First Fire In New Stove Guidelines Please

glad to see you got it done ,it was a long road ,now enjoy it everything looks fantastic

 

X2

Seasoned wood burns well in almost any set up

Try cracking a window , Kimberly , to see if the draft gets better. If there's not much change, probably just less than good wood

 

I will try that. However, England Stove Works that made the stove said require 15 feet of chimney, I don't think they just pulled that from their .... I am guessing they tested the stove under different chimney heights. The wood I am burning is not green wood. Yes, it may be over the required level of moisture since I can not test at this time. I still say, with the 90 tee, and the 90 elbow that my nine feet of chimney is not cutting it for draft. If you don't have good draft, then wood that is at 10% is going to burn badly; is that not correct?

Thanks, at times it looked as if it was never going to happen.

 

Just saw the manual part of the post...If the manual states 15 ft, your insurance probably isn't gonna cover anything if God forbid, the place catches fire.

Get that extended asap.

 

I see you are still blaming everything but the wood.

Makes me wonder just why you ask for advice here (forum) but refuse to accept it?? Whats it gonna take??

Listen to all this experience everyone is giving.

Sorry to see what I had predicted happen, (blaming everything but the wood) but I really thought you would realize (since it was mentioned in advance) that your fuel is the largest problem.

 

It took a while, but I did locate the manufactures definition of a 15 foot chimney. I would have thought they would have put it in your users manual, but I searched through it not finding anything other than "We require a minimum chimney height of 15.0 ft." It is the total height from the floor the stove sits on to the top of the flue, nit including the rain cap.

In the manual for my stove, it does have a diagram as to how it is measured and here is a screen shot from that page. I do hope that helps. Another thing to remember is the 3, 2, 10 rule. In both cases I do believe your covered and it is just a matter of learning to use the "Smart Stove Technology" That and using a moisture meter to verify your wood is indeed within burnable specifications. Englander stoves are notorious for working well with 15% or drier wood. They don't particularly like wood wetter than that.


While you can go higher than the 3, 2, 10 rule, be aware that too high of a chimney can result in over firing. When in doubt, you can always call their Customer Service at (800) 245-6489

 

Yes, I plan too; also because the stove requires it for proper draft; regardless of what someone else may think. I knew I was short but Class A chimney is not cheap. Lowe's carries it and I think after I pay shipping from Menards, Lowe's is just as cheap. The other part though is that I am going to need help with this, I would be standing on the edge of the roof. Maybe if I can get my BIL to come over with his extension ladder and one on the ladder and one on the roof ...

 

No dear, that is not in my manual so would not necessary be correct for my stove. I have contacted the manufacturer and will most likely hear from them on Monday or Tuesday, depending on if they take George Washington's birthday as a holiday.

 

Yes, most have told me that I really need the required 15 feet of chimney and as soon as possible I will add to the chimney.

 

My largest problem at the moment is that I tried skimping on the chimney; hoping that it would draft. I have read many posts on here about people with draft issues and how they may need to extend their chimneys.

 

Englander NC-30 and NC-13 show that diagram, 15' min chimney, measured from the floor. Apparently that's how Englander measures a chimney. But if they reply to your email, you'll know for sure.

Your chimney probably measures 14' from the floor.? But the two 90s aren't helping the draft.
Does it spill smoke when you open the door after its been burning for 30+ mins?

 

It seems to me it wasn't that long ago she admitted the wood she would be burning was not in the best of condition. Something like not being high enough from the ground and also having been in water or something of that nature. But, what do I know?

 

I think we all have been there with the not-so-good wood and it is very annoying to say the least. The flue height from the manufacturer is a guideline and may or may not work for every set-up. Generally speaking you should be able to get some decent heat into the house with that set-up.
Get the next piece of flue pipe up when you can and keep working on your wood hoard. Your doing the best you can, don't get discouraged. It's all coming together, just a little slower than you hoped.

Kick back tonight and thank God for what you've got so far. It's enough.

 

What kind of room temps are you getting Kimberly ?
What ever it is I'm sure it's feeling good !!!

 

If its any consolation I loaded some sweetgum that has been split two years from some stumps, but hasn't been covered, yesterday
The outside of the wood burned well for 30-40 mins and then would go out.
I resized a couple long splits this afternoon and it was wet inside.

I have burned a bunch of sweetgum over the years, it isn't the best at starting fires. on good coal bed it should burn fine though

 

Wow I had some reading to do since I hadn't checked in on this thread since yesterday afternoon. Kimberly my hats off to you, it takes patience and time to respond as often as youve done. Just by the length of this thread it shows me that the fhc community really cares about helping so hats off as well to the good folks who have spent their valuable time with trying to help.

My two cents is this.

Moisture content of the wood, length of stove pipe, outdoor temperature are likely to blame.

Wood: Im blessed with having good dry firewood but I decided to do an experiment one day. I loaded the stove on a decent bed of coals with splits that were around 23% mc. I was amazed at how poorly it burned. Even fir at 20% is sub standard in my books. Rounds that are not split can still take a long time to dry.

Temperature: Unless I missed it in other posts I would add that -1.5 Celsius is very mild and could be partially to blame here. Draft decreases in a very big way when its that warm.

The argument of covering vs not covering your firewood has been debated since the beginning of time and really comes down to weather in your area. I personally would never leave my firewood uncovered but thats just me. Fully covering your wood will allow it to pick up moisture and is counter productive. On pallets or donage and loosely stacked in single or double rows and only top covered will win every time. Im not putting words in your mouth as I dont think you indicated that you completely covered it just thought I would add the comment in case this is how you do it.

My kids are trying to head off with friends so I need to go outside and help them load some fir in the garage for the upcoming week.

Happy burning.

 

Easy Yoop, not worth gettin chaffed over. She has already admitted that the wood may not be optimal.
I personally think it is a combination of things...(in order of importance, IMO)
1. Wood not "bone dry"
2. Chimney is a little short
3. The 90* elbow is cutting the effective height of the chimney equivalent to 2-3'
Fixing and one or two of these items may be enough to make 'er purr...may not need all three fixed...but dry wood is a big one...even if the stove can be made to ingest wet wood, the cleanliness of the chimney will pay for it.
This stove is a newer model no? Anybody know if it is a "easy breather" or not? I'm saying maybe not

Edit: Sean brings up a good point about the temp too, all true. And that is where getting rid of the 90* elbow will help. Less smoke spillage when loading on a 40*F day and easier to get a draft started on cold starts. My fireplace stove chimney is straight up...it will cold start on a 60*F day, no problem...love that!