Fireview Backpuffing?

[Stump_Branch]

Randy, if you can buy some good seasoned stuff to mix in with the marginal wood it helps. Its no solution to have nice dry cordwood, but a single 2x4 or other known dry wood can aid in getting a marginal load of wood off to a better start.

Good luck, and get spliting and stacking now.

 

[RandyG]

Thanks Stump, hadn't thought of that, I'll try it next cool spell and post the results!

 

[fire_man]

Thanks Stump, hadn't thought of that, I'll try it next cool spell and post the results!

Hmmm, Florida, cool spell, it's already late January..... I'm thinking you will be waiting for next year's seasoned wood for those results!

 

[Backwoods Savage]

I can chime in on this one. I was having trouble getting my FV stovetop much over 400 for the first season of use. During the second season I was on the phone with WS to ask them why I was constantly hitting 700 F stovetop temps, and should I worry?! Turns out my Beech splits were finally nice and dry, and since they were split on the small side, led to very hot stove temps. It's all in the wood!

Tony, I think you hit the nail on the head on this one, 9 month c/s/s maple is the driest wood I have this season, and although it reads 15% on the moisture meter there's just no way its as dry as Dennis's wood which has been seasoning for several yrs. I just stacked a bunch of live oak which is about the best hardwood we have down here so I'm like you in thinking that next yr I'm going to have a totally differently behaving stove. One of the reasons I don't think my wood is totally there yet, along with lower stack and stovetop temps, is that my glass is not totally staying clear. I usually have to clean it about every two fires and I know that's not normal with this stove and is a sign of not totally seasoned wood. I'm pretty sure I'm in the same boat your were in last yr. Thanks, and Dennis, do you think this is the case?

This sounds like another one of those cases where the MM tells you the wood is super dry....but isn't. I think Tony nailed it for sure and his results in the second year speak volumes. For sure 15% wood should be extremely dry but the sooty glass tells a different story. The only time we got any black on our glass is when we did the initial burn-in fires. As soon as we built a hotter fire the glass has never got black since. And for sure if you are cleaning it every other fire, something is not right and it definitely sounds like it is the wood.