Woodstove user tips

[vtsnowedin]

You should burn the stove hot, but many stoves will actually deform if you let them get too hot for too long. A thermometer is a good idea. I now heat for aesthetic reasons (we have a good geothermal unit), during power outages or when the outside temp is far below freezing - just to have a nice hot room to come in to. The problem is that small Irish stoves like mine are so efficient that they sometimes just produce too much heat, so you have to crank them down. That can cause more buildup, but seems unavoidable. One stove has a stainless steel, insulated stovepipe which - for 15 years at least - has simply shed any buildup and remained pristine. The other we have to check.

One tip... When I built the house, I installed a 4 inch duct to the stove from outside. It made a noticeable difference in the efficiency of the stove because it doesn't pull in outside air through doors and windows, and, in these well-sealed modern homes, allows the stove to have plenty of air. It was recommended by the stove manufacturer and the stove even has a port in back for the duct.

Good points. You can get a wood stove cherry red with a full load of dry wood and a wide open draft. That is about 1400 degrees F, dangerous and unnecessary. To have the chimney self clean you only need to get the flue up to 300 deg.F at the top of the chimney, if you have been running the stove and the chimney is warm just raking over the bed of coals before a refireing and letting them burn wide open until they have reduced by half will usually do the trick and only takes twenty minutes or so. Then add your new wood let it get started for sure then shut it down to is idle position. Be sure the ash pan is not over full when you do this as that is how grates get burned out.
If your super efficient stove is putting out too much heat only fill it half full. It can't release BTU's you haven't added to the stove.

 

[kco]

Good points. You can get a wood stove cherry red with a full load of dry wood and a wide open draft. That is about 1400 degrees F, dangerous and unnecessary. To have the chimney self clean you only need to get the flue up to 300 deg.F at the top of the chimney, if you have been running the stove and the chimney is warm just raking over the bed of coals before a refireing and letting them burn wide open until they have reduced by half will usually do the trick and only takes twenty minutes or so. Then add your new wood let it get started for sure then shut it down to is idle position. Be sure the ash pan is not over full when you do this as that is how grates get burned out.
If your super efficient stove is putting out too much heat only fill it half full. It can't release BTU's you haven't added to the stove.

Very good tips, which took me a few years to figure out. Our furnace has a thermostatically controlled draft which is either fully open or closed. When adding a new batch of wood to coals we need to make sure the wood gets burning well before the damper closes. That requires us to turn the thermostat up high so it does not shut down prematurely. Once the wood is fully burning (the 20 minutes mentioned above), we reset the thermostat to the desired temperature. If we don't do that, the thermostat can shutdown and the wood smoulders, building up smoke in the firebox. Then, when the thermostat opens it can cause a quite powerful smoke explosion which blows a lot of smoke out the flue damper and pipe joints. About once per year we forget about temporarily raising the thermostat and get that puff of smoke.

The danger of such a smoke explosion is a good reason to make sure all metal chimney joints are properly secured with screws. A few years ago my neighbour, who was unfamiliar with wood stove operation, cleaned his chimney and did not properly resecure a chimney elbow with screws. They came home to find their house filled with smoke and smoke pouring out of the chimney elbow that had blown off. Luckily it had not been long enough to kill their cats, but the smoke damage to the entire house was severe and they had to have a damage restoration company clean it, plus they discarded the carpets.

The other tip about controlling heat by the size of the fire is another good one.

And, as mentioned by others, perhaps the best way to avoid creosote buildup is to burn only well seasoned wood.

 

[cqaigy2]

Good tips here!
Thanks

 

[vtsnowedin]

Very good tips, which took me a few years to figure out. Our furnace has a thermostatically controlled draft which is either fully open or closed. When adding a new batch of wood to coals we need to make sure the wood gets burning well before the damper closes. That requires us to turn the thermostat up high so it does not shut down prematurely. Once the wood is fully burning (the 20 minutes mentioned above), we reset the thermostat to the desired temperature. If we don't do that, the thermostat can shutdown and the wood smoulders, building up smoke in the firebox. Then, when the thermostat opens it can cause a quite powerful smoke explosion which blows a lot of smoke out the flue damper and pipe joints. About once per year we forget about temporarily raising the thermostat and get that puff of smoke.

.

I would not put up with that hazard. I would drill a hole in the draft door so that when closed tight, enough air enters to keep combustion going. I would make it an even bolt size so I could stick a bolt into it if needed, perhaps 3/8". Sooner or later somebody that doesn't know the drill will fill the furnace for you and cause a mess or worse.

 

[kco]

I would not put up with that hazard. I would drill a hole in the draft door so that when closed tight, enough air enters to keep combustion going. I would make it an even bolt size so I could stick a bolt into it if needed, perhaps 3/8". Sooner or later somebody that doesn't know the drill will fill the furnace for you and cause a mess or worse.

Actually, it's easier than that. The damper is controlled by a bead chain. I just have to shorten it so it doesn't fully close when the motor is off. You're right, I should do that because others would have trouble. It's not like a lot of smoke comes out and our chimney is properly maintained and inspected each year. But the fix is simple and I just have to figure the proper length to shorten the chain.

I mentioned it because some people may not realise how important it is to have a properly built and maintained chimney system. Such explosions can occur on any system. As you say, they can be avoided by ensuring there is always air to keep combustion going.

One other thing I did do this year was to get an electric barbeque/fire starter to get the wood fully going when building a fire from coals. It is the Looftlighter shown here:

Looft Industries

It may work for charcoal but it does not start a wood fire from scratch very well. We use birch bark to do that. But it works great for restarting from coals as it blasts a lot of hot air. Prior to this year I used a hand bellows but they don't work as well. This thing gets the wood (from coals) in no time.

Anyhow, I will adjust that chain.

 

[Lineman North Florida]

Find you a good heart pine stump and cut you some slivers of fatwood to start your fires with, have heard folks from other parts of the country call it magic wood.

 

[BIG DOOLEY]

Chimney brushes are made in an assorment of sizes to fit your chimney exactly.
I have a 6" round pipe and My local Ace Hardware had a 6" round brush.
Square and rectangular brushes are available too.
I use 4 fiberglass conecting poles and do the job from the roof with the stove closed inside.
Then I open the stove and clean out the pipe collar from inside my stove.
Just light the fire back up and burn the creosote along with the wood.
Tom

 

[sherpa]

OK, I checked my chimney today and it looks nice and clean!
We been using wood heat for about 20 years, love wood stove heat, and its free!
The wife and I love harvesting firewood.
It is really easy to get all the firewood we need living in the national forest.
We have lots of nice oak trees that fall into the forest roads each year and that makes it really easy.
We have plenty of oak on our property as well.
Again, thanks to all who posted good information.
sherpa

 

[cqaigy2]

Find you a good heart pine stump and cut you some slivers of fatwood to start your fires with, have heard folks from other parts of the country call it magic wood.

It is magic, i love that stuff!

 

[TomSeller]

How long do you all season your wood? We won't burn anything less than 4 years. Maybe a rare occasion 3 years if the tree was on the ground to start with. We clean the stack regularly but never really have a buildup.

 

[vtsnowedin]

How long do you all season your wood? We won't burn anything less than 4 years. Maybe a rare occasion 3 years if the tree was on the ground to start with. We clean the stack regularly but never really have a buildup.

Six months on average. sometimes a year or better sometimes stump to stove non stop. Stacked in the cellar next to the furnace the heat will dry out a green pile in about two weeks. What I'm burning now was storm damage that sat in a log length pile all summer and was about half dry when I blocked and split it last fall. My wood furnace will burn anything and a large chunk not quite dry makes a good last log of the night.

 

[sherpa]

I usually let my wood dry for six months but last winter was warm and we did not use as much. We had a few more trees fall in the forest roads that we harvested. Right now we have about 5 years worth of good split firewood stacked in the dry. I also have at least 4 big oaks down in the forest that have fallen so there is another year or two worth of firewood.
sherpa

 

[kw22614]

Through a normal winter we'd go through maybe 4-6 cords. Last few years have been unusually warm so have only burned 2 1/2-3 1/2. Now have about
10 cords split & stacked. I usually start in late spring collecting blocked wood from cleared sites and homeowners who've had work done (free). Come about late Aug I'll start splitting and when it gets cold,Nov(?), I stack it. I guess mine seasons anywhere from 5 - 6 months. But I always burn from opposite ends of the pile each year so wood is good and dry. I always cover my stack too - keeps the squirlls real happy.

 

[dave1949]

At least one year split and stacked, two is better. It also depends on the wood size and species. I burn a lot of small sapling and limb wood which dries a lot faster than say oak split from a large trunk.

The wood I will burn beginning next Nov./Dec. was split, stacked and tarped last October, and was cut to stove lengths during the spring and early summer.

 

[chopped]

I like a year undercover, but have burned fresh cut wood ,I use a wood furnace so it burns hot.In this time of year even the tin cans last only a day before they are gone and the bottles melt to a gooey glob.I clean maybe twice a year, get maybe 2 1/2 gallons each cleaning,Its a 30 foot chimney 8x12....Pine is good after it dries out,Im now adding pine along with the hardwoods, works great.

 

[DKCDKC]

I burn oak and hickory, with a little poplar for kindling. I have folks cut firewood on my property on shares, so I never really have to down trees... 'Cept when they're dead and too close to buildings or fences. I've gotten real good at dropping them where I want them. I leave the wood blocked until close to time to burn. I like to burn wood about 6 to 12 months old, but warmer winters recently mean some is a few years old - and I don't like it. My stove simply burns it too fast. I can't damp the stove down enough and it gets too hot for my taste. Just a single log on a coal bed goes too fast, even with the damper closed. The problem is that the stove is a great burner and super efficient, but the damper, when fully closed, allows a bit of air past it, and that's all the fire needs. I draw my air from outside through a vent in the back of the stove, so I am considering putting an old PVC pipe valve on the vent to absolutely shut off the air to see what that does. The plastic pipe would be on the fresh air side and below the stove, so it won't be affected by the heat.

 

[dave1949]

One thing I have come to like about my masonry-style heater is there is no fire tending to speak of. I light a fire in it once per day using about a 5 gal. bucket worth of wood. When that has burned down to coals, I put in another 5 gal. bucket's worth. Pull the coals together with the poker when it's about done. That's it until the next day 99% of the time. There is no messing with damper controls, it's supposed to burn hard.

Masonry/contra-flow heaters are best designed into new construction in most cases.

 

[sherpa]

Another way to control air like a damper is to put a cap on top of your chemney. I was getting some down draft from high winds, so I put a cap up there and it slowed my burning down a lot, just like a damper. It did stop the wind as well.
sherpa

 

[300UGUY]

I don't know if referrals are kosher here, but Hearth.com has a whole community who are simply nuts about woodburners!

 

[Scooby074]

Best advise is burn dry wood at a hot temperature.

What most of us consider "dry" isnt what the "experts" on Hearth do. They want C/S/S for 3 years and a moisture content under 20%. What may be a bit of overkill... my wood is generally 20% and up, aged 1 year at most. But it might be worth a look over there for tips. They are to woodstoves what TBN is to tractors.Hearth.com Forums Home

EDIT: looks like 300 beat me to the Hearth shout out :thumbsup: