My sister-in-law is trying to heat an old, 1000 sq foot, 1870's log cabin with a Defiance Volcano II forced air furnace and is having a tough go of it. I'm already helping her address the basics of cleaning the stove (can you believe the ash was over the bottom of the door opening?!), cleaning the chimney, starting and maintaining fires, etc., but I have a few basic stove questions that I'm hoping you guys can help me with.
In the Hearth.com Wiki and all the previous threads where a manual was posted, the Volcano II had secondary air control sliders on the bottom left and right, and a primary air bi-metal thermostat either on the front or the back. Alas, on this particular stove - believe it or not - there is NO primary air supply. A single lever controls a bi-metal thermostat on the front, which supplies air to the secondary tunnels/outlets at the top, rear of the furnace, just below the baffle opening. Nowhere on the front or the back is there any kind of slider, flapper, door, or spin control for primary air. I've also searched the inside of the firebox and can't find any opening for primary air.
She's obviously had a heck of a time getting the fire to do anything other than smolder unless she opens the door, which is inefficient and smokey. I was able to get a good fire going this evening by cleaning out the ash grate and pan, then using the sliding ash pan as a primary supply, but it doesn't provide much control over the draft.
Has anyone seen a Volcano II with that configuration of controls and do you have any suggestions for providing some primary air to the fire?
Interestingly, if the secondary air thermostat is set to 'High', it actually kills the fire. The draft sucks in air through the secondary tubes and into the firebox above and behind the fire, reducing the draft through the ash grate and cutting the airflow to the primary burn. So, she's been setting it on 'High' and wondering why the fire won't burn!
I'm heading back over there at lunch tomorrow to see if I can figure out a better way to get it to burn well and will get some pictures then. In the meantime, if anyone has suggestions for a primary supply other than the ash pan door, I'd be appreciative!
***Edit***
Sorry, Admins. I *swear* I was in the Boiler Room when I posted this . . . :-(
In the Hearth.com Wiki and all the previous threads where a manual was posted, the Volcano II had secondary air control sliders on the bottom left and right, and a primary air bi-metal thermostat either on the front or the back. Alas, on this particular stove - believe it or not - there is NO primary air supply. A single lever controls a bi-metal thermostat on the front, which supplies air to the secondary tunnels/outlets at the top, rear of the furnace, just below the baffle opening. Nowhere on the front or the back is there any kind of slider, flapper, door, or spin control for primary air. I've also searched the inside of the firebox and can't find any opening for primary air.
She's obviously had a heck of a time getting the fire to do anything other than smolder unless she opens the door, which is inefficient and smokey. I was able to get a good fire going this evening by cleaning out the ash grate and pan, then using the sliding ash pan as a primary supply, but it doesn't provide much control over the draft.
Has anyone seen a Volcano II with that configuration of controls and do you have any suggestions for providing some primary air to the fire?
Interestingly, if the secondary air thermostat is set to 'High', it actually kills the fire. The draft sucks in air through the secondary tubes and into the firebox above and behind the fire, reducing the draft through the ash grate and cutting the airflow to the primary burn. So, she's been setting it on 'High' and wondering why the fire won't burn!
I'm heading back over there at lunch tomorrow to see if I can figure out a better way to get it to burn well and will get some pictures then. In the meantime, if anyone has suggestions for a primary supply other than the ash pan door, I'd be appreciative!
***Edit***
Sorry, Admins. I *swear* I was in the Boiler Room when I posted this . . . :-(