Have a question about woods toves that hopefully someone can provide some advice. We moved into the cabin back in February and neither MPG nor myself have ever had a wood burning stove. We had some minor instruction and away we went….filling the cabin with smoke. Through trial and and a lot of error things improved, however, there was still too much smoke every time we started the stove. I’m sharing some photos below of the stove and looking for any observations, comments, and advice. We are looking at a few different models locally to purchase new.
Here’s our current wood stove……
I’ve got some theories as to our issues, however, figured I’d throw it out there to the group.
Appreciate it!
Rourke
I’m sure others have posed the same question, but … is the damper on your stove pipe fully open?
Tex – I start off with it abut 1/3rd open when I get a small fire going in. the chimney. I do this as the air in the cabin is warmer than outside and the air will go backwards through the chimney if I start off with it open all the way. Once the small flame gets going I open the damper half way, then 75%, then all the way as the oven heats up. I’ll open the door slightly on the stove and can see the air getting pulled in. If I open all the way most of the time smoke will come billowing out. A relative said I should be able to open the door and smoe NOT come out once it is going good.
That was going to be my first question, TexM. Are you using dry wood?
Does the inside have fire bricks and/or a grate? When were the pipes cleaned last? Do you have a chimney cap, and could it be blocked?
Are you loading it up with wood and newspaper right away or starting out slow? Are you adjusting the front vent?
I also have to say that I have never seen a stove like that before. I’d definitely call it unique! Is it a New England thing?
Single Mom – It does have fire bricks and a grate. At first the grate was covered with ash and didn’t even know it was there. After doing some research I emptied out the stove of ash and uncovered the grate. As far as when the pipes were cleaned have no idea. Had a relative add a section of pipe to the chimney t create more draw and he inspected it. No issues. We start off slow with getting a small flame going in the chimney to et the air heading in the right direction. Not sure about design. Seems like having one with a chimney that goes straight up from the stove makes the most sense.
You need to warm the exhaust pipe prior to starting the fire. We do this by going to the clean-out opening and burning one or two pages of newspaper under the opening. Once you get the pipe (flue) warmed, you will get good “draw” for the smoke to go out. Another way is to start the fire using the Swedish method. See Wranglestar on YouTube “ This wood stove trick blew my Mind”. This will warm the pipe AND start the fire very well.
Thanks Brad. I’ll check that video out. We do always warm the exhaust and that helps. Appreciate it.
The chimney pipe height and location matter too. It needs to be up enough past the edge of the roof so air can blow across the top of the pipe to create like a draft or suction effect to pull the smoke out.
Make sure to warm the stove pipe before starting the wood. I put a couple of sheets of burning newspaper in the outlet from the stove to the pipe, then I start my kindling and add dry wood until the fire is going.
Thanks Joseph. That is something we always do. It was a wise piece of advice when we first moved into the cabin.
I had some concerns about that pipe coming out the side, too, but I figured it worked for the last guy, so maybe I don’t know much…
Did you have the chimney and stove pipe cleaned? Creosote build up , bird nest, leaves, can block up them up. Getting someone to see if everything is good to see if you have the proper draft or the smoke will come back into the house. A wood stove thermometer put on the stove pipe will let you see what temperature it is and help prevent chimney fires, I hung mine so if it got to hot and it fell off it would hit the stove and make a noise loud enough to wake me up. I burnt green wood for 5 years when I lived in N H, just make sure you have the chimney cleaned every year. If you get a chimney fire and it safe to put the fixer in the wood out use salt or ice and close the door, salt is pretty much what’s in the stuff they advertise to put out wood stove fires, the ice will melt and make steam to cool and smother the fire, stay safe.
First of all get that pipe straight 90 deg is better for draft.
As mentioned the pipe must extend over the roofline.
Type of wood you are burning should be seasoned, and low moisture.
Look into batch box rocket stoves.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1hNgT_PvEd8
I run a rocket stove group on MeWe.
https://mewe.com/join/rocket_stoves__rocket_mass_heaters_international
Just a few comments. Of course you are not using green wood. Wood should have been at least 6 months or older.
Just looking at your picture I have never seen a stove like this.
I think your flue (pipe) looks to be very short. The flue should open to the outside near the ceiling.
When you attempt to start a fire open a room door about 2 feet so that that the stone can draw in fresh air or a window partially opened.
Air has to come in the room to help the air flow and once it’s going well can be shut
I might try some different wood if available. And of course damper needs to be adjusted.
Basically the flue looks to be too short.
Good luck!!!
John is the stove the primary heat source for your cabin? I’m sure you’ll
get the glitches figured out.That being said a larger stove would be a good
option.Being able to cook a few of your recipes on the stove top could help
in a grid down situation.
I can vouch for the usefulness of the fans the sit on top of the stove.They
can be turned in any direction.EcoFan is a good one.
FYI: The Traitor in Chief now is going to try to outlaw ceiling fans!
It seems never ending.
Winter will be here soon and like the old chief said in Dances With Wolves
“At our age there is nothing better than a good fire.
As my friend Pete says”Be careful! There are crazy people out there.”
‘
I had the same problem when starting my coal stove with a small wood fire. The problem is poor chimney draft, probably from a bad chimney design. Do you have an insulated chimney liner? Is the chimney high enough? I’m sure the smoke problem goes away once the stove and chimney gets going, correct? I solved my problem with a new stainless steel insulated chimney liner, but this isn’t cheap. The only other cheaper solution is to pre warm the chimney as suggested by previous posts.
Keep a large ziplock bag or two of ice in the freezer just in case u have a chimney fire. Throw in one bag and as it melts the steam will extinguish the fire if needed but the second bag in there Was on the fire dept for many years and that seemed to do the job with the least amount of damage or mess in the house.
Rourke, I hope you don’t mind, but I forwarded the photos to my favorite engineer-geek, and he’s wondering if the stove and/or pipes are fully sealed. He’s seeing signs that you have air holes where you shouldn’t.
JR,
Have had a wood stove for 8 years now. Learned one important aspect of starting a fire that helps. The column of air inside your chimney pipe is filled with cold air. It is denser, heavier and cooler and prevents a proper draft from being established, hence smoke comes out the stove not the chimney. It acts like a cork of sorts. One must take some crumbled newspaper and light it up creating an updraft of hot air pushing the cold air out up above. Once the column is warm it will draw much better. If you can modify the pipe coming off your stove to be more vertical that would help a lot also. And learned from a fire inspector the easiest way to extinguish a chimney fire is to throw a pan of water inside the stove and close the door. The resulting steam will extinguish the flame. Using seasoned wood is a great idea as well for keeping creosote buildup to a manageable level. Lastly, clean out your chimney every year. Sorry for the late reply, didn’t see the article.
The problem with smoke inside whether it’s a fireplace or a stove is always “Draw”. Might be a damper or might be and usually is the amount of air that leaves the stove to get outside .. OK sooo You mention above warming the flue before the fire gets rolling. All good.. But draw is how well that air is channeled .. the more resistance you have and the less smooth the surfaces or angles equal resistance to air flow. Like porting an engine smooth = performance. First off a 90 flue out from a stove is restrictive.. that’s design and you can change it only replace it. Then the 45 deg chimney pipe also resistive in small amounts. I have no idea what outside looks like (a clear vertical pipe unobstructed above and good circulation of air around it.) Can you back ur stove up a bit and use taller 90 deg up then 90 deg out ? I expect you’d have to insulate / shield the wood wall (both sides) with green board and tile on top for decorative look. I expect the 90 out design is the bigger of the two problems in airflow unless teh out pipe is too short or obstructed .. not poking man ..
Hope it helps
Enjoy Labor Day Comrad 🙂
I worked bees Sat and Sunday and this is exceptionally hot work. I may have to give that up.. the heart med does NOT like heat and passing out is always a juggling act .. Sat got to 67/42 BP and had to stop .. yesterday was 74/52. mostly cuz I’m hard headed and ignore what’s happening.. I just need to do shorter work times and stop to rehydrate.
I am now pig-less.. erybody went to freezer camp.. yay! So birds and bees… still want some goats though .. we’ll see.
ber eady guys.. it’s getting closer. China just dumped a butt load of US treasuries in favor of the newly expanded BRICS nations (the7 added 7 main oil producers).. This makes a “petrodollar”, a product FJB and Company no longer “allow” us to produce. WTAF! SMH
get er done!
GG58
Stove pipe should not be smaller than stove outlet
We ae all good there. Thanks for the info.