Wood stove Q's

[Snag]

OK , the stove produces massive quantities of heat - sometimes . This morning it wasn't doing so great , like it couldn't breath . I got a wire and cleaned the ashes from the grate from below , and now it's once again producing a lot of heat . I don't think I should have to go thru that every day , but don't know why it's plugging like that . I burn only oak , white and red . Unfortunately it's not well seasoned , as I didn't really plan to heat with wood . Is that maybe why it's plugging ? This is a King Circulator stove , controlled by a thermo spring that opens and closes an inlet damper . I plan on picking up a flue damper today to install , as I'm much more familiar with that method of control . I just know that we can't continue this overheat then freeze cycle we've been experiencing . -- Snag

[EXT]

I would be cautious about a flue damper as they can cause problems. A fire that is burning well will find a way to get the smoke to get out the stove if you try closing the flue, and it may smoke out the room. I understand that a flue damper is used when cold to reduce downdrafts that result in smelly air being drawn down the chimney, or when hot to reduce a strong updraft that is causing the fire to burn excessively hot.

[Snag]

This stove has gaskets on both the fire box door and on the door to access the ash pan . It seals up very well , I don't expect any smoke problems from adding a flue damper too .

[RobertMacy]

seems the best way to control the heat is through the air supply, up through the ash box.

[Snag]

Well , that is the design intent , but it ain't workin' like I would think - as in close the inlet and it gets cooler . Seems that when I turn it "down" it gets hotter . I think that this might be because it's holding the heat in the stove instead of letting it out the flue pipe , but shouldn't restricting air flow also cool the fire somewhat ? This thing is oversize for our current heated area and I knew that when I bought it but I expected to be able to regulate the output much better . I hate opening a window to cool things off , that's just throwing heat away and I don't like cutting and splitting wood just to toss the heat out the window .

[Ed Pawlowski]

Rather than a flue damper, maybe you need a flue brush. You mention the wood is not too well seasoned. If that is the case, it may be putting some creosote in the flue and is hampering the fire from lack of circulation. If the stove is capable of generating a lot of heat, the fix is not to add a flue damper, it is to fix the real problem.

You may be getting more ash and clog because the fire is not as hot as it potentially can be. Check the flue all the way out. Keep some wood near the stove so it can dry a bit faster for the next load.

[RobertMacy]

Hot is transitory. Long term cooler.

[Harry K]

I thought I had the only one of those still operating. My thermostat never worked from day one. It is either all open or all closed as selected by th e operator.

Ashes through grate: I have the same problem when burning Willow and Box e lder. The ash is too light and fluffy to go through the grate on their own. I used the poker or the side of th ash shovel to rake them down occasional ly. burning Black Locust the ash is heavier and goes down by itself.

Burning wood is not a "fire and forget" operation. One needs to keep an eye on it and make adjustments often or get run out of the house by heat (or f reeze, my wife thinks 80* is "chilly").

Harry K

[philoÂÂ]

You need to use seasoned wood and keep your flue cleaned.

If you don't take such common sense measures you will end up with a fire in the flue and burn your whole place down.

As to the grate: Yes you have to keep it clean.

[Snag]

The flue is clean all the way to the top . The used pipe was thoroughly cleaned before I installed it . Your observation that the fire isn't as hot as it should be may have merit , however . I do know the stove is capable of massive output , my neighbor up the hill has an identical stove and it heats his whole house nicely . Maybe my solution is to feed it less and more often ? I know that Patrick loads his up and turns the control all the way to "cool" and has no problems like the one I'm having - and night before last I did just that and we were toasty-warm all night . Last night I did the same and it was way cooler than I wanted this morning . Mama wasn't happy ... And my wood is stacked about 3 feet from the stove , for just the reason you suggested that . I just hope I get this thing under control before the wife strangles me !

[Snag]

Did you miss the part where I said this was a late-breaking decision ? Next year we'll be using seasoned wood , this year it's whatever I can get - a few trees I cut for the construction and standing dead trees from the woods around us . And the flue IS clean .

I've seen a flue fire , believe me when I say that ain't likely to happen , because I'm monitoring the creosote buildup . None to speak of so far , but we've only been using the stove for about 2 weeks .

I'm new to thuis type of stove , last wood burner I used was a potbelly stove with a grate you shook . Looks like I'll have to fab some implements ...

[harryagain]

When burning wood, most or all of the air is supposed to go overthe top of the fire. Grates are for burning coal.

[philoÂÂ]

I figured it was better to err on the side of caution

I do not have a wood burner myself but have a good friend who I see often and it's his sole source of heat. I don't know if he cleans the grate every single day...but he does have to clean it often.

As a matter of fact, I am heading over there in a little bit.

[RobertMacy]

Tell her she's right! Below 78, we freeze here.

Actually dry air gives a sense of being cold in a 'hot' room.

The absolutely BEST heat [at least to me] is glowing, radiant heat like a fireplace, or Markel electric heater provides. You sit near and you're warm. Get up and move about, the air is cooling and refreshing. Yep, best of both worlds.

[philoÂÂ]

I talked to my friend who uses wood heat and he said that if the wood is not well seasoned a once a day cleaning sound in order. He burns seasoned hardwood and has to clean it every two days...but he says some of his friends can go a bit longer.

His wood burner does not have a grate beneath the logs but merely a 4" (or so) hole and an ash collector below. I suppose if I were more clever I could even think of a joke.

[Snag]

You'll forgive me for disgreeing with you ... it's been my experience that the best fires have plenty of space between the logs/splits for air flow .

Well for sure they are good for that . As far as grates in wood stoves , we've had them in one form or another just about forever ... andirons for example .

[Ed Pawlowski]

Good, that eliminates one part of the potential problem.

Getting a good fire going is important. If this is your first experience, it will take some time to get things right. Start out with about 1/4 to 1/3 full and get the fire going well. Once heated, add a bit more wood to fill it to no more than 1/2 to 2/3 full. The fire will use some of its energy to get the new wood dried and heated, ready to burn. Then you can finally fill it up for the night.

Since the wood is near the stove, over time it will dry more and be easier to burn, but that can take a couple of weeks. Never try to burn one big log. If you watch two logs, they sort of feed off of each other for a good burn.

[Snag]

That makes sense . That way all the heat doesn't go into heating/drying the fuel .

I tried one big log before I added the hallway into the camper , didn't work out so well but then we weren't depending on the stove for heat . Now I'm splitting anything ove about 6" diameter , bigger gets quartered . I hesitate to split it too small , because I don't really know how small is "too small" . Most of the firewood is stacked outside , I guess I need a larger inside pile . I'm going to concentrate on standing dead trees as much as I can the rest of this winter , and plan better for next year . I had seriously considered using electricity to heat this year , but after seeing last month's bill I'm glad I went wood . More work , but then I have more time than anything else . In about 6 weeks I'll be able to draw SS , which will help keep the wolf at the door at bay ... and a damn good thing , because when tourist season is over up here everything else gets really slow too .

[Ed Pawlowski]

I think you are on your way to running a good hot stove. The more inside time for the wood, the better. It will add needed humidity to the living area and dry the wood for a better burn. Just watch out for bugs as they can come out of dormancy when warmed.

I found that a mix of small and large logs works best as the small ones burned easily while heating the larger ones. It may take you a couple of weeks to get it figured out, but you will as you try things and see how they work.

As an experiment, put aside a half dozen pieces of wood for at least a few weeks to a month. You'll see the difference in that time. Use them on a really cold day at the end of January or in February.

[Snag]

Gotta gloat a little here , got a free chainsaw last night . It's a 14" Homelite , the giver said it hasn't been run in 13 yerars ... when I got it home last night I poured a couple of drops of gas in the spark plug hole and it fired on the first pull ... and died . So today I cleaned up the carb and this sucker runs like a champ . It's so old it doesn't even have a hand guard much less a chain brake . So instead of framing up the bathroom this morning I've been cuttin' and splittin' wood . One of the logs I chopped up has been on top of a pile of stuff for 10 years and it's still mostly sound . Since it's dry I only split it into halves except the part that was like 15" in diameter . Also cut and split a couple of 8 foot logs that I cut down to make room for the house . This afternoon I'll be looking for standing dead wood that's not too far gone . Ed , I really appreciate the advice . You've helped me understand the dynamics of wood stoves and how to get the heat we need .