Secondary burn visibility for high-efficiency fireplaces

[yurij]

I read in some posts that the secondary burn's in High Efficiency fireplaces are visible and quite beautiful (as well as extremely functional). I am interested in the BIS Tradition/Lennox Motecito Estate and the VC Sequoia II. I'd like to know if the secondary burn area of these units are visible through the glass doors, or are they in some area of the firebox that can't be seen. I suspect it can't be seen in the Sequoia since its a catalytic unit, but would like to hear from anyone who owns this unit. The non-catalytic units I have more hope for since it "looks" like all non-catalytic designs are very similar internally. Naturally there are no dealers in my area that have these units on display. Thx for reading -yurij

 

[DiscoInferno]

I think most of the non-cat fireplaces are similar, and the secondary combustion should be quite visible. Certainly is on my BIS Ultima. Fun to watch, beats the tv quite often. (Big surprise.)

About the cat designs, I know nothing.

 

[z-man]

This has been my biggest question to date, it is like I'm searching for a mythical female spot or something! I have been burning for a little over a year now, in a Lopi Freedom wood insert, and have NEVER seen secondary combustion... What should it look like? I assume I am looking for gas escaping from the 3 round burn tubes in the stove, and igniting.

My stove gets quite hot, the whole house gets hot, the wood I'm using is 2+ years old, but no visible secondary combustion. Any tips on what to look for, or pics, are appreciated.

 

[yurij]

z-man - this is a youtube clip of a secondary burn. i hope this helps.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lR98Z4zvX8k
and from the other descriptions on this forum, it looks like the flame should be slowly flickering blue/orange colored flames around the area of the secondary air tubes. i also read that the flames are not continuous but flicker on/off and require a flame from the primary burn to ignite the secondary. so if the primary is not "large" enough, then you won't see the secondary. but eventually the secondary is still burning and giving the heat. -yurij

 

[Corie]

This has been my biggest question to date, it is like I'm searching for a mythical female spot or something! I have been burning for a little over a year now, in a Lopi Freedom wood insert, and have NEVER seen secondary combustion... What should it look like? I assume I am looking for gas escaping from the 3 round burn tubes in the stove, and igniting.

My stove gets quite hot, the whole house gets hot, the wood I'm using is 2+ years old, but no visible secondary combustion. Any tips on what to look for, or pics, are appreciated.

If you have never seen any secondary combustion then something is probably wrong with your stove. Once a good hot burn is established when you close the air control you should see very active and neat looking flames rolling out of the tubes on the stove.

Your insert has a bypass damper; any chance you haven't closed it?

 

[yurij]

Can someone tell me if these tubes are in the Security Chimney's Tradition / Lennox Montecito Estate fireplace? I haven't been able to find a dealer close by (< 100 miles) from me to inspect the unit. thx

 

[velvetfoot]

"when you close the air control"
That's probably key, no?