Poor fresh air

[Dick]

New member with draft issues on a Pacific energy summit.
I have a Pacific Energy insert that I bought six years ago. Until now I have had very little problem with it. I have not tried to start a fire in it this year until three days ago. I still don't have one started.
The starter wood ignites fine and will burn with very little smoke entering the room until Iclose the door, but once the door is closed the fire goes out.
I can't seem to get any combustion air unless the door is open. The fire going out is not a slow process, it happens instantly.
This morning I had a couple of backdrafts back into the fire box. If I open the door back up smoke floods the house but the fire reignites.
The outdoor eliminates are not the best right now for building a fire but a have not had this problem in previous years.

I know the question of wood will come up.
I haven't gotten far enough along to add firewood yet. I am using scraps from my woodshop just trying to get enough fire to go to firewood.
Thanks for any suggestions

 

[Woody Stover]

Welcome to the forums. Can you describe your flue system, from stove top to the top of the stack? What about your chimney and cap...where they cleaned recently? How cold was it outside when you tried to start the fire? The warmer it is, the less draft the chimney will create.

 

[Dick]

Thanks for your welcome as well as your reply.

I have roughly 22 feet of 6 inch stainless steel flue.
It hasn't been cleaned but I am in the process of trying to get that done. Finding sweeps close to me in Texas that will do inserts has proved to be challenging.

It has been in the low 50's each day I have tried to start a fire. Also rain or high humidity combined with a north wind. My chimney is on the south side of the roof ridge and actually needs to be just a bit higher. All of these conditions are a negative but my unit has been able to overcome them in the past.

The most difficult aspect for me to understand is the fact it drafts with the door open but stops drafting immediately when the door is closed. I let the start up kindling burn a good ten minutes this morning with the door open but it still went out immediately upon my closing the door. It also seems to make no difference what position the fresh air handle is in. Open or closed the fire goes out.
My first impression was that the fresh air intake chamber is plugged but I don't see how that could be possible.

 

[huauqui]

Welcome to the forums. Ditto to what Woody said! Also, if you did pull the baffle to clean the chimney make sure the baffle is seated correctly and not pulled forward blocking the airs pathway out the stove.

Something you might try is a piece of newspaper burning right along the front edge of the baffle to see if you can create a draft. Or even a hairdryer to get a draft going.

Good luck and please report back

huauqui

 

[huauqui]

Well I see I posted almost on top of you, sorry about that. Seems you have a draft but not enough to pull air in with the door shut. My suggestions are probably not worth much now. Sorry

hope you get this sorted shortly.

 

[begreen]

That stove drafts pretty easily. I would inspect the cap and top of the chimney for plugging. There might even be a nest up there. The baffle should be pinned in place a the back of the firebox.

 

[Woody Stover]

Seems you have a draft but not enough to pull air in with the door shut.

This is pointing to marginal draft. 22' of stack should be drawing well, barring some type of blockage up top. Or maybe the north wind he mentioned was coming over the roof ridge and blowing down on the stack?

 

[Sodbuster]

Take a mirror and a flashlight and look into the air intake holes, I've had those plug with ash on mine. If your stove is ice cold take a vacuum and suck out those holes. I'd also pull the baffle and see how much ash and soot are piled on top. Other than the other advice you've gotten I can't think of anything else to add. Follow the air before and after combustion and you'll find the problem.