Conditions for Smoke

[Eric Johnson]

I drive by probably a dozen different wood-burning setups on my way to work. Well, probably more than that, but there are around a dozen that I notice. They range from OWBs to indoor wood stoves. There may be a gasifier or two on my route, but I wouldn't notice them because they make no smoke. Anyway, I noticed that on some mornings (like this one) everybody puts out a lot more smoke than at other times.

I'm wondering if anyone knows why that would be, and what atmospheric conditions would tend to produce more smoke than others. And I'm not talking about colder weather. This morning it was in the mid-20s, which is pretty typical around here this time of year.

 

[the_guad]

That, or the Starbucks effect. People haven't had any coffee yet so they're just throwing a match on their wood and letting it smoke until a fire starts.

 

[SlyFerret]

That's a good question.

How can you tell the difference between smoke and moisture condensation?

-SF

 

[woodconvert]

"How can you tell the difference between smoke and moisture condensation?"

The smoke lingers where the moisture changes state quickly and goes back into the air.

Perhaps you happen to be driving in at a time where people are stoking?.

 

[BrotherBart]

Hangovers?

 

[Mike Wilson]

Where's WXman when we need him... Paging WXman... WXman to the Hearth Room...

I think a high relative humidity (small difference between the temperature and dew point) and a low temperature in general will lead to more smoke/smoky steam being visible. I imagine most people are loading up their stoves in the morning, and part of that includes heating up wood with a little humidity in it, combined with a low overall fire temperature. Add that to the fact that the humidity in the wood lowers the firebox temperature, and you wind up with a little feedback loop for a short while.

-- Mike

 

[Eric Johnson]

I think it's the high relative humidity. I make this trip three days a week, and I suspect the ratio of sleeping in/hangovers/Starbucks daze, etc. is not much different today than it normally would be. We're not talking about wealthy people in these parts. Most (like me) have to get up and go to work the day after Christmas.

But those are all good answers, and I appreciate them.

 

[tradergordo]

Short term meteorological conditions such as air temperature, humidity, and atmospheric pressure have been shown to influence pollution rates. Did you have a low pressure system at the time?