Glass cleaning

[Mikewelland]

Hello all

If there is any one out there like me that is very anal about their stoves appearance then I thought I would share this with you.

I do not like it when the glass on my stove door is black (or starting to get black). I use my stove for heat but also as a focal point in the room. I have been trying to keep my glass clean and whenever I seem to get it clean, by the next fire it seems to be getting black again. I have tried many different thing and have stumbled on something great .

First I use "imperial clear flame glass door cleaner" and then I use "lysol all purpose cleaner" which is a great glass cleaner. After it dries (about 3 minutes or so) I light back up again. I can burn about 5 fires before I even start to see any black soot starting to build up.

Any one else have any other ideas about how they keep their glass clean?

 

[fishki]

Damp paper towel dipped in the ashes in my stove. Your glass shouldn't turn black.
I'm guessing your burning unseasoned wood.

 

[adrpga498]

Ditto Fishki said

 

[Rearscreen]

I used to use glass cleaning products that had silicone in it specifically for woodstoves and glass in ovens, theory I guess was it made it easier to clean the next time since silicone created a thin film. Again, theory. Thankfully Woodstock came up with the double glass idea so cleaning is rare, but when I do this forum taught me the ashes trick.

 

[Woodsplitter67]

It is very rare that i have to clean the glass. It dose get dirty from burning low, if you burn your stove hot the next day it burns right off and the glass is clear

 

[RobbieB]

I just used the "damp towel dipped in ashes" trick and it worked great on my brown residue. Thanks!

 

[Ctwoodtick]

I tend to use Rutland stove glass cleaner. I try to stay away from products that are not designed specifically for use on stoves due to not knowing how the ingredients in some products may effect the stove setup.

 

[firefighterjake]

I take the door off and sand blast it about every other weekend.

Yes . . . I kid. Damp newspaper. If things are especially dirty I'll dip it in the ash.

 

[madison]

I am one the few who would caution about using ash. I have stopped due to a couple of times I noticed some hard silicates/dirt/small pebbles - whatever - making a noticeable scratching sound when using this technique. I normally use a wet paper towel... and if anything - rutland stove glass cleaner.

 

[JotulOwner]

I use damp paper towels. Nothing too wet that will drip onto gaskets etc. I also use 0000 steel wool (dry) to get the occasional tough spots at the sides. My wood is very dry, but due to my chimney height and stove model, even though I run my stove pretty hot, I do have to clean my glass at times. I avoid cleaners as I don't know how they will react with the ceramic glass under heated conditions.

 

[WoodyIsGoody]

A couple of years ago I burnt some wood that appeared seasoned but turned the glass black. This year I burned the same wood after it sat covered for two more years and my glass is still clean. I only clean it about every 60 loads. I just use regular spray on glass cleaner and two paper towels (one to wipe and one to polish).

 

[jetsam]

I used wood ash the first year. Now I just burn a hot fire. It's not that the wood ash didn't work, it's that I am lazy and the stove does a great job of cleaning its own glass.

 

[jatoxico]

I also try to be careful about using ash in case I pick up some grit but I do do it when I get lazy.

That aside, I think the OP's question/point was not how to clean glass, but if anyone had tricks/tips about cleaners that helped to resist soot and ash build up. For the record except dry wood and giving enough air I don't.

 

[yooper08]

To keep it clean on a go forward basis, drier wood and/or more air for a longer period when starting a new load. Can't emphasize the dry wood part enough though.

 

[David.Ervin]

Seems like some stoves just keep the glass cleaner than others. My Quad 4300 stays very clean under almost any burning conditions - I clean the glass manually maybe twice a burning season. The Northstar, however, soots over almost immediately, and I have to burn REALLY hot and dry wood to keep it clean. Even then, it'll be foggy enough to warrant a scrub down about once a week, which works out to about as often as I need to empty the ash, so I guess its not too bad.

 

[Shmudda]

Damp, semi wet newspaper. Don't even need the ash dip with this. Theres something in the ink that just wipes the build-up away. Works very good and cleans perfectly.

Craig

 

[Blazing]

Damp paper towel dipped in the ashes in my stove. Your glass shouldn't turn black.
I'm guessing your burning unseasoned wood.

You can't lump everyone into the same category when it comes to stoves and glass clarity. If you do a little reading you will find many owners with black glass clean stacks and low moisture content wood. Hi I'm Travis and I have black glass .

 

[bholler]

Damp paper towel dipped in the ashes in my stove. Your glass shouldn't turn black.
I'm guessing your burning unseasoned wood.

Cat stoves and some hybrids can get pretty dirty glass even with good wood and burning practices. In most non cats you are correct it is usually either wood that is not dry enough or improper burning that does it.

 

[Sodbuster]

Windex and paper towel about once a week, no black just a little haze.

 

[fishki]

Cat stoves and some hybrids can get pretty dirty glass even with good wood and burning practices. In most non cats you are correct it is usually either wood that is not dry enough or improper burning that does it.

He has a PE Super 27.

You can't lump everyone into the same category when it comes to stoves and glass clarity. If you do a little reading you will find many owners with black glass clean stacks and low moisture content wood. Hi I'm Travis and I have black glass .

Where did I lump everyone in there? If you do a little reading you will find that he stated a couple years ago he was burning wood testing at 25%. Now the Q is, is he still?

 

[Blazing]

He has a PE Super 27.



Where did I lump everyone in there? If you do a little reading you will find that he stated a couple years ago he was burning wood testing at 25%. Now the Q is, is he still?

I wasn't speaking of the op. I just didn't want everyone to think black glass means dirty flue. Some pride themselves on clean glass and that's fine but it doesn't mean you're doing anything better than a guy with dirty glass.

 

[drewmo]

Good tip on the above products. There is nothing quite like a strong fire with crystal clear glass, I admit. For me, burning 24/7 makes it hard to clean the glass given the the stove is never cool enough to get a damp paper towel on it without leaving massive streaks. Maybe I'm doing something wrong??? So, I live with a haze. Sometimes on a reload, I'll notice a quick buildup of the dreaded "black," but once the temps rise and are sustained, it's eaten away pretty quickly. But, when the outside temps rise and the stove cools, you bet I'm cleaning the glass and emptying the ashes before the next reload.

 

[Sodbuster]

Good tip on the above products. There is nothing quite like a strong fire with crystal clear glass, I admit. For me, burning 24/7 makes it hard to clean the glass given the the stove is never cool enough to get a damp paper towel on it without leaving massive streaks. Maybe I'm doing something wrong??? So, I live with a haze. Sometimes on a reload, I'll notice a quick buildup of the dreaded "black," but once the temps rise and are sustained, it's eaten away pretty quickly. But, when the outside temps rise and the stove cools, you bet I'm cleaning the glass and emptying the ashes before the next reload.

I run into this problem too, drewmo, getting the stove cool enough to clean the glass, I'm paranoid about cracking the glass due to thermal shock. I use the test of being able to touch it with my hand for a few seconds. Has anyone here ever had a problem cracking their glass when cleaning it? I can usually get it cool enough by opening the door for about 10 minutes on a restart, and yes I am right there the whole time.

 

[Blazing]

Good tip on the above products. There is nothing quite like a strong fire with crystal clear glass, I admit. For me, burning 24/7 makes it hard to clean the glass given the the stove is never cool enough to get a damp paper towel on it without leaving massive streaks. Maybe I'm doing something wrong??? So, I live with a haze. Sometimes on a reload, I'll notice a quick buildup of the dreaded "black," but once the temps rise and are sustained, it's eaten away pretty quickly. But, when the outside temps rise and the stove cools, you bet I'm cleaning the glass and emptying the ashes before the next reload.

If you heat 24/7 it happens unless you live where you can burn hot all the time. As long as the stack is relatively clean keep chugging along.

 

[firefighterjake]

I clean the glass frequently and burn 24/7 ... I tend to do it first thing in the morning after an overnight fire. Sometimes the glass is warm ... sometimes very warm ... no worries though.