Milder climate - How to burn correctly?

[flyingpig]

I am relatively new to the wood burning and have got my first experience since earlier this year. We’ve moved to near Raleigh, NC last June, which is not terribly cold compare with lots of other folks on the north. And this milder climate makes me think that it may be a different way to keep the stove burning compare to the very cold climate.

I have a 2400 sq.ft. not so well insulated Colonial with a Lopi Declaration. As a typical Colonial, it’s not much of the open floor plan so the living room can get very hot when the stove runs at full blast. Other rooms on the first floor were around 69~70 which was very nice. I’m working on reinsulated/caulking the house now so it should be much warmer this winter. And the full throttle Lopi may turn to be a bit too hot for us!

I’ve learnt a lot from here that we should pack the stove full, run them until the end of cycle before feeding woods again. The heat cycle should be between 4-7 hours depends on the air control. But the room temperature different between the peak and toward the end of the cycle can be too much….too hot in the peak (80F) and too cold at the end (60F).

So I think I should consult with our Pyro engineer fellows here for any valuable suggestion. In case I’m home most of the time, will it be better that I feed the stove with smaller amount of wood, keep the shorter cycle but feed them more often?


Thanks in advance…….Som

 

[Backwoods Savage]

Welcome to the forum.

First, you do not necessarily have to fill the firebox every time you burn wood, especially in your climate. We live a bit north of you and we certainly do not fill our firebox every time. In fact, the only time we fill it completely is during the cold of winter and then at night only or if we happen to have to be away from the house a long time.

That said, you are right about the cycle. Best to burn the wood down before adding more. The reason for this is that if you don't, you will soon have a super big bed of coals and not much room for wood. Sadly, some folks finally end up shoveling some coals out rather than learning how to burn them down. That is a total waste of fuel.

Even if the house is not so open, you can really help the circulation of air with proper use of fans. However, the correct way seems totally backwards. Rather than trying to move the heat by blowing the heat towards the cooler rooms, reverse it and blow some cool air into the warmer room. You can do this by sitting a small fan on the floor in an open doorway or hallway and just running the fan on low speed. On a ceiling fan, blow the air up in the winter and down in the summer.

For most, including myself, this seems totally wrong. However, this old dog learned a new trick when it came to moving the air. I was amazed when we first tried it and still am, but it works so I'll continue to do it.

Good luck.

 

[Highbeam]

I live in a mild climate with a long long burn season. It helps to have a stone stove that can cruise for awhile but since you don't sound like you want to change stoves your best bet is to do what we do during the shoulder season. Burn small fires a few times a day. The insulation will help keep the temp swings to a minimum. Use smaller wood, don't fill the firebox full and just stop feeding it when you can't bear to be any hotter in the stove room. Also, learning to tolerate a bigger swing in room temp will be important. This isn't central heat and you will likely run up past 80 and down into the 60s before restarting a fire.

 

[Backwoods Savage]

I hate to disagree with Highbeam (but will anyway. lol), but I see no reason for a 20 degree temperature variance. It just does not have to be, at least it is not in our house.

 

[bluefrier]

Have u considered a catalytic stove? They are suppose to burn slow and low. I have also made my house tighter and now looking at some cat stoves as a possible replacement for my non cat.

 

[BrotherBart]

I am just a tad north of ya and I keep a good stock of Super Cedars and start one fire with three or four splits in the morning while the coffee is cooking and then at noon I gauge whether to let it just go out and use the residual heat in the stove or put a couple of splits in to give it a kick. Then around sun down I start it up with what I have learned is just enough to keep the place warm and leave me with a coal bed at ten o'clock when I load it up for the night.

Thinking you have to keep a stove burning around the clock will make you crazy, overheated and use a hell of a lot of wood. When it gets to January and February I load it three times a day and let'er get it done around the clock.

 

[flyingpig]

Thank you for a lot of valuable information. We'll probably keep the Declaration and since we've just got it this year. We bought it when I didn't have enough knowledge and still thought that non-cat is better. I know I need some time to learn & find the way to operate it right, which I can't do it now in 98 degree outside!! Can't wait for winter to come this year!!

Cheers........Som

 

[begreen]

In the shoulder seasons, don't pack the stove to the gills. 3 splits may be all you need to be comfortable. And don't worry if the stove goes out and you need to restart. That is normal fall/winter burning for us. 3-4 split fire in the morning and maybe one in the evening until the temps start approaching 40 °F. Full loads don't happen until it gets in the 30's or lower.

 

[bokehman]

I think the key is the size of the wood. You want to get the stove to temp quickly and shut the damper. Small wood is best if you are not packing the stove because it allows you to run the stove in the zone, but for a very short time. Also keep the stove with lots of ash in it as this allows much quicker restarts from cold. It also allows you to bury your hot coals and they will remain red hot (with the ash insulating them) ready to light another fire up to 12 hours later.

 

[Chettt]

Just don't burn wood until the temperature outside is around freezing or below. Everything with wood stoves works much better when it is really cold.

 

[bokehman]

Just don't burn wood until the temperature outside is around freezing or below.

So how do you suggest keeping the house warm? Temperatures here rarely, if ever, drop below freezing. Are you saying that means we shouldn't have any heating? Even if it's 50ºF that still feels pretty cold if you've got no heating.

 

[Highbeam]

See Dennis, not everyone has a cat stove. One of the assumptions of this thread is that the OP has and will have a non-cat so multiple fires along with temperature swings are part of life when the weather is mild.

You could always put in a catalytic BK king to run on low for a steady thermostatically controlled 8400 btu output for 40 hours straight as well.

 

[BrowningBAR]

Just don't burn wood until the temperature outside is around freezing or below. Everything with wood stoves works much better when it is really cold.

Yeah, um, I like to burn before the temps hit freezing. Wearing a coat inside the house isn't fun.

 

[BrowningBAR]

When the temps are mild and not dead of winter cold, I just burn at a lower temp and shut the fans down (the fans are turned off primarily due to my house layout). During shoulder season the stoves will cruise at 300-400 degrees and warm the area just fine. During colder days the stoves will hang out in the 550-650 range and the fans will be on.

For the original poster I would recommend trying lower stove temps and trying a few fans to move some air around. Mild winter weather is great since you get longer burn times and use less wood. January/February makes it feel like I am loading the stoves every 5 minutes.

 

[begreen]

Just don't burn wood until the temperature outside is around freezing or below. Everything with wood stoves works much better when it is really cold.

Many of us start burning when it's 10-15 deg. above freezing. Usually for us it's around 45F, but if we are having a damp cold fall, I might light it up a little earlier just to take the chill out. If wood is the sole source of heat, probably even warmer.

If the stove doesn't burn well until it gets below freezing, it sounds like the draft might be a little weak. It does take a good drafting flue system to burn well when it's warmer.

 

[Slow1]

One thing I'm surprised nobody as mentioned yet is to be sure your wood is good and dry too. Yeah, sounds like a broken record if you have read a lot of the posts but bear with me here.

If you are running a non-cat stove and looking to keep the room temp steady with a lower heat demand as a whole then you need to basically burn shorter duration fires. The ideal fire for you might be to light up quickly, burn hot so that it minimizes smoke, heats up the chimney and stove quickly and achieve secondary burns in short order. Then you want it to fully consume the fuel without leaving any pieces behind smoking away for hours. If anything it would be nice to have your coals sitting there keeping the system warm and just radiating some heat to the stove and the room for a while.

If your wood is good and dry you will be able to achieve this fairly easy. However the more moisture there is in the wood the harder this is going to become. If you were to try and build small 3 split fire (with a bit of kindling) and two of those splits are really bad (sizzlers) then you are likely to end up with a slow starting fire that doesn't get up to clean burning temps and leaves a smoldering mess. Most likely your wood isn't nearly that bad (few folks have it that tough), but even a little bit of excess moisture can make a big difference - it seems to be magnified in a cold stove.

Another thing to consider is to optimize your startup procedure. Since you are likely to have more cold or near cold starts than those of us who keep our stoves burning 24/7 you should try to become a master of clean fire starting. There are many discussions on this topic. It really is an individual preference - some really like the top-down method others go with a more traditional bottom up. I have taken to a hybrid solution using super cedars. You will find what works best for you but the objective is to get a clean (relatively smoke free) hot fire going as quickly as possible. Again - having really dry wood here is so important. I found that with very dry wood I can take medium sized splits (4" diameter) and less than 1/4 of a super cedar and get a good fire going in a very short period of time with minimal kindling and not much smoke to speak of.

You will hear it over and over again - but until you experience it for yourself you won't really understand the difference between dry wood and REALLY dry wood. I wish I could say my entire supply was in the "REALLY dry" category - I'm working on it the best I can, but it will likely be a few years before I hit that nirvana. Getting a few years ahead on supply seems to be the only economical way to get there - and it takes time (and space!).

 

[flyingpig]

Dry wood. - Yup, that was my problem last season. We've got a colder than usual winter by the time I've got stove and found out that there are no much seasoned fire wood available anymore. So I had a hard time creating a clean burn. This year I started buying an advertised "seasoned firewood" (which may not be that dry) since May and now they are sitting on the rack with only top cover. So I may not have a very dry wood this winter, but at least I hope it will be better than the last one.


Cheers......Som

 

[Chettt]

Not burning till its actually cold: your air wash system will really work, the stove heat will move throughout the house much better, it will light easier without smoke backing up into your house, increased draft will make your secondaries produce much more heat and less smoke for your neighbors, if your wood is not free one portable electric heater and proper attic insulation will be cheaper.

I love wood heat but they weren't designed for 65 degree days and 50 degree nights.

 

[laynes69]

I'll cut some stuff 3"and under for the shoulder seasons. It drys quickly and creates a hot fire. Also we burn soft woods like cottonwood which will burn up fast, but make good heat. Sometimes I will build a top down fire the night before and not light it. When I wake up in the morning and its a little chilly I will light it and make coffee. The house holds heat okay so I will let the fire burn out when its mild out.

 

[BrowningBAR]

Not burning till its actually cold: your air wash system will really work, the stove heat will move throughout the house much better, it will light easier without smoke backing up into your house, increased draft will make your secondaries produce much more heat and less smoke for your neighbors, if your wood is not free one portable electric heater and proper attic insulation will be cheaper.

I love wood heat but they weren't designed for 65 degree days and 50 degree nights.

I don't see anywhere in this thread where someone stated that was what they were doing.

 

[madrone]

If I waited until below freezing, I'd burn twice a year. I usually don't burn until it's consistently below 50, and I run small, hot loads that I often let go out. It works fine. As someone else stated, it's a perfect use for softer woods. I like the pine for that reason. Do what works best for your location.

 

[Todd]

You can always open a window if it gets too hot and you don't feel like starting and restarting fires all day. I know there are mornings when I know I only need a little heat to take the chill off but I also know later on in the evening I'm going to need more heat so it's either restart from scratch or just fill her up, damper down, crack open a window to moderate the heat some and then come later in the evening I can reload on top of a good bed of coals. Wood heat can be an art at times, there are many different ways to get it done and it's a matter of trial and error to find what works best for you.

 

[BrotherBart]

If it gets under seventy in this house something is going to get burned. I don't care what the temp is outside. I don't live out there.

 

[flyingpig]

BrotherBart - you said the same think like my wife. We used to live in FL for 9 years and she got used to it. Anything below 70 is "cold" for her. On the other hand, I had been flying up north almost weekly so I'd rather be in shorts & T-shirt at 55 degree!!

Cheers.....Som

 

[BrowningBAR]

BrotherBart - you said the same think like my wife. We used to live in FL for 9 years and she got used to it. Anything below 70 is "cold" for her. On the other hand, I had been flying up north almost weekly so I'd rather be in shorts & T-shirt at 55 degree!!

Cheers.....Som

It is always better dealing with a house that gets a little too warm in the winter than too cold. Sitting in a house that is 50 degrees is not fun.