Wayulp, I just got my first wood-burning stove.

[beach elvis]

Very excited but brand new to the concept of something on fire that's IN-doors.

Any thoughts, advice, helpful hints (other than the obvious "Don't set yer house awn far."), anything a'tall, would be GRATE-fully (get it?) welcomed and appreciated.

 

[glwt06]

Hey Beach, you probably already know this. Since we live fairly close, your area is probably saturated with elm and ash trees for sale as fire wood like mine is. Everyone has elm and ash cut for firewood. It works well for camp fires.

If you don't have your own source of wood, try to find hardwood like oak or maple. It will be more expensive, but it burns much slower and smells better (I think). If your using your stove for a supplement heat source and not your main supply, you may enjoy it more. If it's your main heat supply, it could get expensive.

I have a friend that has been slowly clearing his back yard of some older hardwood and I've been lucky to get some from him. I really like coming in from the cold outside to house full of that hard wood smell. Its one of those simple things.

Enjoy,

Paul

 

[27145]

It is all in the wood you use. If it is not seasoned properly, you end up with a filthy sooty house.

Drying Firewood - How to Season Firewood

 

[tops]

Wood is a warm heat and it really smells good. When you get used to wood heat you go in someones house with oil, gas, or electric and the house will seem cold. I have done a lot of good sleeping beside a wood stove. We use gas now because it is easier but we still have a wood stove in case the power goes off and sometimes I build a fire just to take a good nap. Larry

 

[Jst1mr]

As stated - good hardwood, well seasoned (split for 2 years for most). Keep damper as open as possible - you want a hot, clean fire. Clean chimney/pipe annually. DO NOT use a regular vacuum to remove ash!

 

[moosedog]

Congradulations. You'll love it. The heat from a wood burner is unlike any gas or propane furnace.

Make sure you buy a chimney cleaning brush and rod and keep it that chimney clean of buildup and you'll do fine.

 

[beach elvis]

Thank you all so much for the guidance!
PLEEZE keep it coming. No such thing as too much education.
What's more, I KNEW I could count on you folks for help. Y'all make a fella proud to be a member.

 

[cass]

Make sure it's positioned well away from a combustional wall, and avoid big, blazing fires. That smoke stack gets plenty hot.

 

[Steve in Vermont]

It is all in the wood you use. If it is not seasoned properly, you end up with a filthy sooty house.

Drying Firewood - How to Season Firewood

We had a Vermont Castings wood stove in our living room for 25 years before converting to natural gas (and retiring). Several things to consider:

First, Creosote. Burn a hot fire occasionally and use "Anti-Creosote", you can find it on the Internet from a company in New Hampshire. Turns the buildup in the chimney to powder and is easy to remove. We used it for 25 years and wouldn't be without it.

Second, burn only wood that has been seasoned but not that's so dry it burns to fast. Stay away from pine and anything with sap. Woods like oak and hard rock maple are best. Ash is OK, easy to split, but tends to burn faster.

The article about stacking and curing is good with one exception. If you have green wood in the spring and want it to dry by fall you need to cover it. But do it like this. Put pallets on the ground for air circulation, stack the wood log cabin style up to about 4 feet. Do this in an area that gets the most sun. Cover it with 6 mil plastic, over the top and no more than 12" down the sides. This will create what is known as a "Solar Kiln", using the heat of the sun to cure the wood. I've cured green wood in several months with this method.

I preferred a splitting maul, 6 to 8 pound, rather than an axe. A splitting block is a good idea, about 2 feet in diameter and a height to suit you (hardwood), as well as a heavy duty canvas carry bag to lug the wood. A thermometer for the stovepipe is helpful, as is one for the top of the stove. You'll also need cleaning brushes, nylon or steel, sized for your chimney.

We never had a chimney fire and you won't either as long as you keep the chimney clean. I suggest having someone from your fire department check it out first, just to be sure it's safe. They have seen chimney fires before and know what to look for. Also let your insurance company know, they may inspect it also.

That's about it for now, if I can think of any anything else I'll let you know. Welcome to wood burning, nothing like it on a cold night.

 

[Freischütz]

Go to Hearth.com. The forums are full of knowledgeable people, and they are glad to answer any questions you have.

 

[27145]

We had a Vermont Castings wood stove in our living room for 25 years before converting to natural gas (and retiring). Several things to consider:

First, Creosote. Burn a hot fire occasionally and use "Anti-Creosote", you can find it on the Internet from a company in New Hampshire. Turns the buildup in the chimney to powder and is easy to remove. We used it for 25 years and wouldn't be without it.

Second, burn only wood that has been seasoned but not that's so dry it burns to fast. Stay away from pine and anything with sap. Woods like oak and hard rock maple are best. Ash is OK, easy to split, but tends to burn faster.

The article about stacking and curing is good with one exception. If you have green wood in the spring and want it to dry by fall you need to cover it. But do it like this. Put pallets on the ground for air circulation, stack the wood log cabin style up to about 4 feet. Do this in an area that gets the most sun. Cover it with 6 mil plastic, over the top and no more than 12" down the sides. This will create what is known as a "Solar Kiln", using the heat of the sun to cure the wood. I've cured green wood in several months with this method.

I preferred a splitting maul, 6 to 8 pound, rather than an axe. A splitting block is a good idea, about 2 feet in diameter and a height to suit you (hardwood), as well as a heavy duty canvas carry bag to lug the wood. A thermometer for the stovepipe is helpful, as is one for the top of the stove. You'll also need cleaning brushes, nylon or steel, sized for your chimney.

We never had a chimney fire and you won't either as long as you keep the chimney clean. I suggest having someone from your fire department check it out first, just to be sure it's safe. They have seen chimney fires before and know what to look for. Also let your insurance company know, they may inspect it also.

That's about it for now, if I can think of any anything else I'll let you know. Welcome to wood burning, nothing like it on a cold night.

I second having the FD inspect and then give them a nice donation, you do not know how much good they do until you need them. Of course I am saying this if you have volunteer FD. I do not know how good this is, but I always ran a burlap sack filled with rocks to sweep the chimney. Also get a good fire extinguisher to be kept nearby. There is nothing like fire heat. Did you know we have more trees in this Country than we did 90 years ago? Wood used to be king before oil. They used to lay waste to landscapes in order to harvest wood for fuel.

 

[moosedog]

Something else with wood burning that is not often discussed.
Humidity.
Burning of wood will suck the humidity out of a home pretty quick. If you burn it every day during the heating season, you are going to have to watch the humidity levels in the home.

This time of the year I actually look forward to the heating season. Nothing like that wood burner heat.

Seasoned hard wood gives the best burn but if your like me and have tons of ash trees down on your property, you have free wood. You just have to refuel more often with a softer wood like ash or pine.
It will all burn as long as it's seasoned.

When stacking green wood for seasoning, stack it 2 or 3 down and the next 2 or 3 split logs on top but in the opposite direction so you get air movement between the logs. Drys alot faster than stacking it all in the same direction, tight together.

 

[m657]

you'll learn to appreciate the "two ends of the wood shed" approach to fuel management....

one end (driest) for THIS season's burning....the other end for NEXT season...

get fire wood each year....but for NEXT year, not this one....and stack it right as shown.

This way you'll never run out of seasoned wood.

A nice wood fire is like dehydrated sun shine on a cold winter's day

 

[27145]

Putting a cast iron pot filled with water helps the humidity. They look like tea pots. There is nothing in this world like wood heat. Fireplaces are beautiful, but usually very inefficient. Wood stoves are usually very efficient.

 

[Steve in Vermont]

Putting a cast iron pot filled with water helps the humidity. They look like tea pots. There is nothing in this world like wood heat. Fireplaces are beautiful, but usually very inefficient. Wood stoves are usually very efficient.

A good idea. Also, you're going to need to draw air from the outside to feed the stove. In older homes it's not a problem as air infiltration is natural (the house isn't that tight). In newer, tighter homes you need some way to create an air flow. It can be as simple as cracking open a window. You'll see this problem if the stove "puffs" and you have a hard time getting the fire to "draw". We had a door to the outside just 6 feet from the stove. We took a 4" piece of the bottom skirting out, worked like a charm. Replaced it for the summer. And a fire extinguisher, as mentioned, as big as possible. ABTW, if you ever do have a chimney fire, don't spray it with water. The water will crack the chimney tile. Close the air supply and call the FD.

 

[novalty]

Welcome to the continual mess, and the heat source that heat you several times:cutting, splitting, stacking, burning, etc. I stack my wood in the basement, and keep my piles kind of in rotation, with oldest seasoned wood the closest to my stove area, and newest furthest away, even try to get my green stuff in if space allows, so that it can dry during the winter from the heat of wood burnt prior. Currently working on cutting up the stuff that was laid down last year. Thing I have found about burning wood, you always have a mess to clean up. Have thrown wood into trailer, dumped by bulk-head, thrown in basement, and stacked--and still have to sweep up dirt sawdust and debris while moving wood from pile to stove. Don't forget to have a steel closeable container near the stove for putting in ashes, and creosote from clean-out door. If you think it's a good idea to spread over your driveway in winter for traction, skip the step and spread it in your garage and house--cause it's coming back there anyway.

Miscellaneous tool tip of the day: prop rods from hood of old cars make great fire pokers.

 

[beach elvis]

I LOVE all the replies and EXTREMELY useful info, you guys!
Pleeze don't be shy. I can use all the help I can get.

BTW my wife would like to know what S&W would be best worn when cutting and stacking firewood. And the rig? Belt? Shoulder? Next to yer underbritches?

Seriously, though. I really appreciate everybody's checking in with all the advice.

 

[novalty]

BTW my wife would like to know what S&W would be best worn when cutting and stacking firewood. And the rig? Belt? Shoulder? Next to yer underbritches?

Smith Wesson Model 686 with 4" barrel worn in Andrews Leather Monarch Shoulder holster.

You have come a long ways grasshopper, you have already deligated work to your wife--make sure she wears steel-toes.

 

[27145]

It is also handy when you burn the Visa bills from the gun auctions! Instead of being thrown out into the cold by the wife, you will be lighting a cozy fire with your Visa bill.

 

[Steve in Vermont]

Smith Wesson Model 686 with 4" barrel worn in Andrews Leather Monarch Shoulder holster.

You have come a long ways grasshopper, you have already deligated work to your wife--make sure she wears steel-toes.

My wife did not become involved in the wood burning process, except to enjoy the heat. That was my mistake. I waited to long before mentioning (in front of others) that my wife did not participate. The following year, and for the next 2 decades, every fall she would go to the woodshed ONCE and bring in an armload of wood. After that, if I dared say she didn't help she would point out that was not true. Yes grasshopper, you will be a master wood burner sooner than most.