Wood stove temp won't rise

Chances are almost 100% the problem is with wood that is not dry enough.

Other possibility is partially clogged flue.

Dune said:

Other possibility is partially clogged flue.

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Which would probably be cause the wood ain't dry enough

I would check the flue cap/screen to ensure it isnt plugged up, then clean the flue, then check the wood. Almost guranteed its one of the three or a combination.

tarzan said:

Which would probably be cause the wood ain't dry enough

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Or because it has never been cleaned.

kurimski said:

I just had the chimney inspected and cleaned the beginning of December. It surely wouldn't be clogged already would it?

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Well that is 2.5 months. If it hadn't been burning better before, the issue wouldn't come up. Suggest you inspect it regardless, then if clear, try a bag of kiln dried wood from the supermarket. If that burns well, then you know what the issue is.

Check the chimney . . . and in the meantime . . . it would strongly be advised to not use the ash pan door to get the fire going . . . bad things can happen to the stove . . . including voided warrantees.

Is this your first year burning on the chimney as well as the stove. If so, how long did you burn before it was cleaned and what did it look like then? 2.5 months is a short time to clog a chimney to the point of loosing draft but if you have a screen it could get clogged up fairly fast and possibly the only problem.

I agree with Doug that the culprit is likely the wood. How long has it been cut, split, and stacked and what species?

do you hear any steam coming from the ends of the wood, does it smoke more than it used to? is the wood really heavy? All indications that it is to wet. If that is not the problem, than your chimney is clogged from burning wet wood.

Convenience store wood may not be any better. Lots of times, they are used for camp fires and moisture content does not matter. Go to Lowes, Menards or ?? and buy a moisture meter. They are as low as $20 on sale. That way, you are sure. When you buy a load of wood, ask the moisture content and then check it before it is dumped at your home. If it is much above 20%, it is not ready for your stove.

Do you know someone with a wood stove that has wood that is known to be dry? Borrow some or you can buy compressed logs at many hardware stores. Lots of people on this forum use them but I can't tell you which ones are good/not good as I don't use them.

I would check your chimney if you can get up on your roof. There was a recent thread on a plugged chimney in a very short time OR if you have a screen on your chimney cap, they can plug very quickly in this cold weather.

A lot of the wood at convenience stores here is from a local operation, and is unlikely to be any better. Other stuff may be 'kiln dried', but only enough to kill bugs, to allow for transport.

Agreed, compressed sawdust logs and/or a moisture meter.

I must admit that my last bit of wood is not dry enough. Here is the scenario. Bring wood up to my front porch to pick from when I need it. The plan is to bring in wood with the intention of burning it in about 8 hours. The problem began when I accidentally pulled wood from the pile that was not warmed up. That wood had too much moisture which was frozen. I put the wood in and as the moisture began to thaw, no heat. It took awhile to get the wood to thaw and put out any kind of heat. The next fire went much better since I had drier wood and I burned a good, hot fire. Clean glass when I was done with that fire but it was not really that dirty to begin with.

Dry wood is extremely important in any stove and this phenomenon happens to many people this time of year.

my .02

This stoves floor can easily crack when using the ashpan. Also, I personally know someone who's house burned down from forgetting to close it.

well, thats two reasons not to open the ashpan door.

kurimski said:

Thanks for everyone's input. I'm going to go get some compressed logs and a moisture meter today to see if that seems to be the problem. The ash pan door is closed now and will stay closed.

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Good plan, don't forget to check the chimney though. Not trying to scare you but IF your flue is full of creosite from burning unseasoned wood then seasoned wood could set it off.

or you already hard a chimney fire and fluffed the creosote .up

kurimski said:

I just had the chimney inspected and cleaned the beginning of December. It surely wouldn't be clogged already would it?

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DougA said:

There was a recent thread on a plugged chimney in a very short time OR if you have a screen on your chimney cap, they can plug very quickly in this cold weather.

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If conditions are right (wrong,) the screen can plug pretty quick, and the flue won't be far behind.

kurimski said:

Then all of the sudden the last couple of weeks it hasn't wanted to rise over 400. I have been using some different wood.....I just think it's kind of crazy how the fire almost goes out completely

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This may point more to the wood if draft seems good with the door open. Clogged screen/flue would usually be noticed more gradually over a longer time provided one were paying close attention, not just noticing it when the smoke started rolling out when the door was opened. With wetter wood the flue doesn't get as hot, hence draw is decreased.

DougA said:

Convenience store wood may not be any better

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jeff_t said:

A lot of the wood at convenience stores here is from a local operation, and is unlikely to be any better. Other stuff may be 'kiln dried', but only enough to kill bugs, to allow for transport. Agreed, compressed sawdust logs and/or a moisture meter.

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Went to a guy's house a few months ago who had an outside fire going. Gas station wood he had picked up was Red Oak that had to be at least 30%, probably more. Splits weighed a ton and we could scarcely get that stuff to burn, even on a decent coal bed. It was a smoky mess.

craigbaill said:

Bring wood up to my front porch to pick from when I need it. The plan is to bring in wood with the intention of burning it in about 8 hours. The problem began when I accidentally pulled wood from the pile that was not warmed up. That wood had too much moisture which was frozen.

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Yep, a couple days in the stove room will dry a lot of that surface moisture but if the cellular moisture was never dried to begin with, bringing it inside won't help much. That said, I had some luck with a half-cord of White Ash that was split small, bringing it in and putting a fan on it for a couple weeks. Got it from 25 to 20%.

My splits are split small by design to help drying. I will be able to dry the wood properly from now on as this is the first season with this stove. I just cleaned it out yesterday and I was pleased to find the flue pipe and behind the cat only had a little fine white ash.

craigbaill said:

I was pleased to find the flue pipe and behind the cat only had a little fine white ash.

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Typically the big problem will be at or near the top of your chimney. That's where the cold outdoor temperature hits the hot gasses and will stick to the inside of your chimney and cause a buildup. Running less than perfect wood when combined with running a stove in the low to med. temp range adds to the dreaded creosote nightmare. It's best to take a peak at the chimney insides at the top and the cap a few times per winter until you are sure you are running safely.