Best strategy for a short term burn?

[marajade]

I've done all this studying and reading here about how to run a stove 24/7 and about shutting down the damper in increments to get to a cruising state.

However I came home last night to my husband burning the stove at 560... It was an awesome thing indeed, but he/we didn't want to attempt an all night burn and we were unsure about the best way to let the stove go out on its own.

He had the damper fully open and at 560 it had peaked. The firebox only had a few splits in it. We enjoyed the fire for a while and then when the logs looked fully charred with only small Flames we wanted to go to bed.

I proposed that we should incrementally shut down the damper and I tried and failed to explain secondaries to him

He proposed that we should let it burn out with the damper fully open.

What should you do in this case when the fire has peaked, you didn't stuff the stove and you want to go to bed?

Also can you help me explain to him why it's better to start off coals as opposed to a cold start in the morning? I guess since oil is cheaper this year he is not seeing a benefit to trying to burn overnight.

I guess what I'd like to educate myself on is how to burn smartly and efficiently when you are not trying to burn 24/7. What's the best way to let the stove go out without smoldering the stove all the time?

Personally, I'd like to burn 24/7 but we aren't there yet.

 

[bsruther]

If I want a fire to burn down faster, I give it more air.

 

[BobUrban]

If you are past the point of increasing in temp with the air wide open and you have fully charred, smallish loads in the box it is ok to leave the air open, let er' eat and go to bed. Just DONT do this with a full load or on a stove that hasn't fully burned to a point of diminishing return.

As far as sometimes burning vs. 24/7 your plan to burn short, hot fires and let it go out is fine.

 

[billb3]

Unless it is just the very end of fire coals ( and not a very big pile of them either ) I don't like leaving the air fully open and going too far.
The last third of the burn with just coals, no or very low flame, and stove top temp dropping below "burn" supposedly isn't polluting much and I never see smoke when mine is at that stage.


I'll open up the air to burn down a big pile of oak coals but I don't go far


I've played around with how low I can put the air without making visible smoldering smoke after I've brought the burn up and it's about three hundred degrees and the air a nudge over from closed. That's where I set it for the night burn or if we have to go out.
Kinda wish the stove had graduations on the air slide.
Makes a small difference the temperature outside and the wood burning too.

 

[begreen]

I would not get in the habit of running the stove with the air control wide open, except on startup and perhaps at the end of the burn. If the stove needs to have the air control wide open to burn a load of wood, there is a problem. Marajade, if you don't want to tend the stove just let the fire continue to burn at the low air setting. The coals will burn up and turn to ash. It's quite undramatic. Do some full burns over the weekend so that you get familiar with the entire burn cycle. This will boost your confidence. If you want a short burn, put in less wood to start with. 3-4 medium-sized splits is enough.

 

[Huntindog1]

These stoves should be ran in cycles. If you want less heat you run the cycle the same but put in less wood.
If your wood is good and seasoned less than 20% and I like less than 18% moisture. Then things should work for you easily.
With less wood in the stove there is more open space so its not as easy to get secondary flames up in the top as easily.
But its best to restart the stove from a hot bed of coals as its all about building the heat in the firebox. And the coals lets you have a source of
heat to start the next load of wood. The firebox heats up quickly from a load on a hot bed of coals. Your flue will smoke less time during startup while you wait for temps in the fire box to get up to cleanly burn the wood. As its all about those temps in the firebox and how quickly you get those temps up in the firebox. Once the temps are up then the smoke coming off the wood starts burning and your stove is then burning efficiently and no smoke is coming oout the flue outside. On cold starts it take more time and things are harder to get going and the flue will smoke for a longer period of time. Its all about getting the wood loaded the heat built up quickly and get the stove shut back down. If you leave the input air wide open you wasting heat as with the input air wide open there is more air flow thru the stove flushing valuable heat up the flue. So you have to learn by watching the fire how quickly you can turn the the input air in increments of 1/4 to 1/3 ways each time so as to get the input air shut down but not to kill the progress of the heat building and not to kill the flames so much you put all flames out. Now each tie you lower the input air the flames might slow but as the heat builds as you lowered the amount of heat wasted up the flue then the added heat will help the fire burn at the lower input air setting. You will learn what the lowest input air setting you can get and still have good secondaries going in your stove. If you lower input air too low your secondary flames in the top of the stove will die on you so its a fine line you have to leran at the stoves lowest setting.

Secondary flames up in the top of the stove tells you your burning cleanly. As its burning the smoke for extra heat and less pollution.

Hot coals makes it easier to get to the point you have secondary burning for a clean burn and the stove is in its most efficient mode of operation.

If your having to burn the stove wide open to keep the fire going then your wood is not dry enough.

If you close the air down in increments you will get a hotter stove than 560 degrees you spoke about.

Each time you lower the input air setting it will help the stove to build heat quicker but if you do it too quickly it will snuff the fire if the heat hasnt built up enough in the fire box so its a set of your pants feel to how fast you can lower the input air but not stifle the fire. Each time you lower the input air you give the stove some time to balance out and build some more heat then you close the air a little more then wait then a little more.

Proper dry seasoned wood makes this all so easy but just a little too much moisture and everything becomes a major pain.

 

[Grisu]

We enjoyed the fire for a while and then when the logs looked fully charred with only small Flames we wanted to go to bed.

Looks like the fire had already run its course. At that point I think there is little difference between leaving the air open or closing it.

What's the best way to let the stove go out without smoldering the stove all the time?

Get the stove hot enough, adjust the air that it stays at that temp before slowly dropping once the secondaries die out, and then just leave it. The safest way is to let the fire burn up on its own. Stoves are designed for that. If you want added security, have working CO and smoke detectors in the house.

Also can you help me explain to him why it's better to start off coals as opposed to a cold start in the morning?

For one it is easier to ignite the new load. Plus, a warm stove and flue will come up quicker to optimal operating temps, which allows to turn off the air sooner. Hotter stove and flue means less smoke and therefore less risk of creosote in the flue. The burn will also be more efficient meaning you get more heat out of your wood.

 

[marajade]

Thanks everyone. I will print this thread out for both of us to study.


I'm also about to fire her up again so I can practice