Woodstove pipe temperature

[scott_vt]

In fact I am trying to figure out some fabricated attachment with a small blower to reclaim even more of the pipe heat.


In fact years ago they did make a unit that spliced into the stove pipe, it looked like a small box with holes through it and a small blower. I never liked the idea of it, just because of what JimR just posted. You would effectively drop the temp of the smoke down to the point were greater creosote buildup would result. Not hardly worth the effort IMHO /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

scotty

 

[survriggs]

scott_vt: After posting I got to looking around and found this: Heat Reclaimer I think this is what you are talking about. I was thinking more of something a little more unobtrusive, like adding another wall around the pipe with an inlet and outlet for the blower. BUT...at the risk of lowering pipe temps I think I'll just leave well enough alone.

 

[Egon]

One thing is for sure, if the magnetic gauge falls off the pipe is too hot.

Egon /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

 

[JimR]

I honestly do not think you could get anymore heat out of the pipe by blocking it off. Have you tried to keep your hand over the pipe when the stove is running at 300+ degrees? /forums/images/graemlins/cool.gif /forums/images/graemlins/cool.gif

 

[Highbeam]

The heat exchanger doesn't block it off, it actually extracts heat from the exhaust stream of the stove. Like cooling fins on an air cooled motor.

You can always add a device like that but I would say try burning a hotter fire first. Seems every house I've been in with a stove running has been plenty hot. It is when the stove goes out that the house cools off.

 

[gunslinger101]

</font><font color="blue" class="small">( Dave, I agree that it's always better to be cautious. I have found that if you burn hard, a horizontial flue will stay cleaner than a vertical pipe to the chimney. If I had a temperature gage and saw it rising and heard the rush from the cresote fire I would close the air off to the chimney, open a window to get the smoke out, put the fire out in the stove. Then consider the fire department and hope the fire is contained within the pipe. I am not sure the temperature gage would be very helpful at this point. By the way--been there and done that. )</font>

If you get a fire in the stack never close air off, if you do it will back draft to your stove, open air up and splash water on the fire in the stove, the steam will kill the stack fire, don't put the fire all the way out in the stove, just splash enough to keep making steam. Clean the pipe or stack before next use.
Thats how we do it at our fire department at about 20 homes each year, unless they waited to long to call.

 

[Boondox]

survriggs -- That's exactly what I do. The first four feet of flue is the single walled stuff that gets hot as heck before I convert to Metalbestos pipe to pass thru the roof. I have a small cheap fan aimed at the single wall to reclaim some of that wonderful heat that would otherwise be lost.

Pete

 

[CTyler]

Where you have it is good.

My shop is heated with a double barrel(55gal) wood stove. Its single wall pipe up to the truss. The temp gauge is about 10 inches up off the top barrel. The air intake is pretty much wide open and the flu damper set partialy closed. Flu temps are sub 400 deg most of the time. Temps at the bottom of the truss 12' up are still low-mid 300deg.

I went to clean the pipe a few weeks ago for the first time. Basically wasted my time since its was clean. So thats two years and still clean.

The upper barrel temp at the top hot spot is ~500deg. The damper is holding the heat back from racing up the flu. Not sure if the second barrel is providing extra burning of the bad stuff or what. I was actually a bit surprised there wasn't a bunch of stuff built up since the flu temps are always near the bottom end of the "burn zone".