Secondaries - Captivating

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BigCountryNY

BigCountryNY

Burning Hunk
Sep 16, 2014
233
Putnam Valley, NY
Don't know about everyone else, but I could just sit and watch them all night long... :) Just loaded up for the night and it's cruising along. Almost hate to go to bed! Hope everyone has a warm and comfortable night!
 
After I loaded for the night the wind shifted to out of the South. Gonna have a warmer night than I planned. Happens a few times every season.

Enjoy the show and sleep well.
 
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first winter on my new epa wood furnace secondaries are amazing i didn't know what i was missing out on
 
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It is an amazing thing to watch!
 

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CT Burner said:
secondaries even when wood is down to coals
Click to expand...
Typically when the wood is down to coals, all the wood gases that the secondaries would be burning are gone, and you're left with hot-burning charcoal in the bottom of the stove. At that point, I usually open the air up just a little to keep the heat going until I'm ready to reload.
 
My secondaries last for about 7 minutes tops and they are fast and furious like a blow torch til they die out so i don't quite get this "captivating dance" everyone talks about. Thinking maybe my chimneys to short
 
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If everything is right I can keep my secondaries going for maybe 2 hours.
Its like time stands still for a while.
 
Wow... 7 minutes? 2 hours?

If I load up a full stove on a cold-start with top-down fire I can keep my secondaries going for 6+ hours.

Loading up on top of hot coals I get a much faster burn that keeps the secondaries going for 2-4 hours...

They are captivating, after 5 years burning my EPA stove I'm still mesmerized by them and I could watch them for hours...
 
Secondaries are why if I ever get a non cat EPA stove again, Im gonna raise it high enough off the floor so I can sit in my couch and get a good view. They are nifty.
 
I'm talking a full roar... It can linger for twice that time but that is about max.
 
I find that turning down the air control at the right time has a lot to do with the secondary burn I get on my stove. As the temp gets to around 450F on the top, I close the air control fully and get a nice secondary burn and the stove cruises at about 550F. If not closed down fast enough, the secondaries are screaming and the top peaks and cruises at 650F. Great if I need more heat, but not so great for the burn times and view.
 
Secondaries vary from brand to brand. The fire show in my Downdraft Harman TL-300 is so much nicer and longer lasting than in My Englander NC-30. Harman reminds me of the "northern lights" at the poles and the Englander 30 looks a lot like my gas grill.
 
That's one thing I never got with my blaze king and love about my New stove, I'm sitting on the couch now with my dog and we're both watching the stove.
 
Fsappo said:
Im gonna raise it high enough off the floor so I can sit in my couch and get a good view. They are nifty.
Click to expand...
HA! Just buy a Woodstock Ideal Steel, the sloped roof of the stove does that for you.

And yes, it is a wonderful sight.
 
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I like the secondaries.. but I really like it when late in the burn, you get these blue flames that jump up and kind of explode at the top of the firebox..





 
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