Hot bed of coals is a must with my insert

[tinman1]

I tried a cold start up with no coals , my build was 3 bigger splits on bottom ,3 medium on that , 1" pine splits , then kindling & then news paper with wide open damper (yes seasoned splits)
Well after running & running & running it just never got above 450-525 degrees., house temps just never started to climb , So after being frustrated , I decided to let that stuff become my hot coals, did a reload of 5 medium size splits , wide open damper for like 15-20 minutes and then VAVOOM , it climbed & climbed to 700 degrees , the fan kicked on & that's when I decided to start to close down the damper to 1/2 way ! Do you think waiting for the fan to come on automatically is a good cue to start the closing of the damper phase ?

 

[lopiliberty]

Do you think waiting for the fan to come on automatically is a good cue to start the closing of the damper phase ?

Not for me. If I waited for the fan to come on(which by the way I rarely use) I would have both thermometers pegged and/or a red stove and flue pipe.

 

[Retreadsme]

Not knowing what insert you have it's hard to say anything about it, but with my Regency I3100 the auto fan comes on long before the box heats up to 700 degrees. I do tend to leave the air open until the fan turns on automatically IF it is a cold startup. I've tried doing a top-down start and have not been a big fan of it. I also keep newspapers out of my insert and use pine cones boiled in candle wax as fire starters. Usually two do the job fine.