Humidity and woodstoves

[charly]

Started cleaning my Esse cookstove,,, some rust in the oven, wired brushed that, took out the ash pan and vacuumed , removed some fire bricks etc. Little rust behind them... LOL the ashes in the corners were like clay... Now I got thinking,, would you be better off lighting a small fire one or twice a month or even once a week to keep the moisture out of the stove? I'm thinking an idle stove is it's own worst enemy.. And I had Be Dry containers in my stove....I think a fire is maybe the only way to keep the humidity at bay in the stove... Certainly the stone stoves show what's going on with humidity in the off season...you can see it wicking into the stones. Just trying to keep my stoves in good shape... use it or lose it ?

 

[Woody Stover]

Same solution that was discussed in the Fv thread; Seal off the chimney, either at the top or the bottom. You're just chomping at the bit because you've got a new stove....you're looking for any reason to do any kind of burning.

 

[Todd]

Desiccant bags?

 

[charly]

Same solution that was discussed in the Fv thread; Seal off the chimney, either at the top or the bottom. You're just chomping at the bit because you've got a new stove....you're looking for any reason to do any kind of burning.

The PH isn't even out of the bag yet .

 

[clemsonfor]

If your that concerned get all those clay packed ashes out as soon as possible. If you can seal your stove off do so, disconnect the pipe or stuff a rag up it, then you can crack the door so that its more like the climate in the room and there for wont be as humid. Just dont forget the rag, maybe put a note in the stove that you will see.

If really worried about it i would take some light oil or fluid film or veg oil or something and coat the metal parts that look suspect. The light coating will soak into and evaporate over time and once you light the first fire will be consumed in the first 15mins of flames most likly. Wont do any harm. Now dont go soaking it down in motor oil or something.

 

[charly]

If your that concerned get all those clay packed ashes out as soon as possible. If you can seal your stove off do so, disconnect the pipe or stuff a rag up it, then you can crack the door so that its more like the climate in the room and there for wont be as humid. Just dont forget the rag, maybe put a note in the stove that you will see.

If really worried about it i would take some light oil or fluid film or veg oil or something and coat the metal parts that look suspect. The light coating will soak into and evaporate over time and once you light the first fire will be consumed in the first 15mins of flames most likly. Wont do any harm. Now dont go soaking it down in motor oil or something.

I think issues came form the extreme humidity here this summer. I just sprayed the oven part down with cooking oil..

 

[timfromohio]

Apologize for hijacking, but how do you like the Esse? I love the ad for the Ironheart - any stove featuring a nice shotgun in the background and freshly shot game is a winner in my opinion!

 

[charly]

Apologize for hijacking, but how do you like the Esse? I love the ad for the Ironheart - any stove featuring a nice shotgun in the background and freshly shot game is a winner in my opinion!

Love it! Nice thing is it can burn coal with the massive coal grates supplied or the optional deep wood box.. I opted for the wood box... Always has coals even after 14 hours... The coal grate comes with a really big ash pan, the wood box ash pan is too shallow to slide out once you have a wood fire, so I just shovel out the ashes about every 3 days or so. No big deal.. It's a great heater and cooker.. Very heavy built 700lbs, has very clever door hinge adjustments so you can adjust the door gasket tension by just using an allen key and moving the door insert in and out that the handle runs through.. When she's at the upper end of the heat range, she's really pumping out the heat... it's a nice even heat too..You can email me a message if you want to know more..

 

[eclecticcottage]

I just asked basically the same question yesterday...glad we're not the only ones WAY behind on cleaning up their stove this year. I'm thinking maybe burning a candle in the stove since I can't even imagine any fire, even a small one, when it's 90 out (and cleaning it out earlier would probably be a good idea, lol). Oiling it isn't a bad idea either, a bit like seasoning cast iron.

 

[charly]

I just asked basically the same question yesterday...glad we're not the only ones WAY behind on cleaning up their stove this year. I'm thinking maybe burning a candle in the stove since I can't even imagine any fire, even a small one, when it's 90 out (and cleaning it out earlier would probably be a good idea, lol). Oiling it isn't a bad idea either, a bit like seasoning cast iron.

I think from now on I will plug the pipe on my stoves and leave the stove doors cracked so as to keep some air movement going.. Then there is an air exchange as to not keep humid air in the stove..

 

[clemsonfor]

I am giving advice but i too just cleaned my stove out end of last week/this last weekend

 

[charly]

I am giving advice but i too just cleaned my stove out end of last week/this last weekend

I said as soon as the heating season was over I'd get right on the Esse,, yeh right.. I did clean it half way through the heating season if that counts . All the smoke passages around the oven get scrubbed with a brush , top cooking hob comes off get's cleaned underneath...then Esse has a plate at the bottom front of the stove behind a lower door, that comes off and all the scrubbing's can be scraped out through that opening.. I go in with a shop vac..Esse has a lot off excess to clean everything.. I use a dry vent brush on a flex shaft,,,that works good for the tighter areas.. I could add the drill to that like a soot eater , hummmm..

 

[clemsonfor]

I cleaned my masonry chimney too that thing was bad! I am pretty sure my cats were not working right for most of the winter!!