Manual pipe dampers .. how, why, when

The baro is used to reduce draft by mixing cool inside air with the hot stack gases. These are used on oil and gas furnaces to prevent overly lean combustion. And extra heat loss up the stack which occurs if too much air is pulled through the combustion chamber with too strong drawing chimney.

As my name suggests..... I'm new to coal. I had a Vermont Castings Resolute with a coal kit last year. Loved the coal. The stove... not so much. I moved up to a Harman mark 2 this year. My question. Do I need the barometric damper ? Would a manual damper suffice ? My application is in a fireplace & the Baro is jammed up into the fireplace damper. Not much room for anything. The Harman is a tighter fit than the VC.
This is an old masonary newly stainless lined interior 35 foot chimney.
Thanks

new2coal1957 wrote:Harman mark 2 this year. My question. Do I need the barometric damper ?

Good move to the Harman. Barometric damper? Yes! You need it. I originally burned my Mk 1 without a baro, but found it burns far more steadily and puts out more heat for a longer time with the baro. There's a reason why the majority of coal burners (not to mention oil burners) use the baro.

Thanks for your help.
Can I install the Barometric damper horizontally connected directly ( or very close) to the stoves flue opening ? Before the pipe turns up to the chimney ?

I would not mount it to close to the appliance. Here are the recommendations, it can be mounted in the chimney.

http://www.fieldcontrols.com/draftcontrol.php

new2coal1957 wrote:Can I install the Barometric damper horizontally connected directly ( or very close) to the stoves flue opening ?

This quote is directly from the Field Controls web site: "Except on forced draft systems, locate the control as close as possible to the furnace or boiler...."
But don't have a manual damper between the barometric damper and the chimney.

I like using them both because it gives me added control over the burn. When you shut MD you retain more heat. This has been done since early times with the Kachelofen (sic) or masonry heater that first came into being in cold European climates as an adaptation to prevent over use of diminishing fuel supplies in the face of increasing population. The early ones were capable of shutting the chimney off 100% and stove operators used the "sniff" test to prevent gassing themselves and thieir families. At night, with a glowing bed of coals from the evening fire, the damper would be closed until it just started to cause a backdraft into the room - detected by sniffing - then opened slightly to prevent death by CO. Masonry stoves use a certain amount of wood in a brief hot fire to heat the masonry which emits the heat long after the fire is out at a very steady rate. Thus, with a masonry stove, you don't want the chimney open to the cold sky, where it can chill the masonry. With a well designed masonry stove/oven you can bake bread in the oven hours after the fire is out.

OK guys, take a deep breath, calm down. Take a look at Larry Trainer's video on how to operate a chubby stove. He's been working on, and rebuilding these for years. It would seem he knows what he's doing. He uses both the mpd, and a baro.

http://vimeo.com/3060371

I have a hand fired wood/coal Jenson boiler and I am trying to figure out how to burn (A) coal. I have a barometric damper but not the manual damper. What is the manometer? Do I need one, where to find one. The stove has a blower, but I don't use it.

Mjheil67 wrote:I have a hand fired wood/coal Jenson boiler and I am trying to figure out how to burn (A) coal. I have a barometric damper but not the manual damper. What is the manometer? Do I need one, where to find one. The stove has a blower, but I don't use it.

A manometer measures the draft in your stovepipe by comparing the room's air pressure to the air pressure inside the stovepipe, the difference being your draft. The stovepipe should be less, giving you a negative pressure differential which is read as -.05" as an example. Manual dampers are not typically used with coal appliances as the are air tight for the most part. They can be used but with a forced draft, the firebox can go to positve pressure in some cases if one is used.

I had a hand fired coal stove put in my basement last year so I am interested in this debate. I had a licensed HVAC tech install it. He recommended a baro damper, and so did the instructions that came with the stove. So I'd like Dallas to post links to the manufacturers that require a manual damper. I bought a hand fired because I wanted something that works without power. I may not be getting max performance out of the stove without a manual damper, but I'll stay warm when the power is off and won't lose sleep at night worrying about whether my CO detectors will go off if my manual damper isn't set right.

coaledsweat wrote:

Mjheil67 wrote:I have a hand fired wood/coal Jenson boiler and I am trying to figure out how to burn (A) coal. I have a barometric damper but not the manual damper. What is the manometer? Do I need one, where to find one. The stove has a blower, but I don't use it.

A manometer measures the draft in your stovepipe by comparing the room's air pressure to the air pressure inside the stovepipe, the difference being your draft. The stovepipe should be less, giving you a negative pressure differential which is read as -.05" as an example. Manual dampers are not typically used with coal appliances as the are air tight for the most part. They can be used but with a forced draft, the firebox can go to positve pressure in some cases if one is used.

Air tight? My handfired has vent holes drillled in the damper plate............

The coal appliances are airtight, not the manual dampers. An airtight manual damper for coal stoves would be sold by Dr Kevorkian, and have a name like the long-sleep damper

Greg L

Cyber36 wrote:Air tight? My handfired has vent holes drillled in the damper plate............

Airtight refers to the entire appliance with the exception of the combustion air feed. It means there is no other source of air to feed the fire except the combustion draft door/blower.

LsFarm wrote:The coal appliances are airtight, not the manual dampers. An airtight manual damper for coal stoves would be sold by Dr Kevorkian, and have a name like the long-sleep damper

Greg L

I like "dirt-nap damper" or "Darwin award damper"