COUGH...Breathing smoke when filling my OWB

[MattNH]

So I've had the OWB going for about a month now. The P&M 250 is a better than I could have hoped and I am learning to read the temp so fill the fire box accordingly.

Does anyone have any tricks (short of wearing a respirator) for not breathing and/or clearing the smoke when filling the firebox or cleaning the heat exchange? I am already opening the door and giving the stove a 30 count but I still come away coughing...and I am a cigar smoker.

Am I just overreacting to a little smoke and will eventually get used to it? Anyone have a magic bullet solution for this?

 

[beerman6]

I had this same problem so I now have my wife load it...


I installed a little light on mine so I can see from the house when it's in a burn cycle.I try and load/check it then so there is no smoke.

 

[blackdogon57]

I try and fill mine when it has burned right down to almost nothing - just a bed of active coals.

 

[Phatsupratt]

Subscribing!

Same problem here, especially bad when the wind is blowing in your face. I have a small shed over mine which makes it worse. I think it's just one of the annoyances of burning.

Mark

 

[jcl]

just be quick and stay low!

 

[showrguy]

it's all-natural smoke with no chemicals added, so it must be good for you, right ??

naw, really, it's just one of those things us OWB owners get to enjoy...

 

[dave_dj1]

Try cracking the door a little for a few seconds or maybe open the draft for a few before you open the door.

 

[jrider]

I have the P&M 250 as well and rarely have any problem with smoke. In fact, if I do its because I've had the doors open too long.
I rarely even end up with a slight smoke smell on my clothes.

 

[AdamG]

My personal experience is if you don't like the smoke, don't load until you're burnt down to just a pile of coals, if you can. Burn cycle or not, with just a pile of coals there is almost no smoke billowing out. I've had the door open for up to 20min before scraping, raking and working with no problems. Any more than a pile of coals- any unburnt splits, rounds, slab, anything- and within a few min. It's smoke city. I don't mind it though. :msp_biggrin:
This is with a central boiler cb6048



Adam

 

[AIM]

Yep. It's just one of those things that comes with burning wood. Somedays it's bad. Other days the stack is drafting good and no smoke back out the door. Doubt there is anything you can do differently.

 

[racnruss]

smoke in face, yep.

we are in our first season with Nature's comfort gasification gt220. Just open it up and stand back. they built a smoke bypass chimney to open in the back of the firebox when loading but it doesn't do any good. When you open the door you've created such a huge opening that the smoke will come out at you every time.

STAY LOW AND THROW.

 

[superwd6]

Thats why you get all that free hot water. No way can you fill the boiler and go to bed for nooky without a shower first:msp_biggrin:

 

[projectsho89]

Lesson learned the hard way: Orient the OWB at installation time so the prevailing winds blow INTO the open door instead of from behind the unit.

 

[Kevin in Ohio]

You have to learn how much to throw in if you want a "schedule" to load it. A few variables which makes it tougher like wood quality and outside temps. Mine has the unknown variable of the garage as it has 2 zones and when it heats up a 36' X 50' slab it takes some heat. I check it it normally twice a day. If you can get it where it is below kick on temp with an ash covered coal bed, you got it.

Try to keep it where it's burnt down(just coals with ash cover) when you throw it in. It takes a while to be able to read it but it will come with experience. I don't stir before throwing it in. I'll load light and stir it occasionally but don't do it as much as they say to. The hot coal bed will smoke you up before your done and that is the reason I do it.

Bottom line, just start loading lighter.

 

[jcappe]

I load mine in the morning on my way to work so I have my 2 1/2 year old daughter in the truck with me. Every morning I get back in the truck coughing and she says, what you choking on daddy???? I guess I didn't even realize it that much until this year when you get reminded every morning by her asking. Don't know of a way to avoid it though, other than wearing a mask.

 

[MattNH]

Stay low and throw...words to live by.

On the bright side, my kids think I smell like bacon. Lots of hickory...Everything is better with bacon right?

 

[Jakers]

would it be possible to put a draft inducer in the stack on it? they sell small fans that blow air up the chimeny of smaller indoor stoves or fire places with really tall chimenys or for use in the old stone chimenys that take so long to heat up. just a thought. may not help being the stove has an automatic dampener to beused along with forced air draft on the bottom side. is there any way you guys could make the dampener have a manual over ride or hook up a switch to make it open when you want it to?

 

[sw18x]

Wear a respirator. Who cares what your neighbors, friends, or fellow forum posters think. I'm sure I'll get a lot of blowback for this comment, but don't kid yourself. Sucking in smoke of any kind isn't doing your lungs any favors, and you only have one pair. I'm not going to engage in a debate with anyone about this, because it would be a pretty stupid argument, but sucking in large amounts of smoke is not a healthy thing, period. How unhealthy is it? Who knows, but I don't want to find out the hard way 20 years from now, so I wear a respirator every time I open my OWB door. It took me exactly 3 days of running our OWB to figure this out. There's really nothing uncomfortable about a good respirator, and you can stand right in a smoke cloud and barely smell a thing. Do yourself a favor and try it for a couple days, I bet you won't want to go back without it.

 

[lone wolf]

Hold you breath and run

 

[MattNH]

Wear a respirator. Who cares what your neighbors, friends, or fellow forum posters think. I'm sure I'll get a lot of blowback for this comment, but don't kid yourself. Sucking in smoke of any kind isn't doing your lungs any favors, and you only have one pair. I'm not going to engage in a debate with anyone about this, because it would be a pretty stupid argument, but sucking in large amounts of smoke is not a healthy thing, period. How unhealthy is it? Who knows, but I don't want to find out the hard way 20 years from now, so I wear a respirator every time I open my OWB door. It took me exactly 3 days of running our OWB to figure this out. There's really nothing uncomfortable about a good respirator, and you can stand right in a smoke cloud and barely smell a thing. Do yourself a favor and try it for a couple days, I bet you won't want to go back without it.

I use a respirator when I spray for mosquitoes so I am already used to the comments from the neighbors, and your right, I don't care what they say. I will give it a try and see how it goes.