Air control and clean burns for a new guy

[Welderman85]

Hello all I just finished up my install and will probably have my first fire this weekend. I'm trying to understand the air control to get a good clean burn. The manual says to open it up light it then in 15 minutes adjust it down. I has some settings but nothing about temperature. Or what to look for while adjusting up or down . Sorry for the dumb question. But thank you for any help

 

[Welderman85]

Sorry it's a small Avalon insert. 21feet of insulated flex flue

 

[MagdalenaP]

I would get a stove magnetic thermometer, and go from there.

After lighting, if the fire goes out, you've closed it too much. If the fire is moving fast/raging, you can close down half way, then watch. If it goes out, open more, still raging...close.

 

[blacktail]

Full air at startup.
Turn air down to 50-75% open once the fire has become robust.
Turn air down another 25% when fire has gotten robust again.
Do it again until your air is 10-25% open while maintaining a strong fire.
If the fire goes out at any point you've turned it down too much or too soon.

 

[EbS-P]

I light my fires top down with lots of kindling and air space if starting from a cold stove. I only start with two or three small/med splits, the rest kindling. I consider the first load on a cold start a non heating load. A stove that is up to operating temp stove is clean burning stove.

the timing of closing the air down has many variables. Once I get it hot enough to engage secondary combustion I know I’m burning clean. that’s why i like the top down. It concentrates the heat at the top of the fire box where all the smoke is and can then be burned.

I felt much more confident learning to run my stove with an Auber AT200 thermometer/alarm.
Evan

 

[Woody Stover]

thank you for any help

How dry is your wood? That will also have a bearing on how you need to run the stove.

 

[Welderman85]

How dry is your wood? That will also have a bearing on how you need to run the stove.

All under 20% and mostly ash a lot is15%

 

[Welderman85]

What do I do at night. I have read to close the air but wont that make it smolder?

 

[RIMatt]

How many other people consider the first load on a cold start a non heating load? Is it better to start with a few small/med splits and then load it up once that has burnt to coals or fill up the stove on a cold start?

 

[RIMatt]

From what I understand, I think if the firebox is hot enough and the wood dry enough it shouldn't smolder.

 

[MagdalenaP]

How many other people consider the first load on a cold start a non heating load? Is it better to start with a few small/med splits and then load it up once that has burnt to coals or fill up the stove on a cold start?

My heat will rise sometimes up to 10 degrees on the first morning load.
On a cold stove (if I don't have coals), I will load the stove with two medium splits n/s on each side, then on top of that, 3 splits e/w, and if I have room, more n/s on top. Add newspaper between the bottom n/s splits, and light up.

 

[MagdalenaP]

What do I do at night. I have read to close the air but wont that make it smolder?

Burning isn't just close it and your done. You're going to have to learn how your stove operates best. If you have a day off and can load the stove, then do a "night run", meaning, shut it down slowly while keeping flame. Once you think it's good, shut it down. And watch what it does. This way you'll know how the stove will react as if it were night. Hope that makes sense.

Also, just to clarify, wood moisture is tested when you take a piece of wood, split it down the middle, then bring inside. Test the inside of it (not ends or outer edge) to get a proper reading. Don't know if you know that, but just thought I'd mention it

 

[Grizzerbear]

I consider a first load from cold stove a heating load because i can raise house temp 10 degrees, stove is up to running temp, secondaries are lit off, all that. Magdalenap is right......you will have to run the stove and just get familiar with its reactions. Your wood sounds good. Blacktails directions pretty well steer you in the right direction. You may or may not be able to shut it down all the way.

 

[Woody5506]

How many other people consider the first load on a cold start a non heating load? Is it better to start with a few small/med splits and then load it up once that has burnt to coals or fill up the stove on a cold start?

I consider it a heating load, but I'm not always stuffing the firebox full. Even if it's a half load, I'm getting good heat out of it - I'll just have to reload sooner than if it were stuffed full. If it's shoulder season and I don't need a ton of heat I'll load with kindling and maybe 3 decent splits and one small split, at most.

 

[Woody Stover]

What do I do at night. I have read to close the air but wont that make it smolder?

How tall is your stack?
These two posts sum it up pretty well.

Full air at startup.
Turn air down to 50-75% open once the fire has become robust.
Turn air down another 25% when fire has gotten robust again.
Do it again until your air is 10-25% open while maintaining a strong fire.
If the fire goes out at any point you've turned it down too much or too soon.

You're going to have to learn how your stove operates best. If you have a day off and can load the stove, then do a "night run", meaning, shut it down slowly while keeping flame. Once you think it's good, shut it down. And watch what it does. This way you'll know how the stove will react as if it were night.

just to clarify, wood moisture is tested when you take a piece of wood, split it down the middle, then bring inside. Test the inside of it (not ends or outer edge) to get a proper reading. Don't know if you know that, but just thought I'd mention it

I always bring the wood inside, let it get to room temp for a couple days, then split it and check it immediately after splitting, before any water evaporates..

 

[Grizzerbear]

Yea your wood needs to be room temp then split or it will read lower moisture at cold temp.

 

[blacktail]

What do I do at night. I have read to close the air but wont that make it smolder?

Once the stove and flue are hot, you should be able to run it with the air turned down and still maintain flames at the top of the box. Your secondary air tubes at the top of the firebox introduce hot air that will ignite the smoke in your stove. So in a way, yes you will be smoldering the wood. But then the smoke should burn above the wood.
Not every setup will run with the air totally closed. Starting with the air 100% open, then closing it in a few adjustments to a final 10-25% open is pretty normal.
A good burn with dry wood and the air incrementally dialed to a low setting should give you some lazy flames at the bottom and smoke getting reburned at the top.

 

[begreen]

How many other people consider the first load on a cold start a non heating load? Is it better to start with a few small/med splits and then load it up once that has burnt to coals or fill up the stove on a cold start?

Our first load lasts 8-12hrs. Only the first 30-45m are warmup time.

 

[EbS-P]

I should have said that I have a small firebox. 1.8 cu ft. Burning lower BTU wood and have a big mass of stone that must be heated first. Living in town with lots of neighbors I try to have as little smoke as I can out of the chimney. Bigger loads on a cold stove just seem to take longer to light off.

How many other people consider the first load on a cold start a non heating load? Is it better to start with a few small/med splits and then load it up once that has burnt to coals or fill up the stove on a cold start?

 

[RIMatt]

I should have said that I have a small firebox. 1.8 cu ft. Burning lower BTU wood and have a big mass of stone that must be heated first. Living in town with lots of neighbors I try to have as little smoke as I can out of the chimney. Bigger loads on a cold stove just seem to take longer to light off.

My firebox is also 1.8 cu ft. I have found that trying to light a full stove is more difficult, but it could be the way i have been placing my wood and not allowing for good airflow. And also my lack of dry wood in the box. This week ill be cutting up some 2x4 that I got from a friend. Hopefully using that and some of the driest wood in my stack can help get it going a little faster.

 

[moresnow]

My firebox is also 1.8 cu ft. I have found that trying to light a full stove is more difficult, but it could be the way i have been placing my wood and not allowing for good airflow. And also my lack of dry wood in the box. This week ill be cutting up some 2x4 that I got from a friend. Hopefully using that and some of the driest wood in my stack can help get it going a little faster.

Unless outdoor temps only require a small load? Why anyone starts a stove on a partial load escapes me? Why extend your babysitting? Why open your heat supply to introduce cold fuel/air and start the entire process over?
Get a full load up and running. Back it down in increments until its cruising. Walk away.

If your setup is correct and your draft suitable for a small load start up, it should make little to no difference starting a full load. I suspect any start up woes are due to wet fuel.

If you are not familiar with Super Cedar brand fire starters. You should be. Zero kindling. Zero futzing. We are not here to practice bushcraft Simply break a chunk or two off a SC puck and insert between splits. Location in load means little in reality. Top start. Bottom start. Sideways start. Reverse multiplicative start. Whatever. Start chunks. Wait around until you can get the stove to cruise setting. Done. Walk away. Come back when a full re load is necessary. Enjoy.

 

[RIMatt]

Well said lol. I’ll get my hand on some SC and start working on getting dry wood.

 

[begreen]

Typically just 1/4 of a SuperCedar is all it takes to start a fire. If you order online, try the promo code Hearth19 for a discount.

 

[task]

Full air at startup.
Turn air down to 50-75% open once the fire has become robust.
Turn air down another 25% when fire has gotten robust again.
Do it again until your air is 10-25% open while maintaining a strong fire.
If the fire goes out at any point you've turned it down too much or too soon.

And then when you add wood, you just leave it at that 10-25% open point, or do you open it and go through all of this again?

I can't just add wood and keep a robust fire, as soon as I add anything it dies back down and I have been just letting it get back going on its own with the damper mostly closed. Wondering if that's correct or if I'm doing something wrong...

 

[task]

Unless outdoor temps only require a small load? Why anyone starts a stove on a partial load escapes me? Why extend your babysitting? Why open your heat supply to introduce cold fuel/air and start the entire process over?
Get a full load up and running. Back it down in increments until its cruising. Walk away.

If your setup is correct and your draft suitable for a small load start up, it should make little to no difference starting a full load. I suspect any start up woes are due to wet fuel.

If you are not familiar with Super Cedar brand fire starters. You should be. Zero kindling. Zero futzing. We are not here to practice bushcraft Simply break a chunk or two off a SC puck and insert between splits. Location in load means little in reality. Top start. Bottom start. Sideways start. Reverse multiplicative start. Whatever. Start chunks. Wait around until you can get the stove to cruise setting. Done. Walk away. Come back when a full re load is necessary. Enjoy.

I'll tell you why....my manual tells me precisely to do that. And I hate it. I definitely feel like I'm practicing "bushcraft" here more than I'm heating my home in 2019.

I love the idea of a full load start.