MPD installed to Surdiac

This is what a Surdiac Gotha 513 looks like without the fairing on it. (If anyone really cares. P.S. It's an old picture from when I 1st installed it)
Anyway the purpose of this thread is to up-date my 1 yr installation, and mention my latest addition, which is a MPD just behind my heat exchanger in the 6" black pipe. My assumption was that if I were able to slow down the draft, by reducing the airflow with the damper, then i could get the coals to burn a little "less hot"(?). However, it appears it's working backwards, and is accelerating the draft. Is this like a venturi effect, or what? Came home from work today to an 89 degree house I'm still experimenting with the positioning of the intake damper, and the exhaust damper. Also hoping to improve the performance of the stove "overnite". Got up this morning (6 hrs later) and 1/2 the fire was out. I was able to clean out the grates and refire it, before I went to work, and with the help of the kids coming home from school earlier, the stove is cooking away, in preparation for another chilly nite.

Either your thermostat is not working properly or you have an air leak around the ash pan door.

I glued on all new gaskets when I overhauled it last year, but you're probably correct with the thermostat. This stove has a "gearbox(?), that is controlled by 2 devises. 1, is a manual cable (with a numerical dial on a knob) and 2, a themocouple. Both enter the gearbox, and exiting is a lever that controls the opening of the intake damper. when I manually open the damper, the thermocouple closes it, to a point. I'm trying to figure out where to position the knob that controls the thermo.

Keep us posted jq--you're doin good & gainin on her