Can you burn wood standing vertically

[begreen]

Wow, very impressive Scott. Well done! What's your day job?

If you like a good looking, quality stove and decide to go for a modern heater, then a soapstone stove would be a good compliment to your craftsmanship.

 

[fossil]

Very nice shop. Absolutely beautiful work. Rick

 

[Backwoods Savage]

When I was a young lad, all the old heaters burned their wood vertically. We didn't know any different and just did it. However, we usually left the splits much larger. Too small and the wood burns too fast.

Beautiful stove for sure.

 

[ScottF]

Mechanical engineer by schooling but I run and manage a commercial construction management company. At work 8 to 6, dinner and kids 6 to 7 and in the workshop from 7 to 11 every day. Im the type that needs to be going all the time.

Good point about leaving the splits larger. I will keep that in mind.
Scott

 

[ScottF]

Great idea Glowball, Problem I have though is that the stovepipe comes directly out the back of the stove and enters the wall within 12 inches or so. I called them and they said it has to mount on a vertical pipe in order to work . You cannot mount it on a horizontal pipe therefore it won't work for me. It is a great idea though. We thought we were being smart when we designed the fluepipe and thimble so you cant see it behind the stove. I guess I shot myself in the foot.
Scott

 

[n6crv]

I had to try and see if there was any difference in burning. I tried it both standing up and laying down and it still burnt the same. I did get tired faster standing up.
Don

 

[ScottF]

Thanks Glowball, Will definately do the damper. Already bought it. I have been burning for 10 years in the fireplace anyhow. I like to haul, cut split. This should be at least as efficient anyhow if not more.

 

[Todd]

Years ago, I burned a Montgomery Wards stove that was kind a like a pot belly and I believe it was originally a coal burner. When I first tried burning wood the coals and ashes just fell through the bottom grate into an ash dump. I had a tough time holding a fire due to lack of a good ash and coal bed. I cut a piece of 1/4" thick steel to fit over the grates and furnace cemented the gaps around the sides. This helped keep the coals in the fire and cut off most of the excess air that came up through the ash dump door. To remove the ash I just used a small shovel ever few days. I also installed a pipe damper. This setup gave me more control and if I was luck would have some coals buried in the ash when I got up in the morning.

 

[begreen]

Typically on the old timers it was mica I believe, aka isenglass.

 

[ScottF]

yes It actually has 4 of these windows. It is mica. I dont know what it is made of but it seems like a thin plastic material that is transarent. seems like it would melt. It was to see the fire and provide light.

Todd a great idea. How much wood did you go through in a season. They gave me a metal plate to go over the coal grates if you burn wood, It doesnt fit real tight and has slots in it.

 

[begreen]

Mica is what it is made of. Mica is a mineral.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mica

 

[ScottF]

Oopps stupid me, What they put in my stove is supposed to be Mica. It sure behaves like thin plastic. It is very flexible. You would guess that a mineral would seem rigid.

 

[savageactor7]

^We use to call it isinglass....had it in our Franklin stove.

 

[Todd]

yes It actually has 4 of these windows. It is mica. I dont know what it is made of but it seems like a thin plastic material that is transarent. seems like it would melt. It was to see the fire and provide light.

Todd a great idea. How much wood did you go through in a season. They gave me a metal plate to go over the coal grates if you burn wood, It doesnt fit real tight and has slots in it.

That was my first experience with a wood stove. I lived in that house (Houghton MI) for 2 years and ran out of wood both winters. I'd say I put 4 cord through that stove each year and probably needed 5-6.

Does your stove have any kind of air inlets? I'd try the grates they gave you first and see how it works. If it burns too fast then maybe try and fill in those slots or try and tighten her up some.

 

[Beanscoot]

Well maybe the restorers used clear styrene instead of the proper mica. Better check it out now! You can readily order mica, I've seen it carried by sellers on the internet.

 

[ScottF]

Is clear styrene bad? Can it be used?

Also Todd. The stove has 2 dampers that feed air from below the grates and are there for coal burning . The coal must get all of its air from below the grate. Then it also has one on the front door. I assume this one is for wood.

Question. does wood burning require air from below like the coal does? or can I seal off the coal grate from below with a steel plate like you describe and use the air intake on the front door only? This probably would seal off some areas of the stove that could leak air.

I understand this stove is a dinosaur in efficiency. It is just so spectacular in looks and perfectly fits the decor of our house which we worked so hard on creating that I guess we are willing to take the trade off. We will probably burn much more wood and have to feed it more often. I just want to make it work the best we can and go from there.

 

[Todd]

No, wood doesn't require air from below like coal. It will burn like a blast furnace with all that air from below. Seal it off and use the other air control.

 

[begreen]

styrene is plastic. Someone is pulling your leg. No one would use it on a woodstove. Mica/isenglass would be period authentic. Though thin and somewhat brittle it's quite heat proof.

PS: If you decide later on to switch to a new stove, soapstone stoves have a real classic look to them.

 

[billb3]

When I was a wee lad, the parental units had a fireplace in the living room and a for a while, a wood/coal stove in the basement. Burned wood upright. Top loader.
All we had was pine and cedar. I kept that little brown stove going all night (never went overnite). My job. Everyone else would give up. Had to keep your eye on the clock and had to manipulate splits in to get them to fit. More than once a pine split would end up out in the snow because I would not give up trying to get it in. especially once it started burning.

 

[fossil]

styrene is plastic. Someone is pulling your leg. No one would use it on a woodstove. Mica/isenglass would be period authentic.

As Beanscoot alluded to, is it possible the stove was restored to be a non-functional decorative piece? Or was is restored to actually burn? It's certainly something that warrants verification prior to firing it up. Mica would, indeed, be the correct material, and it is available. Rick

 

[begreen]

Could take a propane torch to it and see if it melts.

 

[fossil]

Tap it with a ball peen hammer...if it cracks & breaks, it was mica. :ahhh: Rick

 

[ScottF]

I called the dealer and he said it is in fact Mica . Its funny though that if you poke it it will crinkle in and then pop back into place without breaking like a soda bottle. It does have some flexability. We were clear when we bought it we would be burning wood and coal. He set it up exactly for that. Funny he told us that these old stoves are very efficient heaters and he uses one to heat his shop and his house. We saw the one in his shop running. Now I am not that nieve and I know that technology has come a long way in the past 118 years, but lots of people we know are using stoves 20, 30 and 40 years old. I have been told by several experienced friends that we should get at least 4 hours of burn time just by making sure it is tight even though it doesnt have all the modern technology. I have a friend with an old drum stove that is 40 years old and his will burn through the night. Based on all this information I figured that the trade off of looks to efficiency is something I could live with. It seems the general consensus here is that it will just chew through the wood in no time so I am a little perplexed. I guess I will see when we use it.

 

[begreen]

It will take some patient experimentation, but I expect that you will eventually find a good burning practice for it. Keep the lower air controls closed and use the upper one on the door to regulate the air when burning wood. Start it up with small splits and kindling and work your way up to large splits. Watch the flue cap outside for smoke and try to keep it at a minimum. If the wood is well seasoned and dry it will heat, no doubt about that.

I do think you are correct to be skeptical about it's efficiency. It might be interesting to try it out with some coal. That's a completely different burning technique, but might be the most efficient for the stove.

 

[fossil]

I understand your motivation and am completely supportive of what you're doing. I love to see fine old things restored, both cosmetically and functionally. It will be interesting to hear about your actual burning experience with it. Rick