Glass Stain Question

[Caw]

Ive been burning the last couple weeks during a cold snap here. After the weather broke I gave the stove a good cleaning in prep for the winter. I'm having an issue with the glass:

I have a discoloration that looks like a small hill if you look closely. I cannot get it off for the life of me. Ive tried the ash method and ceramic glass cleaner with non abrasive cloth. It won't budge. Any idea whats causing this or if its fixable?

Its not the end of the world but its definitely very annoying to look at and I'd like to fix it if possible.

Thanks!

Stove: Osburn 1600 insert
Fuel: I've used only bone dry poplar so far during shoulder season. I have 15% maple, ash, and cherry for the winter.

 

[Caw]

Well I've tried everything under the sun. Even stove cleaners, industrial ceramic cleaners left to sit on for over an hour, even a straight blade. The razor dents it BARELY. It would take a year to fix it.

I think im going to give up and just live with it until I want to buy a new piece of glass which will be about $130 for my stove.

Grumble. I have no idea what I did wrong. My wood is all 15-20% and I run the stove appropriately. Very disappointed.

 

[moresnow]

Have you tried the liquid "Imperial" brand wood stove glass cleaner? I occasionally use some on my BK. Works fine. Apply the liquid, wait a moment or two, scrape with a straight razer carefully, finish with a paper towel. Not sure if it will fix yours but it works on mine. Believe I bought it at the hardware store or Menards?
On the flipside I can dab a wet paper towel in ash and rub a fair amount off easily also.

 

[Caw]

Yep. Just tried that an hour ago and nothing. Well not nothing but extremely little for a lot of effort. I'm gonna let it sit for an hour then try scraping again and see. I think this is the last best idea I have.

 

[Dann-0]

I'm no expert on this, but I use the cleaner that is for my glass top oven . I apply it with a worn out scotch bright pad. It cleans the glass on my vigilant like new. Just sayin..

 

[moresnow]

As much as you try to keep it clean you may be fighting a losing battle. I've never had a stove that did not have discolored loading door glass. Very normal. Just a thought.

 

[Caw]

I'm no expert on this, but I use the cleaner that is for my glass top oven . I apply it with a worn out scotch bright pad. It cleans the glass on my vigilant like new. Just sayin..

Tried that too!

I agree its probably a lost cause but its a new stove so I'm being anal about it this season. I'll keep the soot off like regular but think im just gonna have to get over this stain.

Feelsbadman.

 

[Woodsplitter67]

View attachment 266263

Tried that too!

I agree its probably a lost cause but its a new stove so I'm being anal about it this season. I'll keep the soot off like regular but think im just gonna have to get over this stain.

Feelsbadman.

my glass get discolored when burning at low during the overnight burns. Running the stove hot for a short period of time first thing in the morning cleans it right up. Right now I use a little glass cleaner now and then. But if you run the stove hot it burns it right off...

 

[SidecarFlip]

I'm no expert on this, but I use the cleaner that is for my glass top oven . I apply it with a worn out scotch bright pad. It cleans the glass on my vigilant like new. Just sayin..

Yep, that is the trick, Scotchbrite pad and some glass cleaner. Get that on my corn stove too. Scotchbrite pad and Windex works for me. Use a used green pad or a new red one.

 

[marty319]

Try baking soda mixed with vinegar,apple cider works best

 

[PA. Woodsman]

I understand, that would drive me nuts too even though it is a minor thing! Probably got discolored from carbon build up and it is on there for good. I use Rutland conditioning glass cleaner, great stuff, but it might not help this issue. That's too bad it happened.....

 

[xman23]

That's a shame, new stove and the glass has that issue. I would look to the manufacture to replace it.

 

[begreen]

This can happen when fly ash remains on the glass for multiple burns. If the glass has become etched, it may be the fuel. In that case the only way to fix is with a laborious, multi-step polishing. It's not uncommon. Folks have been reporting it for years.

White fog on glass wont clean off VC Encore - 1 week old

Hi, I have a VC Encore 2 in 1 that I bought new and have been burning only one week today. I've been burning 24/7 but woke up to the fire out and decided to clean the glass. I cannot get the white foggy stuff on the lower portions of the glass to clean off no matter what I do. I even tried a...

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[Caw]

This can happen when fly ash remains on the glass for multiple burns. If the glass has become etched, it may be the fuel. In that case the only way to fix is with a laborious, multi-step polishing.

What do you mean by fly ash...just ash that dusts up and get stuck?

Ive run a few loads at 650 stovetop before the weather warmed up again. That's about as high as I can get it with poplar. I'm not willing to part with the good hardwood yet lol. I'll crank it to 700-750 when the real cold gets here and see if it has any effect...

However I think its just etched unfortunately which is super bad luck. Ive only run ONE load that had a few questionable logs this year but I just left it wide open the whole burn when I realized the wood was poor. I wonder if it was a perfect storm of the poor load and maybe the air wash was blocked somehow by a fallen log/coal(s) in that spot.

Bummer. Not the end of the world I'm just being a perfectionist. I'll spend the $130 for a new one if it starts bothering me enough.

 

[begreen]

There are 20 or more threads on this topic. Some succeed with various treatments if the haze is not too bad.
One thought it that etching will occur if the fuel has a high sulfur content. This can combine with moisture which can make an acidic vapor that can etch the glass. There was a fellow years ago that polished his etched glass out using cerium oxide with some pads on a grinder I think. It actually worked. Mine would have to get pretty bad before I tried that. After 11 seasons it is starting to lightly haze, but it's not evident when the fire is burning so I am doing anything besides regular cleanings.

 

[Caw]

I actually read that thread! I figured I'd start a more current one as the data was spread out over multiple threads and maybe there was a new trick. Even though I'm not a rich man by any means I'd rather spend the hundred bucks than 5-10 hours polishing. That's basically a round of golf!

Interestingly with the etching its totally invisible when the glass is wet. It only shows up after the water/cleaner evaporates.

Thanks for all the answers everyone! This is such a great forum for new burners. Very glad I stumbled upon it.

 

[marty319]

Try getting ahold of sbi and see what they say.

 

[firefighterjake]

I had good luck cleaning this with vinegar . . . or maybe it was lemon juice . . . I forget which one . . . but it was definitely one of the two.

 

[Caw]

Im pretty sure it's beyond cleaning with everything I've tried and even the straight edge. Its gotta be etched. Im just gonna nuke it at 700 and see what happens when it gets cold then accept it until I feel the need to get it replaced.

I will definitely call SBI though just to see what they would do.