Wood Stove and Chimney Cleaning

[Aviacs]

Doesn't anyone kiln dry the firewood they sell?
We have been fortunate that our dealer for the past 7 or 8 years does. And it is really cheap: +$50/cord upcharge.
Not only does it dry the wood for far more BTU's and less creosote, but it kills all the "critters" in the wood, if you have long term storage in a dry shed. A competitor early on tried to tell me it was not worth it "they only go down to 20%" he lied. Since i use a moisture meter every week for work, it was easy to check up on the wood we received (always straight from the kiln, usually still warm). Wood is often drier than 9%, though it will pick up to 12% if kept over a full year. It can take a couple years for the center to get back up to 12% on larger pieces. Still better than AD long term and can be burned "immediately" when received.

I've got a fair woodlot and could process our (wife & me) own annual needs from it.
But why bother with that level of quality. Heading into my early 70's i'd rather spend time doing other things like revenue work in the warm weather and skiing all winter.

smt

 

[sean donato]

No way would I pay to get fire wood kiln dried.

 

[Gabby3545]

Those tarps that I wanted sold out fast lol. So do your tarps touch the ground where you weight them down with wood? Because I just found a cover that is close but I do not think it will reach the ground. So my concern is the wind picking it up. I wonder how it will react with wood only holding the top of it and nothing around the perimeter near the bottom?

I was thinking maybe I could cut a hole in that hole made for "pipe" and use fish tape to run string trimmer line, fishing line or some other line through it and at least make it tight.

I've been using the covers that lumber yards get that covers their bunks when they are delivered. Hold them down with 'strategically" placed chunks, t-posts and anything heavy enough to negate the danged wind. Gotta go fix it now and then after windy days, but it works mostly.

 

[just Dave]

I use a heavy duty staple gun on end grain to keep my wood tarps in place. It dosnt take very many well placed staples on the edge and a couple poles on top.

 

[Brufab]

I would consider that pretty dirty. I just finished cleaning mine and came here with a question.
I used to go on my roof with a round brush and my electric drill, the inside of mine looks shine and spotless. BUT I had a metal roof installed 2 summers ago and am afraid of creasing the roof so now I do it from the inside, damned what a mess. LOL
When mine starts to smoke it's usually when the soot piles up on the top of the stove where the flue connects.

Good Luck

You can walk on a metal roof. Is it the 3' wide panels with ribs? Or standing seam? I have installed both as a commercial roofer. Just make sure your shoes or boots are clean. You don't want to scratch the finish

 

[esshup]

Couple of things I've learned over the years.
1) Don't have the split wood right on the ground, somehow, someway get it up off the ground so air can go under it. Pallets, etc., etc. If you don't, it will start to rot from the bottom up.
2) Cover the wood so the rain/snow doesn't fall on top of it. If you don't, even wood that has been split 3 years ago will be too wet to burn hot.
3) If you cover the wood with a tarp, don't run the tarp down to the ground all year long. It needs air to dry out and stop mold/fungus from growing on it. You can drop the tarp to the ground after it's below freezing out, but open up the sides once the temp outside is in the upper 30's.
4) If it's Oak, try to get the bark off of it - it will season quicker, and last longer that way.
5) Here in northern Indiana, Oak/Maple needs 2 years after it's split to dry if you want to get the most heat and least creosote build up in the flue. Ash can be cut/split and burned in 6 months.
6) Pine leaves a lot of creosote and will burn too fast compared to Oak or Maple.
7) If you can find Black Locust, or Osage Orange season it for 2 years after its' split and save it for the coldest months of the year.

 

[rmotoman]

Couple of things I've learned over the years.
1) Don't have the split wood right on the ground, somehow, someway get it up off the ground so air can go under it. Pallets, etc., etc. If you don't, it will start to rot from the bottom up.
2) Cover the wood so the rain/snow doesn't fall on top of it. If you don't, even wood that has been split 3 years ago will be too wet to burn hot.
3) If you cover the wood with a tarp, don't run the tarp down to the ground all year long. It needs air to dry out and stop mold/fungus from growing on it. You can drop the tarp to the ground after it's below freezing out, but open up the sides once the temp outside is in the upper 30's.
4) If it's Oak, try to get the bark off of it - it will season quicker, and last longer that way.
5) Here in northern Indiana, Oak/Maple needs 2 years after it's split to dry if you want to get the most heat and least creosote build up in the flue. Ash can be cut/split and burned in 6 months.
6) Pine leaves a lot of creosote and will burn too fast compared to Oak or Maple.
7) If you can find Black Locust, or Osage Orange season it for 2 years after its' split and save it for the coldest months of the year.

Osage orange is ready to burn in 60 days in Kansas. It only has 400 lbs of water per cord green compared to when it's seasoned. It also doesn't absorb water at all.

 

[.358 win]

wood quality plays the biggest role. the second is the type of stove, is it a new one that burns the smoke?

Also, you need to burn it into your head that it must be cleaned every year.

I see a lot of sticky creosote, so either the wood is not seasoned or the stove is not efficient to the point is reburns the smoke.

My habit is clean twice a year.. First time right after x-mas.. Second time in the spring when the season is basically over.. When you clean like this you won't worry about some occasional " not the best quality wood". Also, my chimneys use tee's with clean out caps.. Reason being, do not take it apart, just the cap off... The best part being not going on the roof except for the rain cap.. I do my cleaning with my feet on the ground. Adding a four foot piece of rod at a time.. Once even made a cross for cleaning. Cross means a four way... Brick and mortar chimneys with thimbles are different than stainless pipe.. I realize that.. Point is, get right with cleaning.. Your equipment deserves it, and you have peace of mind when you go to sleep.

 

[tcass]

it may be the stove but.....its more likely the wood. as mentioned earlier, get a moisture meter. split a chunk and check the inside of the split. it should read under 20%. 16-18 is really good. burn your fires hotter too. if the stove runs you out, use smaller fires. try not to have it smolder too much if you can help it. i take my stove apart pretty every couple of years. i clean the chimney normally twice a year. once at the beginning of the burn season and once around feb/mar. Check into some new stoves. Some are reasonably priced. Hearth .com Forums are a good place to ask about this too and get advice on wood, stoves, cleaning and a whole lot of other stuff. check them out. also mentioned before, you just really need to cover the tops of your stacks.
one other thing....burning wood is by nature....dirty. you get bark, dirt, dust and ash as a result. you learn to live with it and clean it up.
good luck.....jmho

 

[sundance]

We clean the chimney, tear apart the stove and vacuum out the recesses, etc. Do any needed gasket maintenance and so forth somewhere during the summer or early fall. Typically do a quick cleaning of the pipe once in December (warmish day, no snow on roof) and again in February or early March. Wood is well seasoned, outside no cover until mid-summer when I fill the shed.