Cant think of a creative title (burning method question)

[ChoppingAccountant]

Background: I got my new stove this summer, see link.

Stove install thread

Looking for commentary / opinion on what I am doing right / wrong with my burns. All temps are flue temps off a [del]Rutland[/del] [corrected Condar]. Double walled pipe into a SS uninsulated liner, 18 feet.

I started out burning Jack pine that was split in April. Did not have good results and have come to the conclusion that the wet summer and partly shaded areas that I stacked in did [addition NOT] allow me to fully dry over the summer.

A friend has some 5-10?? year old c/s/s Jack pine that he no longer wanted and I took it off his hands. I have been using this in combo with some mixed hardwoods that I purchased and are varying degrees of seasoned, with most being well seasoned.

From a cold start, I have trouble getting the stove up past 500. Upon reload is where my real questions come in, with tonight being a prime example. I loaded up the mixed hardwoods on the raked coals, and included one pine split which caught within a minute. I was working on stuff near the stove so I was able to keep an eye on it this time, it went from 200 to 900 in about 5-8 minutes. I was cutting the air back during that time and had the blower maxed out after about 700. For those wondering, no part of the stove was glowing (I turned off all the lights to check, although in the past I have seen the secondary burn tubes glow).

After I turned the air down (about 10%) it stayed at 800 for over half an hour and is now around 600.

Any thoughts?

 

[firefighterjake]

Background: I got my new stove this summer, see link.

Stove install thread

Looking for commentary / opinion on what I am doing right / wrong with my burns. All temps are flue temps off a Rutland. Double walled pipe into a SS uninsulated liner, 18 feet. Hmmm . . . temps may not be spot on if you have a magnetic thermometer on a double wall pipe -- to get spot on temps you need a probe style thermometer . . . I'm guessing the Rutland may not be a probe thermometer . . . then again I have been wrong many times before.

I started out burning Jack pine that was split in April. Did not have good results and have come to the conclusion that the wet summer and partly shaded areas that I stacked in did allow me to fully dry over the summer. Some folks will say wood in their locale can season very quickly . . . or that certain species will season faster . . . but in reading a lot of other folks' experiences from a lot of different areas of the country I have to say that 9 times out of 10 most folks will say that the longer you have the wood seasoned the better off you are . . . there is a certain return of investment if you would by having wood that has been cut, split and stacked for at least a year vs. 6 months.

A friend has some 5-10?? year old c/s/s Jack pine that he no longer wanted and I took it off his hands. I have been using this in combo with some mixed hardwoods that I purchased and are varying degrees of seasoned, with most being well seasoned.

From a cold start, I have trouble getting the stove up past 500. Upon reload is where my real questions come in, with tonight being a prime example. I loaded up the mixed hardwoods on the raked coals, and included one pine split which caught within a minute. I was working on stuff near the stove so I was able to keep an eye on it this time, it went from 200 to 900 in about 5-8 minutes. I was cutting the air back during that time and had the blower maxed out after about 700. For those wondering, no part of the stove was glowing (I turned off all the lights to check, although in the past I have seen the secondary burn tubes glow).

After I turned the air down (about 10%) it stayed at 800 for over half an hour and is now around 600.

Any thoughts?

 

[Jags]

Jake - there is no way he is reading 800-900F temp from a surface mount on a double wall pipe. That has to be stove top temp.

Sounds to me that on the reload you need to start backing down the air after just a couple of minutes. Throw the splits in - full air - box full-o-flame, temps ~450 - Start backing her down NOW. I would go to 1/3 open for a min, then slam it down to your cruise air setting.

Give that a shot.

If it still sling shots too high - use 400F as your starting point.

 

[westside]

Sounds like the wood you got from your friend is well seasoned and starting up quick on reloads. Start cutting your air back sooner , 900 degrees is really high . On my set up i start cutting the air back at 400 stove top and regularly see 650-750 on start up and reloads when charring the wood and 550-650 cruising temps once the stove is settled in. Just keep experimenting until you figure out what works for you . Saftey first and happy burning.

 

[Backwoods Savage]

I'm a bit confused by the temperature reading if on the flue rather than the stove.

Also, if leaving the draft full open until those temperatures are reached, you are just sending good heat up the chimney. As soon as the wood is charred, start cutting back on the draft and the stove will heat up faster.

 

[Danno77]

I'm a bit confused by the temperature reading if on the flue rather than the stove.

Also, if leaving the draft full open until those temperatures are reached, you are just sending good heat up the chimney. As soon as the wood is charred, start cutting back on the draft and the stove will heat up faster.

I'm confused, too. Says all temps are flue temps from rutland, but then temps of 900??? you've got some major heat going up your chimney if that's on the outside of double wall chimney

 

[ChoppingAccountant]

Thanks for the replies, FFJake, I did misspeak earlier with regards to the thermometer, it is a Condar probe thermometer same as the link below.

Thermometer link

I appreciate the comments about cutting back the air earlier but when I do this, I seem to plateau around 400 or so and then cannot get it to go above that no mater what amount of air I give, then I get no secondaries.

I also made a correction to the original post about the wood quality.

Hope this helps clear things up.

Thanks.