Leaving the house with Insert Burning

I usually just dampen mine so that its either still going, or it has enough hot coals that I can get it going again when I return. I don't however leave the damper wide open so that it has a less chance of getting out of control while I'm gone. Other than that, I don't really do anything special. My aim is to keep it going as long as I can until I get back.

Another thing I do if its a particularly cold day is when I go to work, I know I'm only going to get to about noon or 1 PM and the fans will be blowing cold air. I put a regular timer on the stove fans and set it to shut off about 12:30. That way I get warm air until at least the afternoon.

+1 on Joe S's routine. Usually have enough coals after getting home from work around 6 to get it going again fairly easily.

I look at wood burning like I am making charcoal. When I load my stove with wood I want to burn it hot for awhile until the wood has become charcoal ( basically 0 moisture) then I can turn the stove way down. This procedure takes at least 1/2 an hour. If I were you I wouldn't load up the stove and just leave it on low.

Hummer...great question. I'm sure I would have asked the same question sometime this burning season.

I've got the HI300 (same internal stove as the I2400). You will find this stove is easy to burn for 8/10 hours if you have dry hard wood. I burn 24/7 once outside temps call for it. Once you start the process, there's no need to re-lite the stove because you will have a coal bed for reloading. The first cycle start time is your most important because once the leave the house, you want to make sure the fire will burn without smoldering or over firing.

You need at least 45 minutes to 1 hour of being around the stove before you leave for the day. This time may be adjusted once you get comfortable with the stove. Open draft fully. You may need to remove some ash before you start. Load the stove with wood running North/South orientation. Close door and leave draft open until you have a raging fire and see some of the wood splits charred on the edges. At this point knock the damper down an 1". Waiting another 5/10 minutes, knock down another 1". Continue to do this until you have the draft 1/2" open. Monitor the fire throughout this process. You should see the secondary tubes fire up during this process. If you see the fire choking, you need to start the process all over and give it more time before closing the damper.

Couple tips. If you can't close the damper down and see the secondary tubes firing, this means your wood is not completely dried out. Also, keep an eye on the stove surface where the blower air exits the stove. If you see a red glow towards the rear of the stove where the stove pipe is, you are overfiring the stove. Close the draft completely and turn the blower on high to get the surface to cool down.

Feel free to ask more questions. There are others out here that can give you additional tips.

Good luck.

Steve

Once I have the temperature locked in, it doesn't matter if I'm home or away. The stoves are burning.

The Vigilant is a little more tricky due to it's age.

Loading the stove is the first thing I do in the morning. Then go ahead and take shower, breakfast, pack lunch, etc. Periodically I will close down the air bit by bit. Then right before I leave damp it down all the way. But it definitely needs about 45 minutes or so to go through the whole process.

I'm with the guys above. You have to get the secondaries going, then close her down.

Welcome to the forums, Hummer !


You're going to want to get that fire burning with good secondaries to start to shut it down, and still have heat later. Smoldering is only going to clog your chimney real quick (ask me how I know this >:-( )


A thermometer might be of some help, if it can be placed on the Regency.

BrowningBAR said:

Once I have the temperature locked in, it doesn't matter if I'm home or away. The stoves are burning.

The Vigilant is a little more tricky due to it's age.

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BB- the Vigilant isn't tricky, it's just a bit ornery!

Remkel said:

BrowningBAR said:

Once I have the temperature locked in, it doesn't matter if I'm home or away. The stoves are burning.

The Vigilant is a little more tricky due to it's age.

Click to expand...

BB- the Vigilant isn't tricky, it's just a bit ornery!

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Too much air, not enough air, too much air, not enough... holding steady.. wait, got smoke... crap.

I like to be past the peak burn when I leave the house, so that means I don't reload the last hlaf hour or 45 minutes before I leave. After the wood is fully engulfed in flame and i have the stovetop temperature at or past its max (based on experience with similar loads), I lower the air, wait a few more minutes to be sure it is OK, and then leave. I don't like to throttle the air down too much and risk fouling the chimney. Instead I try for a clean and complete burn and if the house is cool when I get back, so be it. However, I don't have a hunting dog.

BrotherBart said:

Do the exact same drill you do for a night burn.

Edit: Let me add to that. Virtually every over fired stove post in the last six or seven years has contained the phrase "I had the stove door cracked getting the fire going. And then I got distracted.". Add "Never leave the room with the door to that stove not securely latched. Anytime. Period. Never." to your checklist.

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A lightbulb just came on in my head. Wait a minute, dont they sell a screen kit for most of these wood stoves so you can hear it. What exactly is the difference? Is just enough extra air (from a cracked door) different from a screen in place of a door?

This is my 1st season also; I need to do the overnight burn; I have been doing some day time burn and getting to know the fire cycle-my stove top gets to about 650* but I have not slept while a wood stove is burning-this will be new to me. :ahhh:

BeGreen said:

Get to know the stove a bit first. The fire burns down in stages. There is ignition, outgassing with strong secondary burn, and then charcoal burning. It is not a good idea to load up the stove 5 minutes before departing. That is the ignition stage. Ideally you want to be in the later stage of secondary burn when the air is closed mostly down. But don't let it smolder. If there is smoke coming out of the flue, give it a little more air.

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x2, perfect advice.

It usually takes me 45 minutes to get the stove settled in to the point I'm comfortable with leaving it. When I first started burning and leaving for work I'd have small "panic" attacks wondering if I did everything right. After you get to know the stove you'll be able to run it in your sleep.

Ubookz said:

This is my 1st season also; I need to do the overnight burn; I have been doing some day time burn and getting to know the fire cycle-my stove top gets to about 650* but I have not slept while a wood stove is burning-this will be new to me. :ahhh:

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Go to sleep, you'll be fine !!

HummerBeachBuggy1982 said:

Thanks guys for all the help, I have a thermostat but was wondering where is the correct place to put it, on the insert stove top or the face by the door because the temperature of the two gives me two different readings. I also was wondering when you guys mean shut the damper all the way down, if I go below 75% closed the fire looks to go out plus wouldn't that keep the heat extreme in there if I have it mostly closed all day and the possibility of over-firing the insert while I am not home... I have slept with the insert going but have not left the house yet, still a little nervous as I am a stove virgin still.

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Your Regency should look similar to this. Put the thermostat in the area where the blower exits the warm air. Place it towards the front. You willl need a flashlight to read it.

I also attached a picture of the secondaries burning. Once these fire up, the fire will be shooting out of the tubes. If you don't see this read the next paragraph.

If you are closing it down and your secondaries are not burning, you either closed the air supply too quickly or your wood is not dry enough. The draft (air) can be closed all the way to about 1/2" closed if you are using the blower. If no blower, it can be closed completely. Remember, when you are closing the draft, do this in steps over a 1/2 hour period. If you get it going and slamb it down, you will choke it for sure.

HummerBeachBuggy1982 said:

Thanks guys for all the help, I have a thermostat but was wondering where is the correct place to put it, on the insert stove top or the face by the door because the temperature of the two gives me two different readings. I also was wondering when you guys mean shut the damper all the way down, if I go below 75% closed the fire looks to go out plus wouldn't that keep the heat extreme in there if I have it mostly closed all day and the possibility of over-firing the insert while I am not home... I have slept with the insert going but have not left the house yet, still a little nervous as I am a stove virgin still.

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I think each stove and flue combo is unique, so each of us has to figure out the best setting for a controlled burn. Reducing the air flow will typically reduce the rate of burn, and that will reduce, not increase, in temperature inside the stove (although I think most stoves, at the peak of a burn, will actually be hottest somewhere in between max and min air settings). I think you might risk over-firing the insert if you leave the air open too far; if you reduce the air too much you risk smouldering the wood and eventually fouling up the chimney.

Keep in mind that there is a progression to any fire, and you will see changing temperatures and rate of burn even without changing the air setting. When you load the insert you start out with a relatively small amount of fire and there is a phase in which the wood is heating up and fire is spreading through the load. After that there is a phase where moisture is forced out of the wood while the wood burns. I think if the wood isn't dry enough this phase can mean relatively cool temperatures and can take a while. Eventually the wood is hot and dry and it begins to give off lots of flammable gases, at which time you will see the fire and stove temperature really take off, even if you haven't changed the air setting. This is the phase where the firebox is really full of flame, including lots of secondary flames if you have decent firewood. Eventually the discharge of gases slows down and then stops, and you are burning charcoal. This phase can go on a long time.

I start out with maximum primary air, or even with the door cracked, while the fire spreads. After that I will begin to see lots of secodary flame even before I reach the peak of the burn, and at that time I turn the air down a little. When the fire reaches its peak I have the air turned down to around 25% of the maximum (based only on the motion of the control bar - I am not sure this really means 25% of the air flow). I usually don't turn my stove down to the minimum air setting at any time. As the wood turns to mostly charcoal I like to have the sir turned up again to get more heat and to avoid too much accumulation of coals in the stove.

So, my short response is that you have to find the right setting and apply it at the right phase of the burn. When the weather gets cooler and you have a few fires you'll quickly figure it out.