Secondary Burn Tubes

[Hitchy]

Quick question about the secondary burn tubes. How long are you supposed to have the flames coming out? Quite often after I am up to my sweet spot temp on the stove top I sometimes lose the flames pouring out of the tubes. I keep a very close watch on the chimney cap to make sure I am burning with no smoke and only heat ripples are coming from the cap area. Is this ok. I must be burning hot enough right? I am just not seeing the secondaries billowing flames out throughout the whole process and I am reading the way people refer to this process as if it goes on throughout, until the next reload.

Sorry if this is sounding a bit confusing I am typing this at 3:30 am

Thanks for any advice
This site has always been so helpful

Thanks

John

 

[wellbuilt home]

Your secondary tubs burn the smoke. Cole's don't smoke its a bummer. I am burning hard maple now and have 8" of Cole's in the bottom of the stove . I cant bring my self to shovel them out. It been cold here . My stove top stays around 300o with out the secondary burn . My tubs burn for about half the time in a equinox.
What stove ? I am just up making some heat . John

 

[Pagey]

Typically my burn tubes are most active when a good size load is fully charred and begins off-gassing. Flames will shoot out the holes like you'd seen on a gas grill. That show only lasts for a small portion of the burn cycle. The flames then often settle into the blue "ghost flames" above the wood. I can give the stove more air and get some of that original pyrotechnic show back, but I end up sacrificing some burn time by increasing the air.

 

[albertj03]

Typically my burn tubes are most active when a good size load is fully charred and begins off-gassing. Flames will shoot out the holes like you'd seen on a gas grill. That show only lasts for a small portion of the burn cycle. The flames then often settle into the blue "ghost flames" above the wood. I can give the stove more air and get some of that original pyrotechnic show back, but I end up sacrificing some burn time by increasing the air.

That is exactly what I get. When I first load the stove and get it going I'll have jets of intense flame like from a gas burner coming out of the holes and it looks like they are burning holes right into the wood. It's very fascinating to watch but doesn't last all that long before it turns to the waves of flame above the wood.

 

[Hitchy]

Thanks. You all have put my mind at ease. My experience is the same that you all described.

Pagey,albert.... that perfectly describes what I experience. If I want the pyro show back I have to make a change to the air being supplied and like you said I may wind up with a reduced burn time. Other wise I just let it go and within a fair amount of time it reduces and the flames remain just above the wood. The Manual says to make sure you always have a flame other wise you are smoldering and increasing the risk of creasote. It just didn't describe to well or I didn't interpit clearly enough whether the flames they were reffering to were on the wood or coming from the tubes. Reading on the site peoples descriptions of the secondaries burning process got me thinking if mine were not lasting long enough, did that somehow mean I wasn't burning correctly. It was getting confusing to me cause I was seeing just the ripples of heat coming from the chimney so I am thinking I must be burning ok.

Wellbuilt...its a Quad 5100i. I love this stove, it will really pump out the heat if I want it to. How do you like your Equinox? Mine is terrific, I have it in my basement.

 

[SlyFerret]

Yup, I'll second that. My secondaries usually look like rolling flame in the top of the firebox.

If ya try to always keep those tubes looking like gas jets, you're gonna be disappointed.

As you get used to that stove, you'll figure out where your "set it and forget it" air control position is.

-SF

 

[Hitchy]

Thanks Sly

Just had a buddy of mine go onto the roof and checked out my flex pipe that runs down the chimney, the 5-6 foot ss pipe off the top of my chimney, and the cap....I am happy to report that all are in his words "Clean as a Whistle" he was actually a little jealous, so whatever it is I am doing I think I have found the sweet spot. I am glad too that the secondaries are working normally as well. This stove is really a good one its very easy to start, easy to keep steady and easy to keep us plenty warm. The secret seems to purely be keeping the stove top at 400~550 the air control adjusted to hold that and away you go. Obviously good seasoned wood is key to any of these functions to occur.

Thanks again for every ones quick responses

John

 

[firefighterjake]

Typically my burn tubes are most active when a good size load is fully charred and begins off-gassing. Flames will shoot out the holes like you'd seen on a gas grill. That show only lasts for a small portion of the burn cycle. The flames then often settle into the blue "ghost flames" above the wood. I can give the stove more air and get some of that original pyrotechnic show back, but I end up sacrificing some burn time by increasing the air.

Ditto . . . as for the actual time . . . depends on how much wood I've loaded up, the species and how well seasoned it is . . . it's not unusual to see the Hades Has Opened Its Gates In My Woodstove effect in my stove for 15 minutes or more . . . again, depending on the load.