Keeping glass clean tricks?

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GeeWizMan

GeeWizMan

Member
Nov 29, 2006
103
Suburbs west of Detroit
It has been a long time since I visited here but we are still keeping nice and warm with our wood stoves. We started the stoves up a little earlier this year than most years due to the October cold snap but that won't be a problem because we have 3 to 4 years worth of wood stacked outside. My wife asked me to clean the glass on the stove front a week ago which I did but I noticed that it has started to get dirty again already. I keep wood away from the glass and I make sure that air can flow down the glass from inside the stove.

What do you "Pros" do to keep your glass looking clean?
 
Wet paper towel is usually enough when the glass is warm, but not hot. Toward the end of season a small white hazy spot usually forms on the glass and won't come off. Diluted CLR works on that.
 
It seems you're burning seasoned wood. Good. I'm a clean glass fanatic. My wife thinks I'm nuts of course.
But.... I clean my glass every time it's cooled down enough. A moist paper towel or damp rumpled up newspaper
Dip in stove and get a little ash on paper. Lightly rub the glass, it will be hazy, rub with dry cloth and it sparkles.
Takes maybe two minutes.
 
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Hotter makes it stay cleaner longer, but a week isn't that bad, in my opinion. I usually clean it when I remove the ashes.
 
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The only way to really keep it clean is to not have fire in it.:mad:
Barring that, I've used the damp newspaper dipped in ash trick, and the Rutland glass cleaner. I bought an 8 ounce bottle over 2 years ago, and still have some left.
That stuff works well. Put some on a clean rag, wipe it on the crud on the glass, then polish with another clean rag or paper towel.
Best to do when the stove has mostly cooled.
I'll sometimes open the door when there are still coals, to let the glass cool before doing the cleaning.
Since I made a change in the way the air wash comes in the stove, the glass stays pretty clean.
Stove burns a bit better also.
 
Try burning hotter shorter fires in the shoulder season. Let the fire go out if the room is warm enough.
 
PapaDave said:
The only way to really keep it clean is to not have fire in it.:mad:
Click to expand...
LOL
So far that trick has been working well for me. Have not made a fire yet this season although tonight may be the night.

Small fires in the shoulder season can be a challenge. Short hot fires or keep a window open to let some heat out. I've chosen to heat with gas until it gets cold enough.

I use the paper towel dipped in ashes trick to clean the glass and it works pretty well. I do however also have a glass cleaner made specifically for gas fireplaces. It not only takes off that bit of haze, but it also coats the glass with some sort of high-tech polish that then helps to keep it clean longer. It goes on like car wax and is slicker'n catshit on a linoleum floor.
 
I've noticed that I get more darkening when I try to burn too low on warmer days. A small, hot fire in the morning works well for me when it's cold, but the house is well insulated and holds the heat. "Small, hot" may not work as well if the house can't maintain the warmth long (unless you do a few a day I suppose).

I just got some of that Rutland cleaner and it does work. But dipping a damp cloth in ash works quite well too. I got worried about the possibility of picking up a hard particle and causing a scratch, though.

LLigetfa said:
I do however also have a glass cleaner made specifically for gas fireplaces. It not only takes off that bit of haze, but it also coats the glass with some sort of high-tech polish that then helps to keep it clean longer. It goes on like car wax and is slicker'n catshit on a linoleum floor.
Click to expand...
That sounds a lot like the Rutland's. It has silicone in it that is "supposed" to keep it clean longer, but I haven't really seen that.
 
Sprinter said:
I've noticed that I get more darkening when I try to burn too low on warmer days.
Click to expand...
Yep. It hasn't been real cold so I've been burning long and low. I'm firing up a load right now, after going fifteen hours on the last load. Plus I've been burning up some chunks and uglies that may not be super dry. With totally dry wood, my glass might stay a little cleaner on a low, slow load but I don't really know. It's not really gunked up all that bad.
I haven't tried the short, hot approach but I don't think my house would hold the heat real long. Maybe when I finish a bit more weatherizing. Seems like I would be burning up more wood with that approach, though.
 
Use the cleaner made for ceramic glass cooktops (basically the same material as on glass wood stove doors).
 
Rutland's stove glass polish is pretty good and will last forever.
 
GeeWizMan said:
It has been a long time since I visited here but we are still keeping nice and warm with our wood stoves. We started the stoves up a little earlier this year than most years due to the October cold snap but that won't be a problem because we have 3 to 4 years worth of wood stacked outside. My wife asked me to clean the glass on the stove front a week ago which I did but I noticed that it has started to get dirty again already. I keep wood away from the glass and I make sure that air can flow down the glass from inside the stove.

What do you "Pros" do to keep your glass looking clean?
Click to expand...

Burn good dry wood. End of problem. We do get some light haze from fly ash that occasionally needs a bit of cleaning; maybe 2 or 3 times per winter.
 
I no longer need to clean the glass nearly as often because of what Dennis mentioned.
Dry wood.....makes all the difference.
Gets a little dirty in the bottom corners, but not much more.
Probably why the Rutland cleaner has lasted so long.
I used the paper/ash trick today.
 
PapaDave said:
I no longer need to clean the glass nearly as often because of what Dennis mentioned.
Dry wood.....makes all the difference.
Gets a little dirty in the bottom corners, but not much more.
Probably why the Rutland cleaner has lasted so long.
I used the paper/ash trick today.
Click to expand...
My experience exactly. Last year my wood was pretty marginal and I got a lot more darkening than I do so far this year, now that my wood is better.
 
Woodstock Stove Company recommends 0000 steel wool on their ceramic glass. I tried it once and it works very well. So far burning 24/7 and keeping the stove hot is keeping the glass clean.
 
Ours get black no matter what, dry wood, wet wood, hot fire, cold fire... I don't think our stove has an airwash. We keep a razor blade scraper with the fireplace tools and scrape the soot off when we start a fire or on a reload if the windows are sooty.
 
For 14 years I ran a BK non-cat without a glass door..wonder how I did that..lol.
This cat BK almost makes me want to go back to a steel door!
Can't see much anyways and it would end the cleaning chore..lol.
 
Dustin92 said:
Ours get black no matter what, dry wood, wet wood, hot fire, cold fire... I don't think our stove has an airwash. We keep a razor blade scraper with the fireplace tools and scrape the soot off when we start a fire or on a reload if the windows are sooty.
Click to expand...
What kind of stove? Are you certain of the moisture content of the wood? I almost asked if it was a BK until HotCoals brought it up...
 
Looks like a cat by-pass lever on the right side of his stove?
Not a BK though.
Might be a older Englander?
 
Ding ding ding ding! It is an Englander 28-JC from 1990. Yes, that is the bypass damper on the side. For some reason the glass gets sooty so fast, it even does it with scrap 2x4's or pallet wood. I wouldn't bother cleaning it, but then there's no way to see how well the fire is burning.
 
Dustin92 said:
Ding ding ding ding! It is an Englander 28-JC from 1990. Yes, that is the bypass damper on the side. For some reason the glass gets sooty so fast, it even does it with scrap 2x4's or pallet wood. I wouldn't bother cleaning it, but then there's no way to see how well the fire is burning.
Click to expand...
LOL..i have the same deal with the glass!
I could run the stove though with just the two temp gauges I have..did it on my old stove for years with a solid door.

So when do i get my chicken dinner?
 
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