How do you deal with no ash pan?

[MikoDel]

Once in awhile we think about a new stove, one with soapstone, one that maybe burns cleaner insofar as the ROOM AIR is concerned. Dust, I mean. We also really love the luxury of superior heat life, always using it to our advantage with this VC Intrepid. Frequently we let the thing burn down to a dull glow before we reload and nurse it back.

I looked at one of the smaller Hearthstone stoves, because in my situation, anything bigger than this VC might cook me out of here. (Although it sure would be nice to load an 18 or 20" split, jeez )

But the small Hearthstone doesn't have an ash pan. How the heck does that work? I mean, I burn the thing for days sometimes, and once in awhile, the timing is such that I have to empty the ashes when it's going full bore. I have very good firegloves that allow me to do this. But even using them, it's best not to contact any one part of the ash pan flush, but rather to use "points" of contact near the corners. It's that hot. And these are ashes that have fallen thru, very little of them glowing, or none at all.

So if I didn't have an ash pan, then what? Shovel the live coals out? From under the blazing splits? With volatile gases and ash spewing out of them all into the room? Please tell me as I can't believe that is the option.

 

[BrowningBAR]

Once in awhile we think about a new stove, one with soapstone, one that maybe burns cleaner insofar as the ROOM AIR is concerned. Dust, I mean. We also really love the luxury of superior heat life, always using it to our advantage with this VC Intrepid. Frequently we let the thing burn down to a dull glow before we reload and nurse it back.

I looked at one of the smaller Hearthstone stoves, because in my situation, anything bigger than this VC might cook me out of here. (Although it sure would be nice to load an 18 or 20" split, jeez )

But the small Hearthstone doesn't have an ash pan. How the heck does that work? I mean, I burn the thing for days sometimes, and once in awhile, the timing is such that I have to empty the ashes when it's going full bore. I have very good firegloves that allow me to do this. But even using them, it's best not to contact any one part of the ash pan flush, but rather to use "points" of contact near the corners. It's that hot. And these are ashes that have fallen thru, very little of them glowing, or none at all.

So if I didn't have an ash pan, then what? Shovel the live coals out? From under the blazing splits? With volatile gases and ash spewing out of them all into the room? Please tell me as I can't believe that is the option.

I HATE the Intrepid ash pan. I spend half the time scooping ashes out of every place else other than the ash pan. I prefer the Vigilants set up that doesn't have an ash pan. I can clean out the vigilant much quicker than the Intrepid.

 

[learnin to burn]

The best way to deal with ashes is before you load the stove. With my Regency it burns front to back, when reloading I would shovel out the ashes in the front of the stove into an ash bucket then rake the remaining coals to a nice level coal bed, then reload, close the door. by the time I get the door closed the wood is already burning.

With an ash pan I think it is best to empty them before you reload so it isn't so hot to deal with.

 

[BrotherBart]

Not a problem. My stoves have ash pans and I never use them. EPA stoves with window airwash burn down the coals at the front of the stove first. So I just scoop out a few scoop fulls of ash before reloading and drag the coals from the back forward to ignite the new load.

 

[tutu_sue]

I have that little stove. In the morning, I open the door slowly, take the rake and push the ash all the way back. Slowly as to not rile it up. The coals rise to the top. Then I slowly rake about the top half of the pile to the front of the stove. Then I put the ash can right in front of the door and use my shovel to remove the ashes from the back. I lower the shovel into the can as low as possible so no dust comes up. I do this every 3 or 4 days this time of year and every other day in the dead of winter. Leaving an inch or so of ash at the bottom insulates the stove and gets her up to temp faster.

 

[Chargerman]

Not a problem. My stoves have ash pans and I never use them. EPA stoves with window airwash burn down the coals at the front of the stove first. So I just scoop out a few scoop fulls of ash before reloading and drag the coals from the back forward to ignite the new load.

Same here.

 

[Backwoods Savage]

Miko Del, welcome to the forum.

I understand why you would question the stove with no ash pan. We did the same and this is our first stove that has no ash pan. Burn down the coals quite a bit before you empty the ashes and you'll see it is pretty easy.

btw, we empty ashes maybe every 4th day during the cold of winter; less often when it is not so cold. We do heat 100% with our wood stove.

 

[Wet1]

I think most ash pans are a more hassle than they're worth. A shovel works wonders...

 

[johnn]

Not a problem. My stoves have ash pans and I never use them. EPA stoves with window airwash burn down the coals at the front of the stove first. So I just scoop out a few scoop fulls of ash before reloading and drag the coals from the back forward to ignite the new load.

Nice description BrotherBart,,im seeing much clearer now

 

[MikoDel]

Once in awhile we think about a new stove, one with soapstone, one that maybe burns cleaner insofar as the ROOM AIR is concerned. Dust, I mean. We also really love the luxury of superior heat life, always using it to our advantage with this VC Intrepid. Frequently we let the thing burn down to a dull glow before we reload and nurse it back.

I looked at one of the smaller Hearthstone stoves, because in my situation, anything bigger than this VC might cook me out of here. (Although it sure would be nice to load an 18 or 20" split, jeez )

But the small Hearthstone doesn't have an ash pan. How the heck does that work? I mean, I burn the thing for days sometimes, and once in awhile, the timing is such that I have to empty the ashes when it's going full bore. I have very good firegloves that allow me to do this. But even using them, it's best not to contact any one part of the ash pan flush, but rather to use "points" of contact near the corners. It's that hot. And these are ashes that have fallen thru, very little of them glowing, or none at all.

So if I didn't have an ash pan, then what? Shovel the live coals out? From under the blazing splits? With volatile gases and ash spewing out of them all into the room? Please tell me as I can't believe that is the option.

I HATE the Intrepid ash pan. I spend half the time scooping ashes out of every place else other than the ash pan. I prefer the Vigilants set up that doesn't have an ash pan. I can clean out the vigilant much quicker than the Intrepid.

Hmmm ... that's too bad. I honestly can say, I love everything about the Intrepid. Well, maybe not cutting all the wood down to 16". But other than that ...
The "slicer poker" that comes with the Intrepid is your manual ash sifter. All I do is swish that flat steel tool back and forth, inserted under the lowest ash fettle, to get ashes to fall thru the grate. Other than that, I don't see what the problem is. Alright so once or twice a year I take xtra time to scoop ashes out from underneath the pan, when cool, but they don't affect the operation of the stove. As long as the vents in the front are clear and the fettles are clear, it burns like a dragon.

Oh yeah, and you have to take off the upper fireback maybe once during the burning season to clean the back chamber. Hoo boy, does THAT ever take some experience to do without expletives. (I still don't think I'm quite there yet!) But I'll tell ya, the secret is to remove the griddle so you can get one arm thru the top for positioning. Use LOTSA LIGHT, and make sure the bolts are loose so you can turn the little "ears" with your fingers from the inside. Only finger tight for that.

Also VC/Majestic/McKesson???? (I can't keep up) has been amazing about supplying parts for this pre-1988 stove. (I have to correct my sig file, it's pre-'88, not 1980) I have secured an upper fireback, door glass, firebricks (well, they don't count), and as recently as this year, a thermostat assembly. I actually tore the whole thing down one summer, brought the iron up to like-new with a wire wheel and re-cemented everything to keep room air dust to a minimum. Definitely have your tap and die set ready for that kind of project.

Now after reading the other posts, I understand that I wasn't considering the size of the firebox of these bigger stoves. I guess with a larger stove you actually have some room to take the ashes in front, while leaving live coals in the back. I don't think that's an option for us, as the Intrepid is more than enough heater for this space. Anything larger and I fear I might be underfiring constantly just to keep temps bearable. And we all know that splits burn best with company. 3 or more - there's your party.

The Intrepid does not "officially" burn from front to back, although air-wash keeps the glass clean so maybe there is some front to back burning. Technically according to the manual it burns a "magazine" of wood, from the bottom using gravity feed, when the re-burner is closed and horizontal combustion is employed.

 

[gpcollen1]

As BB suggested, you have opportunities to get the ash out every day. I do mine about every 3 days in my Olympic even though I can go about a week. I do a scoop or so in the front and then about 2 scoops on the sides and dump them gently into a small metal ash can with a lid, having the lid in hand to quickly open and close it.

 

[MikoDel]

As BB suggested, you have opportunities to get the ash out every day. I do mine about every 3 days in my Olympic even though I can go about a week. I do a scoop or so in the front and then about 2 scoops on the sides and dump them gently into a small metal ash can with a lid, having the lid in hand to quickly open and close it.

Oh yeah, I forgot that a proper pail should have a lid. That way you can do live coals inside without too much dust. I have gotten away without it because I have a screened in porch which cuts the wind, and not too many live coals in the ash pan. As you all have said, you do the ashes when it burns down, so there's usually nothing glowing in there.

Eventually I'll get one a real ash pail, but they want too much in the stores for the ones I have seen. Still, it is a safety item ...

Minimizing room dust is huge for us. I try not to top load too often. I have two room air cleaners, and I also vaccuum a lot in here. We are going to hardwood on the floor to make it even cleaner.

Also, I totally forgot to mention that, when the stove is cold, I often use the shovel. If I haven't been keeping up on the ash cleaning, it is so much easier and faster to use a shovel to clean it out. But I usually do that thru the top with the griddle wide open when it's cold. Definitely going nice and easy with the shovel, opening the doors gently - that all contributes to cleaner room air.

But the reason why I am such a big fan of the ash pan on the Intrepid is because it goes hand in hand with the operation of loading the stove. The Intrepid does not burn well if the ash fettles aren't kept clear. I find I have to clear them about every 2 loads, or if I'm lazy I can wait till the 3rd. The act of clearing the ash fettles with the slicer-poker sifts the ashes down into the pan and does a nice job of clearing the firebox. So since you must clean the fettles, you must also then eventually empty the pan.

 

[BrowningBAR]

As BB suggested, you have opportunities to get the ash out every day. I do mine about every 3 days in my Olympic even though I can go about a week. I do a scoop or so in the front and then about 2 scoops on the sides and dump them gently into a small metal ash can with a lid, having the lid in hand to quickly open and close it.

Oh yeah, I forgot that a proper pail should have a lid. That way you can do live coals inside without too much dust. I have gotten away without it because I have a screened in porch which cuts the wind, and not too many live coals in the ash pan. As you all have said, you do the ashes when it burns down, so there's usually nothing glowing in there.

Eventually I'll get one a real ash pail, but they want too much in the stores for the ones I have seen. Still, it is a safety item ...

Minimizing room dust is huge for us. I try not to top load too often. I have two room air cleaners, and I also vaccuum a lot in here. We are going to hardwood on the floor to make it even cleaner.

All I do is top load both stoves (unless I am doing a cold start). Top loading has never caused any additional ash to enter the room.

 

[pgmr]

I'd have to concur with the anti-ash pan folks. Our new stove has one that is much more trouble than just scooping them out with a shovel. Ashes never go just into the pan, but also into the bottom of the stove. One then has to shovel/brush the errant ashes out to get the pan to seat properly after emptying. Since the ash can not be completely cleaned up with dustpan and brush, inevitably, the remainder gets sucked into the fan next to the ash pan and spewed all over the room.

After three tries, I'm out. It's back to the shovel and bucket for me.

 

[mmopt]

After reading folks thoughts on Ash Pans I'm glad I didn't get one. The Buck 74 was on sale at a price I couldn't pass up but I was worried I would miss having a pan. Happy to say that 2 months into burning nightly to 24/7, I rarely empty more than once a week. I think when I'm burning consistently 24/7 though I'll have to empty 2x a week.

 

[fossil]

My Lopi has no ashpan. My CFM has an ash depository (drawer) in the pedestal, accessed by removing a portion of firebrick from the floor of the box. I never use it. Nice double bottom bucket with lid and a little old short shovel is what I use for both stoves. Buckets goes outside on a concrete slab. Rick

 

[begreen]

Had a nice ashpan in the Castine, no ashpan (of any value) in the T6. The work for me is about the same, though it seems cleaning the T6 is a little neater. I always let the ashpan on the Castine get overfull, so half of my ash disposal was cleanup with the shovel going after the overspill in the pan area. With the T6, all my ash removal happens in the firebox where natural draft seems to keep it neater. I use a decent stove shovel and dumping into a small ash bucket in the stove. Let the dust settle, then dump that bucket load outside into the bigger metal ash can.

 

[Nic36]

I bought my stove with the ashpan feature thinking it would be just great to have. After fiddling with it initially, I never use it. Like the others have said, a shovel and bucket is much more efficient for me. And now, I wish it never had it. There is also a danger of overfire if the thing is stuck open just a tiny bit.

 

[begreen]

I don't think the PE stove ashpans seal anything. Our's is loose and ungasketed. I've run part of a season with it removed so that I could watch the EBT. No big difference noted in stove performance.

 

[pen]

Wish my stove didn't have one. Just think it looks ugly and would be more attractive w/ just legs underneath. But guess they figure that an extra feature, even if fairly useless, helps sell!

I do the same as others here, just take a few scoops out every now and again. if the stove is warm, and I hold the bucket at an angle near the open door when loading, all the dust goes right up the chimney.

pen

 

[Danno77]

you know, I've never even looked in my ash pan. I think maybe I did when i unpacked the stove. I hope there wasn't anything important in there since I've been burning so much lately.

 

[MikoDel]

you know, I've never even looked in my ash pan. I think maybe I did when i unpacked the stove. I hope there wasn't anything important in there since I've been burning so much lately.

Ha! Funny. You could hide Krugerrands in there.

Well you all certainly told me, didn't you?

Seriously, at least I don't look at it as a missing feature anymore, just a difference in design. Certainly all the tricks you talk about, such as using the draft to keep all the dust from going into the room, or letting the fire burn really low so you are not face to face with Hades, it's all good common sense.

I'm still trying to get my head around the size of some of these heaters, what with comments like "I only have to empty 2X a week burning 24/7". That's a whole 'nother world. This little heater gets packed after one night.

But love the one you're with. It's an awesome stove. I wouldn't have done so many repairs if it didn't fit our needs so perfectly. It has excellent secondary combustion and throws off so much heat on afterburner you can't float your hand 3 ft above it for very long at all when it's really humming.

When these newbies come on, asking questions, I hope they're asking "How much work is all this?" Because THAT's the question. Do you like outdoor chores in all kinds of s__tty weather? Are you mechanically inclined? Have you any INKLING how much work it is to buck, haul, split, stack, cover, and then stage 5-6 cords of wood?? Every year? Because you are going to get older you know. The exercise is a considerable dividend I must say.

I guess it goes without saying that most of you here don't pay $.01 for wood. It's like faith, like a spiritual thing, that during the summer I send out positive thoughts to help me find next winter's supply. Events will happen - Somehow it'll work out. I didn't always do tree work, but I always found wood.

 

[pen]

you know, I've never even looked in my ash pan. I think maybe I did when i unpacked the stove. I hope there wasn't anything important in there since I've been burning so much lately.

Ha! Funny. You could hide Krugerrands in there.
.

Now, if that statement didn't take me back to my favorite movie series ever............

Let us know what you end up doing.

pen

 

[joat717]

+1 for the shovel and bucket method. sometimes i even take more coals then necassary and throw them in an old charcoal grille and wahlah instant cookin coals for some big juicy steaks. great flavor with different varieties of wood too! two birds with one stone as they say!

 

[MikoDel]

I don't want to take the easy road and Google it - so I'm guessing Die Hard?

Insofar as a new woodstove, nah, we are ok with the Intrepid. I did, however, find an older gas fired VC Radiance model (B vent) on Craigslist this summer to heat our basement. It looks great in red enamel. I am hoping that getting some warmth down there, in addition to other measures, will keep mold from growing on stuff.

So as I get to know my way around that thing I'm hoping there are some friendlies in the gas stove forum to help me out.

No ash pan on that one, so I guess I should go with the shovel plan for that Radiance?

};-)