Love My Baro

lowfog01 · Post by **lowfog01** » Thu. Mar. 12, 2009 5:29 am

Hi Guys,

I’ve had the baro on for two weeks now and WOW! What a difference it makes in how my stove works. I’m so glad we are having a stretch of seasonal cold weather so I can actually see how it saves me money.

I bet I cut my coal use in half and the ash production is down proportionally, too. I can now dial in the room temperature I want and maintain it – no more guessing. The fire burns with such consistency I can actually plan on it. People are actually able to stay in the room with the stove now and open windows are a thing of past except on the very warmest spring day. The best part is that the flyash going into my house is less because I'm not messing with the stove as much. It's a winner all around.

I am going to have coal left over this season – good thing it doesn’t go bad or attract vermin.

I’ll be away for the weekend and I’m excited to see if the fire makes it to Sunday evening. It will be close. Thanks for all your help. Lisa

Freddy · Post by **Freddy** » Thu. Mar. 12, 2009 7:06 am

Wonderful! It's amazing how a little proper information can make such a big change. I'm going to print this post and give it to a friend that thinks "A baro-damper just let's room air go up the chimney".

coal berner · Post by **coal berner** » Thu. Mar. 12, 2009 7:09 am

Freddy wrote:Wonderful! It's amazing how a little proper information can make such a big change. I'm going to print this post and give it to a friend that thinks "A baro-damper just let's room air go up the chimney".

You Might want to Print this one for him to

http://fieldcontrols.com/draftcontrol.php

CapeCoaler · Post by **CapeCoaler** » Thu. Mar. 12, 2009 7:16 am

Load it up!
First get a good coal bed going...
Cut the air back.
You can pile the coal up over the fire brick and up on the front metal retainer.
The fire will stay in the center if the air is cut back.
You just want as much coal inside as can fit.
As the coal is consumed the pile will drop and the fire never reaches the metal parts...
The extra weight of the big coal pile will push some ash through the grate.
When you return...
Open the ash door and throw a small layer of coal on top.
Do not shake until you hear the new coal cracklin'.
Then use the slow full stop front to full stop back technique to drop some ash...
Add another small layer wait till that crackles.
Treat it almost like starting a new fire.
The reaction time from a very sleepy fire is much longer...
Be patient...let the fire wake up!

CoalHeat · Post by **CoalHeat** » Thu. Mar. 12, 2009 7:27 am

I’ve had the baro on for two weeks now and WOW! What a difference it makes in how my stove works.

Have you gotten the manometer yet?

lowfog01 · Post by **lowfog01** » Thu. Mar. 12, 2009 9:49 am

Wood'nCoal wrote:
I’ve had the baro on for two weeks now and WOW! What a difference it makes in how my stove works.
Have you gotten the manometer yet?

Yes, but I had to wait to use it until I had a roaring fire. The weather has been working against me. Our temperutre is dropping tonight so I'll set that up this evening. I'll let you know what it says. Lisa

coal berner · Post by **coal berner** » Thu. Mar. 12, 2009 10:05 am

lowfog01 wrote:
Wood'nCoal wrote: Have you gotten the manometer yet?
Yes, but I had to wait to use it until I had a roaring fire. The weather has been working against me. Our temperutre is dropping tonight so I'll set that up this evening. I'll let you know what it says. Lisa

With a hand fed stove it should only take you 10 minutes to have a roaring fire going with the ash door open install the manometer first then open the ash door up wait 10 min or until the flue temp goes up shut ash door check the mano set your baro . you will be done in 15 to 20 mins

9mmruger · Post by **9mmruger** » Thu. Mar. 12, 2009 10:26 am

lowfog01, where did you get your manometer?

kim

lowfog01 · Post by **lowfog01** » Thu. Mar. 12, 2009 10:51 am

Wood'nCoal wrote:
Have you gotten the manometer yet?

Yes, I got the manometer over the last weekend but with weather I didn't have a roaring fire so I just got around to it today. First thing I discovered is that the screws on my stove pipe and the hose on the manometer are two different sizes. I have to go to the hardware store and got at least one screw one size larger.

It's ok though because I need to ask everyone what is the significance of the manometer measurements. How does it relate to my baro reading. Thanks, Lisa

grizzly2 · Post by **grizzly2** » Thu. Mar. 12, 2009 7:04 pm

9mmruger wrote:lowfog01, where did you get your manometer?

kim

Lisa must have missed your question Kim. I got my manometer (Dwyer Mark II Model 25 Inclined Manometer) from http://www.coleparmer.com $31.35 with shipping and tax $ 44.55 prices are from one year ago.

kenny007 · Post by **kenny007** » Thu. Mar. 12, 2009 7:26 pm

Hello All
Ok guys I have a bacarach Machine that measures draft, Where should I take the measurment in the pipe??
My baro is about 5 inches from the back of the stove (tight) When Measurments are taken should the damper be closed??
What temp on the fire??

Thanks Ken

lowfog01 · Post by **lowfog01** » Thu. Mar. 12, 2009 7:30 pm

9mmruger wrote:lowfog01, where did you get your manometer?

kim

I borrowed it from the forum's loaner program but I'm told they aren't very expensive and can be gotten at most stove shops or hardware stoves. Check ebay. Lisa

gitrdonecoal · Post by **gitrdonecoal** » Thu. Mar. 12, 2009 7:38 pm

hey quick baro question. my setting on my baro is all the way to the right side, with the weight on the left. (if that make sence

) I need it this far to keep a good draft between .05 and .07. now after work I noticed that the baro was barely flapping open and the draft was st .02 and .03. fire is still goin good. why would this be happening? thanks
John Mud

lowfog01 · Post by **lowfog01** » Thu. Mar. 12, 2009 7:50 pm

Wood'nCoal wrote:

Have you gotten the manometer yet?

Yes, I got the manometer from the loaner program but while I still love my baro because I've seen what a major difference it makes I did not have much success with the Manometer. I must be doing something wrong. My husband - the gadget guy - couldn't make heads or tails out of it either. After I got a pre-baro screw hole the size of the manometer probe and had zeroed the manometer upon inserting the probe I couldn't get a draft to register. This was very confusing to me because the blue ladies were dancing all over the place. The stove top temperature and the after baro temperature was rising. I obviously had a good draft running through the stove. So… I reset the baro to the recommended .04 and the stove is back to where it was before I tried the manometer; running great.

I am at a loss as is my husband. His only suggestion is that I could get some foil tape and see if I could tighten up the stove pipe joints. I can’t see how this is the problem because of the dancing blue ladies and the rising temperatures. Those are indicators of a strong draft – right? I’m open for any and all suggestions. Lisa

rberq · Post by **rberq** » Thu. Mar. 12, 2009 10:08 pm

lowfog01 wrote:the dancing blue ladies and the rising temperatures .... are indicators of a strong draft – right?

I believe a deep bed of burning coal makes its own draft within the bed. Think of the "chimney" used to start charcoal for grilling hamburgers. It's just a pile of briquettes confined in a can, open at bottom and top, much like coal confined by the firebrick, and it burns great. So you could probably have blue flames and rising temps with almost no chimney draft.

Draft too high = wasted heat up the chimney, excessive coal consumption.
Draft too low = stove will be sluggish and slower to heat up when you open the air inlet to get more heat.

A few weeks ago I tried burning my stove at every baro setting from .02 to .08, and the primary determinant of stove surface temp was how much I opened the air inlet. I'm not recommending you burn with no chimney, and I'm sure a steady draft improves and stabilizes the fire over the whole length of the burn. But I don't think there is a magic "perfect" draft that you need to strive for. If you have set the weight at .04 and the stove is burning great, send the manometer on to the next borrower and don't worry about it. (Us obsessive-compulsive perfectionist types have to just let go ....)