Why is the first firing of the year always so nerve racking?

[ikessky]

I tried to tell myself that this year would be different. I knew I had mortared in around the t-snout. I knew I had put new furnace cement in and around the joints of the stove pipe. I knew that the perlite I added around the liner might make some different sounds. Yet still, there I sat as the furnace got up to temp. And even though I had told myself that there would be some different noises and smells during the first firing this year, I still looked around for an hour every time I heard a tick or a tink or smelled a different smell.

Anyone else share in my plight or any I a huge worry-wart/perfectionist???

 

[certified106]

HAHA I know what you mean. My family has been burning wood in the same brand wood stove for twenty+ years and Still the first week I have it up and burning I am checking on it and looking at the temp gauges every 10 minutes. It drives my wife nuts but it's the same routine every fall. Your not the only one, and like my dad always told me better safe than sorry. Happy burning! (once you get settled down that is )

 

[branchburner]

The smell is what gets me nervous on the first burn. I think something's not right, but it is probably just dust burning off.

 

[heatwise]

yep, sounds familiar. have all new pipe on the buck stove this year and tonight is the first time i dont smell the paint. first firing always makes me listen and watch the stove, monitoring it to make sure it's safe. pete

 

[pen]

That's the conscience of an alert individual who realizes the significance surrounding any occasion where you are "STARTING A LARGE FIRE INSIDE YOUR HOME!!"


pen

 

[jeff_t]

I'm actually most comfortable with the first fire. Everything is inspected, clean, and tight. I know the system is completely up to snuff and ready to roll for the winter. Fire away.

 

[Badfish740]

The smell is what gets me nervous on the first burn. I think something's not right, but it is probably just dust burning off.

Yeah-I tried to dust mine off as best I could but being that its in the utility area of the basement it gets pretty full of crud. It is a little unnerving because it just has that "hey-is something burning?" smell.

 

[firefighterjake]

Personally I think it's good to be a little anxious . . . especially with that first fire when the good habits developed in the latter half of the burning season may have been forgotten over the summer . . . heck . . . it's good to be a little concerned . . . I am always more concerned with the guy who lights up his stove without any thought or hesitation.

And I should add . . . it shouldn't matter if it's the first burn or the 176th burn . . . it's always good to be a little concerned, go over the mental checklist of what needs to be done before leaving the house or going to sleep at night after a fire is lit and be aware of what are normal and abnormal sounds, smells, fire behavior and high temps.

 

[Backwoods Savage]

We've burned wood for a few seasons now and although I can't say I get anxious (wife does a bit), I am doing lots of checking every year on that first fire or the first few. It just makes sense to check and double check. It's like Pen says, you are starting a FIRE inside your home.

Keep checking but realize it is normal so don't get up tight over it every year. Just check and double check, then relax and enjoy the heat.

 

[Battenkiller]

After all this time, I never give it much thought. By the time I start burning regularly, it's so cold that the only thing I'm worried about is if I'm gonna get the place warm or not.

Last year with a different stove, however, I kept driving up the hill to my house and being pleasantly surprised to find it was still standing. Does that count as anxiety?

 

[ikessky]

After I get over the initial jitters, I do enjoy it. I just can't stand hearing the gas furnace running and still having the house be chilly. I'm kind of excited to get the season truly underway. I'm burning super dry wood and did a couple little tweaks to my setup. It's kind of fun seeing (or feeling in this case!) the fruits of your labor!

 

[Slow1]

Maybe I'm still too new at this - only in my third year. I feel more excitement than anything. Although this year the 'roasting dust' smell was rather annoying and I won't be looking forward to that in the future. The was my first year not firing up a new stove so I've been used to paint burn-off which is a very different smell afterall, heh.

Anyway - this isn't to say I'm not on guard. I am very careful to go through my checklists and verify that everything is ready to go. This year I am updating my operations docs (for the wife) which was a good thing since it forces me to mentally review everything.

 

[AceRyder]

After 3 seasons, I still refer to the manual for the stove to make sure I do everything right for the first burn of the season. Then, I constantly monitor temperatures and burn times until I get into the routine again. After that, it's smooth sailing...

 

[jadm]

I worry about what I may be carrying into our house on the firewood this time of year more than the fire itself.

Not cold enough to kill off the spiders and other critters that hang out in my wood piles. I just make sure I give each split a good bashing outside and only keep a few splits inside until the temps. really plummet...

 

[Ronmbucket]

I've jumped out of my easy chair more then once,after seeing a big hairy brown spider that came in with the wood.

 

[Corey]

meh - it's basically fire in a steel box - not launching the space shuttle. I clean the flue, give everything the once-over and let her rip. But then some people freak when the stove hits 500º, too. In the dead of winter, I don't even consider it 'burning' until she hits about 800º, and if it's really cold outside, go up from there.