Chrism said:
Depends on how much heat you want. That really isn't intended as a smart-A answer, its the truth. The amount of heat produced at a 500F stove top is a WHOLE lot different than at 650-700.
For safety purposes you will want to keep the stack temp above 300 until you hit charcoal stage. Don't worry, the stove will do it for you. I will commonly hit 800+F on a probe thermo in my stack on a new start up.
You would be better served by knowing the upper and lower limits of both the stack and stove. Stay in between them and your good to go.
Stack - above 300F and below 900F
Stove top - keep it below 850F. If you follow the stack temps suggestion, you won't have to worry about the low limit for the stove.
Keep in mind that after coaling stage, non of it really matters for bottom limit. There isn't any nasty stuff left in the wood to cause a problem.
These numbers represent my operation and are simply my opinion (with some factual background).
