How to Maintain a Woodburning Stove

A wood-burning stove can be an efficient and effective way to heat your home. However, it's important to maintain your stove to ensure the best performance.

Tip: Select seasoned wood with a low moisture content. This will give you a longer burn time and will produce more heat.

State environmental agencies are struggling with how to address the problem of particulate air pollution from old woodburning stoves.

How They Work

As the name implies woodburning stoves burn wood to generate heat. The fire is contained within the body of glass and metal that helps to maintain a constant temperature inside the home. It also serves as a barrier to prevent smoke from entering your living space.

Stoves manage combustion by controlling the amount of oxygen they let into the fire. This is done through one or more controllable air vents that can be closed and opened to regulate the amount of oxygen flowing in to the fire.

Modern stoves usually use catalytic or non-catalytic technology in order to control this. Catalytic stoves come with catalytic converters which are designed to reburn the gasses produced during primary combustion, so that they do not escape into the room. Non-catalytic stoves, on the contrary, don't contain a catalyst and rely solely on secondary combustion taking place inside the firebox to reduce emissions.

It is recommended to burn seasoned firewood in your fireplace that burns wood. It must have a moisture level lower than 20%, which will allow the fire to burn effectively. This will help reduce the amount of smoke and harmful pollution from the flue system and it will also make the glass inside your stove less likely to become blackened due to creosote which is a result of burning wood that can develop over time.

The use of seasoned wood will reduce emissions and save money in your heating bills. It generates more heat per unit of fuel. This is because dry wood has a larger surface area and therefore produces more heat for a given volume of fuel.

However, it can be harmful to anyone, particularly children and older adults with weakened lungs. It can also irritate those with lung conditions like asthma or chronic obstructive respiratory disease (COPD). If you live in a smoke control zone, ensure that your stove is properly and properly seasoned. It should also be equipped with a chimney that is in compliance with the standards of the area.

Burning Wood

Wood-burning stoves are a safe energy source that is also a great option to keep the house warm in a power cut. They also reduce carbon dioxide emissions from fossil fuels such as oil and gas that are harmful to the environment.

Modern woodburning stoves work more efficiently than older models and are designed to stop the build-up of creosote, but it is still important to keep track of the combustion process. Creosote is a dangerous by-product of incomplete combustion and it can clog up the chimney if left to build up, resulting in less efficiency and creating a fire risk. Using wood that is seasoned will help to keep creosote levels low and can save on the cost of logs as well as helping to avoid the need for professional cleaning services.

You can also get stoves that can burn coal and wood and give you the option of carbon-neutral energy sources. However, it is important to keep in mind that coal is not a sustainable fuel and there are concerns over the way it is mined and transported.

It is recommended to pick a Defra-approved stove, preferably one that is Ecodesign ready. These stoves will comply with the latest regulations on emissions. The UK building regulations have specific requirements for how the flue is fitted and the size of the hearth and the distance the stove must be from combustible materials and therefore it is always advisable to talk to one of our stove experts prior to making a purchase.

Paper and other combustibles, such as trash and paper should not be put in wood-burning appliances. They could cause more pollution and, in the worst case an explosion in the chimney. At the very least, they cause them to be less efficient. Other combustibles are lighter than firewood, and thus burn at a lower heat and produce more particles.

It is also crucial to only use seasoned, split and dried firewood as this will be more efficient in burning. Wet or damp wood produces a lot of smoke, and also create more pollutant. It is also recommended to use a good quality stove pipe to make sure that the flue temperature is high enough and that it is installed correctly.

Emissions

Wood-burning stoves release a variety of gases and particles. Most often, they release fine particulate matter (PM2.5) which is small wood stove enough to penetrate the lungs and enter the bloodstream, which could harm the heart, liver and brain. However, they also produce carbon monoxide, nitrogen oxides and carcinogenic compounds like polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons or PAHs. Depending on the kind of fuel they're burning, some even spew out toxic metals such as arsenic and mercury.

There have been several attempts in the US to regulate how much wood-burning stoves emit pollution with different degrees of success. In 1988, the Environmental Protection Agency established emission guidelines that restricted the amount of pollution new stoves were allowed to release. Since the time, there have been two changes to the regulations. The most recent revision in 2015 stipulates that all stoves, catalytic or non-catalytic, release not more than 4 grams of pollution each hour.

These strict regulations led to a major shake-up of the industry, and forced hundreds of small manufacturers out of business. However they also sparked a race to design efficient stoves that were durable and produced lower emissions than conventional models. Stove designers looked at and analysed combustion air flow, baffles, combustion chamber shapes, insulating materials, and recirculation systems in order to make their products better. They eventually succeeded.

The moisture content of Wood Burner Stoves - Https://Perthinside.Datacredit.Kr - is a major factor in determining the emissions. The more moisture content, the more pollutants a stove will produce. Therefore, the best way to reduce emissions is to use well-seasoned firewood that's been properly dried for 6-8 months.

Several studies have shown that a single woodburning stove in the event of frequent use it can create more particle pollution than 15 diesel cars based on non-scientific tests which compare the exhaust-related PM2.5 only. However these studies don't take into consideration that approximately half of the car's particle pollution originates from the brakes, engine and tyres rather than its exhaust.

Ten blue states have been pressing on the EPA to review its carbon emissions and air quality guidelines for wood-burning stoves. The attorney generals of New York, Washington, Illinois, Massachusetts, Maryland, Minnesota, California, Alaska, Oregon and Vermont have announced plans to take on the EPA for continuing to allow high-emitting stoves to be sold and installed in homes across the nation.

Maintenance

Wood burning stoves are efficient in heating homes, but can be a challenge to maintain. To ensure that your stove is clean and operating efficiently, you'll have to keep it clean regularly. A dirty stove could affect the health of those who live there and the amount of heat it generates. In addition to cleaning the stove, there are also maintenance tasks that need to be carried out to ensure that it works well.

It is easy to clean the exterior and interior of a stove. Cleaning your stove is recommended every week or every two weeks based on how frequently it is used. It is also recommended to remove the ash from the firebox each time the stove is being used. Spread newspaper on the floor, and wear gloves prior to taking the ashes out. Use a container made of metal instead of a bucket to prevent rusting.

It is important to keep the chimney and flue clean. A chimney sweep professional is required once or twice a year to clean the stove and chimney thoroughly. This will help keep creosote off the chimney and reduce the risk of fires on chimneys.

A chimney should also be examined for cracks and creosote buildup along with bird nests and other detritus. A professional chimney sweep is in a position to fix these issues and restore a safe, functional chimney.

The clear glass of a wood burning stove may become smudged and cloudy as soot builds up over time. Spray a mixture of ammonia and water onto the glass and wipe it with a clean cloth. It is advised to avoid scratching the glass as it can weaken the glass and cause it to shatter when it gets hot.

Paint that is heat-resistant can be used to paint a woodburning fireplace in case the paint starts to chip. These paints are typically found at stores where stoves are sold and are available in various colors.