First Burn of the Season

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Kenster

Minister of Fire
Jan 10, 2010
1,705
Texas- West of Houston
Finally got cold enough here in Texas last night to have a little fire. VC Vigilant 1977. Freshly cleaned from top to bottom including every orifice of the stove.
First time to use the Top Down burn method. Three large splits of 14 % MC pignut Hickory on the bottom. Several smaller splits of 18% water oak. A handful of cedar sticks that I make from fence posts. About 8 eight knots of newspaper on top.
One Match service! It didn't take long to have a fully engulfed firebox and a surface temp of 600%. I closed it up but kept it in vertical burn for a while with the thermostat flap about half open and the secondary peephole cover also about half open. At bedtime, the large hickory splits were red hot and coaling with small flames. I switched to horizontal burn, closed the thermostat a wee bit more and went to bed. I did not add any more wood. The heat pump thermostat across the large room was showing 75 degrees. (We have rarely ever used the two heat pumps in the house in the four winters we've been here.) This stove is in a very large (30 ft x 60 ft) full cathedral ceiling room opening up to two large lofts upstairs on either side. So, it's heating a large open area. One ceiling fan helps circulate the warm air. This wood stove is all we use to heat our 4000 Sq foot house. The house is very air tight with Anderson windows. The outer rooms - two bedrooms, kitchen/dining room, and a very large sun room will be slightly cooler, maybe mid 60s, which is just fine with us.

This morning there was nothing but warm ash, as I expected, but I quickly rebuilt and lit a fire and have been nursing it along during the day, adding another quarter round split of hickory every couple of hours or so. Stove top is staying around 450. I plan to get a really good fire going tonight and will pack the firebox to the gills for the overnight burn. I'll mix large splits of hickory and large splits of water oak. We'll see how that works.

Ken in Bellville, Texas
 
Nice going Ken. That should work out nicely for you.
 
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