How to Properly Start a Wood Burning Stove

Wood stoves are a great way to save energy and warm a room. They will require some maintenance.

A majority of modern wood burning stoves outdoor stoves comply with EPA emission guidelines. You can check for an EPA sticker on the grate or underneath it to make sure your stove doesn’t release harmful pollutants.

How to Start a Wood Fire

The smell and the sound of a fire can be a welcome addition in any house. It’s crucial to learn the correct method to make a fire on your stove. Incorrect techniques may lead to an unburned fire that doesn’t burn effectively, and can produce creosote or smoke. The following tips can assist you in starting the fire that will warm your home with the least effort and ensure your safety.

Before you begin an fire, make sure you check the condition of your logs and coals. If they are wet, it will smother your fire and hinder proper burning. You may want to open the chimney to eliminate any ash that’s fallen into the stove.

Begin by placing a few small, dry newspaper pieces in your stove. This will help ignite the tinder and kindling. Once they start to burn, add a 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 own wood stoves that have an automatic control for combustion, it will automatically feed an air stream that is controlled to the flame as it heats. This will allow the fire to burn continuously without you having to open the stove’s door often to keep it in check.

It is essential to avoid using excessive tinder as this can lead to the fire burning at an extremely high rate and fails to make use of the fuel as efficiently as possible. When you have a good fire and a bed of tinder in your stove, begin the main fire by laying two large base logs across the grill. On the top of these base logs, place a layer perpendicularly to them. This “top-down” method of building a fireplace will produce an effective and long-lasting fire that doesn’t consume larger base logs.

Once the fire is established, close the damper and keep it closed. The fire could be smothered if you open the damper before it is fully established. It can also decrease the effectiveness of the fire.

Adding Wood

Stoves aren’t just beautiful home decor pieces they can also help you save money by supplying efficient wood heat. They can be utilized in conjunction with central heating systems or furnace to provide additional heating for large homes. Many of the new clean-burning stoves on the market 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 distinct stages. The first stage is for the vaporization and the second stage is to supply fresh air that is pre-heated. This improves combustion and decreases the odors.

The amount of heat you will get from a stove Wood Burning is contingent upon the type and amount of moisture of the wood and also the dimensions of logs. To let the wood dry, logs should be kept in a ventilated space for a few months before burning. If the logs are too wet they will release a lot of steam that is in essence wasted energy.

You should add wood to the pile in intervals and not all at one time. Adding too much wood at once causes the temperature inside the firebox to rise, and creates a vortex that draws smoke and unburnt volatile compounds back into the flame which could reduce your stove’s efficiency.

Avoid the use of other combustibles like cardboard or paper in your stove, because they are not wood and possess different physical properties that can’t be burned without causing dangerously high temperatures and a lot of emissions. You should not burn compressed combustibles such as outdoor wood fire stove briquettes since they differ in chemical and physical composition from firewood. They are also not approved to be burned in wood-burning stoves.

It is important that a professional install and test your wood stove. A certified WETT technician will examine your stove to make sure it is safe and functional. They will also ensure that your chimney works correctly. These professionals can also offer maintenance services to keep your stove and chimney in good condition. They can check the areas that are accessible to your chimney to determine if there is leakage and fix any issues that are found. They will also ensure that the occupants of the house are aware of and adhere to the fire evacuation procedures in the event of an accident.

Adjusting the Damper

When you’re not using your stove, a damper controls how much heat is lost through the chimney. It can also be used to regulate the fire. If the flue is opened but the damper is closed too much the fire won’t burn properly and will release smoke into your living space. To ensure that you get the most efficient fire, with your damper set correctly, you have to play around with different positions and observe how each affects the flames.

You want to keep your damper open to let air be able to enter and exit the flue when a flame is burning. This will allow the fire to start and stay lit for many hours. The proper opening will stop the fire from becoming starved of air, and also prevent it from blowing out smoke.

In order to properly adjust your damper, you need to first make sure the fireplace is preheated and the stove is hot. This will ensure that the chimney stays warm and has a good draft. After that, the damper for wood stoves can be adjusted.

After the fire has been burning for a while, you should close the damper about three quarters of the way. This will stop warm air in the room from getting into the chimney, but still permitting smoke to escape.

This is the most effective way to prevent the fire from becoming too hot while still keeping it lit. If you shut the damper too tightly, it could stop the draft from working, however should it be too open, a cold wind could blow through your home.

Holding your hand at the top of the flue pipe will tell you how much the damper has sunk. If you feel a breeze rubbing against your hand, the damper is likely in an open position.

The damper settings may differ between stoves and even between different kinds of wood burning fire. You can experiment with various settings to get an idea of the most suitable setting for your stove.

Clean up

After a fire, it is essential to clean the flue and stove. This can reduce the risk of a chimney fire which is the most common reason for wood stove fires in homes. Creosote, a sticky substance which can build up inside the stovepipe, is extremely dangerous. It is caused by moisture and unburned wood particles that are unable to escape the fire. This can also be caused when fires aren’t lit properly.

A regular cleaning schedule can help keep the buildup of creosote at bay. The best way to do this is by sweeping the chimney every year. It is also recommended that you have your stove and fireplace professionally cleaned and inspected at least once a every year.

It is also an excellent idea to clean out the ash tray and grate it regularly. It is a good idea to use only wood that is seasoned to burn, since it will create less creosote and less ash. It is also an excellent idea to avoid burning paper, cardboard plastic, and other waste items. These items can release dangerous chemicals for the flue and air, which could be released in your home.

It is also important to clean the glass of the wood stove on a regular basis. The majority of modern wood stoves have self-cleaning windows, which means they don’t require as much cleaning. You can make use of stove glass cleaners on the window if you’re not capable of getting the glass as clean as you want on your wood stove.

Other suggestions for maintaining your wood stove are to turn the vent down when you’re not using it and slamming the door or window to increase air flow. This keeps the fire burning longer and more efficiently. The wood stove will not have to be as active to circulate air. It is also a good idea to not stack logs or place them in the fire for long periods of time, as this could lead to splitting and warping. It is recommended to avoid using combustible wood that has been compressed in your wood stove because the paraffin that is contained in the wood can melt and then flow into the flue and cause damage.