Auto burn control add on

[bholler]

It’s mostly ash with quarter inch size coals mixed in it. Can has a tight lid and it doesn’t get hot enough to even make the factory finish smell hot.

Many houses burn down each year doing similar things. I am sure none of them thought it was dangerous either.

 

[john26]

One of my co-workers house burnt down last winter from a bucket of "ash" it was a total loss. I believe it was an open metal bucket that was set next to the trash cans on the side of the house. She thought it was cooled down.

 

[EatenByLimestone]

There are carbon monoxide worries also.

 

[firefighterjake]

It’s mostly ash with quarter inch size coals mixed in it. Can has a tight lid and it doesn’t get hot enough to even make the factory finish smell hot.

What may seem harmless enough and not dangerous can in fact be quite dangerous . . . even if done for years.

Last month the guys here had a fire caused by a husband who stacked wood right next to the woodstove . . . and by right next to the woodstove, I mean literally right against the woodstove. Said he had done this for the past five years. Guys found a pile of smoldering coals on the hearth. Some had spilled out on to the hardwood floor, igniting the flooring. Not quite the same thing . . . but it is an example of someone who did not realize what they were doing is not fire safe.

 

[Shrewboy]

i have a lot more DIY ability than money

Hey, are you me? LOL

 

[Shrewboy]

I want simple my stove to be simple durable work without power and not require much maintenance at all. That is why I burn wood. If I wanted central heat I would just push the button and save myself allot of work.

You guys really make way to much out of the heat curve thing. I did it for years and unless it was extremely cold my house would only vary a few degrees over an 8 hour burn.

True, but it is fun to tinker sometimes :D (unless they are tinkering in a dangerous way LOL)

 

[Rogerwood]

Why do you feel the need to check it every hour?

Because I don’t have the nicely split hardwood to burn. Most of my wood is 3-9 inch elm and maple logs. It’s difficult to just fill the stove and leave it.
last night I watched it for 30 min. It was burning nicely but at midnight I heard a loud bang. My stove was at full blaze even with the damper adjusted to the lowest setting. Good thing I had installed the optional blower. I turned it on high to help cool the stove down. There’s no way to completely shut the air off to the fire.
then today we had to keep opening the Air control more and more to help keep the wood-burning good

 

[bholler]

Because I don’t have the nicely split hardwood to burn. Most of my wood is 3-9 inch elm and maple logs. It’s difficult to just fill the stove and leave it.
last night I watched it for 30 min. It was burning nicely but at midnight I heard a loud bang. My stove was at full blaze even with the damper adjusted to the lowest setting. Good thing I had installed the optional blower. I turned it on high to help cool the stove down. There’s no way to completely shut the air off to the fire.
then today we had to keep opening the Air control more and more to help keep the wood-burning good

Sounds like wet wood. Fix that problem don't alter the stove. What temp was the stove at in the middle of the night? What is your draft?

 

[Rogerwood]

Sounds like wet wood. Fix that problem don't alter the stove. What temp was the stove at in the middle of the night? What is your draft?

My temp was over 500, but I have double wall black pipe with a magnetic thermometer so my readings are lower than the actual temp.
not sure what u mean by draft.My flu seems to have goodnatural draft. There’s no flu damper. My bypass was in and my stove damper was out (at the lowest setting).
the wood is from trees that have been down for a couple of years and we’ve had lees than an inch of rain/snow in the past two months. So I’m not sure the wood was wet. But I’m still very new at this.
r wood stoves not allowed to Complete shut off the air inlets? Seems problematic especially in the summer time

 

[stoveliker]

Trees that are down for years may (likely) not be dry at all. Most wood only starts drying when split and stacked covered.

I suggest to spend a few bucks on a moisture content meter to check. Dry (20% or less) wood will make you much happier.

 

[Rogerwood]

Trees that are down for years may (likely) not be dry at all. Most wood only starts drying when split and stacked covered.

I suggest to spend a few bucks on a moisture content meter to check. Dry (20% or less) wood will make you much happier.

Interesting. I did get a moisture meter, but the wood isn’t big enough to split. I test the ends right after cutting the wood. Not sure how accurate that is.

 

[Das Jugghead]

Interesting. I did get a moisture meter, but the wood isn’t big enough to split. I test the ends right after cutting the wood. Not sure how accurate that is.

Testing the ends is not accurate at all.

To be honest if the wood you are harvesting is too small to split (as in branches) you are wasting time and effort when it comes to chasing long stable burns. For my stove I try and split my wood such that four to six splits completely fill the firebox.

 

[stoveliker]

Testing the ends is not accurate at all.

To be honest if the wood you are harvesting is too small to split (as in branches) you are wasting time and effort when it comes to chasing long stable burns. For my stove I try and split my wood such that four to six splits completely fill the firebox.

Indeed, wood is very anisotropic, meaning that its properties are not the same in different directions. The moisture meters measure electrical resistance, and assume a measurement along the grain of the wood. Measuring on the cut end will therefore be very inaccurate as to the MC you are getting.

 

[Das Jugghead]

Indeed, wood is very anisotropic, meaning that its properties are not the same in different directions. The moisture meters measure electrical resistance, and assume a measurement along the grain of the wood. Measuring on the cut end will therefore be very inaccurate as to the MC you are getting.

.
And, I would add, cord wood dries faster on the ends than in the middles.

 

[Rogerwood]

Testing the ends is not accurate at all.

To be honest if the wood you are harvesting is too small to split (as in branches) you are wasting time and effort when it comes to chasing long stable burns. For my stove I try and split my wood such that four to six splits completely fill the firebox.

In that case looks like I’ll always be plagued with difficult fires. Around here I don’t have access to such large trees except for Chinese elm.

 

[EatenByLimestone]

why can't you burn Chinese elm? Compressed sawdust logs and pallets work too. And you can burn wood that doesn't require splitting. It may take longer to dry though.

 

[moresnow]

In that case looks like I’ll always be plagued with difficult fires. Around here I don’t have access to such large trees except for Chinese elm.

It burns nice!

 

[Rogerwood]

It burns nice!

You’re right. I thought it was bad stuff. Turns out I was just getting poor quality Elm. The Kind that’s been sitting around for a while and is full of bugs and fungus. I also realized that the smaller chunks of Splitwood burn a lot hotter than a couple large chunks of wood do

 

[Tron]

I also realized that the smaller chunks of Splitwood burn a lot hotter than a couple large chunks of wood do

Which totally makes sense as the surface is much larger.

 

[RandyBoBandy]

Yeah it takes a while to learn a new setup as well. I change stoves pretty often but I like the challenge of figuring it out.

Just a quick question, what stove are you burning now? Still the BK or have you moved on to another?

 

[bholler]

Just a quick question, what stove are you burning now? Still the BK or have you moved on to another?

Still the bk. The cat is still working and it would be a pain to change it out with all of the snow we have on the ground now