Hole in rear baffle tube - wood insert

[murphmic]

I have a Pacific Energy Summit, wood stove insert, purchased in 2015. There is a hole and damage to what I've seen referred to as a "baffle tube." It is in the back of the interior, between the fire bricks. I believe it is a tube that channels air flow up. This piece appears to be welded on, so there is no replacement part and it looks like we'll need a new stove. My question - what caused this? Being too aggressive when loading wood? A technician that saw the pics said it was from overfiring. We have one of those temperature gauges that stick to the front with a magnet and I don't know if we ever got it into the too hot zone, possibly twice (although I'm sure those gauges aren't that reliable). I just can't believe it hasn't happened to others, so I'm looking for feedback. I've attached photos.

Thanks!

 

[DAKSY]

I’m thinking a good welder can repair that damage.

 

[EbS-P]

You need to see what good metal you have left that could be welded too.

That’s not where I would expect an over fired stove to fail. It worth following up on if there is any warranty coverage.

How do you run the stove? How tall is the chimney?

You need to figure out why this happened. A stove should last more than 10 years.

 

[murphmic]

You need to see what good metal you have left that could be welded too.

That’s not where I would expect an over fired stove to fail. It worth following up on if there is any warranty coverage.

How do you run the stove? How tall is the chimney?

You need to figure out why this happened. A stove should last more than 10 years.

Thanks for your response. We run the stove all day, everyday from about November - April and have done so for the past 8 years. As for chimney height, I'm not sure exactly what you mean - coming off the roof I've attached a photo. In terms of distance from stove, the stove is on the first floor of a two-story house.

And exactly, I really want to know the cause. Thanks for any insight.

 

[EbS-P]

Thanks for your response. We run the stove all day, everyday from about November - April and have done so for the past 8 years. As for chimney height, I'm not sure exactly what you mean - coming off the roof I've attached a photo. In terms of distance from stove, the stove is on the first floor of a two-story house.

And exactly, I really want to know the cause. Thanks for any insight.

View attachment 324458

Total height from stove to chimney cap. Is this one story or two?

 

[ozarkoak]

Looks like moisture damage to me. Like has been said. A good welder can fix it. How hard or easy it is to get access to and to material suitable for taking a weld is another story.

 

[MongoMongoson]

Doesn't the firebox and baffle have a limited lifetime (10 yr) warranty? Call PE, see what you can get.

 

[MongoMongoson]

I don't think it is from overfiring. If it were regularly overfired, I bet your baffle would be the first indicator. Do you have pictures of your baffle?

 

[murphmic]

Total height from stove to chimney cap. Is this one story or two?

It is two stories.

 

[oilcan1001]

I was wondering myself how long this air channel will last on my 2023 Drolet

 

[ozarkoak]

I'm betting if you wanted to make that piece last as long as possible you could wire brush it off after burning season. The ash attracts moisture out of the atmosphere during summer and ash and moisture make lye which I don't think is great for many metals.

 

[EbS-P]

I was wondering myself how long this air channel will last on my 2023 Drolet

A long time. 20 years

@bholler is this a common failure point?

 

[bholler]

A long time. 20 years

@bholler is this a common failure point?

Unless it's abused 20 years minimum. Probably much more

 

[murphmic]

I don't think it is from overfiring. If it were regularly overfired, I bet your baffle would be the first indicator. Do you have pictures of your baffle?

Hmm. The baffle is a bit warped. We had assumed we banged it up from putting wood in too aggressively. Here are two pictures.

 

[murphmic]

Doesn't the firebox and baffle have a limited lifetime (10 yr) warranty? Call PE, see what you can get.

I couldn't find a phone number for Pacific Energy. It says to contact your dealer. I sent pics to the place I bought it from and they said their technician says it must be from over firing. So I think that's as far as I can go with PE. If it is from over firing then I want to know because we definitely want to change our ways so we don't damage stoves in the future. I guess we'll get one of those infrared thermometers? I will certainly stop relying so heavily on the magnetized temp gauge we have been using.

 

[EbS-P]

Looks like it’s been run hot. Two stories of chimney with an easy breathing insert needs attention paid to draft. I needed a damper on my insert. I can’t tell if the baffle and side rails are still operable.

New insert or not you need to figure out how to not burn so hot. The hole in the baffle tube will destroy that baffle in short order.

 

[MongoMongoson]

The baffle doesn't look bad to me considering it is almost 10 years old. The baffle rails look straight. If you were overfiring it enough to burn out the tube carrying a constant flow of combustion air, I think the baffle would be a mess.

Your baffle does not look much different (warping) than mine, and mine is from 2020. I am not overfiring my stove, not even close.

I would not give up on contacting PE yet. You can email the company. I was able to get a response from them when I needed it.

Did the technician look at it in person, or just the pictures? These stoves cost something like $3000 now, so make use of the warranty if you can. If the tech won't even come out to look at it in person, I don't consider that very good service. He or she looks at a couple of pictures and says "your stove is junk, it must be your fault"? Nope.

Also, like others have said, this might be very repairable. It would be pretty easy to get in there and weld it, as long as it is just that fron face of the tube that is rotted out. With the baffle out, there is plenty of room to get in there with a stinger.

 

[oilcan1001]

From the looks of my old 1988 PE stove, the baffle will go before the air tube.
Makes more questions than answers for the OP

 

[bholler]

From the looks of my old 1988 PE stove, the baffle will go before the air tube.
Makes more questions than answers for the OP

View attachment 324519 View attachment 324520 View attachment 324521 View attachment 324522

That baffle is long gone lol

 

[oilcan1001]

That baffle is long gone lol

This stove came with the house when I bought it and I kinda knew it wasn't good but I still used it all last winter.
I replaced with (now) current Drolet Escape and sleep easy at night

 

[nortcan]

If you're talking about the air channel, it may be possible to remove it and make a new one from St-St, then it will last for a very long time.

 

[MongoMongoson]

If you're talking about the air channel, it may be possible to remove it and make a new one from St-St, then it will last for a very long time.

Everything inside of the firebox on a PE Summit is supposed to be stainless already. That is the part that is confusing... what caused the tube to rot away?

 

[bholler]

Everything inside of the firebox on a PE Summit is supposed to be stainless already. That is the part that is confusing... what caused the tube to rot away?

Over firing or some contaminant

 

[MongoMongoson]

Over firing or some contaminant

But based on what you have seen here do you think it was overfiring?

Maybe he burned driftwood or used the old salt and pop cans to clean his chimney... but it doesn't look like overfiring to me.

I overfired my old Hearthstone before I knew better. It turned the cast iron baffle to a puddle but the stainless (replacement) air tube I put in it was fine. That air tube was on top, not on the back wall, and it was put in along with the brand new baffle that I burned up.

I know that was a different design but I own a Summit now so I know how it runs.

 

[nortcan]

Everything inside of the firebox on a PE Summit is supposed to be stainless already. That is the part that is confusing... what caused the tube to rot away?

I think that the baffle is made from 304 St-St, but the air channel at the back is probably not, just steel, It could be easy to remove it and have one in St-St. Did you try to clean the baffle with a brush , looks just ash covered with humidity ?