How to Properly Start a Wood Burning Stove

Wood stoves are a comfortable way to heat a room and conserve energy. However, they need an amount of care.

Many modern wood stoves are compliant with EPA emission guidelines. You can look for an EPA sticker on the grate or beneath it to ensure that your stove doesn't release harmful pollutants.

How to Start a Wood Fire

The scent and sound of a wood fire could be a pleasant feature in any house. It's crucial to learn the correct method to build a fire in your stove. Incorrect methods can result in the fire not burning efficiently and creates smoke or creosote. The tips below can help you create a fire that is safe and will heat up your home quickly and effectively.

Examine the condition of your coals and logs before you start an fire. If they're too damp they could smother the flame and stop it from burning efficiently. You might want to open the chimney to eliminate any ash that has fallen into the stove.

Begin by putting a handful of small dry pieces of newspaper into your stove. This will help ignite the tinder and ignite the kindling. When the tinder and the kindling have begun to burn, you can add the larger kindling pieces on the top. This should be done with an arc pattern so that there is air between each piece.

If you have a wood stove with an automatic control of combustion that will automatically deliver an air stream that is controlled to your fire as it builds. This will allow the fire to burn at a steady pace without the need to open the stove door to keep it in check.

Avoid using too much tinder as it will cause the fire to burn at a fast rate and will not be able to use the fuel effectively. Once you've made a solid base in your stove wood burning with tinder, kindling and embers begin the main flame by laying down two large wood burning stove base logs on the grate. On the top of these base logs lay a layer parallel to them. This "top-down" method of building the fireplace will create an effective and long-lasting fire that doesn't completely engulf larger base logs.

When your fire is established, close the damper and keep it closed. The fire could be smothered by opening the damper before it is fully established. This can also affect the effectiveness of the fire.

Adding Wood

Stoves can be used to efficiently heat your home and help you save money. They can be used by themselves or in conjunction with central heating or furnace system to provide the additional heat needed in large homes or homes with many rooms. Many of the new stoves that burn clean utilize a superior combustion method that differentiates the burning of volatile compounds from combustible gases and tar by supplying air in two different stages. The first stage is to aid in the vaporization, while the second step is to supply fresh air that is pre-heated. This improves the process of combustion and helps reduce the odors.

The amount of heat that you will get from your stove depends on the type of wood used as well as the moisture content and the size of the logs. To allow the wood to dry, stove wood burning logs should be kept in a ventilated area for a few months before burning. If the logs contain excessive moisture, they will produce steam that is in essence wasted energy.

While you're burning the fire, you should add more wood to the stack at intervals, but not all at one time. Too much wood added at once causes the temperature in the firebox to rise and creates a vortex, which draws smoke and unburnt volatile compounds back into the flame which could reduce the efficiency of your stove.

Avoid using other combustibles in your stove, like cardboard or paper, because they are not wood. They have different physical properties and are unable to be burned without creating dangerously high temperatures. It is not recommended to burn compressed combustibles such as wood briquettes as they differ in chemical and physical composition from firewood. They are also not type-approved to be used in wood-burning stoves.

It is important to have a professional install and test your wood burning stove. A certified WETT technician will test the installation to ensure safe operation and safety, as well as make sure that your chimney is working properly. These professionals offer maintenance services for your stove and chimney to ensure they remain in top shape. They can check the areas accessible to your chimney to determine if there is leakage and fix any issues discovered. They will also make sure that the occupants of the home understand and follow the evacuation procedure in the event of an accident.

Adjusting the Damper

If you're not making use of your stove, a damper regulates the amount of heat that is lost through the chimney. In addition to this it can help you to control the flame. If the flue is open but the damper is closed the fire won't be able to burn as it should and smoke will billow into your home. You can adjust your damper to ensure the best flames by testing different settings.

Typically, you want to keep the damper open enough to let air flow in and out of the flue when the fire is burning. This will allow the fire to start and remain lit for a number of hours. The right opening will prevent the fire from being starved of air and keep it from blowing smoke.

To adjust your damper correctly, you must first ensure that the fireplace is heated and that the wood stove is hot. This will ensure that the chimney is warm, and it also has an adequate draft. After this the damper for the wood stove may be adjusted.

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

This is the most effective way to keep your fire burning and prevent it from getting too hot. If you close the damper too much, it may stop the draft from working, but when it's too open, a cold wind could enter your home.

You can test how much the damper is open by placing your hands near the top of the inside of the flue pipe. If you feel a slight breeze pushing against your palm the damper is probably in the open position.

The damper settings can differ slightly from one stove to the next and even between different types of wood. Playing around with different settings will give you an idea of what you should look for, but you may need to adjust until you get the ideal setting for your stove.

Clean Up

It is essential to clean your stove and flue after an incident. This can reduce the risk of a chimney fire which is the primary reason for wood stove-related fires in homes. Creosote, a sticky substance that builds up on the stovepipe's interior and can be very dangerous. It is caused by moisture and unburned wood particles that are unable to escape from the fire. It can also be caused by poorly lit fires.

A regular cleaning schedule can help to prevent the buildup of creosote. This can be accomplished by sweeping your chimney at least once every year. It is also recommended that you get your stove and fireplace professionally cleaned and examined at least year.

It is also recommended to clean the ash tray and grate regularly. It is recommended to burn only seasoned wood since it will create less creosote. It is also recommended to avoid burning paper, cardboard plastic, and other waste items. These items could release dangerous chemicals into the air and flue, that could end up in your home.

The glass in the wood burning stove has to be cleaned frequently as well. The majority of newer wood stoves are designed with self-cleaning glass, which means they do not require much scrubs. You can apply stove glass cleaners to the window if you're not able get the glass as clean as you would like on your wood stove.

Some other helpful suggestions for maintaining your wood stove are to turn the vent down when you are not using it and slamming the door or window to allow more air flow. This keeps the fire burning hotter, and more efficiently. The wood stove won't have to perform as hard to circulate air. It is a good idea not to stack logs, or leave them on the fire for a long period of time. This could cause splitting and warping. Finally, it is a good idea to avoid using compressed combustible logs in your wood stove, because the paraffin they contain can melt and then flow into the flue which could cause damage.