Why is my stove smoking back into the room?
At the time of the year when the weather has suddenly turned very cold, it is possible that you could have smoke coming back into your room from the chimney. This could be down to a number of reasons but the most common cause is the flue being cold. Smoke is very lazy and isn't going to keep trying to battle past a plug of cold air in the flue so will spill back down into the room. The trick is to get as much heat into the flue as possible to shift that plug of cold air and allow the flue to draw correctly. This can be done through correct lighting of the stove - try using the top down method as demonstrated in our "how to light your stove" video at the following link https://acrheatproducts.com/video This gets heat into the chimney quickly. If you are still experiencing smoke coming back in, just light a sheet of newspaper on the grate and open all air controls and when lit, push the door to but no close it. This should very quickly heat the chimney and then follow with the top down method of lighting.
If you are still experiencing smoking back, we would recommend that you have the flue inspected for any blockages.
If the flue isn't tall enough this could be another reason why the flue is not working as well as it should. Or there may be too many bends in the flue system which are causing resistance and not allowing the flue to function properly.
Fuel is also a common cause of smoking back. Logs with more than 20% moisture burn at cooler temperatures and will never perform as well as dried wood. Test your wood for moisture content and if it is higher than 20%, store until it has reached the required level and buy kiln dried wood to get you through.
If after all of this, the stove is still smoking back into the room then it could be a lack of ventilation in the room. Stoves need air to work and the newer the home, the more likely it is to be air tight. Wall insulation, modern glazing and extractor fans all have the ability to cause issues with how the stove operates and if there is insufficient air in the room, the stove will not work as it should. A simple way to see if this is the case is to open a window in the room and see if this improves the situation.