Avoiding a smokeout

[aurelius wood]

Hi all,

Every now and then, I suffer a smokeout when trying to light the log burner (Clearview 400p) and I'm trying different methods to avoid ending up with the Windows open and being even colder!

I have good pine kindling, newspaper and natural freighters, plus the odd pine cone.

My theory was the flue is cold and consequently, there is no draw, so my latest theory was lighting a single firelighter to promote warm air rising before adding paper/kindling etc, but still getting mixed results.

I've watched every you tube video and read the odd book so I know I'm not do I'm not doing anything daft, and before anyone asks, yes my logs are seasoned ( 11% average)

It's quite random, the same technique will work on Monday, but Tuesday gets a smokeout. I'd be interested to know if anyone has perfected a technique to avoid said problem

[CJM]

Use fire lighters no point messing about with hippy technology, open all vents on the stove, then open the stove door by an inch. That will give you the best draw.

[TTP]

Maybe it's to do with the wind pushing the air down rather than drawing? What chimney cap have you? Can't remember the correct name but you can get a H style cap on top to stop this happening

[Mull]

Daft question....is your flue clean?

[IVECOKID]

As above but my chimney had a thick Cob web across the very top of the chimney pot which believe it or not Stopped it drawing and like you having smoke out .

 

Ste

[Stubby]

All the above really . Fire lighter under kindling , air slide wide open quick blast with a map gas torch door open a crack . Some people suffer if the stack is not tall enough to clear the pitch of the roofs and certain wind directions can cause problems .

[GreenGui]

I use a cheap blow lamp, the type powered by those £1.5 camping gaz canisters, to gently warm the flue from the inside of the woodburner before lighting the kindling to avoid this. It only happens to me once in a while when the wind is blowing from a very specific direction creating a high pressure at the top of the chimney. Its not helped by the chimney being very slightly below the roof apex - hence the high pressure at times.

[djbobbins]

Sounds like it is not a problem of your technique, or of the flue needing cleaning (although that might help).

 

If you do the same thing on different days, but get different results, IMO that points towards design issues with the flue e.g. It being affected by wind. I'd also support the idea of trying an H- shaped or curved T-shaped cowl or chimney pot.

[Vespasian]

I've got the same problem with the woodstove I have..

its so bad I refuse to light the damn thing for fear of smoking me out..

 

I tried to work out why it happened and the only thing I could think was atmospherics. it usually happens on damp days..

 

Seein as the winters on its way I'll have to start using it again, not looking forward to that...

But I will be reading this thread with interest to see if anyones got any idea's.

[njmusk]

Like everyone else says, it is not your technique in lighting. We had the same problem when we had an open fire, you would be sitting there and suddenly get a down blast of smoke to fill the room, still an occasional problem now the woodburner is fitted, even though I fitted an elephant foot onto the new chimney pot. The old caretaker who had lived here 20 years said he had same problem, and I have noticed the open fires in the big house get downdraughts and their chimneys are moosive, so more of a wind problem I think.