How to Properly Start a Wood Burning Stove

Wood stoves are a comfortable way to heat a space and conserve energy. However, they require some level of maintenance.

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

How to Start a Wood Fire

The smell and sound of a wood fire can be a wonderful feature in any house. It's crucial to learn the correct method to make a fire on your stove. Unintentional methods can lead to a fire which does not burn well, and may produce creosote or smoke. The following tips will help you begin an efficient fire that will warm your home quickly and effectively.

Before you start an fire, make sure you check the condition of your coals and logs. If they are wet, it will smother your fire and prevent the proper burning. You may want to open the chimney to remove any ash that's fallen into the stove.

Start by placing several small newspaper pieces that are dry into your stove. This will help ignite the tinder. Once these begin to burn, add a 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 your wood stove has an automatic control for combustion, it will automatically pump air into the fire as it expands. This allows the fire to burn continuously without the need to open the stove door frequently to check on it.

It is important to not use too much tinder, as this can lead to an unburned fire that burns at a high rate and doesn't utilize the fuel as efficiently as it can. When you have a good pile of tinder and some kindling in your stove, Wood burning stoves you can start the main fire by placing two large logs of the base across the grill. Then, you can lay a layer of smaller logs that are perpendicular to them and on top of the base logs. This "top-down" method of creating a fireplace will result in a long-lasting and effective fire that doesn't consume larger base logs.

Once your fire is well established, close the damper and keep it shut. Doing this too soon can cause the fire get smothered and not allow for the correct airflow, which will decrease the efficiency of the fire.

Add Wood

Stoves can be used to heat your home efficiently and save you money. They can be used by themselves or together with central heating or furnace system to provide the supplemental heat required in large houses or houses with a lot of rooms. A lot of the stoves that burn cleanly available today utilize advanced combustion principles that separates the burning volatile compounds from combustible gasses as well as tar. This is achieved by providing air at two different stages. The first stage allows for the combustion of volatile compounds and the second stage provides fresh air that is pre-heated. This enhances the combustion process and reduces odors.

The amount of heat you get from a stove is contingent upon the species and the moisture content of the wood used and also the dimensions of logs. To let the wood dry, logs must be stored in a well ventilated location for a couple of months prior to burning. If the logs are wet they will create lots of steam, which is essentially wasted energy.

While you're burning the fire, it is recommended to add more wood to the pile at intervals, but not all at one time. Adding too much wood at once causes the temperature in the firebox to rise, and creates a vortex, which draws smoke and volatile compounds that have not been burned back into the flame, which can decrease the efficiency of your stove.

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

If you're installing wood-burning stoves in your home, it is crucial to have it installed and tested by a qualified. A certified WETT technician can test your stove to ensure it is safe and functional. They can also make sure that your chimney is functioning properly. These experts can also provide maintenance services to keep your stove and chimney in good condition. They can check the areas that are 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 house are aware of and follow the fire evacuation procedure in case of an accident.

Adjusting the Damper

If you're not making use of your stove, a damper controls how much heat is lost through the chimney. In addition to this it can also help to control the flame. If the flue is open but the damper is closed the fire will not be able to burn as it should and smoke will erupt into your home. To ensure you have the best fire with your damper set correctly, you should play around with different settings and observe how each affects the flames.

It is important to keep your damper open to let air flow into and out of the flue when a fire is burning. This allows the fire to get a good fire going and also helps keep it lit so you can enjoy it for hours. The right opening will also prevent the fire from starving of air, and also prevent it from blowing smoke.

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

Once the fire has smolder a bit you should reduce the damper to around three-quarters of its full position. This will stop the warm air from the room from going into the chimney, while allowing the smoke to escape from the wood stove.

This is the most effective way to keep the fire from getting too hot while still keeping it lit. If you shut the damper too much, it could block the draft from working, however when it's too open, a cold wind could blow through your home.

You can test how much the damper is open by placing your hand on the top of the inside of the flue pipe. If you can feel a small draft pressing against your hand, it's probably in the open position.

The damper setting can vary 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 crucial to clean your chimney and stove after the start of a fire. This will help lower the risk of a chimney fire, which is the main reason for wood stove fires in homes. Creosote, a sticky material which can build up within the stovepipe, can be very dangerous. Moisture and unburned particles of wood that cannot escape the flame are the reason for this chemical. This can also occur when fires aren't lit properly.

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

It is also recommended to clean the ash tray and grate it regularly. It is best to only burn wood that has been seasoned since it will create less creosote. Avoid burning paper, cardboard and plastic. They could release chemicals that can be dangerous for the respiratory tract and the air, and could be released into your home.

The glass in the wood burning stove has to be cleaned regularly as well. The majority of modern wood stoves have self-cleaning windows, so they don't require as much cleaning. If you're not able to get the glass on your wood stove as clean as you would like you can use stove glass cleaners available that can be used on the window.

Other ways to maintain your wood stove include lowering the vent when you're not using it and cracking windows or doors to allow more airflow. This will keep the fire burning hotter and more efficiently since it won't have to be as active to circulate air. It is also a good idea not stack logs or keep them in the flame for long periods of time, as this could lead to warping and splitting. It is best to avoid using combustible garden wood burner that has been compressed in your wood stove because the paraffin contained within the logs can melt and leak into the flue and cause damage.