The Temp of My Stove Pipe and Stove

Hi everyone,

I have some questions for the cola timers. I have a magnum stoker and have been using it for 3 seasons. My question is that it seems to be running fine however I keep reading posts where everyone says that there house is 80 degrees and they are hardly burning any coal.

Here is my situation. I have stove in basement and next to oil boiler. stove pipe is running to clay lined chimney about 35' side of house. The stove is equiped with duct on top that is run about 10 feet to floor resister in upstairs LR. The duct pipe also have the insulation sleeves all the way to the register. The heat that comes form the register is very hot and blows nicely from the register keeping LR about 65 on cold days and does go up stairs to 2nd floor ok.

Right now I am running about 3 dots 15 off 5 min on stove is 300degrees. I have baro but it never opens (working on testing with manometer from Mathius)

The stove pipe is hot but I can keep my hand on it above the barro for a good bit . it does seem to be a bit hotter cloer to the chimney thimble.

currently it is about 26 degrees at night and fluxuates at a bout 35-40 day. I am using about 80lbs-100ibs of rice but it all seems to burns when emptying the ash pan. It looks like granola but easily crushes when pinched between fingers.

Since the baro never opens but is not stuck swing freely and is on easiest setting to open when blowing on it. I took a putty knife and opened the baro putting the knife in the baro sideways and let it go. I could feel slightly cooler air flowing in baro. I went down and checked agter about 2 hours and it didnt make any difference to stove temp or stove pipe temp.

Any ideas on getting more heat that I am getting?

Right now I am running about 3 dots 15 off 5 min on stove is 300degrees.

Yes, I would think you can get a Mag to run much hotter than 300. Using a magnetic stove thermometer on the side of my mag, she generally tops out around 500/550 at a full burn, the stack temp between the stove breech and the baro rarely tops 200 at max burn. At that output, I can get 24+ hours out of one hopper fill.

Do you have a thermostat to call for heat? It will override the timer and run the stove full-time (and hotter) until satisfied, at which time the timer will take over again. If not, try upping your "on" time and/or cutting "off" time to build a bigger fire. Also, I installed a manometer last year to help set the combustion blower and damper, that helped a lot too.

I would think you baro should at least open some when burning good. That could be wasting heat up the chimney, what's the weight set on? You might have to lighten it up a bit, but you can only check it correctly with a manometer/draft gauge.

currently I am not running the stove at full force. I have gotten stove upto 500 degrees but in order to do that I would be using more than a hopper a day for sure. I put the baro weight all the way to the left and it still hasnt opened. Like I said earlier I just put a putty knife in sideways to hold it open for a few hours and it made no difference with stove or pipe temp.

insulate the basement. I will bet most of your heat is being consumed in the basement. And the stove should get hotter than 300*

I have gotten stove upto 500 degrees but in order to do that I would be using more than a hopper a day for sure. I put the baro weight all the way to the left and it still hasnt opened.

Yeah, that doesn't sound right to me; I've burned full power (550+ degrees) all day last year, and didn't blow through a full hopper even then, approx one pan of ash each day also.

The baro damper, that is reflective of the drafting conditions of the chimney (more heat output= hotter pipe= stronger draw= damper opens to compensate). Like WNY said, the only way to be for sure is with a manometer. My first 2 years I set the blowers by reckoning, and a full fire (maybe 1" of ash on the end of the grates) with sufficient air always had a bright orange coal bed with blue flames curling up into the pent roof and sometimes into the front of the firebox as well.

I'm kinda wondering if there's not enough air coming into the fire, at three dots you should have a pretty good size fire?

I have a nice bright orange bed of coals and flames are licking the pent roof so the stove itself is working. I do have some of the basement insulated but not all. The basment is stone foundation, stays warm, even without a stove the coolest it got with no heat is 60 degrees prior to installing stove. I am thinking od adding some metal studs behind the oil tank and adding batt insulation but I don't really feel cool air coming from the foundation or floor.

Where is your return air coming from?? Possibly, you need a bit more air circulation. There's a good post on that subject That was just updated recently on this. I'm not too good with attachments or i'd pin it to this. But locate it, it;'s a good read and may help.

I'm in the process right now of installing/ adding a return to my upstairs I'm presently using my basement as the main return. I'm not burning any more than usual and have a thermostat running my stove and the house stays where it's set 68 degrees, I just want to see if it works. Good luck..

So if I understand this conversation right, the place to take the stack temp is BEFORE the baro, is that correct?

I usually take mine after the baro, My baro is set low. it is however flapping and partially open most of the time..

I added a collar to by combustion outlet and then flex dryer style pipe about 10 ft from there into an ajoining room where the stove is. There is a a small set of stairas tha that lead to a sun room that now covers the entire back of the house (think former outside with two stell doors no is stairwell from basement to sun room. The sunroon is well insulated but not heated unless I am running the oil due to floor radiators prev owners added when they added the room on. So with all that said the cooler air being pulled from the sun room is what is feeding the combuston intake for the most part. I get circulation throught the home just not the temps you guys are getting on here.

BTW - my metal thermostat was placed on the side of the stove when it was reading 300 degrees. I removed it and placed it in the front corner just above the top door and now it is reading about 385

So if I understand this conversation right, the place to take the stack temp is BEFORE the baro, is that correct?

I take my readings between the stove breech and the baro. My figuring (not gospel) is that when the baro opens, a variable amount of room air is drawn in, mixing with and cooling the exhaust somewhat. Since the draw through the baro flapper is not consistent for me (depending on how far the flapper is open, etc), a reading taken after that point would be skewed for comparison purposes.

My temp-gauge is attached to the upper left corner of the right side of the stove (same side as stoker controller). She's running 475 right now, but she'll hit 550 no problemo when it gets cold...

how many dots and on\off times

rightnow its 37 degrees. I am pushing about 3 dots, the thermo is in the same spot as yours and stove temp is 350 on time is 3min off is 15 med orange glow od coals with flames just barely reaching the pent roof. Last night temp was 34, I had on time to 4 min 15 off, 3 dots and stove temp was 400 bright orange coal bed flames licking pent roof

My pilot is 4 on, 14 off right now, pushing 2.5 dots. If I'm in pilot mode for awhile, the fire will move back more than halfway down the grates. But when the thermostat kicks on, the stove runs "on" full-time and the grates fill with burning coal.

My gut feeling is either up the on time or try for more combustion air. When the thermostat is running the stove flat-out I get blue flame rolling up into the peak of the pent-roof, and right on out into the front of the firebox, licking the flat steel once in awhile as well. The bed of coal is a bright orange, manometer reads .06 draw and the baro flapper is open maybe half a pinky-width (sorry not scientific, can't find my tape measure).

If I turn the air up too far however, I go to a "brilliant" bright fire (almost can't look at it), but then the stack temp jumps and I figure I'm just blowing the heat right up the pipe, so I back off and judge the combustion air on the manometer, the stack temp, and the flame height. Also, if she's burning too hot, my ash gets funny and not burned right.

Just got my stack thermo in place last night. Installed it about 14 inches before the baro. Stove at idle calling for no heat with a feed rate of was 133 deg f. This morning stack temp was 230 deg f and the thermo was calling for heat. My mano was saying .015 to .02 for draft. Some interesting readings compared to others that have posted their temps here. By the readings I'm getting I'd say I'm not losing much for heat up the stack. Of course these are all preliminary and I'll have to collect some more data when I get home this weekend.