What's your experience using the spark screen?

[wahoowad]

Not terribly cold tonight so figured I'd try something new. I took my Jotul F3CB door off and put the spark screen on after 10+ years of never trying it. The ambiance of the crackling fire is nice and the cherry logs are smelling great.

So why don't more people do this? I'm assuming the stove will burn cooler without the air velocity running the fire faster.

 

[bholler]

So why don't more people do this?

Because it wastes massive amounts of heat.

 

[Highbeam]

So why don't more people do this?

Also prohibited by most manufacturers.

I really enjoy doing it though and have spent a lot of time in front of the open stove door.

 

[TreeGoomba]

Good spot to keep those keys....

 

[firefighterjake]

I like the ambiance of a woodstove . . . but value the heat more . . . hence, no spark screen.

I am a bit curious as to how you could smell the cherry wood burning . . . I would think with a good draft you wouldn't be able to smell it unless there was some smoke penetration into the room.

 

[Highbeam]

Good spot to keep those keys....

Got really exciting when I dropped them in my pocket!

I like the wide open view of the open door fire, the sounds, the light, the direct radiation of heat. It's more like an outdoor campfire. I would see no reason to leave the door open if I wasn't sitting there right in front of it though.

Oh and my floor is concrete so no risk of burns. When the fire pops it often shoots embers and other hot junk right at me. I've had them pop down the neck of my shirt!

 

[Ashful]

I like the ambiance of a woodstove . . . but value the heat more . . . hence, no spark screen.

I am a bit curious as to how you could smell the cherry wood burning . . . I would think with a good draft you wouldn't be able to smell it unless there was some smoke penetration into the room.

Ditto on the ambiance. The smell can come into the house thru the massive amounts of make-up air required for open door burning.

 

[jetsam]

People don't do it because it creates a 6" wind tunnel from your living room to outside air.

Might be nice when it's 60°+ outside, but when it's cold out, that is almost as bad as having a fireplace.

 

[Dobish]

Also prohibited by most manufacturers.

I really enjoy doing it though and have spent a lot of time in front of the open stove door.

keeping the keys there is a good way to make sure you aren't drinking and driving...

 

[electrathon]

I wish I could open my front door. With my old Blaze King Princess slammer I could open the door on the stove when my son and I were living room camping and cook hot dogs. With My Hearthstone I can open the side door no problem but the front door will flood the house with smoke and ash very fast.

 

[bholler]

the front door will flood the house with smoke and ash very fast.

Then you have a pretty bad draft problem. You should be able to open that front door and have no smell at all. Yes you would have ash for sure if you never use it but if you did use it shouldn't be a problem.

 

[xman23]

I got that screen. But never tried it.

 

[electrathon]

Then you have a pretty bad draft problem. You should be able to open that front door and have no smell at all. Yes you would have ash for sure if you never use it but if you did use it shouldn't be a problem.

Possibly. My chimney is only about 23' tall. When I bought my stove I wanted one that was different model that did not have a side door. The store owner told me he would only sell them if the customer insisted because they would spill smoke out the front when opened. He opened the demo stove in his store and smoke spilled out. Opened the side door and it did not spill, just like my stove does. I can't imagine more draft though, I am already burning 3-4 cords of wood and can't heat the house when it drops into the 30's. The ash trouble is due to the shape of the front wall of the stove. There is a lip about 3" wide at the bottom of the door. If you put more than one or two pieces of wood in when reloading the ash will drop onto the lip and it falls out when you open the door to refill a couple hours later. It is used daily because my wife can't load it through the side door, so she fills it from the front.

 

[bholler]

I can't imagine more draft though, I am already burning 3-4 cords of wood and can't heat the house when it drops into the 30's.

What does that have to do with draft?

I have plenty of customers with heritages that use the front doors with no problems Is the smoke path restricted by the coil you put in there? That could be an issue to.

 

[electrathon]

What does that have to do with draft?

I have plenty of customers with heritages that use the front doors with no problems Is the smoke path restricted by the coil you put in there? That could be an issue to.

What it has to do with the draft is I have been told a number of times that the reason I get so little heat output and burn up stove full of wood so fast is because I have excessive draft.

As I have said so many times before. I used the stove for two years before I added the hydroponic coil. There was no determinable difference in the stove operation after the coil was added.

 

[Destructor]

Some older stoves came with screens, my father’s Jodul F100 didn’t. I burn a lot of cherry in my masonry fireplace but the only way I can smell it is when I go outside. When I’m burning wood that doesn’t spark, which wouldn’t be cherry, I leave the screen open. A mesh screen blocks a surprising amount of radiant heat.

 

[begreen]

I used it once on the F3CB for the novelty of it. That wore off quickly. If I am burning wood, clean heat is the first priority.

 

[peakbagger]

I expect screens are an extremely high markup accessory that dealers make a bundle on. The stove been haggled down and the buyer is happy so now slip in a screen on the bill or some mitten dryers and everyone is happy