How to Properly Start a Wood Burning Stove

Wood stoves are an excellent option to conserve energy and warm rooms. They do require some maintenance.

Many modern wood stoves comply with EPA emission guidelines. You can look for an EPA sticker on the grate or under it to ensure your stove isn't releasing harmful pollutants.

How to start a Wood Fire

The smell and sound of a fire can be a welcome addition in any home. It's important to know how to build a fire on your stove. Unintentional methods can lead to a fire which does not burn well, and may produce smoke or creosote. The tips below can help you start a fire that is safe and will warm your home quickly and effectively.

Check the condition of your logs and coals before you begin the fire. If they are too wet they could smother the flame and stop it from burning efficiently. You may want to open the chimney to remove any ash that has fallen into the stove.

Begin by placing a handful of small modern wood burning stoves dry newspaper pieces into your stove. This will help ignite the fire. Once they start to burn, add another layer of larger pieces to the top of the pile. This should be done in a crosshatch pattern, so that there will be air between each piece of wood.

If you have wood stoves that have an automatic control for combustion it will automatically supply a controlled stream of air to your fire as it builds. This will help the fire to burn at a steady rate without having to open the stove's doors to tend it.

Do not use too much tinder as this will cause the fire to burn at a rapid rate and not use the fuel effectively. Once you've got a good base in your stove with sparks, tinder and kindling to start the main flame, you can do this by laying two large logs of the base on the grill. Then, add an additional layer of smaller logs that are perpendicular to them and on the top of the base logs. This "top-down" method of building the fireplace will create a long-lasting and effective fire that doesn't consume larger logs from the base.

Close the damper when your fire has been established and keep it shut. Doing this too soon could cause the fire to smother and will not allow for the proper air flow, which will lower the effectiveness of the fire.

Add Wood

Stoves aren't only beautiful pieces of home decor they can also help you save money by supplying efficient wood heat. They can be used together with a central heating system or furnace to provide supplemental heating in large homes. A lot of the stoves that burn clean utilize a superior combustion method that differentiates the burning process of volatile compounds from combustible gases and tar by providing air in two distinct stages. The first stage is to aid in the vaporization, while the second step is to supply pre-heated fresh air. This improves the process of combustion and reduces the smell.

The amount of heat you can get from your stove wood burning will depend on the kind of buy wood stove online and the moisture content, as well as the size of the logs. The logs should be stored in a well-ventilated area 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 produce plenty of steam that is in essence wasted energy.

When you are burning the fire, it is recommended to add more wood to the stack at intervals, but not all at once. In addition, adding too much wood at once causes the temperature in the firebox to increase and creates a vortex that draws smoke and volatile compounds that have not been burned back into the flame, which can reduce the efficiency of your stove.

Avoid using other combustibles inside your stove such as paper or cardboard, as they are not wood. They have different physical properties and cannot be burned without producing dangerously high temperatures. You should also not use compressed combustibles such as wood briquettes because they have a distinct chemical and physical composition to real firewood and aren't approved for use in wood burning stoves.

It is essential that you have a professional install and test your wood stove. A certified WETT technician can test your installation to ensure that it is safe and efficient. They will also check that your chimney is functioning properly. These professionals can also offer maintenance services to keep your chimney and stove in tip-top shape. They can check the areas that are accessible to your chimney for leakage, and fix any issues that are found. They will also ensure that the occupants of your home understand and comply with the fire evacuation guidelines in case of an emergency.

Adjusting the Damper

A damper controls how much heat escapes to the chimney when you aren't using your stove. In addition, it can also help manage the fire. If the flue is open but the damper is too closed, the fire will not be able to burn as it should and smoke will billow into your home. You can adjust your damper to get the best flames by experimenting with different positions.

Typically, you'll want to keep the damper open enough to let air enter and out of the flue while a fire is burning. This will let the fire start and remain lit for a number of hours. The right opening will also stop the fire from becoming starved of air and prevent it from blowing out smoke.

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

Once the fire has burned a bit you should shut the damper down to about three-quarters of its full position. This will stop the warm air from the room from going up the chimney while still allowing smoke to escape from the wood stove.

This is the most effective way to keep your fire burning and to prevent it from becoming too hot. If you close the damper too tightly, it could stop the draft from working, but should it be too wide, a cold breeze could blow through your home.

Placing your hand on the top of the flue pipe will inform you how much the damper has sunk. If you feel a small breeze rubbing against your hand The damper is most likely in the open position.

The damper settings can differ slightly from one stove to the next, and even between different types of wood. You can experiment with various settings to get an idea of the most suitable setting for your stove.

Clean up

It is important to clean your stove and flue after a fire. This can reduce the risk of a chimney fire, which is the most common cause of wood burner stoves stove related fires in homes. Creosote is a sticky material that forms on the inside of the stovepipe and can be very dangerous. The moisture and the unburned parts of wood that are unable to escape the flame are the reason for this substance. This can also occur when fires are not properly lit.

A regular cleaning schedule can help keep the buildup of creosote at bay. This can be accomplished by cleaning your chimney once every year. It is recommended that you have your stove and fireplace professionally cleaned and inspected at least once per year, too.

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

It is also important to wash the glass of the wood-burning stove on a regular basis. Many newer wood stoves are made with self-cleaning glass, which means that they do not require any cleaning. You can apply stove glass cleaners to the window if you're capable of getting the glass as clean as you'd like on your wood stove.

Other tips to keep your wood stove in good condition include lowering the vent when you're not using it and slamming doors or windows to allow more airflow. This will keep the fire burning hotter, and more efficiently. The portable wood burning stove indoor stove won't have to perform as hard to circulate air. It is recommended not to stack logs or leave them on the fire for a long period of time. This could cause warping and splits. It is also recommended to avoid using compressed combustible logs in your wood stove, because the paraffin in them can melt and then flow down the flue which could cause damage.