opening arch door makes pan steam more

[Vtmbz]

leader 2/4 dropped flue. when i open the firing door, the pan steams noticeably more but the boil drops? has anyone ever noticed this and what does it mean.

[jmayerl]

Does the fire pick up more? Sounds like the fire is starving for air.

[maple flats]

The boil actually falls when the door is opened, that is why you want to re-fuel as fast as safely possible and get the door closed again.

[Vtmbz]

i have a 16' stack and am supplying extra air via the ash door and a 3" blower hooked up to an oil furnace squirrel cage fan.

[Vtmbz]

it just seems counterintuitive that the steam rate increases.

[Helicopter Seeds]

it just seems counterintuitive that the steam rate increases.

You cannot see steam. What you see is water vapor. Steam coming off of the boil condenses in the cooler air above the pan into vapor. So one possibility is that If the steam is hotter, and boil rate is faster, then it will rise higher into the air before condensing into vapor. So what you may be observing could in fact be a reduction in evaporation, even though you see more of it. Try stepping away and observe from afar. Otherwise, if it is true that you are boiling faster, then I would agree that door open provides more air. But based on your statement that the boil drops is why I offer the other possibility.

[Vtmbz]

that actually sounds possible, because my observation does not sound possible!

[motowbrowne]

that actually sounds possible, because my observation does not sound possible!

I've observed the exact same thing on my 2x10. It was quite pronounced. You could stand back and watch while someone did it. When they threw the doors open, the roar of the fire would die and the cloud of steam would appear to get much thicker. Whiter, at the very least. I always figured that the water droplets suspended in the air were smaller and more visible when the doors were open versus larger when the boil was more vigorous.

[Daveg]

The sudden drop in temperature causes a drop in the production of the invisible steam, and a matched increase in the ability to see in it's place, the visible vapor. It also occurs right at sap-level because that is where we can see the vapor escaping surface tension at lower temperatures. When the doors are closed, the steam that is now produced, is invisible and it's escaping right at sap level and stays invisible. Similarly, vapor becomes visible as it condenses from the steam which quickly cools from 212°F to atmospheric temperature.

[harrison6jd]

i notice it too. i think when the door opens, the heat rises up the front of the evaporator and rises quicker than the steam. so as it goes, it grabs some steam and takes it with it. possible?

[buckeye gold]

I would agree that is a factor of the vapor temperature. I see this in my shack when I start up for the day. I do not have a hood and rely on a roof vent to get rid of the steam. when I start up in the morning it gets so cloudy I can't see very well from eye level up. Once my pan comes to a roaring boil and heat has built up in the arch the only steam you can see is up by the roof and going out, but out side you see a lot of steam escaping. I have noticed when I am slow on adding wood the steam builds up for a few minutes while the fire comes back to a roar. This is why proper firing makes a difference in your efficiency.

[supersapper]

I see it in the boiling when someone else fires. The boil drops as soon as the door opens and takes awhile to come back. I always tell them to have the wood ready before they open the door.

[Mikemartin274]

I don't lose my boil while firing?