I had my second hopper fire the other day, probably due to excessive draft. Due to the fact that it's so difficult to maintain a consistent draft with this setup I'm thinking of installing a barometric damper on my furnace flue.
I'm thinking of fabricating a cleanout door (on the direct vent adapter) that has the damper installed on it. Has anyone out there tried this? Any reason not to try it?
Has anyone out there installed a barometric damper on a direct vent unit? What's your experience?
Barometric damper on Koker with direct vent
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- Hot Air Coal Stoker Furnace: Keystoker Koker
- Coal Size/Type: rice
- Other Heating: oil
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- Location: Cuba, NY
- Hot Air Coal Stoker Stove: Keystoker 90K, Leisure Line Hyfire I
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DO you have a draft gauge? if you are pulling too much draft, there should adjustment plate on it to vary the draft on the stove, but you need a draft gauge to set properly.
Also, the grates if not sealed properly can cause air leaks and the fire can burn back too far and into the hopper.
My keystoker 90K has a direct vent with no baro and never had a problem with hopper fire. I have a draft gauge on it all the time and monitor it. but usually doesn't need much adjustment the whole season.
But yes, the newers ones I believe have a baro damper in a tee between the direct vent and stove. It can be done with good adjustment and a draft gauge to set it up properly.
Also, the grates if not sealed properly can cause air leaks and the fire can burn back too far and into the hopper.
My keystoker 90K has a direct vent with no baro and never had a problem with hopper fire. I have a draft gauge on it all the time and monitor it. but usually doesn't need much adjustment the whole season.
But yes, the newers ones I believe have a baro damper in a tee between the direct vent and stove. It can be done with good adjustment and a draft gauge to set it up properly.
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- Member
- Posts: 34
- Joined: Mon. Oct. 03, 2011 8:33 pm
- Hot Air Coal Stoker Furnace: Keystoker Koker
- Coal Size/Type: rice
- Other Heating: oil
I have a draft gauge and check draft regularly but it varies quite a bit depending on air temp., humidity and firing conditions. I know my grates are sealed, I cemented them when I shut the furnace down last spring and checked them before I fired it up (I'm sure that's what caused my problem last year). I've seen keystoker's setup but I'm not keen on changing my flue pipe right now, that's why I'm thinking of adding the barometric damper to the cleanout door.