zeta said:
Zeta,
That's what I'm thinking. I'm sure the home has losses but it's newer type construction. I'm thinking that an OAK would serve me well as I do believe much of the heated room air is being used by the stove and going up the chimney.
Breckwell P23i Producing Heat but not Heating the Home
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Zeta,
That's what I'm thinking. I'm sure the home has losses but it's newer type construction. I'm thinking that an OAK would serve me well as I do believe much of the heated room air is being used by the stove and going up the chimney.
My insert is installed in a prefab fireplace and the manual says no modifications to the box should happen. With that said!! what do you think about installing an OAK by cutting a hole in the roof of the prefab and then routing the pipe out the side of the chimney chase which is about two feet to the outside. This would be instead of running approximately 27' of line up the chimney which might impede performance. I don't think running the line out the top of the prefab and then to the side would have a negative or safety impact as it's routing cool outside air.
some prefab fireplaces have an adaptation for outside air intakes, check the manufacturer of the fireplace to see if there is such an option.
i dont think you cloud have bought a pre fab with out outside air knock out built in as some parts of the country it mandatory to hook the outside air up find the manual it will show the location
The prefab does have an OAK. But being unfamiliar with fireplace related items I don't understand how I would connect the pellet stove to this OAK as it's connected to the outside wall of the prefab. Then there is the inner wall of the prefab followed by the faux brick insert panel. Without cutting a hole in the brick or roof of the firebox, I'm not sure how I would connect the existing OAK to the pellet stove.
if the fireplace is already connected to outside air , that may be where the draft you are feeling is being generated from , the vacuum effect of the stove is pulling it in , but being disconnected from the pellet stove much of this air is possibly releasing into the open air of the room. im sure its helping the stove burn clean but it may also account for the lack of warmth in the room as well.
Mike,
Thanks. I know there is an OAK for the prefab but I've never been able to use it as there is no adjustment rod to open or close it so I have no idea in what position it is. I'm going to take it off the outside of the chimney today to see how it's connected and determine if it's open or closed. The plan is to cut a 3" hole in the sheet metal of the interior firebox and then I'll be able to connect the pellet stove to the existing OAK. In order to do this I'll need to raise the left side refractory brick by 3" in order to route the outside air pipe to the OAK. I don't think that will have any negative side effect (i.e. fire hazard) as the firebox does not get too warm. If I ever want to return it to a fireplace all I have to do it put some sheet metal over the hole I cut, put the bricks back down and I'm set.
Thanks. I know there is an OAK for the prefab but I've never been able to use it as there is no adjustment rod to open or close it so I have no idea in what position it is. I'm going to take it off the outside of the chimney today to see how it's connected and determine if it's open or closed. The plan is to cut a 3" hole in the sheet metal of the interior firebox and then I'll be able to connect the pellet stove to the existing OAK. In order to do this I'll need to raise the left side refractory brick by 3" in order to route the outside air pipe to the OAK. I don't think that will have any negative side effect (i.e. fire hazard) as the firebox does not get too warm. If I ever want to return it to a fireplace all I have to do it put some sheet metal over the hole I cut, put the bricks back down and I'm set.
Hmnn...distribution air is 300 degrees. Pardon my ignorance, but is there an adjustable fan on the stove and what is it set to? On my old Quad, if you set the fan speed to medium or low, the distribution air was actually hotter; however, there was a lot less of it than with the fan set to high. I'll take a greater volume of air at 250 than a smaller volume at 300.
Fan speed is not adjustable on the p23. It's dependent on the heat setting switch. The more heat (faster pellet feed), the faster the fan blows.
I have a P23i and fan speed is adjustable by pushing the High Speed button, the speed will increase just a bit. I installed OAK in my stove- connected right where the actuating arm/sliding plate is located. I have a 1650 Sq ft house and use 3 computer fans on the floor at the end of the hallway forcing cold air towards the stove and also have two computer fans located on the ceiling just going into the hallway forcing warm air down the upper part of the hallway for a bit anyway. I figured all those fans combined only use approx. 10 watts at 8 volts DC. I also use a skytech remote thermostat run at 69 during the day and 65 at night. Thermostat is located 2 foot past the other thermostat. When temps are in the teens and low twentys, run the stove at setting three low fan or normal setting and when temps are in the mid to high twenty's- thirty's or during the day- run it at setting 2 normal fan. I also have setup to plug OAK when stove is not in use. If you don't plug your OAK when not in use, there is a serious draft that comes thru the p23i. Even though the OAK is hooked directly to the stoves actuating arm/sliding plate, there is a hole in that plate and the plate is not a tight fit, is a bit loose and that's where the leak is- kind of a bad design..... Well hope this helps- keep burning and don't forget to claim your stove on your taxes if ya bought in 2008 or 2009.
Manual states the high fan setting should not be used for more than five or so minutes as you will cause problems with the motor. So, in essence, the fan is not manually adjustable but is based on the heat setting.
What type of block off did you make for the OAK when not in use?
Thanks.
What type of block off did you make for the OAK when not in use?
Thanks.
swimman said:
I've looked @ your manual and I am having trouble finding this info. Could you tell me what page you are finding this precaution. I may have totally missed it.
mgreenage1 said:
It's at the bottom of page 15 - last paragraph. Here's the text:
NOTE: When dropping 3 or more heat level settings (4 to 1, or 5 to 2 or 1) push the ‘High Fan’ button and
allow the room air fan to run at that setting for at least 5 minutes to prevent the stove from tripping the
high temp thermodisk. If the high temp thermodisk does trip see “SAFETY FEATURES” on the next
page.
CAUTION: THE “5” SETTING IS DESIGNED FOR TEMPORARY USE ONLY. IF USED FOR
EXTENDED PERIODS, IT CAN SHORTEN THE LIFE EXPECTANCY OF THE UNITS COMPONENTS.
AVOID USE AT THIS SETTING FOR MORE THAN ONE OR TWO HOURS AT A TIME.
OPERATION 15
FIGURE 21
swimman said:
Thanks. This is what I was thinking you were referring to. I may be wrong but I interpret all this to say that the "high Fan" should be run @ LEAST for 5 min. when coming down from a Higher "heat level" to a much lower one to help dissipate the heat build-up. The bottom statement refers to the "heat advance" or feed rate setting. The stove should not be fired @ it's highest rate(5) for no longer than an hr or two @ most. Again, I may be wrong, but I believe you are misinterpreting these statements.
mgreenage1 said:
I think you may be right after re-reading that page. I knew about the 5 heat setting and not wanting to operate that longer than 1-2 hours. However, it does seem one can use the high fan setting for any period of time. Thanks for making me re-read more thoroughly!!
swimman said:
Your Welcome! I find myself @ times having to reread things. Sometimes the instructions are not all that clear. Anyways, don't really know how much this will help, but I hope you figure things out and get the comfort your seeking.
Took advantage of the fifty degree weather today and got the OAK installed. A homemade OAK simply consisting of a 4' length of Novaflex 375 marine fuel tubing connected to the 2" receiver on the stove. Took out the left side (cool side) refractory panel and then cut a hole in the inner and outer sheet metal of the prefab, and routed the hose out to the vent already installed on the chimney chase. I then cut new sheet metal to patch the inner and outer holes and left the brick off. Temps on that side are around 85 degrees so no issue with safety although I'm sure the inspector might say otherwise! Unfortunately, as it's warmer today the house is holding heat fairly well and have the stove on setting 2. I'll have to wait for colder weather this weekend to see if the OAK makes a difference. I hope it does otherwise I'll never get that time back - as the wife says!
hey swim,
let us know how this turns out, wasnt bashing , but now im curious. with output temps above 300 you should have been warming that space easily being new construction. simple math tells us that , unless the room fan simply wasnt running and i get the feeling you would have known that (hard to miss). i know from friends who have em and from seeing the units , as well as "over a beer" chats with breckwell reps the unit is quite capable of heating that space , its a nice unit and quite capable. heat loss is the key, as i said earlier find it and kill it, the oak will help immensely as the stove uses a lot of air(as all pellet stoves do) that air must be replaced, better in a sealed system from outside leaving the preheated air indoors. i think you will see an immediate increase with the OAK.
let us know how this turns out, wasnt bashing , but now im curious. with output temps above 300 you should have been warming that space easily being new construction. simple math tells us that , unless the room fan simply wasnt running and i get the feeling you would have known that (hard to miss). i know from friends who have em and from seeing the units , as well as "over a beer" chats with breckwell reps the unit is quite capable of heating that space , its a nice unit and quite capable. heat loss is the key, as i said earlier find it and kill it, the oak will help immensely as the stove uses a lot of air(as all pellet stoves do) that air must be replaced, better in a sealed system from outside leaving the preheated air indoors. i think you will see an immediate increase with the OAK.
zeta said:
zeta , one look at your avatar tells me your house is cozy. you would be suprised at how well some older new england houses are built, tricks of the trade were plyed by knowing builders long before they became standard in that region. you undoubtably have a home built by oneof those "old salts". the picture you show is one that just screams cozy. the additions you have made definately help, but looking at your avatar makes me want to grab a book and snuggle in.
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