New home owner...lost in the sauce

[ddddddden]

Well, I suppose you could try blocking the vents, when not using the stove. Maybe look into insulating behind the stove in the chimney. Put a block-off plate above the stove to seal it off from the rest of the chimney.

https://www.hearth.com/talk/threads...ock-off-plate-for-a-masonry-fireplace.147679/

 

[Woody Stover]

#1, The thermometer on top hiding behind the grate never seemed to move.

Did you ever figure out if the catalytic combustor is working? Can you see it glowing if you look through the glass into the top of the firebox when the stove is up to temp and the bypass lever is closed? If that is a cat thermometer it should be soaring up around 1000* or more when the cat lights off..

 

[Unobtanium]

Kiln dry - well not real kiln treated for bugs yes, but at 5-6 bucks for A .75 cubic ft of wood, better off buying a block of the compressed wood bricks ( no additives or wax types)

I have a ton of wood the previous owner left behind. It's under the deck, which I do not like for a storage area because it attracts vermin to the house, so I am going through all of that, first.

 

[Unobtanium]

Did you ever figure out if the catalytic combustor is working? Can you see it glowing if you look in the top of the firebox when the stove is up to temp and the bypass lever is closed? If that is a cat thermometer it should be soaring up around 1000* or more when the cat lights off..

I have no idea. I will look. The thermometer has moved, now, to mid-operating range, just the other day as I stuffed it full and let 'er rip. It does not have numbers, just "Too cool" "operating range" and "too hot". I will look and see if I see a glow. Would that be the honeycomb above the "shield" as I call it?

 

[ddddddden]

Yes, the cat could be called a honeycomb. Here’s a thread on your stove.

https://www.hearth.com/talk/threads/vermont-castings-sequoia-recall.14528/

 

[Unobtanium]

Yes, the cat could be called a honeycomb. Here’s a thread on your stove.

https://www.hearth.com/talk/threads/vermont-castings-sequoia-recall.14528/

I have called Vermont, and they talked a bit about sending me a "kit" after I sent them photos. They requested photos of either side, near t he door, 3-4" back. NOthing ever happened.

 

[Woody Stover]

Yes, the cat could be called a honeycomb.

And it sounds like his is working if the needle is going into the 'operating range.'

 

[ddddddden]

I have called Vermont, and they talked a bit about sending me a "kit" after I sent them photos. They requested photos of either side, near t he door, 3-4" back. Nothing ever happened.

Wouldn’t hurt to make a follow up call, you know, just to “make sure they got the e-mail” and squeak your wheel a bit.

 

[Unobtanium]

I just checked. The cat is dancing orange, and my needle is in the lower 1/3 of the operating range. The probe appears to go into where I imagine that cat lives.

 

[Unobtanium]

Wouldn’t hurt to make a follow up call, you know, just to “make sure they got the e-mail” and squeak your wheel a bit.

I will do that thing.

 

[Unobtanium]

 

[Unobtanium]

I have found the ingress location of the cold air.
How should I fix this?

The easiest would be to apply a "spray-on foam insulator from a can", such as this: https://www.lowes.com/pd/Dow-GREAT-STUFF-Gaps-and-Cracks-12-oz-Spray-Foam-Insulation/3012216

That said, I am ignorant of the thermal load placed on something in this location, or about future maintenance or replacement and repair implications, etc.

Is this a viable solution to fix a draft coming from the location pictured, or is there a more correct or better method?

I would note that the wasp's wings are still in-tact (wasps like to come down into the fire-box area in the summer), which gives me hope that the thermal properties required to be safe in this location would be rather low.

 

[Unobtanium]

I chose to use high-temp silicon for this job. It has a normal service temp. of 500*F, and ability to withstand bursts to 600*F. I am confident that will be sufficient for this location.

The draft has been cut SIGNIFICANTLY. There is still cool are in this area, but it seems insensible as to where it is coming from, and it is now at a level I am no-longer concerned. The livingroom feels much warmer now, in relation to the rest of the house. Still cooler due to vaulted ceiling and so forth, but not an issue at all. Very pleased.