Englander 30 First Fire Issue

[Seasoned Oak]

Good eye teach. I missed that bit of misinformation. Mass production can actually improve quality. Englander has done a great job at producing a quality affordable stove.

The stove works fine.Its usually the operator that is malfunctioning when problems occur. Nothin cheap about this stove except the price. Its got to be one of the best value for the dollar out there. I paid $1.58 a pound for both of mine. Cant even get good hamburger for that price.

 

[04HemiRam2500]

Hey seasoned Oak just wanted to mention that when I start mine it seems to do better by closing the door and open damper all the way.

Also, brother bart now that I am keeping the stove and am an owner of a 30 do I get the t shirt?

 

[Seasoned Oak]

Hey seasoned Oak just wanted to mention that when I start mine it seems to do better by closing the door and open damper all the way.

WHen you say "damper" are you talking about the air control rod under the door step plate?

 

[04HemiRam2500]

Yes I mean the air control rod sorry!

 

[Seasoned Oak]

ON startup i have to crack open the door(just a little) for about 10 minutes to warm the flue some,but the air control rod is always all the way open until the fire is roaring.

 

[Seasoned Oak]

Yes I mean the air control rod sorry!

You have to warm the stove and the flue a bit on a cold startup so the stove will pull air thru the proper intake ports. And remember dont leave the stove unattended with the door open while in startup mode.

 

[04HemiRam2500]

Okay got it thanks man!! I am closing the door to soon then on cold start now if you just add wood can I close the door?

Also 39 outside and feeling nice and toasty!!

 

[Seasoned Oak]

Okay got it thanks man!! I am closing the door to soon then on cold start now if you just add wood can I close the door?

You only need to open the door slightly on a cold startup,after that keep it closed. After you add more wood and the stove is drawing well close the door.you can tell cuz if your closing too soon, the fire will die quickly. With dry wood you should not need more than 5-10 miinutes to establish a good draft. Wet wood............ well maybe never!

 

[BobUrban]

And the light goes on!! That is what I was waiting for. Now go back and read though this novel of information that has been provided by the many happy and satisfied EPA burners(many of which are burning the NC30)

Scrap lumber, pallets, etc.. will work as dry fuel to mix with your less quality wood this season. Bio bricks or the equivalent are also a great option. They are engineered for EPA stoves - unlike the paper logs!! Also, in bulk will be cheaper and better all around. Us them sparingly with the wet stuff mixed in - you will find the sweet spot for a good load.

Use the door to get it going as sparingly as possible. Air control rod is your friend. The goal is little or no flame actually coming off the wood and lots of flame up top!! This will continue until most of the gasses have burned off and should be attainable with the air control at or nearly at full closed once you get it dialed in. If you are around you can use the air control to get a little more heat by backing it out a little at a time as the fire begins to wane.

Now that you have it figured out and you are beginning to work on your air movement strategy to distribute heat. This is the second big learning curve as all home are different. Personally I do not use the fan that came with my 30 at all. I just have a 12" fan on my hearth blowing on low into the room and a fan on the floor at the top of my stairs blowing down to circulate the hot spot that collects in my stairway(high ceiling) Your plan will vary but note it is not necessarily more fan mounted on the stove that will make it happen. Less is typically best and you need to be patient. The goal with 24/7 burning is continuous light air movement with cold(heavy) air being moved low towards the stove room and light(hot) air being circulated back. Takes time but once you have it circulating it works. Di we mention patience!!

And now for the MOST important tip of all - get to procuring future wood now!! Get it cut, split and stacked in the open - wind is your friend and you cannot get it too early and you can NOT have to much!! Most here preach being at the minimum 2 years ahead. Again, more is better!! Get obsessed, keep your eyes/ears pealed for any opportunity to get the ball rolling. Craigs list, local paper, tree companied, neighbors having trees removed, etc...

Post pics of your stove, house, wood stacks ect.. We like pics!! have fun and enjoy the heat.

Enjoy that cheaply built, mass produced pile of steel you have heating your home - what a joke. NC30 is about the best bang for the buck in the solid fuel heating market and beyond the learning curve(as you now have been through) there is little or no bad press.

 

[USMC80]

Start splitting for next year now, find some ash, sass, silver maple or pine. Split and stack and will be nice and dry for next winter

 

[oldspark]

" pile of steel" POS

 

[04HemiRam2500]

I already have two cords stacked and split for next year it is mostly red oak with some sugar maple. Attached is a pic of the secondaries I got yesterday. Here is my concern and I have been playing with it alot now but since the wood is not as dry as needed what do I need to do to get the secondaries going? In other words how do you know it is okay to start closing the air control rod? Also how much do you move it at a time just one inch and then how long do you wait to turn it down again?

 

[oldspark]

I like to get the flue nice and hot before starting to reduce the air so 500 or so surface temp on flue, IF however your stove temp is climbing faster then the flue temp (which many report) you might want to start reducing the air when stove top temp is 500 or so. After some fires you wont be asking any questions and will have a feel for it, the dry wood makes it so much simpler and reliable. Dont let the stove get away from you as that happens also, hard to get these stoves slowed down sometimes.
The wood you mentioned Oak and Sugar Maple are known for slower drying times, make sure you get some less dense wood for quicker drying times and starting fires, the flue needs to get up to temp quickly to establish draft.

 

[04HemiRam2500]

Okay with the wet wood for this season though, what do I look for to know if I should turn the air control down?

 

[oldspark]

Flue temps and stove top temps or when the fire is burning wildly if no temp gauges.
Reduce in stages, maybe half the first time then a little more if the fire is responding well.
Kinda like driving a straight stick in a car, you have to get a feel for it.

 

[04HemiRam2500]

Thanks old spark will keep fine tuning. My other question is that since my wood this winter will not be the best how can I make the fire last for night time? Or do I just need to put in all dry and close air inlet? Any suggestions thanks.

 

[begreen]

I already have two cords stacked and split for next year it is mostly red oak with some sugar maple. Attached is a pic of the secondaries I got yesterday. Here is my concern and I have been playing with it alot now but since the wood is not as dry as needed what do I need to do to get the secondaries going? In other words how do you know it is okay to start closing the air control rod? Also how much do you move it at a time just one inch and then how long do you wait to turn it down again?

The thermometers are a guide. For a first fire get the stovetop warmed up first. Say 350F+, then start turning the air down. We can't tell you how much because each setup and wood being burned is different. For our stove I'd be turning it down about 50% or until the flames slowed down. In a cold stove there may be no secondaries yet. Wait for 5-10 minutes until the flames regain their vigor, then lower the air control again until the flames get lazy. By now some secondary action should be happening and the stove top should be over 400F and climbing quickly. Repeat this procedure until you either have the air control all the way to low, or the flames stay lazy.

 

[Seasoned Oak]

If your wood is not dry you will be leaving the air open farther,to get it to burn good.AS far as necessary. I is hard to analyze performance of wet wood. Each load will be different. Since most of us only burn dry wood,we have consistent performance.Until your stacks are ready Get yourself some demolition wood,no painted ,stained or treated though. Wall stud and floor joists work best as well as furring strips and lathe boards. The stuff is easy to scrounge as most have no use for it.
THis kind of wood is about 80% of what i burn in the 30. It may be up 30-100 years since it was cut so you know its really dry.

 

[oldspark]

With your stove and your wood (damp) BG's suggested temps may or may not work so dont be afraid to fudge a little, the 350 on my stove would not work so well for me even with dry wood, thats why its tough to give hard and fast rules for running your stove.
On second thought his temps with scrap dry wood are probably spot on.

 

[BrowningBAR]

However your slide on your englander could be not working properly, afterall you purchased one of the cheapest stoves made to man, i'm just sayin mass manufactured not for quality

Pushing bad information. You should stop that.

 

[stoveguy2esw]

what is the size of your flue that you are venting your stove through? if you have too big of a tile or liner it will not draft effectively for a while until it's up to temperature, sounds like a drafting issue, especially if it's drafting when door is open, however your slide on your englander could be not working properly, afterall you purchased one of the cheapest stoves made to man, i'm just sayin mass manufactured not for quality

really?

 

[04HemiRam2500]

I agree mike. I think these stoves get a bad review because you can buy them at a local box store and they have a cheap price. I have clearly learned that once you know how to operate the 30 and have excellent wood you can heat half the world!!

 

[PLAYS WITH FIRE]

Don't know how I missed that.....for the price I paid for mine I coulda bought up to 3 of the 30's (for what I pain for my parents 649.00) until I found a good one. And knowing what I know now I should have. Still don't have the room though....

 

[PLAYS WITH FIRE]

Duuuuude, once you figure it out, you'll love it! My parents have one in a restaurant that heats a pretty large area well! There not the most complex but who cares, they work very well!

 

[eclecticcottage]

really?

Meh, there's one in every crowd.

Hey, we own a Lopi...and we're probably picking up one of the little 17-vl's to heat a detatched office space next year.

While I am basically happy with my stove, I will say that inexpensive doesn't equal cheap, and value isn't based on cost alone (in other words, expensive doesn't equal quality).