Jotul Olso , how hot is too hot , quickly?

Tedbo68 said:

I looked up the manual for the Oslo and it's the same as the castine. Optimal is 400-600. Any part of the stove glows red is bad and never open the ash door during a fire (even though I do for short bursts to get things going occasionally) otherwise you run the risk of cracking the stove.

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I think a number of Oslo owners have done this when first starting out . . . and they either read more here and see pics of damaged stoves and immediately change their wayward ways and eventually discover that leaving the side door ajar may take a bit longer, but works almost as well (especially when paired with nice, seasoned wood and a Super Cedar) . . . or they disregard the advice or never stumble on to Hearth.com to learn better and eventually their stove is damaged and they're mad at Jotul for their "cheaply made" stoves.

I agree with firefighter jake with owning a cast iron stove you will see it is ment for slower longer lasting burns you don't need a inferno in two minutes. This stove is designed for Long periods of heat get a nice fire going and once your on your way slow it down let it heat up better on the stove.

Every time I see these stove temp threads I am genuinely bewildered. I have a jotul f500. Brandy new. I bought a condar stove top thermometer and placed it in the right top corner. I am burning year old ash and dead dropped oak. Highest temp I've ever seen is 575. What are you guys using for temps that's getting you into the 700s?

Joe13 said:

Every time I see these stove temp threads I am genuinely bewildered. I have a joyful f500. Brandy new. I bought a condar stove top thermometer and placed it in the right top corner. I am burning year old ash and dead dropped oak. Highest temp I've ever seen is 575. What are you guys using for temps that's getting you into the 700s?

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Too much air? I'm bugging of course, not familiar with the stoves mentioned.

Joe13 said:

Every time I see these stove temp threads I am genuinely bewildered. I have a jotul f500. Brandy new. I bought a condar stove top thermometer and placed it in the right top corner. I am burning year old ash and dead dropped oak. Highest temp I've ever seen is 575. What are you guys using for temps that's getting you into the 700s?

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Center of top-load door on a Jotul Firelight 12 could hit 700F pretty quick and easy, although the corners rarely got to 300F. All depends on where you measure, sometimes.

Methinks the thin steel of a BK stove might get scary hot, if measured directly over the catalytic combustor, even with them being marvels of low and slow burning wonder.

Jotul recommends not getting your stove over 600 degrees if that helps anymore remember cast iron is a marathon runner not a sprinter hope this helps

heavy hammer said:

Jotul recommends not getting your stove over 600 degrees if that helps anymore remember cast iron is a marathon runner not a sprinter hope this helps

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Jotul says

"The optimum surface temperature range for the most efficient burn is between 400° and 600° (204°C -316°C). "

I can't find anything recommending to not exceed 600 degrees.

rsw49 said:

Jotul says

"The optimum surface temperature range for the most efficient burn is between 400° and 600° (204°C -316°C). "

I can't find anything recommending to not exceed 600 degrees.

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That essentially is saying don't go over 600.

Joe13 said:

Every time I see these stove temp threads I am genuinely bewildered. I have a jotul f500. Brandy new. I bought a condar stove top thermometer and placed it in the right top corner. I am burning year old ash and dead dropped oak. Highest temp I've ever seen is 575. What are you guys using for temps that's getting you into the 700s?

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1. You are burning just fine.

2. You have your stove top thermometer in the correct location.

3. Manufacturer recommendation (per reading the manual) is 400-600 so your 575 is right in the ballpark.

4. 700, measured at the top corner on a Jotul 500, is too high = too much air, needs to be shut down.

I have never measured my stove top temp on the center plate - I really don't care what that reads - I care what the reading is on the top corner of my stove because that's where my manufacturer says to measure the temp.
I burn top down fires with kindling of what ever wood I happen to have in the stack. Yeah, I subscribe to the 'I don't burn pine' club but I have on the rare occasion burnt minor pieces of untreated 2x4 pine split for kindling but once the fire is going I don't add more pine. I have my maple, locust, oak, apple, whatever seasoned wood under the pine and when that burns down I add more of my seasoned wood reserving any pine just to use as kindling to get a fire going.

I don't open the ashpan door to get a fire going. Opening the ashpan causes overfires and can quickly trash your stove.

Joe13 you are doing just fine. Welcome to the club.

Joe13 said:

Every time I see these stove temp threads I am genuinely bewildered. I have a jotul f500. Brandy new. I bought a condar stove top thermometer and placed it in the right top corner. I am burning year old ash and dead dropped oak. Highest temp I've ever seen is 575. What are you guys using for temps that's getting you into the 700s?

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Why folks are getting high temps . . . this could be due to several possibilities . . .

One year old ash is decent wood . . . burning two year old ash though is the cat's pajamas. You wouldn't think an extra few months would make much of a difference, but it can. I have to be very careful when I load up my 3-year old oak . . . it tends to get the stove very hot.

How much wood you are loading into the firebox . . . the total volume taken up by wood, the size of the splits and even to some degree the way the wood is stacked (tight stacked vs. loose stacked) . . . all can make a difference. If I only have a half load of large splits and they're sitting pretty tight to each other I will not get a good burn -- and I will not get an especially fast burn.

How you are operating the stove. Not saying this is you since I think your temps are pretty darn good actually, but every year it seems like someone comes here and doesn't realize that to get the maximum heat from their secondary burning stove they need to cut back on the air. What may or may not apply to you however is that it often matters when you cut back on that air -- do it too soon and you may not get an especially hot fire and do it rather late and you send a lot of heat up the chimney.

Personally, I think 575 degrees F is not a bad temp . . . I try to shoot for anywhere between 400 and 650 degrees . . . so yeah . . . keep doing what you are doing.

Folks may be getting 700 degrees on their stove . . . and I have no doubt that these stoves can take it . . . but I like to run my stove like I run my car . . . for the most part relatively conservatively with an occasional foray into the "Whoooooaaaaaa Doggggggggy!" zone.

rsw49 said:

Jotul says

"The optimum surface temperature range for the most efficient burn is between 400° and 600° (204°C -316°C). "

I can't find anything recommending to not exceed 600 degrees.

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You are correct . . . most folks may suggest keeping it under 700-750 degrees F . . . and I would wager that most folks try to run it at those optimal temps, but going a little above or a little below those numbers should be fine.

firefighterjake said:

Why folks are getting high temps . . . this could be due to several possibilities . . .

One year old ash is decent wood . . . burning two year old ash though is the cat's pajamas. You wouldn't think an extra few months would make much of a difference, but it can. I have to be very careful when I load up my 3-year old oak . . . it tends to get the stove very hot.

How much wood you are loading into the firebox . . . the total volume taken up by wood, the size of the splits and even to some degree the way the wood is stacked (tight stacked vs. loose stacked) . . . all can make a difference. If I only have a half load of large splits and they're sitting pretty tight to each other I will not get a good burn -- and I will not get an especially fast burn.

How you are operating the stove. Not saying this is you since I think your temps are pretty darn good actually, but every year it seems like someone comes here and doesn't realize that to get the maximum heat from their secondary burning stove they need to cut back on the air. What may or may not apply to you however is that it often matters when you cut back on that air -- do it too soon and you may not get an especially hot fire and do it rather late and you send a lot of heat up the chimney.

Personally, I think 575 degrees F is not a bad temp . . . I try to shoot for anywhere between 400 and 650 degrees . . . so yeah . . . keep doing what you are doing.

Folks may be getting 700 degrees on their stove . . . and I have no doubt that these stoves can take it . . . but I like to run my stove like I run my car . . . for the most part relatively conservatively with an occasional foray into the "Whoooooaaaaaa Doggggggggy!" zone.

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Yea, being a first year burner compounds the level too. I'm starting to run into splits that are sizzling more then I want, which is none. They are the bottom of a stack, had a lot of snow up against them this past winter, and were from a live tree. Still heating the house, and my chimney is still spotless, but I hope that as I build my stash and get ahead I will start getting the burns and heating values that I see some of you guys get. Not to derail this thread anymore then i have. :lol:

cookin2night said:

That essentially is saying don't go over 600.

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I disagree. It is essentially saying the stove operates most efficiently between 400 and 600. With the reasoning you are using it would mean don't operate the stove below 400 degrees either.

rsw49 said:

I disagree. It is essentially saying the stove operates most efficiently between 400 and 600. With the reasoning you are using it would mean don't operate the stove below 400 degrees either.

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Yea that's correct. If you want optimal performance than operate between 4 to 6.

Over 6 and you could start damaging the integrity of the stove under 4 and you will increase your creosote production.

cookin2night said:

Over 6 and you could start damaging the integrity of the stove under 4 and you will increase your creosote production.

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Correct.

rsw49 said:

I disagree. It is essentially saying the stove operates most efficiently between 400 and 600. With the reasoning you are using it would mean don't operate the stove below 400 degrees either.

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Well, we know it really can't mean that, because if the stove is starting at room temp it has to run through those lower temps to even get to 400f. So let's assume the 400-600 range of "operation" means extended cruising temps. So by that reasoning, you are correct, in that if you were to exceed 600f for a short time, on the way to an extended burn of under 600f, that would seem to be in compliance with recommendations.

Except for the fact that Jotuls don't seem to work that way, in that the corners of the stove take much longer to get to temp than the center plate or flue. So to get the corner to well over 600f, it may mean the center plate runs well over 800f, which is generally regarded as the start of overfire territory for most stoves.

So even though the manual isn't explicit about running over 600f corner temps, we can assume it's not wise to do. Personally, I prefer to measure a stove at it hottest potential location rather than where the manufacturer suggests. THAT is how I would try to avoid overfire damage. The rear wall of my Oakwood burn chamber, for example, can reach 900f even when the stove top is under 700f. Harman wouldn't suggest measuring that spot, because it could be considered an admission of a design flaw, where the stove overfires under normal operating conditions.

With strong draft and very dry wood, I would not be surprised if the center plate of some Jotuls exceeds 800f under normal operating conditions. That may be one reason they suggest reading temps at the corners. My impression is that these stoves are designed to pass emissions tests rather than maximize heating efficiency, which means flue temps run higher than absolutely necessary with a full load of dry wood under good drafting conditions.