2018/19 VC Owners Thread

[Diabel]

It's single wall pipe, I use a point and shoot infrared type thermometer on it.

Do you know if it helps to seal up the catalyst thermometer probe hole? My probe is pretty loose in that hole and I feel like it would shoot air right at the cat.

Is it an issue at all that it's pulling so much air where the oval adapter connects to the stove? It's not a very tight fit there...maybe half inch to three quarters inch gap.

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Yes try to seal up the adapter, that is a big gap. Try stuffing a rope gasket there (gently) using a flat head Screwdriver. I would start there. Leave the cat probe hole alone for now.

400 surface flue is about 800 inside the flue. You have to start closing the damper earlier. At what point do you start closing the primary air? It is common practice here to start closing in intervals at around 900 cat reading.

 

[Gnanneb86]

Yes try to seal up the adapter, that is a big gap. Try stuffing a rope gasket there (gently) using a flat head Screwdriver. I would start there. Leave the cat probe hole alone for now.

400 surface flue is about 800 inside the flue. You have to start closing the damper earlier. At what point do you start closing the primary air? It is common practice here to start closing in intervals at around 900 cat reading.

Okay I'll get some gasket and try to seal up that gap. I put a lighter up to it yesterday to see if it was pulling air and it sucked the flame of the lighter right in and blew it out it was so strong.

Yeah, maybe I'm just waiting too long to start closing the air. I don't want it to puff so I try to keep the air open all the way and let it run like that till the cat starts getting too hot and I have to do something.

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[Diabel]

Okay I'll get some gasket and try to seal up that gap. I put a lighter up to it yesterday to see if it was pulling air and it sucked the flame of the lighter right in and blew it out it was so strong.

Yeah, maybe I'm just waiting too long to start closing the air. I don't want it to puff so I try to keep the air open all the way and let it run like that till the cat starts getting too hot and I have to do something.

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Yeah, the puffing is a VC signature. Mine used to puff sometimes but always when I tried closing the primary air too fast.

No stove is perfect.

 

[Woodsplitter67]

Should I try shutting the damper before the stove top gets up to 450 then?

No matter when I start closing the damper and no matter how slow I close it if I go pass half it'll puff eventually, sometimes it's okay for an hour or two but then I'll wake up at night to the smell of smoke and it's puffing away. Also, when reloading I get smoke spillage into the room, which to me seems like it would mean weak draft.

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So when i doing an overnight burn my primary air is all the way off.. so i go from the half way position to all the way off and burn for 11 or so hours
I never reload at night.. if your reloading at night and not getting somthing like 9/10 hours thers somthing being done wrong.
I have the same stove as you and if i want can get over 12 hours. At 10 hours my griddle temperature is still 300 to 325

When your reloading you will need to open the damper and give it a minute to reestablish draft.
The advice that i am giving works for me and my setup. Other people may do it a little different. Also how the stove is set up may change things a little. My set up is an 8in straight up through the roof.
I get my stove to about 450. It may have about 1/4 full of the box full of splits.. i close tha damper and get the cat lit off. And let the stove run that way for a bit. I know my cat is going by the sound and the cat temp will be around 800 to 1100 depending on how much wood. I let the wood burn down to mostly coles. Now my stove is up to temp cat has been running for a while. I have a box of coles. Coles may be up to the bottom angle of the andirons. Then i load my wood for my overnight burn. Once the wood is loaded i close the damper.. right away. The cat will light back up. I leave the primary air fully open for a minute and let the wood catch a little. Close the air to half way for a minute.. than to fully closed . At this point my cat is some where at 1100. It will stay in that range for quite some time., and my burn will be more that 10 hours

 

[Woodsplitter67]

The plan at the moment is to install a new chimney through the house and abandon the masonry setup this summer...just concerned it won't fix the issues I've had with the stove.

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This is what is in my stove after 10.5 hours

 

[Gnanneb86]

So when i doing an overnight burn my primary air is all the way off.. so i go from the half way position to all the way off and burn for 11 or so hours
I never reload at night.. if your reloading at night and not getting somthing like 9/10 hours thers somthing being done wrong.
I have the same stove as you and if i want can get over 12 hours. At 10 hours my griddle temperature is still 300 to 325

When your reloading you will need to open the damper and give it a minute to reestablish draft.
The advice that i am giving works for me and my setup. Other people may do it a little different. Also how the stove is set up may change things a little. My set up is an 8in straight up through the roof.
I get my stove to about 450. It may have about 1/4 full of the box full of splits.. i close tha damper and get the cat lit off. And let the stove run that way for a bit. I know my cat is going by the sound and the cat temp will be around 800 to 1100 depending on how much wood. I let the wood burn down to mostly coles. Now my stove is up to temp cat has been running for a while. I have a box of coles. Coles may be up to the bottom angle of the andirons. Then i load my wood for my overnight burn. Once the wood is loaded i close the damper.. right away. The cat will light back up. I leave the primary air fully open for a minute and let the wood catch a little. Close the air to half way for a minute.. than to fully closed . At this point my cat is some where at 1100. It will stay in that range for quite some time., and my burn will be more that 10 hours

I'm jealous....

After 12 hrs my stove is cold. Usually after 2 to 3 hrs it's all started to go to coals.

No way I can ever get the air turned down all the way, if the air isn't at least a hair above half it's a puffing nightmare.

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[Woodsplitter67]

I'm jealous....

After 12 hrs my stove is cold. Usually after 2 to 3 hrs it's all started to go to coals.

No way I can ever get the air turned down all the way, if the air isn't at least a hair above half it's a puffing nightmare.

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If you run the stove as I described as above you will be able to turn the air all the way down and its not going to back puff. The key is to NOT allow that big pile of wood to catch all at once and gass off all at once

Have some faith in your self and the advice your getting.. were not going to lead you down the wrong path and you can do this

 

[Diabel]

I'm jealous....

After 12 hrs my stove is cold. Usually after 2 to 3 hrs it's all started to go to coals.

No way I can ever get the air turned down all the way, if the air isn't at least a hair above half it's a puffing nightmare.

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There are so many factors to consider regarding burn times with any stove. Most VC members here consistently get 8 to 12 hours between reloads. So, yes you are doing something wrong.

As said before. Start with sealing the flue adaptor. Then do the dollar test again on all gaskets. Check the wood MC (very important). Once that is done, experiment with the stove during the day by closing the primary air more and more in increments and watch the behavior of the stove.

 

[Gnanneb86]

If you run the stove as I described as above you will be able to turn the air all the way down and its not going to back puff. The key is to NOT allow that big pile of wood to catch all at once and gass off all at once

Have some faith in your self and the advice your getting.. were not going to lead you down the wrong path and you can do this

Thanks for all the suggestions.

I have never tried a small 1/4 load first to get a good bed of coals. I've always started with small splits in a cold stove and gradually add larger and eventually have a full load and then get the griddle up to 450 before closing the bypass and then leave the air wide open trying to get the stove temp up. Maybe I'm waiting too long to start closing the bypass and by that time there is too much flame in the stove. I'll stop and get some gasket for the adapter this afternoon then give it another go.

Appreciate the help!

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[Woodsplitter67]

Thanks for all the suggestions.

I have never tried a small 1/4 load first to get a good bed of coals. I've always started with small splits in a cold stove and gradually add larger and eventually have a full load and then get the griddle up to 450 before closing the bypass and then leave the air wide open trying to get the stove temp up. Maybe I'm waiting too long to start closing the bypass and by that time there is too much flame in the stove. I'll stop and get some gasket for the adapter this afternoon then give it another go.

Appreciate the help!

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@Diabel has some good advice. Do some trial runs like on the weekend's when your home to practice and get the stove to run the way you need it to...

 

[Kevin Weis]

Ganne, I feel your pain. Been there, done that with my Encore 2040. Took me a season to figure it out and get it under control. As was said these stoves love to puff back unless you follow the loading instructions directly as in the manual. And I mean exactly. Little or no room for deviation or your in puff back land. With that said it's all about moisture content of the wood (15%-20%) not more not less, size matters (3"-5") pieces (not smaller)18" long, and a good draft (not a mediocre draft). If you can't meet any one of these ( I call it the 'formula") you will have the puff backs until most all of the wood gasses out. From my experience the primary air control at a little less than half is like a sweet spot for the puff back to occur. If you have flames you will be alright. No flames and the gasses will collect at the top and then ignite when enough accumulates there. A lesser draft and it probably won't off gas as much but it may not be enough to keep the cat going either. When I changed a 90 into two 45's and eliminated a 18" horizontal run made a big difference for me. Woodsplitter has a 8" flue, so likely draft is very good which helps a lot. Woodsplitter what size are your splits and what wood are you burning? Your Encore seems to be running great. Just being able to come close to that would be good for me for burn time. There was a long thread on this in the VC thread back last January I believe. Kevin

 

[Woodsplitter67]

Ganne, I feel your pain. Been there, done that with my Encore 2040. Took me a season to figure it out and get it under control. As was said these stoves love to puff back unless you follow the loading instructions directly as in the manual. And I mean exactly. Little or no room for deviation or your in puff back land. With that said it's all about moisture content of the wood (15%-20%) not more not less, size matters (3"-5") pieces (not smaller)18" long, and a good draft (not a mediocre draft). If you can't meet any one of these ( I call it the 'formula") you will have the puff backs until most all of the wood gasses out. From my experience the primary air control at a little less than half is like a sweet spot for the puff back to occur. If you have flames you will be alright. No flames and the gasses will collect at the top and then ignite when enough accumulates there. A lesser draft and it probably won't off gas as much but it may not be enough to keep the cat going either. When I changed a 90 into two 45's and eliminated a 18" horizontal run made a big difference for me. Woodsplitter has a 8" flue, so likely draft is very good which helps a lot. Woodsplitter what size are your splits and what wood are you burning? Your Encore seems to be running great. Just being able to come close to that would be good for me for burn time. There was a long thread on this in the VC thread back last January I believe. Kevin

Kevin.. i am burning about 75% oak the rest is mostly cherry and i just hit a spot with a little walnut. All split are 18in in lengh and the split size varies, from large 4x6 to medium to small dependng on what im trying to do.
My stove pipe is 8in yes but I'm in a ranch so its short. Dont let the 8in fool you. There are plenty of people with tall 6in pipe that overdraft.. kevin read the post 329 this should help out with the long burn. Here's a solid for you.. my overnight wood i split square, it packs the stove quite well. The rest of the wood is how ever it comes out.. but i make sure while i split, i split about 25% square.. this stacks nicely in the Box

 

[CTwith3]

Went under my stove to look at the air control door and this is what I saw. Problem?

 

[Diabel]

Is this the primary air control? What are those white pieces?

 

[Kevin Weis]

Looks like some insulation?

 

[Diabel]

If that is the primary air door then VC redesigned it. It looks totally different from the older Encore models. Nonetheless, that looks like pieces of refractory material. You should remove the pieces allowing the door to close completely.

 

[Woodsplitter67]

I dont see that on mynstove at all.. where is that and what stove are you running..

 

[Kevin Weis]

Kevin.. i am burning about 75% oak the rest is mostly cherry and i just hit a spot with a little walnut. All split are 18in in lengh and the split size varies, from large 4x6 to medium to small dependng on what im trying to do.
My stove pipe is 8in yes but I'm in a ranch so its short. Dont let the 8in fool you. There are plenty of people with tall 6in pipe that overdraft.. kevin read the post 329 this should help out with the long burn. Here's a solid for you.. my overnight wood i split square, it packs the stove quite well. The rest of the wood is how ever it comes out.. but i make sure while i split, View attachment 236068 i split about 25% square.. this stacks nicely in the Box

Yep, bigger wood. Size matters. I don't have anything near 4X6X18. I'm going through some small stuff I had cut already for a small Waterford Stove that for this stove is near kindling size. After I got the Encore this past January I split bigger. But I need to go bigger yet, then I think I will be there for the long burns. Did notice you don't care about splits in the opening for the cat in the firebox and it seems not to mind at all. Always tried to keep it away from there but guess I don't need to really. Kevin

 

[CTwith3]

This is my primary door.

 

[Diabel]

All cleaned up, does it close all the way as you shut the primary air lever?

 

[CTwith3]

30005233- refractory support. That’s the gasket for the refractory support, which is below the cat.
What should I do? It seems that it’s a VC screw-up- somer really sloppy lazy hurried work.

I didn’t touch the primary- just looked.

 

[Woodsplitter67]

Yep, bigger wood. Size matters. I don't have anything near 4X6X18. I'm going through some small stuff I had cut already for a small Waterford Stove that for this stove is near kindling size. After I got the Encore this past January I split bigger. But I need to go bigger yet, then I think I will be there for the long burns. Did notice you don't care about splits in the opening for the cat in the firebox and it seems not to mind at all. Always tried to keep it away from there but guess I don't need to really. Kevin

I keep them clear...but keep coles and wood near them if that makes any sense

 

[Gnanneb86]

@Diabel has some good advice. Do some trial runs like on the weekend's when your home to practice and get the stove to run the way you need it to...

Just a little update.

Tonight I started the fire with kindling, maybe 1 to 2 inch splits and about 5 of them. Let that go for a while till they were mostly coals. Then added some 3 to 4 inch pieces, maybe 4 of them so it was about a quarter full. Let the stove get up to about 350 to 400ish then shut the damper. Took the stove maybe 10 mins to get the catalyst up to 500 and then the catalyst climbed slowly instead of taking off like it used to. Once that catalyst got up around 800 I started to shut the air a bit. After 30 to 40 mins of continually reducing air bit by bit I was down around only a quarter open for air and no puffing or anything, it ran better than it ever has and burned on those few small pieces for about 3 hrs till I reloaded. I reloaded with 3 good size junks 5 inch or so. I immediately shut the damper after reload and left the air fully open for 2 to 3 mins before starting to shut the air slowly again. Right now it's cruising beautifully, cat is hovering around 1000, air is 3/4 shut, small flames in the stove and no back puffing yet. Seems to be good, hopefully it stays that way tonight.

I'm starting to think that this whole time I've been thinking it wasn't going good enough and didn't have enough draft it's been fine after all, I was just getting too hot before turning the air down.

Just feeling great at the moment, hopefully work my way up to a full load of wood and start enjoying long burn times.

Thanks for all the help everyone!

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[Kevin Weis]

That primary air door is the same as mine. That looks auful far open. Mine from the factory did not close all the way when the lever was closed. I had to adjust that. Maybe this is too far open as well. Check and adjust so it just closes when lever is all the way in closed position. Funny thing is prior to 17' model the manual said hands off on any adjustments. 17' manual noted a small section to make adjustments to the primary damper. Need to figure out where that gasket piece came from though. Kevin

 

[Kevin Weis]

Just a little update.

Tonight I started the fire with kindling, maybe 1 to 2 inch splits and about 5 of them. Let that go for a while till they were mostly coals. Then added some 3 to 4 inch pieces, maybe 4 of them so it was about a quarter full. Let the stove get up to about 350 to 400ish then shut the damper. Took the stove maybe 10 mins to get the catalyst up to 500 and then the catalyst climbed slowly instead of taking off like it used to. Once that catalyst got up around 800 I started to shut the air a bit. After 30 to 40 mins of continually reducing air bit by bit I was down around only a quarter open for air and no puffing or anything, it ran better than it ever has and burned on those few small pieces for about 3 hrs till I reloaded. I reloaded with 3 good size junks 5 inch or so. I immediately shut the damper after reload and left the air fully open for 2 to 3 mins before starting to shut the air slowly again. Right now it's cruising beautifully, cat is hovering around 1000, air is 3/4 shut, small flames in the stove and no back puffing yet. Seems to be good, hopefully it stays that way tonight.

I'm starting to think that this whole time I've been thinking it wasn't going good enough and didn't have enough draft it's been fine after all, I was just getting too hot before turning the air down.

Just feeling great at the moment, hopefully work my way up to a full load of wood and start enjoying long burn times.

Thanks for all the help everyone!

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Just a little update.

Tonight I started the fire with kindling, maybe 1 to 2 inch splits and about 5 of them. Let that go for a while till they were mostly coals. Then added some 3 to 4 inch pieces, maybe 4 of them so it was about a quarter full. Let the stove get up to about 350 to 400ish then shut the damper. Took the stove maybe 10 mins to get the catalyst up to 500 and then the catalyst climbed slowly instead of taking off like it used to. Once that catalyst got up around 800 I started to shut the air a bit. After 30 to 40 mins of continually reducing air bit by bit I was down around only a quarter open for air and no puffing or anything, it ran better than it ever has and burned on those few small pieces for about 3 hrs till I reloaded. I reloaded with 3 good size junks 5 inch or so. I immediately shut the damper after reload and left the air fully open for 2 to 3 mins before starting to shut the air slowly again. Right now it's cruising beautifully, cat is hovering around 1000, air is 3/4 shut, small flames in the stove and no back puffing yet. Seems to be good, hopefully it stays that way tonight.

I'm starting to think that this whole time I've been thinking it wasn't going good enough and didn't have enough draft it's been fine after all, I was just getting too hot before turning the air down.

Just feeling great at the moment, hopefully work my way up to a full load of wood and start enjoying long burn times.

Thanks for all the help everyone!

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Looks like you got it!