock position.

 

[Sprinter]

The stove doesn't have an electric blower. I used Ecofan and it worked OK for 2 years and then it stopped working.

This statement implies that they have been using it more or less successfully for a while with the small fan. Did the fan quit at the same time the stove started to fail? If it was the ecofan that quit when the problem started, It sounds like the stove is pretty much all radiant and the energy is now getting sucked out the concrete walls. with little transfer to the circulating air. The stove appears to be pre-EPA style with no secondaries from what little info there is out there.

As has been suggested, look closely at the wood quality (moisture content mostly), and the chimney condition. A lot of creosote can build up in a year, especially with poor wood or trying too burn it too too cool and smoldering and with no secondary burning capability.

It could still be repaired if the baffle has failed or something like that. But In In a case like this, you would be good to look into a newer stove, with a fan or other convection, properly installed, and try to find a way to get the heat upstairs if that is your goal.

In any case, you will still have heat loss problems through the uninsulated concrete walls, so it's hard to say what the most economical approach would be for you. A lot of the answer depends on your intended use. Are you trying to heat the house from below, or just the stove room for recreation/ambiance?

All of the above thread replies are good ones. You just need to sort through them, or better, get a (good) sweep/installer out to evaluate. There could be a problem that could turn hazardous, so I wouldn't fool around with it too much without a pro evaluation. Especially since it's getting to be quite old by now.