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Tar dripping from flue pipe


mattplace
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I've recently replaced my crappy old villager woodburner with a super efficient 'burley holywell' stove.

 

It's been in for a few weeks and its performance is amazing but... Last night there was tar dripping down the outside of the flue pipe onto the top of the stove. The sealant from the flue pipe to the register plate looked intact but must have had a small gap for the tar to drip from. It's also run down the side of the register plate (as per the pic).

 

I've pulled the stove out tonight and looked up the chimney and its coated in a shiny tar. The pic doesn't show it very well. I've swept the chimney spending a good 5mins before adding the next pole and about a pint of soot came down.

 

Would you say this tar needs removing from the chimney before refitting the stove? It's smooth to touch and won't come off easily.

 

Is it safe to carry on using the stove or is there a high risk of a chimney fire?

 

I've been burning 2 year old softwood which is very dry. It's light as a feather and around 18% MC so I don't think it's the wood.

I don't 'bank' the fire down down either. There's always a good flame and stupid amounts of heat generated. The stove is very efficient on wood though - I put on 4-5 logs before going to bed and leave the fire burning well, and there's still embers at 6am.

 

The chimney is on an external wall of a bungalow and is brick construction.

I'm going to fit a liner, insulate around it, and fit an external air supply for the stove in the summer but would like to continue using it for now.

 

Any thoughts/views welcome!

 

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What you are going to do will fix it . insulated liner especially as stack is up an outside wall . I have a Holeywell and I am sure its more than the stated 5KW . Been using it for the first time this winter and it heats the whole house . Fantastic stove . Nearl;y went for the bigger Brampton . Glad I didn't now , would be too hot .

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Thanks Geoff and Stubby...

 

Would you refit and use the stove without a liner for the time being? I'm not going to have time anytime soon to fit the liner!

 

The stove is amazing! I've turned the boiler off since the new stove is fitted!

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Stove may be producing enough heat in firebox and flue pipe. But then exhausts into a larger, (chimney) colder environment before exiting building. If the stove were fitted with a double walled metal flue liner, the heated gases moving through the chimney, would just be heating that 4" or 5" or 6" dia. liner. As is, it's presently losing heat to quadruple the surface area and volume of air.

 

Not directly connected I know. Think of a bicycle's hand pump. As one pumps, the union of the pump against the flexible connector / pump against the valve gets warm; may even get too hot for comfort. This is due to increased friction, as the air is compressed through a construction.

 

Now imagine the process in reverse. Compressed air, (the heated gases from the firebox) being allowed into a larger space. The gases rapidly cool and can now no longer prevent deposits forming on the inner surfaces of the chimney. By fitting a liner, you help the escaping gases to remain slight compressed. And provide a reduced surface area in which to lose heat. This continued restriction and partial compression, also allows the stove to work more efficiently. As the hot gases remain in the stove for a little longer, leading to a greater combustion of fuel.

 

(If one opens a saw's muffler, by reducing the number of exhaust baffles and or drilling a bigger hole for the escaping gases. Those gases not only clear the space more quickly but help cool the exhaust port/s. But make the exhaust too large and back-pressure is lost. Resulting in an inconsistent combustion of fuel and loss of heat in an uncontrolled manner.)

 

In an engine, the combusted fuel produces movement via expanding gases and heat. Apart from keeping the cylinder & pot hot, so less useful energy is lost to absorption of heat from the exploding fuel. The excess heat lost in the exhaust gases, are just wasted energy.

 

•The function of an engine, is to produce/transfer movement, with as little lost energy as is possible. Any by product of heat is waste.

•The function of a stove, is to produce as much heat as possible, without explosive movement. How the heat is transferred, via the passage of heated gases - heated air - controlled loss of heat from a solid surface, is just as important, as the manner in which the heat was produced.

Edited by TGB
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