Beginner question -- okay to restart fire by opening ash door?

[Scamp]

Sometimes it seems like the fire needs to be blown upon to get going again. So, it seems to work really efficiently to open the bottom ash door and let the wind blow through there for maybe two minutes. Those flames jump to life and liven up the fire beautifully.

So I'm just wondering, is that a bad thing to do? As long as I close the door within a couple of minutes? Thanks for any replies.

 

[fossil]

The first time you walk away from it, get distracted by something, and forget about it, you'll realize just what a bad thing that can be to do. Rick

 

[iskiatomic]

As much as it is not recommended in the manual, sure it get's done. Just make sure you don't walk away and forget about it. It will heat up VERY fast!

 

[Slow1]

I've been known to do this a bit also... not really a habit, but with my marginal wood sometimes the reload lightup is just too slow and I know I'm smoking up the pipes (and neighbors) too much. I have a personal policy to literally sit there with my hand on the latch until I close it again though... I am quite paranoid that I could walk away if I ever forgot and I can just imagine how hot it could get if I did.

 

[karri0n]

My personal wood burning blog would be called "Confessions of an ash door opener". Operating the stove in this fashion, however, very well may void the warranty, and it's generally not a great practice for all the reasons stated above. It will heat up VERY fast, and if a chimney fire were to ignite, you are feeding it a MASSIVE amount of air, and you might not know anything was going wrong because of how loud the air movement is normally with the ash door open.

On the other hand, if well monitored, this beats the "start-up air control" by a factor of eighty-four million.


edit: Failed to mention, if your fire *needs* to be "blown on" to get going again, this is more likely due to a poor draft, poor wood, or the wood is just past it's high burn cycle and entering the coaling stage. That, or you aren't opening your primary air up enough.

 

[Jags]

So I'm just wondering, is that a bad thing to do?

Bad, bad, evil bad. As much as we all like to think that we can be focused for the next 5 minutes, something changes. A door bell rings, and dog needs to go out, or we're just gonna make a quick sandwich for lunch and......hmmpff! What was I supposed to be doing??

It only takes once with that door open to turn your stove into a forge. To heck with the warranty, how friendly are you with the fire dept?

The one and only flashback that I have ever had was because of an ash door that was not secured properly. When I figured out why the fire was going crazy, I shut the ash door and tuned the fire back real fast (another mistake). 30 seconds go by and KER-WHOOMPH. Scared the holy crap out of me.

It just ain't safe.

 

[BotetourtSteve]

Eh, once in a blue moon I may open the ash door for a quick flash, but that is rare and only for a minute or two max. I have better luck leaving a door cracked (in my stove's case, side door) - it may take a few more minutes, but much less wear and tear on the stove and less danger of overfire. Patience is loving and kind. If you want instant heat, get a set of gas logs!

 

[Jimxj2000]

I have an Encore with cat, and I have done the same.

I keep my hand on the ash door the whole time - one or two minutes max. If I have to take my hand off, I close the ash door. I also slowly close the ash door to gradually reduce the air supply.

I would only do this when there are only a couple embers left. As soon as the stove starts to warm up (200 to 250 F) I would have the door closed.

 

[myzamboni]

I only open it for 10-20 seconds and my hand stays on the ash drawer lever so I don't get distracted.

 

[Valhalla]

Sometimes it seems like the fire needs to be blown upon to get going again. So, it seems to work really efficiently to open the bottom ash door and let the wind blow through there for maybe two minutes. Those flames jump to life and liven up the fire beautifully.

So I'm just wondering, is that a bad thing to do? As long as I close the door within a couple of minutes? Thanks for any replies.

Beginner?

You are quite experienced and certainly high qualified. Leaving the ash door open is a bit like driving to the local store just two minutes away without your seat belt! It saves a very small amount of time, but has a high risk if you become distracted.

Clearly not worth the consequences.

Enjoy your Encore and burn safely.

Happy New Year!

 

[Techstuf]

How about a shielded floor mounted spring timer with raised rigid arm to put it back into a safe position every time it's opened......Ron Popeil could sell the thing.......


SET IT.........and.......FORGET IT!


WOOOOO! 5 payments of only 39.99....act now and we'll make the first FOUR, yes FOUR payments for you!



TS

 

[Backwoods Savage]

I had a stove where I once used to do this. I also had a hard and fast rule. If the ash door was cracked open, someone had to be sitting right next to it. If nobody could sit there for the 2-3 minutes, the door just stayed closed. No variation from this rule.

 

[Gamalot]

I did it once with my coal burner and just as mentioned above, got distracted. Came back 10 minutes later to a roaring fire and it only cost me $128 for a new shaker grate.

The spring loaded door is not that bad an idea but the fact remains we should never use the ash door as a blast furnace unless you are right there with your hand on the throttle.

Gary