First Fire In New Stove Guidelines Please

X3!!!!

 

Kimberly
If you could explain here, in detail, "exactly" what you do before you put the wood in, up to and including what you do after you close the door, we may be able to tell you, what you are doing right and if you are doing anything wrong

 

Kimberly,

Way back on page #8 you had 4 small splits going "better now" with the door closed and damper open. This apparently increased the draft with more than 2 splits burning. Most of us add more than the 4 small splits to fire our stoves. As others have said, the additional splits feed off each other and also provide some turbulence in the stove for better burns. I think you might consider loading the stove even more than the 4 splits to see what the draft does (and if you have some control with the damper) when the larger load is fully engaged, and then the door is closed. If the fire goes out when you close the door, how much chance of an overfire could there possibly be?

 

There is another thing in the manual that could possibly be a problem with a small load of wood, and thus a small fire. Page #17 states (emphasis added):

• After loading the stove with a full firebox of fresh wood, it is important to operate the unit with the air control in the full open position to properly char the wood load and drive off the initial moisture in the fresh wood. Once the wood has been properly charred and is completely ignited, the air control can then be set to the desired heat output level. o Air Control range: If the air control is pulled fully out, the stove is in the Low Burn setting. Pushed approximately ½ way in is the Medium setting, and with the air control pushed all the way in, the stove is in the High setting.

• This unit also offers a new feature. When loading the stove for a long low burn, you can set the air control damper to allow the unit to heat up and get a good burn going before the air is closed off to the Low position. Simply pull the rod out to Low and turn it counter‐clockwise until you hear a slight “click” (about a quarter of a turn). When it is ready the damper will shut itself. This will work for low and medium low settings. This ensures good combustion at the Lowest burn rate (or even the Medium burn rate, if set to Medium).

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Are you sure that the rod has not been pulled out and turned counter-clockwise? I have no experience with this stove, but could it be possible that the draft might be in this sort of automatic setting? The manual doesn't say if you have to take it out of this setting, for a normal operation....maybe try twisting the rod clockwise????? Don't know.

 

HDRock provided a link to the manual for the stove on page 15 of this thread. Kimberly's stove is a "Smartstove" according to the manual and has a thermostatic control. In the manual, page 25 under replacing components section is a diagram (I was unable to copy and paste the diagram)of the damper assembly along with the following (emphasis added):

Other Components continued: At this point you can access the primary air control damper assembly, thermostatic actuator assembly and the damper release lever. Although these shouldn’t need to be replaced, they can be easily. The primary air control damper assembly can be replaced by removing the small spring handle from the front of the unit, then sliding the assembly out. Replace by sliding the new assembly through the same hole and the rod through the front of the stove. Replace the spring handle. The thermostatic actuator assembly can be replaced by using a 5/16” socket to remove the two screwsthat hold the assembly. Install the new assembly using the same two screws. The damper release lever can be replaced by removing the ½” bolt. When reinstalling the damper be sure it is installed the same as when removed.


Hmm....they call it a damper release lever.....just thinking...

 

So, you think perhaps the damper somehow hasn't been "released" yet? hmmm

 

The problem is that she can't get past this stage.
As long as the damper is pushed all the way in, and with proper draft, it should be possible to close the door and follow the last sentence in this paragraph.
I now also wonder if pushing the damper in (open) releases the "set".

"After loading the stove with a full firebox of fresh wood, it is important to operate the unit with
the air control in the full open position to properly char the wood load and drive off the initial
moisture in the fresh wood. Once the wood has been properly charred and is completely
ignited, the air control can then be set to the desired heat output level."

 

The more I read about this stove and it's "Smart Stove Technology" the more I want one. Not that I need a bigger stove, I can easily roast myself out with what I have, but it seems to take all the guess work out. Kind of like the "Set it and forget it" rotisserie thing. Not that I guess with the operation of my stoves. I have it down to the millimeter as to the settings for optimal performance from cold starts to using warms or hot starts vs the type of wood.

Here ya go:

 

Thanks Star Gazer. I don't know why the diagram wouldn't copy for me.


papadave I don't know, maybe/maybe not. Just thinking "inside" the box.

 

In my opinion, she has yet to utilize the "Smart Stove Technology" and is only using the manual mode. It is my understanding that the "Smart Stove Technology" can only be utilized in low and medium settings and is supposed to disengage for the high setting. While it is possible for the damper to be stuck, it is highly unlikely since she has indicated having a fire burning with the door closed.

I also believe she will end with "more gooder" results when she adds the OAK (AC-OAK3) to her system.

 

Star Gazer , they do make a slightly smaller version of this stove. Get that one.
I like helping others spend their money.

Yep.

There's also this, although I'm not sure if her Manufactured Home is considered a mobile home........
"Mobile Home Installation (USA ONLY, NOT APPROVED FOR CANADIAN MOBILE HOME INSTALLATION)
• The wood stove MUST be secured to the floor of the mobile home using lag bolts and the holes
provided in the bottom of the unit for this
Chimney Cap/Spark Arrestor
purpose. Use a #8 copper wire to ground
stove to frame of mobile home"

And this.....
"Outside Combustion Air
• The use of outside combustion air is mandatory when installing this wood stove in a mobile or
manufactured home."
And this, for those wondering about overfire temps in this stove...........
"
o Normal wood stove operation should occur between 350°F (177°C) and 550°F (288°C),
with 350°F (177°C) to 450°F (232°C) being a low to medium heat output level and 450°F
(232°C) to 550°F (288°C) being a medium to high heat output level. Operating the stove
at 600°F (316°C) would be considered the maximum continuous operating temperature
permissible and unit damage may result from operating at that high of a burn rate for
extended time periods. Allowing the unit to reach 750°F (398°C) or higher is defined as
over‐firing and will result in unit damage."

The word MANDATORY is in bold in the manual, but didn't come out that way in my paste.

 

I agree....if the thermostatic control releases when the damper is fully opened. Or do you need to twist the damper control rod clockwise to release it? Possible, but I doubt it too. I also don't know if she has fully loaded the stove, charred the wood with a fully engaged fire, then closed the door with the damper fully opened, to attempt to control the draft There is that photo with the 4 small splits and the door closed.

 

I think the next size down is the 13-NC which I am currently using in the house, but it doesn't have the Smart Stove Technology.

 

Sure it did! See!

There are quite a few variables that could have an effect on having a decent fire in a normal stove, let alone one of this caliber and needing an OAK is probably one of them.

 

Nope, there's the one Kimberly has, and a slightly smaller one....the 01.

 

I was reading up on this stove the other night, it appears to me that the damper control lever operates totally manually...unless you set it in the auto position by twisting it, this latches it wide open until the thermo spring kicks it shut...or you can twist the lever again and make the mechanism release back to manual control...basically it will automatically kick the damper shut (for "cruise mode") once things are up to operating temp (if you choose to use it)

 

I searched and read an informative thread in another forum of someone else having issues with their Madison. His pipe measured from the top of the stove was 17 feet total (standing in the roof he was barely able to look into the pipe), and then he added another 3 feet. So total height was actually about 23 feet which includes the height of the stove far exceeding the 10, 3, 2 rule! But this guy also discovered that the wood he needed to burn had to be 15% or less or he would have stove issues. One major one was the formation of glazed creosote! I'd link the thread to the other forum, but I'm not sure it's allowed. In his case, the main problem was using too wet of wood which would result in the damper malfunctioning, closing far to soon and choking off the fire. He also had the OAK system installed.

When this guy first started the thread, it really sounded as though it was the damper with the Smart Technology that was malfunctioning. Reading further, that was not the case.

Of course he didn't remove the extra pipe he had added so it's hard to tell if it was a combination of both burning less than nominal wood and less than desirable draft, or just one or the other. The glazed creosote would lead me to believe it was just the wood since Englander stoves do tend to be finicky wanting 15% or less moisture content in the wood being used. And who knows, perhaps it was both the increased height as well as using well seasoned wood that relieved the situation allowing for a warm comfortable home without any chimney or stove issues.

 

Do you happen to have a link? I've been searching and can't find the smaller one!

 

I'll do ya' one better, here's the PDF manual.....