How to Properly Start a Wood Burning Stove
Wood stoves are a cozy method to heat a room and save energy. However, they require a certain amount of maintenance.
Many modern wood stoves comply with EPA emission guidelines. You can check for an EPA sticker on the grate or underneath it to make sure your stove isn't releasing harmful pollutants.
How to start a Wood Fire
The smell and sound of a woodfire can be an excellent addition to any home. It's crucial to learn the correct method to build a fire in your stove. Incorrect techniques may lead to a fire which does not burn efficiently, and produces smoke or creosote. These tips will help you start a fire that will heat your home with minimum effort and with the highest security.
Before you start a fire, you should check the condition of your logs and coals. If they are wet they will choke your fire and prevent the proper burning. You might also want to open the flue to let out any ash that has fallen into the stove.
Begin by putting several small, dry newspaper pieces in your stove. This will help to ignite the tinder and kindling. When they begin to burn, add another layer of larger pieces to the top of the pile. This should be done in a crosshatch pattern so there will be air between each piece of wood.
If you have a wood stove that has an automatic control of combustion that will automatically deliver an air stream that is controlled to your flame as it heats. This will allow the fire to burn for a long time without you having to open the stove's door often to keep it in check.
It is important to not use too much tinder, since this can lead to the fire burning at an extremely high rate and fails to use the fuel as efficiently as it could. Once you've got a good foundation in your stove that is made of sparks, tinder and kindling, start the main flame by laying two large logs of the base on the grill. Then, on top of these base logs put a layer of wood perpendicular to them. This "top-down" method of creating a fireplace will produce a long-lasting, efficient fire that doesn't consume larger logs from the base.
Close the damper once the fire is established and keep it shut. The fire may be smothered if you open the damper prior to it being fully established. It can also decrease the efficiency of the fire.
Add Wood
Stoves can be used to heat your home efficiently and help you save money. They can be used alone or in conjunction with central heating or a furnace system to provide the additional heating required in large homes or houses with a lot of rooms. woodburning stoves of the stoves that are clean-burning utilize a superior combustion method that differentiates the burning of volatile compounds from the combustion of combustible gases and tar by supplying air in two different stages. The first stage is for the vaporization, while the second is to supply fresh air that is pre-heated. This improves combustion and decreases odors.
The amount of heat that you can get from a stove depends on the species and the moisture content of the wood used and also the dimensions of logs. The logs should be stacked in a well-ventilated space for several months prior to when you attempt to burn them to allow the wood to dry out. If the logs are wet they will create a lot of steam that is in essence wasted energy.
It is best to add wood to the pile at intervals, not all at once. The addition of too much wood all at once can cause the temperature to rise within the firebox, creating a vortex which draws smoke and volatile compounds that are not burned back into flames. This could reduce the effectiveness of your stove.
Avoid using other combustibles in your stove such as cardboard or paper, because they are not wood. They have different physical properties and cannot be burned without causing dangerously high temperatures. You should not burn compressed combustibles like wood briquettes as they differ in chemical and physical composition from firewood. They are also not type-approved to be burned in wood burning stoves.
It is important to have a professional install and test your wood burning stove. A certified WETT technician will test the stove for proper operation and safety, as well as make sure that your chimney is operating properly. They offer maintenance services for your chimney and stove to ensure they remain in top condition. They can check the accessible areas of your chimney for leakage, and fix any issues found. They will also make sure that the residents of the house understand and comply with the evacuation procedures for fire in the event of an emergency.
Adjusting the Damper
A damper controls how much heat escapes up the chimney when you're not cooking on your stove. In addition, it can also help to control the flame. If the flue is opened but the damper is closed too much the fire won't be able to burn properly and it will release smoke into your living area. To get the most efficient fire, with the damper properly adjusted, you should play around with different locations and observe how each one affects the flames.
Typically, you should keep the damper open enough to let air in and out of the flue when a fire is burning. This lets the fire get a good fire going and also helps keep it burning so that you can enjoy it for hours. The right opening will also keep the fire from being starved of air and prevent it from blowing smoke.
In order to properly adjust your damper, you need to first ensure that the fireplace is heated and the stove is hot. This will ensure that the chimney is warm and it also has an adequate draft. Once this is done the damper on the wood stove can be adjusted.
After the fire has smolder a bit you should reduce the damper to around three-quarters of its maximum. This will stop the warm room air from escaping into the chimney, while allowing the smoke to escape from the wood stove.
This is the best way to prevent the fire from getting too hot, while also keeping it burning. If you close the damper too tightly, it could block the draft from working, but should it be too open, a cold wind could enter your home.
Placing your hand on the top of the flue pipe will tell you how much the damper has opened. If you can feel a slight draft pushing on your hand it's probably in the open position.
The damper's setting can vary a little from one stove to the next, and even between different types of wood. Playing around with different settings will give you an idea of what to look for, but you might need to tweak it until you have found the perfect setting for your stove.
Clean Up
It is essential to clean your flue and stove after an incident. This can reduce the risk of a chimney fire which is the most common reason for wood stove-related fires in homes. Creosote is a sticky substance which can build up inside the stovepipe, is extremely dangerous. It is caused by moisture and unburned wood particles that cannot escape the fire. It can also be caused by improperly lit fires.
A regular cleaning routine helps to prevent the buildup of creosote. This can be accomplished by cleaning your chimney once every year. It is recommended to have your stove and fireplace professionally inspected and cleaned at least once per year.
It is also a good idea to clean the Ash tray and grate frequently. It is a good idea to use only wood that is seasoned to burn, since this will result in less creosote and ash. Avoid burning cardboard, paper and plastic. These materials can release harmful chemicals for the air and flue, that could end up in your home.
The glass in the wood stove has to be cleaned regularly as well. Most newer wood stoves have self-cleaning windows, so they don't require as much scrubs. If you are not able to make the glass on your wood stove as clean as you would like you can use stove glass cleaners available that can be used on the window.
Some other helpful tips to maintain your wood stove include turning the vent off when you are not using it and slamming the door or window to increase the flow of air. This will help keep the fire burning hotter and more efficiently, since it won't need to be as active to circulate the air. It is recommended to not stack logs or keep them in the flame for long periods of time, as this could cause warping and splitting. Finally, it is a good idea to avoid using compressed combustible wood logs in your wood stove because the paraffin they contain can melt and flow down the flue which could cause damage.