Is this a Secondary Burn?

[Jotel me this]

Stove burning for several hours.
Its now night time... want to leave it unattended when I sleep.
Red hot coals on the bottom, no real visible flame coming from the wood..
..every few seconds i see a puff of flame up top which dances around and then disappears.
1. Is this the elusive Secondary Burn?

2. If they are.. are they supposed to happen continuously? or just show up occasionally?

3. Does the secondary burn only happen when you first start the fire/add wood? or is it a continual process during the entire burning stages. Should i even be expecting a secondary burn at night?

(In another thread someone else mentioned flames coming out of the holes in the baffle of the F-55 is the Secondary Burn.. but i dont see flames in those holes. just a whispy flame up top which only shows for a second then disappears and repeats)

 

[Jan Pijpelink]

It looks like it.

 

[Alpine1]

Yep, secondary indeed. If the temps are high enough, the show can go on until the wood has ended the off gassing stage. The fact that the flame disappears can be due to wood not perfectly dry.

 

[Ludlow]

Ever see a bed of coals make a pop and release a little smoke? That is what you see igniting I believe.

 

[begreen]

Are you reading your other threads?

 

[firefighterjake]

Stove burning for several hours.
Its now night time... want to leave it unattended when I sleep.
Red hot coals on the bottom, no real visible flame coming from the wood..
..every few seconds i see a puff of flame up top which dances around and then disappears.
1. Is this the elusive Secondary Burn? Yes . . . one "version". "Ghost Flames": Appear and disappear. There is also the "Propane BBQ Grill": Jets of flame shooting out of the secondary burn tubes and "Portal to Hell": Pretty much looks like a portal to hell has opened up in the upper part of your woodstove.

2. If they are.. are they supposed to happen continuously? or just show up occasionally? No. Only when the air has been turned down and the stove is hot enough. Most folks like to see the secondary burn though since it means it's burning more efficiently and cleanly. Unlike old style woodstoves one turns down the air for both a longer AND hotter burn vs. leaving the air control open with smoke dragons for more heat.

3. Does the secondary burn only happen when you first start the fire/add wood? or is it a continual process during the entire burning stages. Should i even be expecting a secondary burn at night? Depends. When you first start the fire or add wood it will take a while to bring the stove up to temp. The quality of the wood (how well it is seasoned) and draft will influence on how soon you can turn down the air and how much you can turn down the air. On a reload I can get a secondary burn within a half hour to 45 minutes. This will run for the first part of the burn . . . at the coaling stage there will be less of a show.

(In another thread someone else mentioned flames coming out of the holes in the baffle of the F-55 is the Secondary Burn.. but i dont see flames in those holes. just a whispy flame up top which only shows for a second then disappears and repeats)

View attachment 231490View attachment 231491

 

[kennyp2339]

FYI, you don't need a separate thread for every question in your stoves operation.

 

[Jotel me this]

FYI, you don't need a separate thread for every question in your stoves operation.

yes yes... i realize i have become 'that person' in the forum community. OOoops.

 

[firefighterjake]

I mis-wrote . . . What you were seeing were "Firework Secondaries": When the gas builds up and then bursts into flame and goes out, a few minutes later it reappears. "Ghost flames" for me are slow-moving, wavering secondaries above the wood . . . different from the "Portal To Hell" in that they're slower moving and much more peaceful looking to watch vs. the PTH flames which makes one think Beezelbub is about to appear in the stove.

 

[Manly]

Oh yeah! You got it going on now. Feel the burn, that secondary burn.