Hi all!
I know, I know, I need pictures, and I will get some someday, but the install is more functional than fashionable, and I'm a little afraid of the criticism.
Anyway, we've been burning for almost a month now, and I am in love. LOL!
We've had a VERY mild stretch of weather in the Rochester, NY, area, but that is coming to an end. There are some days we had one fire, others we had none, and others we had 2. We are just now entering what I think will be more constant burning.
I've followed as much of the advice from you guys here as I could. I work to burn as hot as is safe. I work to not have smoke or smouldering. I'm learning a lot, and I'm learning quickly. Our wood is not the best, but I can now start a fire in a cold stove and get it up to 300* in about 40 minutes. Once I get it to 300, it is quite easy to get it to 500-670 and keep it there. I try to maintain a temp right around there, though if the house is cold, I like to get it up to 700* or so. I had my first experience yesterday of what I think was over-firing. It was about 810,and some of the rods inside started to glow. I shut the damper as completely as the stove allows (I usually keep the damper about 1/2-3/4 closed), and the temp moderated quite quickly, and the glowing stopped. It was a good lesson for me.
We have a Lopi Revere insert, but it is almost functioning as a hearth stove b/c of the size of our hearth area. We do not yet have the blower. We'll probably get it next year. But even without the blower, the room with the stove is 75* on average. It is a very open floor plan for the living area of the house (we haven't figured out how to get the heat around the L-shaped hallway to the bedrooms yet). The temps farthest from the stove range from 64-69, depending on outside temps, how long we've had the fans running, etc.
I'm looking forward to seeing how everything works once the cold really settles in. I'm also curious how much wood we'll use. We have 10fc. Planning to buy more in the spring and get a season ahead, sooner rather than later.
We do have some creosote concerns. We did our first chimney sweep last weekend (We have a 6" liner in an internal masonry chimney. The liner is double-walled and wrapped with insulation). We got out 1/2 a mason jar of the powdery flakes. My main concern is the top of the chimney, the cap area, appears to have the shiney creosote on it, so I need to figure that out. I am burning as hot as I can, so I'm not sure what to do about what is forming up there. Any tips?
I really, really, REALLY love the stove/insert and am SO HAPPY we did it. It is like a miracle to me. LOL!
I know, I know, I need pictures, and I will get some someday, but the install is more functional than fashionable, and I'm a little afraid of the criticism.
Anyway, we've been burning for almost a month now, and I am in love. LOL! We've had a VERY mild stretch of weather in the Rochester, NY, area, but that is coming to an end. There are some days we had one fire, others we had none, and others we had 2. We are just now entering what I think will be more constant burning.
I've followed as much of the advice from you guys here as I could. I work to burn as hot as is safe. I work to not have smoke or smouldering. I'm learning a lot, and I'm learning quickly. Our wood is not the best, but I can now start a fire in a cold stove and get it up to 300* in about 40 minutes. Once I get it to 300, it is quite easy to get it to 500-670 and keep it there. I try to maintain a temp right around there, though if the house is cold, I like to get it up to 700* or so. I had my first experience yesterday of what I think was over-firing. It was about 810,and some of the rods inside started to glow. I shut the damper as completely as the stove allows (I usually keep the damper about 1/2-3/4 closed), and the temp moderated quite quickly, and the glowing stopped. It was a good lesson for me.
We have a Lopi Revere insert, but it is almost functioning as a hearth stove b/c of the size of our hearth area. We do not yet have the blower. We'll probably get it next year. But even without the blower, the room with the stove is 75* on average. It is a very open floor plan for the living area of the house (we haven't figured out how to get the heat around the L-shaped hallway to the bedrooms yet). The temps farthest from the stove range from 64-69, depending on outside temps, how long we've had the fans running, etc.
I'm looking forward to seeing how everything works once the cold really settles in. I'm also curious how much wood we'll use. We have 10fc. Planning to buy more in the spring and get a season ahead, sooner rather than later.
We do have some creosote concerns. We did our first chimney sweep last weekend (We have a 6" liner in an internal masonry chimney. The liner is double-walled and wrapped with insulation). We got out 1/2 a mason jar of the powdery flakes. My main concern is the top of the chimney, the cap area, appears to have the shiney creosote on it, so I need to figure that out. I am burning as hot as I can, so I'm not sure what to do about what is forming up there. Any tips?
I really, really, REALLY love the stove/insert and am SO HAPPY we did it. It is like a miracle to me. LOL!
