Draft problem please help

[akthor]

This is my friends wood stove. It was actually a wood boiler down in her basement. They brought it upstairs and use it as a wood stove. Her issue is that when she opens the door to put wood in it she gets a lot of smoke coming out. She just repainted her house and was tired of getting it all smoky and was going to get a new wood stove but I said to let me see if the experts on here could help first.

So pic of the stove. She just had the chimney cleaned including the stove pipe going into chimney. The hole in the pics is down in the basement where the stove used to be installed. This hole should by covered up right?

She opens the draft all the way on the stove but even so when she open the door to load wood she gets smoke rolling out.

If you need different pics or info just ask and I will find out from her the info and get more pics.

Thanks for the help.

 

[begreen]

The hole in the basement must be sealed tight. If not sealed, leakage is going to spoil draft. Get a basic flue hole cover and silicone it around the edges. That should help a lot.

 

[Fins59]

Definitely seal that hole in the basement.
When she opens the door, maybe just open it about an inch and wait for about 2-3 seconds and that would push the smoke up the chimney. I have same type wood burner and occasionally that smoke deal happens to me so now out of habit, every time I open door I do the 2-3 second thing.
You said the draft on the stove is open; how about the chimney damper. I keep mine open completely all the time.

Verona Island, Maine - Sounds like God's Country. Had to look it up on map, never heard of it. I spent several years in Portland, Lubec, and Rockland, courtesy of Uncle Sam.

 

[akthor]

Thank you for the tips I will pass them along.

Island is a misnomer kinda, it's a big island connected to the mainland by bridges at the mouth of the Penobscot River. A lot like Manhattan is an Island 'cept a whole lot tinier. If you kept on rt 1 heading north from Rockland you would have crossed it to go to Acadia National Park. Rockland is about 45 mins from me.

 

[begreen]

Also, how tall is the chimney above the flue thimble she is connected to? What is the interior dimension of the flue tiles in this chimney? Are there any other take off openings or a cleanout at the base? If so, seal them off too.