Modern EPA stove runaway ?s

So , one thing that has always kept me on my toes is a stove runaway.
I remember readinging in these pages how some of the modern stoves are not designed to be able to completely close off any incoming air.
Is there any easy way to research which wood stoves can or can not be manually shut down so that no fresh air can get to the firebox or any other part of the stove that would have fire/extreme heat in it ?
Thank you.

 

I'm not sure if there is CTF. I don't think i've seen any detailed specs on how far individual air controls shut down a stove. "Low" isn't very precise. May be more info available on the business side as opposed to the consumer side. A stove would need to be well maintained to be air tight too.
I've theorized that having a damper in the stove pipe could be helpful. It won't shut off completely but will reduce the draft pulling air through the stove. Never had to deal with a runaway stove or chimney fire over several years of operation.

 

100% shutoff days are long gone...like 1988 gone...that was EPA phase 1 and the last of the airtight stoves

 

I don't know how a cat stove could have a flue fire. The flue is clean. Just gets a little dust in it.

 

Ok. Thank you. My stove in our house can be shut down so even a roaring fire will go out in a short time. But it's not an epa stove.
Funny that a guy that has been around burning wood for heat since 1969 has so much to learn.
The wood stove in the house we house sat the last 2 winters was not air tight. And was the size of a BKK. It could and would really get going and could not be shut down . Well it could be shut down but not off. In the right atmospheric conditions that thing would really get going . Even with the draft and flu closed.

 

I thought they were airtight except for the air intale.

 

I think it is more difficult, but you can build up creosote in the chimney if you go at it right. Wet wood, a used up cat ...
A modern EPA stove aint necessarily got a cat either. 2ndary only stoves add really low, smoldering fires to the list of creosote builders.
Either way, I havent had to deal with one. Was just pondering instances where one would want to stop burning in the stove system.

 

Well yeah...but on many stoves there are 2-4 intake holes...and sometimes only 1 of them can even be regulated...heck, on some of the cheaper models there is NO control at all!

 

England but it's been a bit skewed, they outlawed burning green wood. But I don't know all the specifics of it.
If you're concerned about a runaway they make logs that snuff out the fire in the box. Can't recall the name chimex or something.
Duckduckgo is your friend.

 

Cold Trigger Finger stick with what works, the epa stuff is bogus! I’ll duck for flying shoes!

 

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Yep. I like clean efficient stoves. Pacific Energy, Lopi, Jotul, Osburn, Drolet, (other SBI), and others still have non-cat stoves on the market. I think most, if not all, of the stoves you can buy at a Home Depot or similar store are non-cat stoves.
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Still have the question as to whether a flue damper would genuinely be helpful in stopping or slowing an adverse burn condition. Realize prevention is better, but it doesnt hurt to be a boy scout.

 

I can't imagine how you can have a "runaway stove" if you are burning dry wood...it would take some real effort to create the right circumstances for a chimney fire to happen without wet wood (unless maybe if you are burning that evil pine! )

 

The majority of the wood we have in Alaska is conifers. Here in the Interior and some other parts of the mainland there is white birch, aspen , balsam poplar, cottonwood , willow and alder. But it can be unavailable at times. Spruce is always available.
Have a stove loaded with western red Cedar that you can not shut the air off to . I've seen barrel stoves and other stoves go from cherry red to some parts glowing yellow. By that time, there isn't any creasote left in the stove pipe. It was also nice bright orange.
I don't see how a stove can regulate it's burn . Unless it has the ability to shut the air off. Or at least down so low that it starves the fire of O2.
Fire is ALWAYS on the hunt for oxygen.

 

Many non cat stoves have unregulated primary boost air inlets that are separate from the main primary air lever. Most of these boost air inlets are located in the lower forward fire box under the door sometimes called the dog house. Many people with strong draft find their stove burns more controlled by blocking off this boost air.

 

For a $5 fix put a damper in. It's a great fix/safety check, whether you think you need it or not.

 

I never had my stove run away on me, but a week or 10 days ago the temps got into the 700 range on the stove top. Since its the catalyst that generates the most heat, I disengaged the cat and opened the door- sounds backwards but that brought the temps down pretty quick.
I put the cat back on and adjusted the air back down and the temps climbed again and held around 650ish or so if I'm remembering correctly.
I think it stands to reason that if a catalytic stove is operating at a higher temp than you're comfortable with, disengaging the cat would be a decent approach.
All told, the stove was in the appropriate temp range per the thermometer I have.