Achieving a good overnight burn. Can't seem to get one.

[lugoismad]

I have a United States Stove Company 1400 Wood Furnace, but I'm asking here since the boiler room seems to be mostly well...wood boiler guys.

It has an air injecter (is that the right term? Its the little device that blows air into the firebox to heat the fire up) and a 1000cfm blower.

On the front, the bottom door for the ash tray has a wheel to adjust air flow, and the loading door has an adjustable bimetal spring contraption that lets in more or less air depending on how hot the fire is.

I work 3rd shift, and my girlfriend is in bed while I'm at work. I load the firebox as full as possible before I leave for work, and when I get home, the fire is completely out and the house is freezing.

I'm burning seasoned oak and ash cut-offs from the local lumber mill.

I HAVE to keep the air flow knob on the ash door cracked, otherwise the chimney smokes really bad and smokes up my neighborhood. The loading door air adjustment I keep set to low.

I adjusted the air injector to blow as little air as possible, to conserve the wood, but it seems like no matter what I do it always burns up before I get home.

Any ideas? Its not too bad with it in the 40s, but when it gets into the 20's, its going to be even worse coming home to a freezing house.

I know I'm not stretching the stove too far, because it will heat up to a 2200sqft house, and mine is only 1400.

 

[begreen]

I think you are going to have better luck with the boiler room. We're mostly just stove guys here.

 

[Bigg_Redd]

I think you are going to have better luck with the boiler room. We're mostly just stove guys here.

Yup. I even own a wood burning furnace and don't know the first thing about it.

 

[lugoismad]

I think you are going to have better luck with the boiler room. We're mostly just stove guys here.

I assumed that they worked the same way...they both burn wood to product hot air. Don't most of your guy's stoves have blowers on them too?

Oh well. Thanks for reading atleast.

 

[begreen]

No freestanding stove I've ever burned in has a forced draft system except for a pellet stove.

 

[CowboyAndy]

lugoismad, do you have a thermostat for your draft fan? I also have a forced air wood furnace, and have been playing around with different techniques. I have a 2200 sq ft house, and the furnace is rated for 2400 sq ft. When we first started burning, I was having to light the fire in the morning, there would be almost no coals and that was with 40* overnight temps. We had the thermostat set to 75, and I would load it right up at bedtime. Part of the problem was not very well seasoned wood. Now, with overnight temos in the low 30's, thermostat set to 72 I have more than enough coals in the morining to get it going easily. I usually make sure taht 2 hours before bedtime i have enough wood in to get some good coals when i am ready to go to bed.

 

[ikessky]

Seems there are a few of us in the same boat. I'm on my first year with a Daka forced air furnace. I do not have the forced draft on it, only an automatic damper that is controlled with a bimetal spring. I just finished my duct work this weekend, so I'm still trying to get everything figured out just right yet.

You probably know this already, but Ash does not coal up very well. It burns nice and hot, but is reduced to ashes very quickly. I have a fair amount of white ash in my pile and I started cutting it into smaller splits that I use right after my kindling to get everything nice and hot. If you are going for an extended burn, I would use more of your oak than your ash.

I'm sorry I can't be more help than that, but hang in there! Everything should click soon enough. I just take a little comfort in knowing that there are other people out there doing the same thing as I am.