Fireview performance issues

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wood1 said:
the wood is seasoned one year ...
That doesn't mean it's dry.
 
wood1 said:
the wood is seasoned one year i have it at 1 know for about a hour and still 425.

Was your wood covered really well for at least a couple months before you started burning? Last year I had trouble getting the Fireview up to temp with 1 year seasoned wood that was poorly covered and got wet under the bark. This year I made sure to cover it better and what a difference! Also, is your flue lined with a 6 inch SS liner all the way to the top? This stove (since it has a cat) needs a really good draft to make up for low stack temps.
 
Todd said:
How big are the splits and how many are in the fire box? Did you buy this wood or process it yourself? What does the fire look like at #1 after an hour?
the splits are small to medium i bought this wood, after about a hour the fire is going pretty well good flames so thats why i try to turn it down and thinking maybe the hot coals and smoke will really get that cat going, but that doesnt seem to work for me
 
fire_man said:
wood1 said:
the wood is seasoned one year i have it at 1 know for about a hour and still 425.

Was your wood covered really well for at least a couple months before you started burning? Last year I had trouble getting the Fireview up to temp with 1 year seasoned wood that was poorly covered and got wet under the bark. This year I made sure to cover it better and what a difference! Also, is your flue lined with a 6 inch SS liner all the way to the top? This stove (since it has a cat) needs a really good draft to make up for low stack temps.
i bought the wood cut to 16" and split its maple and oak i brought it inside my basement and stacked in there it has been in there for about two weeks and no i don't have a liner its a inside chimney that is a 6x11 rectangular clay lined chimney, i believe i have sufficient draft before i started it this season i took a match and follwed what woodstock said to check draft and it went towards the chimney. also i dont get puff back.
 
I'm willing to bet the wood isn't dry. Does it sizzle shortly after reload? Most firewood dealers don't sell wood that has been cut, split and stacked for at least 1 year. Many here have been in the same boat as you the first year and have to deal with what they got. If your wood is suspect you can compensate by loading the stove more loosely, not tightly packed, burning in the bypass mode a little longer and burn with a little more air after engaging. You might have to burn your stove between #1 and #2. You should also look into a reline for that 6x11 chimney for best results.
 
You are right Todd. But even if the wood doesn't sizzle, it still may be wet. Seems most folks go through this in their first year of burning wood. Once they get good dry wood (they know it is dry rather than depending on someone else's advise), they will then be surprised at how good that stove really is, no matter what type of stove they are using.

fwiw, occasionally we will find some unseasoned wood in our stacks even after 5 years or so! Why! I don't know but every once in a while we will get one that sizzles. Not a lot mind you, but it does anyway. Naturally at those times we wait longer before engaging the cat.
 
Todd said:
I'm willing to bet the wood isn't dry. Does it sizzle shortly after reload? Most firewood dealers don't sell wood that has been cut, split and stacked for at least 1 year. Many here have been in the same boat as you the first year and have to deal with what they got. If your wood is suspect you can compensate by loading the stove more loosely, not tightly packed, burning in the bypass mode a little longer and burn with a little more air after engaging. You might have to burn your stove between #1 and #2. You should also look into a reline for that 6x11 chimney for best results.
it sizzles a little but doesn't foam. how much would the liner help? the wood was in log length then cut and split, i don't believe he had it stacked.He said it was one year seasoned.. so i next time i will have to start to season my own wood or try to find someone who truly has "seasoned" wood.
thank you for the help
 
Yes, no matter what the wood sellers say, buy your wood at least a year ahead of time. It helps a lot.
 
wood1 said:
it sizzles a little but doesn't foam. how much would the liner help?

Okay, so your wood is def wet. You can still burn it, but you are going to have to compensate w/ more air. Now you see the difference in what people on this forum mean about 1 yr aged and what the wood guys selling wood mean by seasoned. That's just how it goes.

A 6" liner will help you get the most out of your stove as it will have less than half of the cross sectional area of your existing 6x11 flue.
 
thank you all for the help, i thought i had some good wood, but i know now it's not optimal wood, but will burn.
so i will start buying green or seasoned wood and stack it outside and hopefully that will get me ahead of the game for next year.
all this time i thought i was doing something wrong. again thank you all and hope you all had a good Christmas and have a happy new year. Update on issues.......... I have the air set at 1.5 and this thing is cruising its at 575 and slowly going up. Its heating nicely, know if only i could get to do this all the time. Maybe next year.. thanks guys
 
wood1 said:
thank you all for the help, i thought i had some good wood, but i know now it's not optimal wood, but will burn.
so i will start buying green or seasoned wood and stack it outside and hopefully that will get me ahead of the game for next year.
all this time i thought i was doing something wrong. again thank you all and hope you all had a good Christmas and have a happy new year. Update on issues.......... I have the air set at 1.5 and this thing is cruising its at 575 and slowly going up. Its heating nicely, know if only i could get to do this all the time. Maybe next year.. thanks guys

Also try splitting your semi-seasoned wood smaller - like 3" or 4" Max width. I know it's a pain, but maybe you could try it with one or two loads just to see if you can then run the stove at an air setting of 0.5 and get the higher cruising temps.
 
fire_man said:
wood1 said:
thank you all for the help, i thought i had some good wood, but i know now it's not optimal wood, but will burn.
so i will start buying green or seasoned wood and stack it outside and hopefully that will get me ahead of the game for next year.
all this time i thought i was doing something wrong. again thank you all and hope you all had a good Christmas and have a happy new year. Update on issues.......... I have the air set at 1.5 and this thing is cruising its at 575 and slowly going up. Its heating nicely, know if only i could get to do this all the time. Maybe next year.. thanks guys

Also try splitting your semi-seasoned wood smaller - like 3" or 4" Max width. I know it's a pain, but maybe you could try it with one or two loads just to see if you can then run the stove at an air setting of 0.5 and get the higher cruising temps.

Thanks i will try that, right know i am stacking a few pieces around the stove trying to "dry " them out a little. yesterday i got the stove up to then engaged the cat and then set the air to and let it sit there and in a hour it went up to 575 and was climbing, I had to leave so i am not sure it it got hotter? i am assuming it did. I will try splitting things down and let you know how it does. thanks for the help.. i have a question i go to work at 6:30 am and load it before that then get home at 6 or 7 then reload a few pieces and the again at 9 or maybe 10 if i can stay awake that long. with this schedule in your opinion is this going to realistically heat the house or is it just a waste of time? not to get off track or take over the thread.. not sure where else to post such a question?
 
wood1 said:
i have a question i go to work at 6:30 am and load it before that then get home at 6 or 7 then reload a few pieces and the again at 9 or maybe 10 if i can stay awake that long. with this schedule in your opinion is this going to realistically heat the house or is it just a waste of time? not to get off track or take over the thread.. not sure where else to post such a question?

I use to have a similar reload schedule. I'd fill her up as tight as I can before work and come home about 11-12 hours later, then I would do a hot burn with about 4 splits for 4-6 hours before fully loading it for the night. It worked out pretty good for me, but sometimes the house could be a little on the cool side when I got home from work and it would take a couple hours to get it back up to temp.
 
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