WoodStoves

[mimzy]

we have 2 woodstoves in our new house, and today we lit our first fire.
....we are totally new to this... we've been reading up, and we're following the directions to the letter, but some things are happening that are confusing to us... anyone here have experience with woodstoves?

 

[hlcroghan]

yes what are confused about?

 

[reefkprz]

I didnt realize there were people in the world that didnt.

what are you confused about?

 

[stdreb27]

Cooking with wood is just soo much better.

 

[mimzy]

hi sorry we went out for a while... needed more wood and some accessories (maul, sledge hammer, wedge, woodbasket, etc).
Ok, here's our confusion... we got a nice fire going in there, the damper is in the correct position, the air inlet is all the way open - just like the directions say. We look at the chimney outside the house and there's pretty smoke wafting about around it, and the inside of the house is toasty-warm.
......but every so often, there is a big POOF of smoke from the stove into the house; it comes from right around the stove door, and then POOF the smoke is gone.
.....is this normal? it doesn't happen very often, nor does it happen on any kind of regular basis... we are wondering if it could have been from a big gust of wind down the chimney - it was VERY windy out here today...
any thoughts?

 

[screamn79]

Sounds like it might be the wind gust. Do you have a cap on the chimney. Some times this helps. Also has the chimney been clean and check by a pro? Does the chimney have a metal liner or clay or just the brick?

 

[chilwil84]

could be from the wind, they make many tops to chimneys that deflect the wind. it could also happen when someone opens a door to the outside. this will occur with older stove many new stoves have a makeup air vent to help prevent this. i would guess wind is prob ur culprit if it was windy last night. look outside when it happens and write down what direction the wind is coming out of. usually chimneys are vunerable to wind out of a certain direction(mainly where u have a long straight line where the wind is uninterupted) trying to remember ur pics u have a long narrow open space in ur property so that would be ur problem direction

 

[mimzy]

u guys r right on target..... there is no cap on the chimney. we got a credit for that at the settlement table and we're planning on having one installed before the winter. it was windy like mad today, it had to be the wind - we've got the stove going again right now and it hasn't happened in hours... the wind's been gone since the sun went down.
I don't know what's lining the chimney, but the stove is a Harman Exception wood stove.

 

[reefkprz]

if you havent done so yet, you should have someone inspect the chimney before you use the stove a whole lot, a crack can lead to serious problems, like house fires, carbon monoxide poisoning ETC., and a dirty one can lead to chimny fires.

 

[kevin34]

Originally Posted by reefkprZ
http:///forum/post/2780715
if you havent done so yet, you should have someone inspect the chimney before you use the stove a whole lot, a crack can lead to serious problems, like house fires, carbon monoxide poisoning ETC., and a dirty one can lead to chimny fires.

+1. we have a woodstove and get our chimney checked/cleaned every fall before we use it. i have never seen a poof of smoke from ours though.

 

[mimzy]

it was inspected before we bought the house, i just cant remember what it's lined with...i have the inspection report somewhere, but there are still boxes in the office where all the paperwork is. the chimneys are all in good condition and were cleaned monthly (there are 2woodstoves and one brick fireplace) during the winters. There are also carbon monoxide detectors in the house, but you can be sure we'll keep up on the maintenance of these chimneys. I'm not dying of a dirty stove.

LoL.
our house smells like a campfire today. it's really heaven. and it was HOT in here last night!!
I never thought of having a woodstove before.... but now I don't think I'll ever be without one!
anyone have a pellet stove? a coal stove? There are bajillions of stoves out here in the mountains....it's a whole new world of awesome!!!

 

[dragonzim]

Sounds like blowback from not having the cap on the chimney. I am in classes right now to become a licensed home inspector and we just covered this last week.