Idahonative
Addicted to ArboristSite
THE FOLLOWING ARE MY OPINIONS ONLY. YOUR OPINIONS &/OR EXPERIENCES MAY DIFFER:
You should know that I am a meat cutter, not an expert on wood stoves. My family has been using wood heat to heat our homes since 1979 and have never had a creosote fire and never cleaned or hired anyone to clean our flues. We mostly burn Red Fir or Lodgepole pine (well seasoned), don't have stacks over 15' high, our stoves have pipe from the flue collar to the vent cap, pipe is straight up, and we do a "burn off" everyday religiously.
DISCLAIMER: Daily burn offs must be done consistently everyday, and you must start with a clean flue. You can't allow creosote to build up and then decide to do daily burn offs.
Daily burn offs should be a part of every wood burners routine no matter what stove you own. A daily burn off is nothing more than operating your stove on High for at least 15-20 minutes everyday after loading. This does two things: First, getting the load hot after loading drives out moisture which helps to cut down on creosote buildup. Second, and even more important, the heat generated burns up (& drys out) small deposits of creosote before they can build up and cause a chimney fire. These deposits are everywhere, from the glass to the firebox to the flue. The daily burn off helps to keep everything clean.
Creosote is by far the most misunderstood and potentially dangerous element of wood stove burning. It is my opinion that a great many people (including those in the biz) don't understand proper wood stove operation (which includes daily burn offs). It is also my opinion that a great many people don't even fully understand what creosote is.
It is normal for your flue to have a thin (1/4"), light colored coating of fluffy ash. This is not creosote even though many wood stove owners think it is. Most of the people in the industry will call it creosote as well. If you can easily run your finger through this and it crumbles and blows away, it is not creosote. Many will have you believe you need to hire a chimney sweep to brush this ash out. There's nothing wrong with doing that, it's just not necessary. As you do your daily burn offs, this ash will continue to flake off and either go up the flue or drop down into the stove. Think of creosote as oil or tar. It's more wet and sticky than dry and flaky.
On the H_earth forum, I took the position like I have explained above. Many people argued that I was wrong but non more strongly than one of the moderators. This particular moderator was giving members advise that was just flat wrong. I gave a differing opinion and was banned (& my posts deleted). I was told that daily burn offs were an "old wives tale" and "don't work" and that it was irresponsible to advocate such a thing. Just because someone is in a position where they should know, doesn't mean that they actually do.
The manual that came with our stove addresses creosote in all aspects including glass, firebox, cat, and flue. I posted this on another thread. It supports how we have been operating our wood stoves for decades:
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
*Pg. 23, Operating Instructions, #8: "Let the fire burn on a higher setting (on the thermostat) for 20-30 minutes, or until the fire is well established, then turn the thermostat to the desired setting. It is good burning practice to burn the stove on high for 20-30 mins after every refueling, this will help in cleaning off any residual build-ups and lessen the chance of accumulation."
*Pg. 23, Operating Instructions: "Put as much fuel into the stove as it will hold. Don't be afraid to fill it completely. With the _____ _____ automatic thermostat, the wood will only burn at the rate set on the thermostat. Loading with a half load of fuel, and therefore reloading more often, causes the combustor to lose efficiency and may result in a faster creosote deposit."
*Pg. 24, Operating Instructions: "Should you burn the stove on a very low setting for extended periods of time, you will begin to see creosote deposits forming on the glass door. To remove these deposits, simply run the stove on "High" for a short time, approximately 30 minutes. The "High" setting will burn off most of the deposits."
*Pg. 26, Creosote: "At stack temperature below 120*C (250* F), the creosote will condense out of the gasses (smoke). Once a chimney connector becomes heavily coated with creosote, the only safe way to remove it is mechanically with a proper chimney cleaner or brush. A combination of wet fuel and poor operating procedure may necessitate weekly cleaning to remove creosote buildup. Remember - the hotter the fire the less creosote...We recommend that each day a small intense fire be built, preferably in the morning. This daily practice should burn out the small deposits of creosote before they build to a dangerous level. The combustion air inlet should be opened at least 30 minutes by turning the thermostat up in the morning and evening. NEVER "burn out" large deposits of more than one days accumulation."
*Pg. 26, Creosote, #4: "Operate the stove on a higher temperature setting for the half hour after reloading."
*Pg. 28, Maintenance, Cat Cleaning: "TIP: A nice hot fire will usually prove to be the best method of cleaning the combustor of deposits."
*Pg. 29, Maintenance, Door Glass Cleaning: "The best way to keep the glass clean is to leave the stove on high burn for a period of time after each reloading. The moisture which is driven from a new load of wood contributes much of the creosote on the inside of the glass. Removing that moisture at the beginning of the burn cycle helps to keep the glass clean. Leaving the thermostat on a higher setting for 30 minutes to an hour before turning to low for an overnight burn will also help.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
You should know that I am a meat cutter, not an expert on wood stoves. My family has been using wood heat to heat our homes since 1979 and have never had a creosote fire and never cleaned or hired anyone to clean our flues. We mostly burn Red Fir or Lodgepole pine (well seasoned), don't have stacks over 15' high, our stoves have pipe from the flue collar to the vent cap, pipe is straight up, and we do a "burn off" everyday religiously.
DISCLAIMER: Daily burn offs must be done consistently everyday, and you must start with a clean flue. You can't allow creosote to build up and then decide to do daily burn offs.
Daily burn offs should be a part of every wood burners routine no matter what stove you own. A daily burn off is nothing more than operating your stove on High for at least 15-20 minutes everyday after loading. This does two things: First, getting the load hot after loading drives out moisture which helps to cut down on creosote buildup. Second, and even more important, the heat generated burns up (& drys out) small deposits of creosote before they can build up and cause a chimney fire. These deposits are everywhere, from the glass to the firebox to the flue. The daily burn off helps to keep everything clean.
Creosote is by far the most misunderstood and potentially dangerous element of wood stove burning. It is my opinion that a great many people (including those in the biz) don't understand proper wood stove operation (which includes daily burn offs). It is also my opinion that a great many people don't even fully understand what creosote is.
It is normal for your flue to have a thin (1/4"), light colored coating of fluffy ash. This is not creosote even though many wood stove owners think it is. Most of the people in the industry will call it creosote as well. If you can easily run your finger through this and it crumbles and blows away, it is not creosote. Many will have you believe you need to hire a chimney sweep to brush this ash out. There's nothing wrong with doing that, it's just not necessary. As you do your daily burn offs, this ash will continue to flake off and either go up the flue or drop down into the stove. Think of creosote as oil or tar. It's more wet and sticky than dry and flaky.
On the H_earth forum, I took the position like I have explained above. Many people argued that I was wrong but non more strongly than one of the moderators. This particular moderator was giving members advise that was just flat wrong. I gave a differing opinion and was banned (& my posts deleted). I was told that daily burn offs were an "old wives tale" and "don't work" and that it was irresponsible to advocate such a thing. Just because someone is in a position where they should know, doesn't mean that they actually do.
The manual that came with our stove addresses creosote in all aspects including glass, firebox, cat, and flue. I posted this on another thread. It supports how we have been operating our wood stoves for decades:
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
*Pg. 23, Operating Instructions, #8: "Let the fire burn on a higher setting (on the thermostat) for 20-30 minutes, or until the fire is well established, then turn the thermostat to the desired setting. It is good burning practice to burn the stove on high for 20-30 mins after every refueling, this will help in cleaning off any residual build-ups and lessen the chance of accumulation."
*Pg. 23, Operating Instructions: "Put as much fuel into the stove as it will hold. Don't be afraid to fill it completely. With the _____ _____ automatic thermostat, the wood will only burn at the rate set on the thermostat. Loading with a half load of fuel, and therefore reloading more often, causes the combustor to lose efficiency and may result in a faster creosote deposit."
*Pg. 24, Operating Instructions: "Should you burn the stove on a very low setting for extended periods of time, you will begin to see creosote deposits forming on the glass door. To remove these deposits, simply run the stove on "High" for a short time, approximately 30 minutes. The "High" setting will burn off most of the deposits."
*Pg. 26, Creosote: "At stack temperature below 120*C (250* F), the creosote will condense out of the gasses (smoke). Once a chimney connector becomes heavily coated with creosote, the only safe way to remove it is mechanically with a proper chimney cleaner or brush. A combination of wet fuel and poor operating procedure may necessitate weekly cleaning to remove creosote buildup. Remember - the hotter the fire the less creosote...We recommend that each day a small intense fire be built, preferably in the morning. This daily practice should burn out the small deposits of creosote before they build to a dangerous level. The combustion air inlet should be opened at least 30 minutes by turning the thermostat up in the morning and evening. NEVER "burn out" large deposits of more than one days accumulation."
*Pg. 26, Creosote, #4: "Operate the stove on a higher temperature setting for the half hour after reloading."
*Pg. 28, Maintenance, Cat Cleaning: "TIP: A nice hot fire will usually prove to be the best method of cleaning the combustor of deposits."
*Pg. 29, Maintenance, Door Glass Cleaning: "The best way to keep the glass clean is to leave the stove on high burn for a period of time after each reloading. The moisture which is driven from a new load of wood contributes much of the creosote on the inside of the glass. Removing that moisture at the beginning of the burn cycle helps to keep the glass clean. Leaving the thermostat on a higher setting for 30 minutes to an hour before turning to low for an overnight burn will also help.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
