What the Heck!

 
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rstrawsburg
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Location: Smithsburg, Maryland
Hand Fed Coal Stove: Hitzer 50-93
Coal Size/Type: Nut
Other Heating: Trane Heatpump

Post by rstrawsburg » Sun. Nov. 16, 2014 10:34 am

freetown fred wrote:RS, open the ash door vents about 1/8 moon shape & see if that might help.
That did the trick! I also adjusted the barometric damper to the 3 mark. I don't know how accurate it is but my chimney pulls like a freight train when the stove warms up. I need to get a mano to know for sure but I can hear the exhaust rushing up the flue. The ash door vents are open just about an 1/8" and the auto damper is just a shade under half on the dial. The 90/53 is absolutely perfect! I gave the dial a twist full open last night just to watch the rocks glow orange and to see if it would adjust back down or not. The baro opened up and relieved the excess draft and the fire died down as it should. Man I love this stove and coal is the way to go. I still have a cord or so of seasoned oak and I can't imagine ever burning it again.

Thanks for all the help,
Ron

 
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Lightning
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Coal Size/Type: Pea Size - Anthracite

Post by Lightning » Sun. Nov. 16, 2014 12:01 pm

Hahaha!! You got the coal fever now bro! The mano will be a big help with adjusting your baro.

 
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rstrawsburg
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Joined: Fri. Apr. 04, 2014 10:56 pm
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Hand Fed Coal Stove: Hitzer 50-93
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Other Heating: Trane Heatpump

Post by rstrawsburg » Thu. Nov. 20, 2014 12:02 am

Stoker6268 wrote:One thing no one mentioned is "rodding/poking". Are you rodding the coal bed? I find that some coal clinkers more than others and on low even with shaking the air will be too restricted and you will lose the fire.
I haven't been but it sounds like a good idea. I shook it a bit more aggressively this evening and ended up with a bunch of hot coals in the ash pan. I don't see an abundance of ash but the coal bed is too deep to be sure with out poking.

-Ron


 
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freetown fred
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Post by freetown fred » Thu. Nov. 20, 2014 8:22 am

RS--you WANT a real deep bed. I only poke MAYBE once a month, if that--You're keepin that hopper full YES????????? and YES, you want red coals in the ash pan after shaking:)

 
JohnB
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Post by JohnB » Thu. Nov. 20, 2014 8:51 am

warminmn wrote:And your probably right Fred. I know I agree with you on the baro thing but a lot of people do use them and like them on the Hitzers.
Some folks, like myself, need a baro to control the draft because just using an MPD doesn't cut it. I started out last season with only the MPD & being a newbie things did seem find although my stack temps were on the high side even with the MPD closed down. Bought & installed a manometer & found that with my new insulated stainless liner I had the draft from hell. On a calm cold day with the MPD open my draft could hit .250 & closing the MPD fully only brought it down to .13-.15. Stove worked ok & puffbacks definitely were not an issue but a hell of a lot of my heat was going right up the chimney.

I now use both the Baro & the MPD . I set the Baro so that with the MPD wide open I can let the draft pull a bit higher (.08-.09) when I'm trying to get a fire going then I dial it right into the .03-.06 range using the MPD. I also burn wood sometimes in the shoulder month so the MPD comes in very handy. I swap the baro for a cap when I burn wood.

Buy & install a manometer (Dwyer 25 MK2 $25-$30) so you KNOW what your draft is & then decide if you need a Baro.

 
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freetown fred
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Post by freetown fred » Thu. Nov. 20, 2014 11:11 am

Ahhhhh, with the SS liner, you're talkin a different critter then w/ a block chimney, i'd suspect---gottcha :)


 
JohnB
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Hand Fed Coal Stove: Hitzer 50-93
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Post by JohnB » Thu. Nov. 20, 2014 11:47 am

I had a non insulated stainless liner in the chimney for many years & the draft with my woodstove was marginal at best. If I got even a light creosote build up in that liner I could see the draft reduction. Same size stainless liner (6") but insulated & now I have a killer draft. I was told that insulating the liner would improve the draft but I never thought that it would be night & day different. The old liner did have an ovalled section where it passed through the fireplace damper whereas I cut away the damper to allow a fully round section in that area. Other then that there is no other real difference between the two that could affect the draft other then the blanket of insulation.

 
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freetown fred
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Post by freetown fred » Thu. Nov. 20, 2014 11:53 am

Still a horse of a different color--SS liner compared to block & tile chimney. We all do what we've got to do, draft wise.

 
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rstrawsburg
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Post by rstrawsburg » Thu. Nov. 20, 2014 12:40 pm

I have the ss class a triple layer chimney coonected to my stove and without a damper of some sort you can hear all the openings whistle when it starts to get hot. I'll get a mano and take some measurements but I've been enjoying all this free time as a coal burner too much. You guys have a well kept secret. This coal heating is a dream come true. Why have I been working so hard burning trees?

-Ron

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