Wood heater trick

[Wow]

Ok my old cast iron box heater burns out to quickly and gets to hot even with the damper almost closed off.
Sweat Lodges (Native Americans use these) use very hot rocks. We use igneous Granite. Scrap from tomb stone makers are normally free. These stones can be super heated safely (the ones I use can because I know how to pick stones, BUT, but if you try this you assume ALL RESPONSIBILITY FOR ALL LOSSES that may occur).
The trick I'm using is to place these stones in my wood heater. Instead of burning 22 inch long wood I've cut 4-6 inch blocks. I spread these blocks and let them heat the stones. It's tricky but after practice my results (yours may vary) is the heat is more even and more consistent. I keep a metal bucked of slightly damp ashes handy. If the fire get going to fast the ashes bed the fire. The embers seem to last longer and it appears I'm using less wood over all. This is purely educational. Not a tutorial. Every fire is the responsibility of those who build it. If you try. You do so at your own peril. I'll not be responsible.

 

[derwoodii]

has your wood heater door got insulation to reduce air draw? ... my wood box fire began consuming my wood far to quickly i checked the door seal and it had aged allowing far to much air in..So i replaced fire proof seal easy job and back to as new

https://www.bunnings.com.au/scandia...VVDUrCh282QLzEAQYAiABEgKSBPD_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds

 

[Wow]

This old heater don't have a fire box with fire bricks. The heater IS the fire box. The door never had a seal. The door lock is two tabs. One cast on the door the other cast on the heater. The hinges are cast with a loose fitting hinge pin. Lift the slack out of the door rais it high enough to cross over the other part and it about half times stays put. Air all around it. I drilled holes in the cast locks and wired the door forever closed. Then packed tin foil in the gaps. I filled cracks where it's assembled with tinfoil and wet ashes. Air holes are a serious problem but wet ashes packed in helps. They dry and haven't shrunk. The top slides off to the left. That's where the wood goes in. The sliding top has two removable eyes. I can move them part way open for air to start fires. Once burning with the damper closed it blows like a torch. To keep from torching the house ashes are poured through the top eyes and partially extinguish the fire. Then a big sheet of tin foil over the top to stop the air and she settles down and makes a bed of hot coals. Once the trick is learned its easy and safe. The big rocks (say Grapefruits+ size) are stacked at the far end under the stove pipe draw. The fire burns on that end fastest and hotter. After this tiger is collared I can add my chunks of wood safely spaced out. They smoulder and the rocks give out heat. Sometimes hours later it's still giving off heat when I get up in the morning. After years and years I've got it tamed. 20 inch long Sticks of firewood are often cut into 1/3 pieces for blocks. .
Incidentally, the ole Chinese Tallar trees make good smouldering wood. We call it punk wood. Get that smouldering and 6-8 hours later it's still got hot embers. I have a small 120 volt hair dryer blower. Add kindling to the coals hit the switch and it's like that Dual Survival TV show. I bought a replacement box heater from Horrible Fright for 169& excessive Tax. It was worse than my antique. Seems like EPA put the old King ( were built in the South and very good) wood heaters out of business back when I was cutting firewood with a Buck Saw or a Cross cut. A good wood heater requires the ability to smother a fire almost out. The good ones could bed a fire and have starter coals for breakfast. Wood gasses out and burns at only 500 degrees. That's why when a fire gets hotter it's more volital. Fires smoulder at 16% oxygen. Shut it down and the smoulder lasts for hours but a lot of the gas goes outside all way up the stove pipe to God's front door. A hot fire burns cleaner but shorter burn times so when we bed em down we cheat the EPA. I dug fire pits as a boy. Build a good hot fire then cover it before you go inside the tent for bed. I'd Shovel dirt right over the fire. Next day dig it a bit and there would be lots of burned wood and charcoal ready to stoke up and cook on. Some kid once ask if I can build a fire by rubbing two sticks together. I said well I think a Squirrel can warm himself up pretty good by rubbing two nuts together. Then, i could be wrong. Have a great day