Personally I would be more interested in the flue. A horizontal section of pipe into the stack and then what??? large expanse of an ancient stack or a flue pipe all the way to the top.? We initially had the same problem until i installed a flue liner. Wow , the difference is like chalk and cheese.
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We had a flue liner installed before we actually got the fire itself… and the fire-fitters simply linked the two together… works a treat.
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Not saying the instruction manual is written by anyone who knows what they are talking about but just like most things, they copied it from someone else who had it wrong, happens in the pool industry all the time.
Loads agree on stove sites.
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Not yet - maybe tomorrow!
Very interesting… I already do what they suggest re ash… 
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Me too!!!
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No, we tried it with just our regular bits of tat and it worked fine!
No, mine is the same and it worked just fine! I’ll be doing this way from now on!
@Vitesse you can reply to numerous people in one post rather than doing lots of seperate ones, like I’ve done above.
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I’ve taken out the grate to have a good look…
and the way our log-burner is built, it’s clearly not meant to be used like the one in the video… which is no problem, since ours works very well as it is …
I may give it a go, but a) we don’t have a problem lighting from below and b) usually just use half a fire lighter and a small piece of kindling, the wood being dry enough to catch from that.
The point of not having to open the door to re- load for a fair time therefore reducing any potential to bring smoke into the room and not having to sit over the fire to gradually re stoke up to cruising speed?
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The door is open 2-5 mins depending on how quickly it catches, then closed & return 60 to 90min later. No initiating a fire and then adding wood, no sitting over the fire - just light & go. If I light the fire at 6, then go cook & eat dinner, the fire will need more wood after we’ve finished around 7 to 7.30. The key is to load it well initially so there’s enough fuel in there to keep burning.
I don’t think there’s anything special about the stove - the only time there’s a problem is if air is being forced down the chimney (already talked about how we deal with that) or the wood has become damp.
As you say yourself, the pipe goes horizontally through the wall. That is the problem and in the Uk would not pass building regs. This is the advice from ‘glowing embers’ The first common error made when installing a wood burning stove chimney through a wall is that you can exit out from the rear of the stove and run horizontally, directly through the wall to the outside. This is incorrect as there must be no horizontal runs totalling greater than 150mm in length in a flue system or 90 ° (right angle) turns . Again, this is due to hot gases needing to rise and if forced to travel horizontally, they shall lose their heat, deposit soot in the pipe and hit the right angle turn like a barrier and slump back down the system.
To comply with the building regulations, a 90° Tee Piece (or elbow) can only be used directly in the rear outlet of the stove and absolutely nowhere else in the system. All bends can be no greater than 45° to allow the gases to continue rising freely and use these sparingly as you are limited to a maximum of 4 turns per system .’’ Invica stoves are really good; the problems come in the fitting of them and no amount of jiggery pokery will fix them if the flue has not been fitted correctly…
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I have measured and the flue is just under 1m horizontal from the back of the stove through the 60cm stone wall to the exterior.The metal flue pipe goes right to the top of the chimney stack on the 1st floor roof. The pipe is mostly encased in blocks (it’s an exterior wall but under a permanent roof, a bit like an open-ended garage) and stone except for the area where it emerges from the wall for access to the elbow, which has a curve from the vertical to where it meets the horizontal section. There is a cap to access the interior of the flue pipe. As I have mentioned a few times, it’s only lighting the fire which is a bit hit and miss (no smoke yeterday, but a little today) and occasionally when adding logs. The established fire is absolutely fine.
Yes because by then you have created the updraft with the heat. 1m horizontal is a bit longer than I have seen so using the wind cowl I showed earlier would create an updraft from the get go.
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Water won’t run uphill and smoke won’t travel horizontally unless either are assisted in some way.
You will never resolve your issues safely with the horizontal flue until any smoke/fumes are allowed to flow naturally upwards. I hope you have a carbon monoxide monitor close by.
This also explains why opening the window doesn’t make any difference - the 1M horizontal run of stagnant air has effectively blocked the chimney.
Just lit our big burner for the first time using the new to me method with great success!
It has never lit as quickly, cleanly or painlessly!
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We invested in Kidde CO monitors when we moved into our rented house last year.
The stove has been there and used and serviced regularly for ten years. The original owners have survived the experience. I am slowly learning to light the fire without smoking the house out.
It’s nowhere near as bad as it seems I have given the impression…
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To be fair, you mentioned it. We just try to recommend solutions. You dont have to take them of course but I wish people would explain this as it would save a lot of time trying to help.
Right from the start I said that once the fire is established it’s fine. It’s just getting the fire going that has been a challenge. I’ve actually learned a lot from those who have made positive suggestions here. The smoke alarm hasn’t gone off for several days. I’m learning all the time. I’m sorry but what exactly did you contribute?