How to Properly Start a Wood Burning Stove

Wood stoves can be a great way to save energy and warm a room. However, they require a certain amount of maintenance.

Many modern wood stoves meet EPA emission guidelines. Look for an EPA sticker on the underside or next to the grate to ensure your stove won't produce lots of harmful pollutants.

How to start a Wood Fire

The sound and smell of a fire made from wood can be a pleasant addition to any home. But it's important to learn the proper way to build a fire in your stove. Incorrect methods can result in a fire that doesn't burn effectively and can cause creosote or smoke. The tips below will help you start the fire that will warm your home with the least effort and ensure your safety.

Before you begin a fire, you should check the condition of your coals and logs. If they are wet, they will smother the fire and prevent it from burning efficiently. You might want to open the chimney to remove any ash that falls into the stove.

Begin by placing a handful of small dry pieces of newspaper in your stove. This will help ignite the sparks. After the tinder and kindling are beginning to ignite, you can add a layer of larger kindling pieces on top. This should be done with the crosshatch pattern to ensure that there is air between each piece.

If you have wood stoves that have an automatic control of combustion it will automatically supply an air stream that is controlled to the fire as it builds. This will help the fire to burn at a consistent pace without the need to open the stove door to tend it.

It is important to not use excessive tinder as this can lead to an unburned fire that burns at an excessive rate and doesn't utilize the fuel as efficiently as it can. After you've built a solid base in your stove with igniters, tinder, and embers, start the main flame by laying down two large base logs on the grill. Then, you can lay small logs that are perpendicular to them and on top of the base logs. This method of creating the fire is called a "top-down" fire can result in a successful and long-lasting fire that does not overtake the larger base logs.

Close the damper when your fire is established and kept it closed. The fire could be smothered if the user opens the damper before it is fully established. It will also reduce the effectiveness of the fire.

Add Wood

Stoves are not just beautiful home decor pieces they can also help you save money by supplying efficient wood heat. They can be utilized in conjunction with a central heating system or furnace to provide supplemental heating for large homes. Many of the new stoves that burn cleanly available today utilize advanced combustion technology that is able to separate the burning volatile compounds from combustible gasses and tar. This is achieved by supplying air at two distinct stages. The first stage permits the combustion of volatile compounds and the second offers fresh air that is pre-heated. This improves combustion and reduces the odors.

The amount of heat that you get from your stove depends on the kind of wood used and the amount of moisture, as well as the size of the logs. To let the wood dry, the logs should be stored in a well ventilated space for a few months before burning. If the logs are soaked with excessive moisture, stove Wood burning they will create steam, which is basically wasted energy.

While you're burning the fire, you should add more wood to the stack in intervals, and not all at all at. Adding too much wood at once can cause the temperature of the firebox to rise, and creates a vortex that draws smoke and unburnt volatile compounds back into the flame, which can decrease your stove's efficiency.

Avoid burning other combustibles in your stove such as paper or cardboard, as they are not wood. They have different physical properties and are unable to be burned without creating dangerously high temperatures. You should not burn combustibles that are compressed, such as wood burning stoves for sale briquettes because they are different in physical and chemical composition from firewood. They are also not type-approved to be burned in wood-burning stoves.

If you are installing wood-burning stoves in your home, it is important to have it properly installed and tested by a professional. A certified WETT technician will test the stove for proper operation and safety as well as make sure that your chimney is operating properly. These experts can also provide maintenance services to keep your chimney and stove in top condition. They will inspect the accessible areas of your chimney to determine if there is leakage and fix any issues that are discovered. They will also ensure that the occupants of your home know and follow the fire evacuation procedures in the event in the event of an emergency.

Adjusting the Damper

A damper controls how much heat is lost up the chimney when you aren't using your stove. It can also be used to manage the fire. If the flue opens but the damper is too closed the fire will not ignite properly and smoke will erupt into your home. You can adjust your damper to get the best flames by playing around with different settings.

Typically, you want to keep the damper open enough to let air flow in and out of the flue while the fire is burning. This lets the fire get going and keeps it burning so that you can enjoy it for a long time. The right opening will prevent the fire from being deprived of air and keep it from blowing smoke.

To adjust your damper properly it is important to first make sure that the fireplace is preheated and the wood stove is hot. This will ensure that the chimney is warm and has a good draft. Once this is accomplished the damper for the wood stove may 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 up the chimney while still allowing the smoke to escape from the wood stove.

This is the best method to stop the fire from becoming too hot while keeping it lit. The draft may be stopped if you shut the damper too far but a cold wind could enter your home when the damper is left open.

You can determine how much the damper is open by holding your hand near the top of the inside of the flue pipe. If you feel a breeze rubbing against your hand, the damper is likely in the open position.

The damper setting can vary slightly from one stove to the next and even between different kinds of wood. The process of experimenting with the various settings will give you an idea of what you should look for, but you may need to adjust until you get the perfect setting for your stove.

Clean Up

It is crucial to clean your chimney and stove after an incident. This will reduce the risk of an ensuing fire in the chimney which is the most common reason for fires caused by wood stoves. Creosote is a sticky substance that forms on the stovepipe's interior and is extremely dangerous. Unburned and moist particles of wood that cannot escape the fire are the cause for this chemical. This can also be caused when fires are not properly lit.

A regular cleaning routine can help keep the buildup of creosote at bay. The best method to do this is to sweep the chimney at least once a year. It is also recommended to have your stove and fireplace professionally cleaned and inspected at least once a year.

Also, it's recommended to clean the ash tray and the grates regularly. It is best to only burn wood that has been seasoned since it will create less creosote. Avoid burning paper, stove wood burning cardboard and plastic. They can release chemicals that are dangerous for the flue and air, which could be released into your home.

It is also necessary to wash the glass of the wood stove regularly. The majority of modern wood stoves have self-cleaning windows, so they do not require as much scrubbing. If you are not able to get the glass on your wood stove as clean as you'd like, there are Stove wood burning glass cleaners available that can be used on the window.

Other tips to maintain your wood stove include lowering the vent when you're not using it, and opening doors or windows to improve airflow. This will help keep the fire burning hotter and more efficiently since it will not need to work as hard to circulate the air. It is also a good idea to not stack logs or keep them in the flame for long periods of time as this could lead to warping and splitting. It is also best woodburners to not use compressed combustible logs in your wood stove, because the paraffin in them can melt and then flow into the flue which could damage it.