How to limit ash dust when cleaning

[FPX Dude]

When cleaning out ash I have the shovel and trying to gently scoop out for cleaning, I see "dust bunnies" just drifting upwards into the air, how can I minimize this? I've tried to go slow, be very gentle and not disturb ash too much, and lower into bucket easily, yet I still seem to see a lot of flurries when cleaning...what are you techniques and/or thoughts?

 

[Core]

I try to keep the ash bucket in as far into the insert as possible and let the draft suck the light stuff up and out while shoveling. I tip it at an angle and go slowly. At least it seems like it's getting sucked up.

 

[D9H]

I have the lid to the ash bucket in my left hand and scoop with my right, closing the lid in between scoops.

When I clean ashes in the middle of the day they seem to fly away and make way worse mess than they do at night. Haven't figured that one out yet.

 

[blacktail]

Let the stove cool off if possible. Like one of the above posters, I tilt my bucket (actually a cook pot) so most of its opening is inside the stove.

 

[Woody Stover]

When forced to shovel 'em out, I use a long, shallow pan. I hold it as close and high under the door opening as possible, running the long way under the door. Then I get a shovel-full of ash and put the nose of the shovel in the end of the pan. I tilt the shovel up, and with a short, abrupt move of my shovel hand backward, I start the ashes sliding off the shovel. Keeping the nose of the shovel on the floor of the pan I continue to move it backward, depositing the ashes in the bottom of the pan with virtually no dust created. I'll try to get a pic of what I'm talking about and post it later.
When you use a bucket, it's harder to get the ash smoothly off the shovel. It tends to fall off the shovel, and you can get clouds of dust if you're not careful. I always tried to shovel on a cold day when draft was good, to suck up any dust that got away.
That said, one of the top features I look at in a stove is a grated ash-handling system. There are enough good stoves out there that have them, that I don't ever see me buying a stove without a grate. Could happen, I suppose, but I will make every effort to see that it doesn't. The Buck isn't too bad, with it's large, lidded ash dump, but even that is more effort than I want to expend dealing with coals and ashes.

 

[fespo]

There are all kinds of ash scoop out there and price range too. It one the best things I have bought for the stove.

 

[webby3650]

I use a small shop vac, the little one with the 5.5 horse motor, with a fine dust bag in it.
Just hold the nozzle in the vicinity of the bucket and all the dust gets sucked in. You can also suck up all the wood crumbs around the stove while you're at it!

 

[Nick Mystic]

I just want to add a cautionary note on using a vacuum around a woods stove/insert. As we all know ashes/coals can remain hot for days after burning. It is very easy to suck up something hot enough to start a fire inside a vacuum, (don't ask me how I know) so be sure to treat the contents inside the vacuum the same way you would hot ashes inside your ash can.

 

[mellow]

I got a small metal bucket that I use, it fits when you tip it forward into the stove, I just take my time with my welding gloves on and scoop out the small fine ash and leave behind the usable coals. The draft sucks up the fine ash up the liner.

 

[webby3650]

I just want to add a cautionary note on using a vacuum around a woods stove/insert. As we all know ashes/coals can remain hot for days after burning. It is very easy to suck up something hot enough to start a fire inside a vacuum, (don't ask me how I know) so be sure to treat the contents inside the vacuum the same way you would hot ashes inside your ash can.

That's why I simply hold the nozzle in the air near the bucket. It only collects airborne particles.

 

[tcassavaugh]

.........and thats why i have an ash bin.....open the door on the bottom of the stove, slide out the drawer and walk them outside..... no fuss, no muss.... but if you don't have an ash bin, speed at which you do it is often the culprit. the slower, the better.

 

[blades]

Not all those ash bins under stoves are sealed- get a nice dust cloud from under stove when moving ashes into them.

 

[tcassavaugh]

Not all those ash bins under stoves are sealed- get a nice dust cloud from under stove when moving ashes into them.

never really had that problem. mine either drop down into the bin through the grate or i'll rake them into the grate falling into the pan. i normally pull the drawer when its cooler or as i begin to get another fire going from remaining coals from the night before. i've had both....with and without an ash drawer and prefer those with. having no ash fly around is like chasing windmills....its the impossible dream. jmho

 

[Heatsource]

i'm with Webby, shop vac w/ hepa filter.
Nozzle held near by and away from hot coals

 

[Poindexter]

I use the hole in the floor of my firebox to the ash drawer.

I used a shovel and bucket for months, decided to give it a whirl. Getting the ashes out of the stove took longer than shovel and bucket, but no dust bunnies to clean up.

I am a believer in the ash drawer now.

 

[FionaD]

I use a 'Tippy' ash can, which works great as it sits on a slant so the ash that flies up doesn't get out of the can. Although the guy demonstrating it in this video is emptying an ash pan into it, it's equally effective to pour ash from a shovel into it. It's also great for carrying the ash outside and it's big enough to only need to empty it every few weeks. (broken link removed)

 

[xman23]

I have a ash drawer so I'm just dumping it into a metal can outside. Easy and clean. But I can't stress this enough. That ash has charcoal chucks buried in it that are still burning. It burns for weeks. Ash must go into a metal container.

 

[begreen]

All good suggestions above. One more - work very slowly. I find that is I scoop up the ash, then wait a few seconds for the dust to settle, then slowly dump into the ashcan which is tipped toward the stove opening, that I can keep ash dust to a minimum. Also, if there is a forced air heating system, turn it off temporarily and maybe crack open a nearby window to improve draft to pull up ash dust through the flue.

 

[highanddryinco]

Build yourself a custom metal dustpan with four inch sides, about a quarter inch or so smaller than your firebox. One smooth scoop...done. No fluffing up the ashes inside the house. Carry the load out to your outdoor steel can. Tip: Do it on a calm day, walk slowly, and have your significant other open the outside door well before you get there.

 

[WES999]

Move ashes to one side, place pan in stove, shovel ashes into pan, remove pan from stove,
cover pan with larger pan, take outside.

 

[Bones]

Build yourself a custom metal dustpan with four inch sides, about a quarter inch or so smaller than your firebox. One smooth scoop...done. No fluffing up the ashes inside the house. Carry the load out to your outdoor steel can. Tip: Do it on a calm day, walk slowly, and have your significant other open the outside door well before you get there.

I can see me tripping over the cats. Their goal in life is to trip the humans....

 

[gyrfalcon]

All good suggestions above. One more - work very slowly. I find that is I scoop up the ash, then wait a few seconds for the dust to settle, then slowly dump into the ashcan which is tipped toward the stove opening, that I can keep ash dust to a minimum. Also, if there is a forced air heating system, turn it off temporarily and maybe crack open a nearby window to improve draft to pull up ash dust through the flue.

I read these threads about ash dust with amazement because I have never, ever had that problem, and I'm not sure why. Some of it is probably that my stove isn't large enough to keep a real fire going overnight, and I typically shovel ash first thing in the AM before I revive the remaining coals into an actual fire. Some of it may be the difference in air pressure in my drafty old house.

Also, I'm not exactly a fussy housekeeper, so a little extra "dust" doesn't even register with me. But I sure never have a "cloud" of ash in the air unless I rush through the process. I shovel it up inside the stove, wait a couple of seconds for it to settle, then remove the shovel and as one of our former regulars used to say, put the shovel down in the bottom of the container and slowly lift it out from under the ash. No problems.

 

[begreen]

I just cleaned out the ash and swept the chimney and there was very little dust created. Draft is strong in cooler weather and that took care of most of the dust.

 

[Woody Stover]

Also, I'm not exactly a fussy housekeeper, so a little extra "dust" doesn't even register with me.

If your stove is in a spot where direct sun shines across the door of your stove, you'll see exactly how much dust can be created. I can tell how well I'm doing by looking around at various surfaces, dark ones in particular.

swept the chimney

In the middle of winter? You sweeping more than once a year? How dry is your wood?

 

[blacktail]

I just cleaned out the ash and swept the chimney

Wet wood! Wet wood!