Burn times and split size?

I am new to this forum and would like opinions on which is better for longer or hotter burns. Will big splits or large rounds 6-8 inches produce a longer or hotter fire then a stove stuffed with 3-5 inch splits?
In other words is it possible to get a comparable overnight burn by loading up the stove with small splits?
Thanks for any input.

I find that bigger splits or rounds make a bit of a difference in a longer burn time, but more importantly have a more moderating impact on the fire and temp spikes vs. stuffing a bunch of smaller sized wood into the firebox.

That said, the smaller wood tends to get things hotter faster and I can get things settled down quicker with the smaller wood before leaving the stove . . .

I like to use a mixture. Smaller splits=faster drying, faster burning. I am a believer in the top-down burn, so if I want a longer burn I put the big splits in the bottom, medium on top of that, then smaller splits topped by kindling and firestarters. Once the small stuff and reduced to ash, the big huggers are glowing nicely, and I will usually load more big guys in there for a longer burn. After they are nicely glowing, I turn the air back down ( I turned it up to full after reloading), and can get a nice extended burn.

Smaller splits would burn faster given the same amount of air going into the stove. It has more surface area to help it burn quicker. If you don't have a good bed of coals to start with, though, one large piece may not burn completely. If you have a stove with good air control it won't make a lot of difference either way.

Welcome to the forum Tim.

Most definitely you will get longer burns from larger pieces. However, depending upon the size of your firebox you may be best served with both sizes. For example, in our stove for overnight burns, I like to put a large split or even a decent sized round in the bottom rear of the firebox. The rest is filled with medium sized splits or maybe one more large and then just fill in with the small to medium splits. Big thing is to get lots of wood in there but that bottom rear is the key to our stove holding night fires.

It looks like you are burning a Defiant. The key to getting a good long burn with the Defiant is to have a big bed of coals for your reload. If you let it burn down too low your reload will not burn as long. I have found that the big coal bed can add up to six hours to the burn cycle and you are able to engage the cat sooner and keep the stove at a lower temperature, if needed.

On a small bed of coals and a full load, you will get 8-ish hours and a reloading temp of about 250 in the morning.

With a big bed of coals, you can get 14 hours on a full load.

The same applies to the Encore.

You know what grandpa always said, "flat side down"... produces longer lasting burn.

Tim, all good advise here, but experiment. Different setups like different things. What works for one might not work best for you.

Thanks everyone for your input. My stove is a Defiant non cat. My Dad has a Vigilant over 30 years old but he won't buy a new stove even though he could use a larger one. We kind of disagree on split size and size of rounds we split. He is 78 but still will push the lever on the splitter. He laughs at me for some of the smaller logs I lay on the splitter. What are your splitting that for he says. I say so its dries out.We have about 5-6 cords of wood and I am trying to cut only very dead trees for now. I have some oak I plan on cutting in the fall but that will have to lay around a few years before burning.

Go easy on ole dad, he's been doing it successfully for a long time probably and it is hard to argue with that.

I find that big splits or rounds (either one will work, but I split most everything so I dont have a lot of rounds) will create hot coals that last longer than the coals produced by smaller splits. Smaller splits give a hotter fire. I can't get both hotter and longer-lasting at the same time.

This year I burned mostly smallish stuff, most of the "big" pieces were 3x4 or 4x4. Now am a lazy splitter and split bigger. Bigger rounds I try to make into squares/rectangles in the 4x6-6x6 range, 8-12 inch rounds I'll quarter and rounds in the 6 inch range or smaller I'll leave alone.(6" oak rounds I'll usually half)

I don't find it makes a bigger difference in burn times since the BK stove burns pretty low but it sure saves me time when splitting.

TIM, I have to give your dad a lot of credit for sticking with burning. A lot of folks his age would hang up the maul for the thermostat switch.

Yea.I just hope I can be in that good of shape if I live that long.

The Vigilant is a different monster, and big splits help slow down the burn on a Vigilant. Which is important on that stove to help increase burn times as the Vigilant has a shorter burn time than the Defiant by 2-8 hours depending upon the burn from both stoves.

If your father needs more heat, but he is set in his ways, get him to look at the old Pre-EPA Defiant. It works and runs just like the Vigilant. Both stoves were made in the same time period. It will offer more heat and he won't have to relearn how to burn. Seriously, if he needs more heat you can find an old Defiant on craigslist in very good condition for $400-$800.