How to Properly Start a Wood Burning Stove

Wood stoves can be a great method to reduce energy consumption and warm rooms. However, they need an amount of care.

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

How to Start a Wood Fire

The scent and sound of a woodfire is an enjoyable addition to any house. It's important to know how to build an effective fire on your stove. Unintentional methods can lead to a fire which does not burn effectively, and can produce smoke or creosote. The tips below will help you start an fire that can heat your home with the least effort and with the highest safety.

Before you start a fire, you should check the condition of your coals and logs. If they are wet they could smother the fire and prevent it from burning efficiently. It is possible to open the chimney to remove any ash that's fallen into the stove.

Begin by placing a handful of small wood burning fireplace dry newspaper pieces in your stove. This will help to ignite the tinder and kindling. Once these begin to burn, add a layer of larger pieces of kindling 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 a wood stove with an automatic control of combustion that will automatically deliver an air stream that is controlled to the fire as it grows. This will enable the fire to burn at a consistent pace without having to open the stove's door to tend it.

It is important to not use excessive tinder as this can lead to the fire burning at a high rate and doesn't use the fuel as efficiently as it could. Once you've got a good foundation in your stove that is made of tinder, kindling and embers to start the main flame, you can do this by laying down two large logs of the base on the grill. Then, you can lay an additional layer of smaller logs parallel to these and on top of the base logs. This "top-down" method of building the fireplace will create a long-lasting and effective fire that doesn't engulf larger logs from the base.

Close the damper when the fire is established, and keep it shut. The fire could be smothered if you open the damper before it has fully established. It can also decrease the effectiveness of the fire.

Add Wood

Stoves are not only beautiful pieces of home decor they can also help you save money by providing efficient wood heating. They can be used by themselves or in conjunction with central heating or a furnace system to provide the supplemental heat required in large houses or homes with many rooms. Many of the new clean burning stoves that are available on the market use advanced combustion principles that is able to separate the burning volatile compounds from combustible gasses as well as tar. This is achieved by providing air at two distinct stages. The first stage is to aid in the vaporization and the second step is to supply fresh air that has been pre-heated. This improves combustion and reduces smells.

The amount of heat you get from a stove depends on the type and amount of moisture of the contemporary wood burning stove you use, and also the size of logs. The logs must be stored in a well-ventilated area for a period of time before you try to burn them to give the wood time to dry. If the logs are not dry enough they will create a lot of steam that is in essence wasted energy.

During the burning of the fire, add more wood to the stack in intervals, not all at one time. The addition of too much wood at once could cause the temperature to rise within the firebox, creating a vortex which pulls smoke and unburned volatile compounds back into the flames. This could decrease the efficiency of your stove.

You should avoid the use of other combustibles, like cardboard or paper in your stove, as they are not wood Bruner and have different physical properties and cannot be burned without causing dangerously high temperatures and exorbitant emissions. It is not recommended to burn compressed combustibles such as wood briquettes since they differ in chemical and physical composition from firewood. They are also not approved to be used in wood burning stoves.

It is important to have a professional install and test your wood stove. A certified WETT technician will test the stove for proper operation and safety as well as make sure that your chimney is operating correctly. These experts can also provide maintenance services to keep your chimney and stove in tip-top shape. They can check for leaks in the areas accessible to your chimney and fix any issues they spot. 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 making use of your stove, a damper controls how much heat is lost through the chimney. It can also be used to regulate the flame. If the flue is open but the damper is too closed, the fire will not burn as efficiently and it will billow out smoke into your living space. You can adjust the damper to achieve the most effective flames by experimenting with different settings.

You want to keep your damper open to let air be able to enter and exit the flue while a fire is burning. This lets the fire start a fire and keeps it in good shape so that you can enjoy it for a long time. The proper opening will keep the fire from being starved of air and will keep it from blowing smoke.

To adjust your damper correctly it is important to first make sure that the fireplace is preheated and that the wood stove is hot. This will ensure that the chimney stays warm and has an adequate draft. After this, the wood stove damper can be adjusted.

After the fire has been burning for an extended period, close the damper approximately three quarters of the way. This will prevent the warm air from the room from going into the chimney, while allowing smoke to escape out of the wood stove.

This is the best way to stop the fire from getting too hot while keeping it lit. If you close the damper too much, it could block the draft from working, however when it's too wide, a cold breeze could blow into your home.

Placing your hand on the top of the flue pipe will show you how much the damper has opened. If you feel a slight draft pressing against your hand, it is probably in the open position.

The damper setting can vary slightly from one stove to another and even between different types of wood. The process of experimenting with the various settings will give you an idea of what you should look for, but you will have to keep adjusting it until you find the ideal setting for your stove.

Clean up

After the fire, it's crucial to clean the flue and stove. This reduces the chance of an ensuing fire in the chimney, which is the primary reason for fires caused by wood stoves. Creosote is a sticky substance that can accumulate inside the stovepipe, is extremely dangerous. Moisture and unburned particles of wood that cannot escape the flame are the reason for this chemical. It could also be caused by improperly lit fires.

Regular cleaning helps stop the buildup of creosote. The best way to do this is by sweeping the chimney each year. It is recommended that you have your fireplace and stove professionally cleaned and inspected at least once per year.

Also, it is an excellent idea to clean the ash tray and grates regularly. It is recommended to use only seasoned wood for burning, as this will produce less creosote and less ash. It is also recommended to avoid burning cardboard, paper or plastic items. These can release chemicals that can be dangerous for the flue and atmosphere, which may be released into your home.

The glass that is used on the wood burning stove has to be regularly cleaned too. Many modern wood burning stove wood stoves come with self-cleaning windows, which means they do not require as much cleaning. You can apply stove glass cleaners to the window if you're getting the glass as clean as you would like on your wood stove.

Other ways to maintain your wood stove include lowering the vent when you aren't using it, and opening doors or windows to improve airflow. This will help keep the fire burning longer and more efficiently, since it will not need to exert as much effort to circulate the 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 warping and splitting. In addition, it is recommended to avoid using compressed combustible wood logs in your wood burners near me stove because the paraffin they contain could melt and spill down the flue which could cause damage to the stove.