2017/2018 VC owners thread

[SonOfEru]

I did have to recalibrate the probe until I was within a degree or two.

How do you calibrate it? Do you have something to calibrate it to? All I have are 2 stovetop thermometers and one IR. They are wildly different from each other.

I was even mystified to find yesterday that the IR reads different depending on its orientation. I had been consistently aiming it at one spot on the griddle, from standing at the side of the stove. Yesterday I happened to point it at the same spot but from the front, after I had shot it from the side a short time before. It read 570 from the front when it had just said 660 from the side. Amazed, I did it repeatedly and it was off by almost 100 consistently - front, then side, then front, then side, there was no mistaking it - it read 90 to 100 different consistently.

So I have been hoping the claims of "accurate readings" at the website are real.

And how DO you calibrate?

 

[SonOfEru]

It stuck out a little bit, but it also isn't nearly as sensitive.

Hi, sorry if I'm being dense. Not as sensitive as what? The AT100?

Does anyone know how the AT100 determines temp? I understand the idea of bimetal coils but what is inside the AT100 probe and how does it work?

 

[SonOfEru]

The one that came with my stove is bi metal View attachment 222426

Dobish - what is the brand of that thermometer, with the bent stem [so I could read it without a mirror]?

 

[SonOfEru]

Question on something else? What can I use to clean up the enamel surface of my stove. It's the rich dark brown



I put a teakettle on the griddle for humidity in the house [like I did for years with the old stove], and after a few days there is a thin pale deposit showing on the enamel nextd to where the kettle sits, that I figure has to be from microsopic droplets out of the teakettle, landing and instantly evaporating, leaving the minerals in the water to bake on [we have our own well and it is hard water].

The manual says to let it go cold [doh!] and "Use only a kitchen appliance cleaner or polish recommended for enamel surfaces."

Does anyone have a specific product recommendation?

 

[Dobish]

Dobish - what is the brand of that thermometer, with the bent stem [so I could read it without a mirror]?

it is a vermont castings one that came with my stove. part number is on it. It came with my Encore 2040

 

[Dobish]

Hi, sorry if I'm being dense. Not as sensitive as what? The AT100?

Does anyone know how the AT100 determines temp? I understand the idea of bimetal coils but what is inside the AT100 probe and how does it work?

the bent probe is not as sensitive as the AT100. The AT100 uses a k-type thermocouple (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thermocouple)

 

[Dobish]

How do you calibrate it? Do you have something to calibrate it to? All I have are 2 stovetop thermometers and one IR. They are wildly different from each other.

I was even mystified to find yesterday that the IR reads different depending on its orientation. I had been consistently aiming it at one spot on the griddle, from standing at the side of the stove. Yesterday I happened to point it at the same spot but from the front, after I had shot it from the side a short time before. It read 570 from the front when it had just said 660 from the side. Amazed, I did it repeatedly and it was off by almost 100 consistently - front, then side, then front, then side, there was no mistaking it - it read 90 to 100 different consistently.

So I have been hoping the claims of "accurate readings" at the website are real.

And how DO you calibrate?

the AT100 has a means of adjusting the temperature to meet calibration. I used a bowl of ice water, and a bowl of boiling water, as I know those temps are constant.

 

[SonOfEru]

I used a bowl of ice water, and a bowl of boiling water,

Thats what I was after. Simple. Should thought of it.

 

[SonOfEru]

The AT100 uses a k-type thermocouple (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thermocouple)

Aaaaahh - got it. I had forgot what a thermocouple is. And I thought that K type was just some kind of Auber designation.

The link cleared up everything. Thanks!

So I feel good that the accuracy will be good. Certainly way more accurate than I need, I would be happy with confidence that I was within 10 or 20 degrees

 

[Dobish]

So I think its time I check my chimney again, The last 2 days, I have had a ton of issues with smoke coming into the house, and getting good draft is hard. We have had a few windy days, and the temps have been all over the place, but it is bizarre. Last night, everything was cranking along fine, cat temp at 1300, stove top at 450, flue at 375, and I went to reload, only to have a face full of smoke. I tapped on the flue pipe, and heard the chunks falling.

This morning on reload, it was all smoke, pouring out of places I had never seen before (like the ceiling connection/adapter). I shut down the stove, pulled out the wood before it continued to smolder, and am going to go home and give the chimney a sweep this afternoon.

 

[SonOfEru]

So I think its time I check my chimney again, The last 2 days, I have had a ton of issues with smoke coming into the house, and getting good draft is hard. We have had a few windy days, and the temps have been all over the place, but it is bizarre. Last night, everything was cranking along fine, cat temp at 1300, stove top at 450, flue at 375, and I went to reload, only to have a face full of smoke. I tapped on the flue pipe, and heard the chunks falling.

This morning on reload, it was all smoke, pouring out of places I had never seen before (like the ceiling connection/adapter). I shut down the stove, pulled out the wood before it continued to smolder, and am going to go home and give the chimney a sweep this afternoon.

You did flip the damper back first, right?

I generally have very good draft but at times if the atmospheric pressure is really low [like a snowstorm is brewing], and the temp is relatively mild, it can seriously impede the draft. Draft is caused by pressure differential, so the warm air in your stove and chimney weigh less than the cold air outside and the smoke rises. Anything changing that will change the draft.

In the most extreme of those different states I have seen smoke in the face when I lifted the griddle quickly so there was no time for the contents of the firebox to get up some speed up through the open damper.

And yes if you have bunches of creosote piling up it will constrict the flue and there is one more factor against the draft.

But .... if your catalytic is working .... why are you getting creosote? Is 450 / 375 maybe a little low for enough oomf into the cat? But you said you had 1300 there, which sounds a lot like a hot cat.

 

[Dobish]

You did flip the damper back first, right?

I generally have very good draft but at times if the atmospheric pressure is really low [like a snowstorm is brewing], and the temp is relatively mild, it can seriously impede the draft. Draft is caused by pressure differential, so the warm air in your stove and chimney weigh less than the cold air outside and the smoke rises. Anything changing that will change the draft.

In the most extreme of those different states I have seen smoke in the face when I lifted the griddle quickly so there was no time for the contents of the firebox to get up some speed up through the open damper.

And yes if you have bunches of creosote piling up it will constrict the flue and there is one more factor against the draft.

But .... if your catalytic is working .... why are you getting creosote? Is 450 / 375 maybe a little low for enough oomf into the cat? But you said you had 1300 there, which sounds a lot like a hot cat.

I flipped the damper
We have had some strange weather, and we haven't been burning 24/7, so I think that we have not been giving our chimney a good run. I had a row of wood that was suboptimal as well, and I think the combination of subpar wood, less often fires, engaging the cat or cutting the air down too soon, and poor draft due to outside temps all led to more buildup.

Outside conditions proabbly have something to do with it as well, given that we aren't used to heavy dense air around here.

On the plus side, i know my smoke detectors work

 

[SonOfEru]

I flipped the damper
We have had some strange weather, and we haven't been burning 24/7, so I think that we have not been giving our chimney a good run. I had a row of wood that was suboptimal as well, and I think the combination of subpar wood, less often fires, engaging the cat or cutting the air down too soon, and poor draft due to outside temps all led to more buildup.

Outside conditions proabbly have something to do with it as well, given that we aren't used to heavy dense air around here.

On the plus side, i know my smoke detectors work

less often firing can affect too. The chimney draws better as it warms up so if yours had cooled off it wouldnt draw as well.

But still, all those extra factors are not usually all that big a deal, that is not usually enough to make a normally functioning chimney suddenly throw smoke in your face.

A dead animal in the flue? Dont laugh. But you will see if it is clear when you sweep it. I like to lower a flashlight down on a piece of clothesline and as it sort of spins around as you lower it, you get a good look at the condition. Have fun!

 

[Dobish]

less often firing can affect too. The chimney draws better as it warms up so if yours had cooled off it wouldnt draw as well.

But still, all those extra factors are not usually all that big a deal, that is not usually enough to make a normally functioning chimney suddenly throw smoke in your face.

A dead animal in the flue? Dont laugh. But you will see if it is clear when you sweep it. I like to lower a flashlight down on a piece of clothesline and as it sort of spins around as you lower it, you get a good look at the condition. Have fun!

I have a chimney cap, so nothing was getting in there. I normally give it a quick clean in january, just to be safe. I wouldn't be surprised if one of our visitors threw a huge wad of newspaper, or cardboard in there and it is blocking the flue. Timing seems to be about right for something like that. I'll post before and after pictures

 

[SonOfEru]

Waiting eagerly for the answer!

And you know to tell folks to never throw anything in but wood, matches, and plain newspaper? No colored ads etc. They can ruin the catalytic surface

 

[Dobish]

Waiting eagerly for the answer!

And you know to tell folks to never throw anything in but wood, matches, and plain newspaper? No colored ads etc. They can ruin the catalytic surface

As i suspected, lots of stuff blocking the spark arrester. Gave it a sweep and a clean, and it drafts much better.

 

[SonOfEru]

Spark arrestor? What is that? Encore has a spark arrestor?

 

[SonOfEru]

Never mind - google found it for me. It's part of the stovepipe cap? Keeps sparks from getting out?

 

[Reckless]

Never mind - google found it for me. It's part of the stovepipe cap? Keeps sparks from getting out?

It's this guy for real? I feel like its jharkin trolling us........ If sonoferu is real welcome to our neck of the woods and please take a breath [emoji23][emoji23] there is all sorts of info in here and years past just go to the first page and follow the links. Good luck


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[Dobish]

The stove is working so much better since I cleaned it out. I pulled the telescoping pipe from the inside too, just to see if I got all the way down, and it looks like I missed about a foot

 

[Diabel]

Did you clean the flue at the beginning of the burning season?

I got in a habit of cleaning the pipe mid December, just as I switch from burning softwood (100% hemlock) to hardwood and as i start burning 24/7
Always get the same amount of loose brown stuff, about two coffee cups worth.

 

[SonOfEru]

It's this guy for real? I feel like its jharkin trolling us........ If sonoferu is real welcome to our neck of the woods and please take a breath [emoji23][emoji23] there is all sorts of info in here and years past just go to the first page and follow the links. Good luck

Yes I am real, and dont know who jharkin is. Curious - what about my posts made you think I'm a troll? I was only curious what a spark arrestor is and asked before I realized that for goodness sake I could ask google

 

[Dobish]

Did you clean the flue at the beginning of the burning season?

I got in a habit of cleaning the pipe mid December, just as I switch from burning softwood (100% hemlock) to hardwood and as i start burning 24/7
Always get the same amount of loose brown stuff, about two coffee cups worth.

i did, around october. We have had such a strange winter, that I have only gone through slightly less than 1.75 cord, which isn't that abnormal, but i started in october instead of november this year! I had a lot of big black crusties on the spark arrester and on the top, with some nasty looking stuff up towards the top. I think we have been in such a rush to engage the cat before we leave in the morning, that it just hasn't been hot enough.

It looked like a lot of cardboard and lighter stuff, so I will have to keep an eye on the guests when they are over as well.

 

[Reckless]

Yes I am real, and dont know who jharkin is. Curious - what about my posts made you think I'm a troll? I was only curious what a spark arrestor is and asked before I realized that for goodness sake I could ask google

You question EVERYTHING lol. Jharkin is the originator of this very thread back 4 years ago or so. Carry on I'm just busting chops.


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[SonOfEru]

So .... now I'm getting a rep as a questioner ... actually I have learned most of what I know by asking, and the dumb questions reveal themselves pretty quick, at least mine do. <giggle>