How long Should a person run a Fireplace, and how hot.

  • Active since 1995, Hearth.com is THE place on the internet for free information and advice about wood stoves, pellet stoves and other energy saving equipment.

    We strive to provide opinions, articles, discussions and history related to Hearth Products and in a more general sense, energy issues.

    We promote the EFFICIENT, RESPONSIBLE, CLEAN and SAFE use of all fuels, whether renewable or fossil.
Status
Not open for further replies.
M

Marshall

New Member
Nov 25, 2013
5
Canada
I have several questions about my new fireplace I just got installed.


1. How long should i run it, does it need a cool down or such or can i keep wood in it for a constant burn?


2. How Hot is to much, I keep running the stove around 200 Fer, but is that to much or is that good enough.


3. As it has a Pizza Drawer (Its a model that offered this feature which we thought was good for the old fashioned pizza) the pizza says to run the stove/BBQ at 400f - 425f, I am kinda scared to operate that stove at 400, even though it says max 600. But if its safe, How much wood, i am burning Hardwood in it currently, and i can put 2 Half 8" logs in it, and only can get it to 240. Is it safer to run it at 200 for longer, or should i try getting the stove higher, if so Any recommendations?
 
You're fine. With a professional install, you are good to follow the manual recommendations/limits. Simple as that. Usually works out to keep it under 600°F, continuous burn aok. To reach that you will likely need to fill it with big splits, not 2 pieces. You also still need to learn about air. Max heat output requires you to walk the air control down once the fire is going (too much air carries the heat up the chimney).

A lot of us start out kinda tentative....don't want to leave home with the stove going. But plenty of engineering went into ensuring safe operation and determining the safe limits. And your install pro made sure the rules/clearances were followed.

What model do you have? Expect some odor from the paint burn-in, maybe do it during mild weather with a window fan blowing the smell outside.
 
the manual says "dont let the stove glow", i thought that most people follow "less than 800F" regardless... 200 f is too cold. heat it up!
 
How about posting some pictures of this stove, thanks....
 
Mav is right. I should have said that 600 is a happy temp, and short periods above that won't hurt anything.

At 200°F, you could be coating your chimney with creosote....and end up with a less safe condition that running at 600°F with a clean flue.
 
woodgeek said:
At 200°F, you could be coating your chimney with creosote....and end up with a less safe condition that running at 600°F with a clean flue.
Click to expand...
^^^ THIS.
200F is probably doing more "bad" stuff than 600F would. I would highly recommend keeping a good sharp eye on the stove pipe. You are probably already starting to see the effects of creosote build up.
BEFORE you go and crank that stove up to 600F get the pipe inspected. You may have enough goo that a 600F fire will light it up. That would be REALLY BAD.
 
Before doing anything based on the recommendations here could you please post the manufacturer/model of your stove/fireplace? Or at least a picture? Maybe then we will be able to determine which temperatures are acceptable and how best to run your stove. I don't think I have seen any stove with a built-in pizza drawer here before so I would be hesitant to give any suggestions based on the operation of a standard woodstove.
 
Do apologize about the wait, but I have taken some images during the day, they are attached at the bottom.

The wood i use is not full tree stump, but pre-split wood, some peaces though i do split myself because they are to big, but majority of it is pre-split.


Also I have been running this stove for 2 - 3 weeks now, the stove is now i think set, does not have that smell no more, i saw how these were made not this specific model, but others, and know about the painting process, so at first was recommended not to put High loads into it until it settled so i would not have any burn marks on paint.


The Model information is: (We also have the Optional Vent Fan, but it is a really loud fan, so we kinda have it unplugged, directly above this stove is a Fan, so it does suffice on spreading the heat from the ceiling.)

Mystere rustic wood stove equipped with oven. Can be used as an extra cooking appliance.
Convection and radiation heating system. 2 cast iron doors. 20" X 12" bay window allows good fire visibility.
Recommended surface: up to 1,850 square feet. Maximum output: 52,000 BTU/h. Flue size: 6". Weight: approx. 380 lb.
Firebox dimensions: 18" W X 17 3/4" D. EPA certified.
Option: "Vent" fan





s3ru.jpg
ypn1.jpg

nnrt.jpg
d1nn.jpg
 
This is pretty unique, if you are going to cook in it, you have to reach the recommended temperatures, I'm sure you can go well over 450f if your not cooking in it. I wouldn't use that as a 24/7 heater though, it seems like it was intended to be a cooking oven, try baking a cake in I at 350f. Like said, 200 is just too low, not worth firing it up for that.....have fun with it, bake some potatoes, cookies, etc. I'm sure you have an instruction booklet, no?....oh also you might have to watch out like if you were to drop some grease on the cooking surface floor, I say read the book, if you don't have one find one
 
Wow - that stove is a first for me. Never seen one before. So this IS an EPA "tube" stove. I will restate - 200F is way to low of temps to be running on this. I will also restate - get the pipe inspected/cleaned as needed BEFORE you try running hotter fires.

ETA - looking at the owners manual, this is a stove that has the ability to add on the oven. WHERE is the 200F temp you are reading coming from? If from top of the oven, or oven thermo, we have a whole new game here.
 
Actually, I am surprised that you don't need an exhaust fan since it is for cooking....
 
Ahh that explains a lot. Interesting stove you have there - looks nice for baking bread too.

Does the manual say where to put the thermometer? If you put it on top, you are measuring the temp of the oven (kind of), not the stove (the stovetop temps are what we normally go by around here).

Maybe you could try putting the thermometer on the floor of the oven/top of the stove for more comparable readings?
 
The Thermometer is actually built into the top, if you look at the 2nd picture (one with just top doors closed) youll see it on top, this came built in where it is, so not sure if its just taking temperature of the oven area or the actual fireplace, do you recommend me get a 2nd for the bottom?


Also not sure if theirs really been a lot of build up on the pipe so I'm probably safe for now to start putting up the heat.

What i think i may do is let the fire go down, clean out fire place area and start again and see if i can get it to proper temp, is their any articles or videos you guys can give me for proper fire log placing / starting?



Also, when we purchased this was a clearance model, they don't supply it here no more, but because it was on, all i had as a instruction manual is print outs they had on their computer, not very informative but only for installation.
 
A question yet to be asked...What is your fuel situation. How long has it been SPLIT and stacked? With an oven temp of 200f, it tells me that stove temp is still probably on the low side. Have you tried to bring the oven temp up to 350F (a very standard cooking temp)?
 
Is Woody from Obadiah's still on the forum? This looks similar in concept to some of his cook stoves. Perhaps he could give thoughts? Or some of the other cook stove owners on the forum.

I do know that with our oil stove at the cabin (it's an antique wood cook stove that was converted to an oil pot burner) you really have to rock it at full blast for over an hour to get the oven temp up to 450F.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Ram 1500 with an axe...
I would call the company direct, tell them what you have and see if the have an operating manual. They should have the info like....you need to get the firebox xxxxdegrees hot to achieve the 400f in order to cook the pizza. Or things like what kind of pan to use or not use etc, there has to be more info out there for you....
 
  • Like
Reactions: Cynnergy
There are lots of ways to start fires - search the forum for 'top-down' for an example.

Just play with it and keep gradually adding more wood to each fire to get comfortable with it. You might have trouble trying to keep the wood inside with those doors, so go slowly. I would try loading north-south (pieces of wood aligned back to front not side to side) so that if your wood falls down, it hits the sides of the stove and not the glass.
 
I read the operating manual that a person applied that is my stove, seems right that it has little operating instructions, do you guys recommend a 2nd thermostat, if so where would be best place to put it?
 
Cynnergy said:
There are lots of ways to start fires - search the forum for 'top-down' for an example.

Just play with it and keep gradually adding more wood to each fire to get comfortable with it. You might have trouble trying to keep the wood inside with those doors, so go slowly. I would try loading north-south (pieces of wood aligned back to front not side to side) so that if your wood falls down, it hits the sides of the stove and not the glass.
Click to expand...


Yea i learned the hard way the first couple times, scars are healing though.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Cynnergy
Marshall said:
I read the operating manual that a person applied that is my stove, seems right that it has little operating instructions, do you guys recommend a 2nd thermostat, if so where would be best place to put it?
Click to expand...
This is one time that I am not sure if another thermo would gain you much (maybe an IR thermo?). It might come down to using the oven thermo and gain a temp correlation to the stove? I.E. Oven temp at 350F = stove temp of XXX. This might be where an IR thermo could help. You could point it into the gap between stove and oven.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Ram 1500 with an axe..., Cynnergy and woodgeek
Marshall said:
Yea i learned the hard way the first couple times, scars are healing though.
Click to expand...

Some members here recommend welding gloves :cool:. My dad has regular work gloves and a big metal pot to put burning chunks in just in case.

I really don't know about a 2nd thermometer - my suggestion might work, but it might not. And it would probably be hard to tell what temp it was measuring and whether it would be comparable to a stovetop temp. Maybe with the oven doors open it would read ok? I was hoping Woody might be able to give more direction. Jags' suggestion of an IR thermometer might be helpful. You might also want to consider an oven thermometer for inside the oven - I am not convinced that where the current thermometer is located is reading the oven temps either.

My guess is that any stove with an oven as a part of it should be able to get the oven safely to at least 425F. But this is a guess. And remember that the temp in the oven will take a lot longer to warm up than the temp inside the firebox or a stovetop temp (especially with a cast iron box), so there will be a delay there.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.

Similar threads

rebobbinator
Heat deflector/hood to protect mantel from wood burning insert
Replies
3
Views
1K
The Hearth Room - Wood Stoves and Fireplaces
Solarguy3500
Solarguy3500
G
How Long to Bypass on Reload
Replies
11
Views
1K
Blaze King
Garrin
G
S
running cost of a lopi berkshire propane gas stove
Replies
2
Views
741
It's a Gas!
steveh2112
S
M
Jotul series 8 running hot!
Replies
10
Views
525
Jotul
Mbmcewen
M
Dustin92
Planning to install a wood stove.. But what? How? And where?
Replies
16
Views
2K
The Hearth Room - Wood Stoves and Fireplaces
Caw
Caw
Top Bottom
Back