firefighterjake said:avc8130 said:I think I am noticing with my Jotul Oslo that max stove top temps do NOT occur when the air is opened all of the way. Is this normal?
I seem to be able to hit a max temp with the damper all of the way open, and then if I knock it closed about 1/4 of the way temps will usually rise another ~50 degrees at the stove top.
ac
You would be correct . . . with the air control open all the way you will get lots of flames, but the majority of the heat is being sent up your stack . . . what you want to do is bring the stove up to temp and then start cutting back on the air which you are doing . . . this will result in a secondary burn and the stove will start to warm up. This is how you want to run your stove . . . since the goal is to heat your house . . . not the outdoors.
Many newbies have a common misconception that more air = more heat and less air = less heat . . . however running a woodstove is not like driving a car in the way you want to go faster you "open up" the throttle . . . it's actually just the opposite . . . the key however is to get things warmed up and brought up to temp first and then start slowly dialing things down.
Sounds like you're doing things right . . . secondary burns will almost always result in more heat in the stove and in the home . . . in my own case with good wood and my chimney . . . I can dial things down to the quarter mark . . . and even all the way "closed."
+1 There ya go.