All Night burn

[Fletcher22202]

Howdy Howdy,
I have an older Kuma Tamarack, built prior to the EPA regulations went in effect in 2020.
I know a lot of people don't have a bunch of knowledge regarding Kuma on this forum, but I am having a hard time getting an all night burn. I live in a not very well insulated single wide, and the stove does pretty well given the condition of the house. The problem I'm having is I'm not used to the size of the firebox. Previously I had some experience with the Kuma Cambridge, a bigger stove, and the firebox in the Tamarack feels tiny in comparison.
I need about a 8-10 hour burn during the day while I'm at work, and about an 8 hour burn for the night, so I can reload before bed, and then in the morning before work. I know the stove is capable of at the 8 hours, since I've gotten in before, and hoping for a 10 hour burn though I admit for the size it may be a stretch.
Mostly I'm needing any tips or advice for a long burn, I need the house to stay warm so the pipes don't freeze. I know bigger pieces of wood, proper airflow, etc. are important. I've tried methods like moving all the coals to one side so it burns only one piece at a time essentially, which worked okay, but I'm struggling to find a good method. Any advice, tips, or tried and true methods would be greatly appreciated

Wood Length: 16" (north south)
Firebox Size: 1.7 ft3
Burn Time: 8 hours

 

[begreen]

An 8 hr burn should be regularly achievable. Using larger splits and packing them tightly should help. Put smaller splits in the gaps. Also, try an E/W on the weekend when you can be there to see how it does. You won't be able to pack the firebox as tightly but the E/W config can slow down the burn a bit.

 

[Fletcher22202]

An 8 hr burn should be regularly achievable. Using larger splits and packing them tightly should help. Put smaller splits in the gaps. Also, try an E/W on the weekend when you can be there to see how it does. You won't be able to pack the firebox as tightly but the E/W config can slow down the burn a bit.

Thanks for the quick response. Unfortunately the firebox is not square and our wood is cut about 15-16 inches and wont fit E/W. This was one of the first things I tried, it needs to be just an inch shorter. Now we know for next time this stove might be better off with a little shorter wood. I might try and roundup a few smaller pieces for fun to test it out. Will work on tighter loads. My husband "loads it up good"...with about 4 pieces haha. I'll keep working on him with that one.

 

[John B]

How tall is the chimney?

I had a Kuma Sequoia that could not control draft very well, something with the design of the stove. I went through wood very quickly. I recently switched it out for a Woodstock Ideal Steel and I am getting crazy long burn times now. I have a taller chimney and I just wonder if that Kuma was just too free flowing for my setup.

 

[Fletcher22202]

How tall is the chimney?

I had a Kuma Sequoia that could not control draft very well, something with the design of the stove. I went through wood very quickly. I recently switched it out for a Woodstock Ideal Steel and I am getting crazy long burn times now. I have a taller chimney and I just wonder if that Kuma was just too free flowing for my setup.

Not sure- inside the house the ceilings are about 8 feet, roof isn't very thick, extends aprox. 4-6 feet out the top as an estimate. It is technically a little too tall, or right at the limit, I was told. So I would guess in all 13-15 feet. I would have to measure to be sure. I think they extended it slightly more than they would have to get a better draft. I will say once the chimney heats up a bit it does seem to draft pretty well.

 

[begreen]

That's not too tall, just the opposite, it's almost too short. This is typical for manufactured homes and why easy breathing stoves are a good fit for them.

 

[Fletcher22202]

That's not too tall, just the opposite, it's almost too short. This is typical for manufactured homes and why easy breathing stoves are a good fit for them.

Ah thank you, good to know.

 

[TheBigIron]

I wonder if you can incorporate some rounds in with your splits and pack it tight? I do that with my insert and I can achieve about 10-11 hours, vs if I just load splits I only get about 7-8 hours.

 

[Fletcher22202]

I wonder if you can incorporate some rounds in with your splits and pack it tight? I do that with my insert and I can achieve about 10-11 hours, vs if I just load splits I only get about 7-8 hours.

In your opinion, would it be better to have a decent size round and about 4-6, 3-4 inch splits around, or packing with as many bigger splits as we can get? The problem i have is the firebox is normal in width, but its not as tall as I'm used to.

 

[stoveliker]

I think choosing one size (bigger) alone may not be the best.
Caveat: this may depend on the type of stove. (pre-EPA, tube, or cat).

I try to first put in bigger splits (or small unsplit rounds), and use small ones to fill holes/top. Just like concrete (gravel, pea gravel, sand, cement - in progressively smaller size) - this way the highest packing fraction (lowest free volume) can be obtained. Most fuel = longest burn.

This works best for a N/S loading capable stove (though).

 

[Fletcher22202]

I think choosing one size (bigger) alone may not be the best.
Caveat: this may depend on the type of stove. (pre-EPA, tube, or cat).

I try to first put in bigger splits (or small unsplit rounds), and use small ones to fill holes/top. Just like concrete (gravel, pea gravel, sand, cement - in progressively smaller size) - this way the highest packing fraction (lowest free volume) can be obtained. Most fuel = longest burn.

This works best for a N/S loading capable stove (though).

This stove is pre- 2020 EPA standards. I believe it has burn tubes but not a cat.

 

[stoveliker]

Then I defer to others regarding best loading practices..

 

[savenmoney]

How tall is the chimney?

I had a Kuma Sequoia that could not control draft very well, something with the design of the stove. I went through wood very quickly. I recently switched it out for a Woodstock Ideal Steel and I am getting crazy long burn times now. I have a taller chimney and I just wonder if that Kuma was just too free flowing for my setup.

I have a sequoia for about 5 to 6 years now once I learned how to run it I can get 12 hours of heat no problem. Not to start an argument but the problem is/was not the design of the stove more the likely it was the wrong size flue.