Outdoor Wood Furnace Info

All-Purpose OWF Discussions => General Outdoor Furnace Discussion => Topic started by: heat550 on January 13, 2019, 04:10:56 PM

Title: What's normal stack temp
Post by: heat550 on January 13, 2019, 04:10:56 PM
I have 6 foot extension with rain cap and it's straw color stainless so stainless turns straw color at 660f  I have a 400 Heatmor how low could I go before chimney gives me issues.
Title: Re: What's normal stack temp
Post by: MattyNH on January 13, 2019, 07:05:29 PM
I have 6 foot extension with rain cap and it's straw color stainless so stainless turns straw color at 660f  I have a 400 Heatmor how low could I go before chimney gives me issues.
            Im 19 feet up with my stack..No rain cap..Only issue I have is a build up creosote at the very tip....I sweep the stack once in the middle of the burning season and again when I shut is down for the season
Title: Re: What's normal stack temp
Post by: BoilerHouse on January 14, 2019, 08:16:29 AM
I have a thermometer on my flue pipe, and the "recommended" lower value is 300, and I usually operate it right around that temp.  I clean the 6 foot chimney once a year at the end of the season and creosote build up is maybe a 1/4 to 3/8 inch of so.   I would say if you went for 400 F you should be OK.  I found a big difference for me was removing the cap.  It seemed to cause a restriction that really caused creosote to build up there. 
Title: Re: What's normal stack temp
Post by: wreckit87 on January 14, 2019, 05:02:34 PM
Depends on the load of wood. A regular 12 hour load of hardwood I can hang in the low 300's. 12 hour load of softwood low 400's. 72 hour load 600-650. Had it up to about 720 last year burning a bunch of lumber and plywood
Title: Re: What's normal stack temp
Post by: heat550 on January 25, 2019, 03:59:53 AM
I testing closing draft more but 660f seems like overall sweet spot for my Heatmor 400 but it's got a 3 zone load average 75,000 a loop. So might have to stay there to get the transfer heat to water. Seems like to just roar then cycle off . Off times are longer if chimney hotter. Make any sense . lol I might be spitting hairs.
Title: Re: What's normal stack temp
Post by: jreimer on January 25, 2019, 08:12:23 AM
650 - 700?  Yikes that seems like a lot of waste heat going up the chimney.  My cycles are between 250 and 350 and even at 350 I feel really bad that it's wasteful and time to clean the tubes.

I have 12' of stack and a cap to keep the rain out but it does freeze up occasionally when it's -35 and windy for a long stretch.  It would be nice to take the cap off for winter but it's glued on so hard by years of creosote that I'm sure I'd destroy it and the stack liner trying to get it off.  I clean the stack once a year at shutdown.
Title: Re: What's normal stack temp
Post by: slimjim on January 25, 2019, 08:51:19 AM
Where’s that like button Marty, good post J Reimer
Title: Re: What's normal stack temp
Post by: mlappin on January 25, 2019, 10:14:25 AM
Where’s that like button Marty, good post J Reimer

I’ve looked into it numerous times, several software add-ons were available for a Like button, issue is the original authors of the add-on quit updating them years ago and they had mixed reviews in the first place. I also don’t have high enough permissions to mess with the forum software which is how I like it, if the forum crashes and everything is lost, ain't anything I did.
Title: Re: What's normal stack temp
Post by: James on January 25, 2019, 07:39:05 PM
I have one of those Maverick BBQ thermometers. It has the two probes. I placed one between the steel water jacket and the insulation beside my supply line. That one reads within 1* of my aquastat, so it seems pretty accurate.

The second one is placed directly above my heat exchangers before the gasses go up the stack (I think Slimjim calls it the breech).  Seems like the most accurate place to take that reading. When the stove starts gasification, it reads about 190*. After cleaning the stove and during a full throated, dragons breath, nuclear-reactor-style burn, it reads about 250-275*. One time after a particularly busy month, I hadn’t cleaned the stove - it read 342*.  Much above that seems wasteful, like Jreimer said.

Edited to add: I’ve never cleaned my stack. Been burning since 2011.