Just starting my first season as a wood burner. Running my Jotul Oslo right now, its been going for an hour and 20 minutes. Stove top is just over 550, seems to be burning good. With the air control lever all the way down the flames are still quite intense. I am getting flames shooting out of the secondary tubes, but the flames on the logs aren't lazy like I read about they are fairly intense. The air control lever doesn't seem to affect the flames a heck of a lot, I can from full air to 3/4 closed without choking the fire much at all. Stove is brand new, wood is fair, not perfect. Chimney is about 27 feet insulated interior SS liner. Rear flue exit. Temp outside is about 49 degrees. What do you all think? is it running good?
Jotul F500 burn
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Nice. That looks like normal secondary combustion mode. Next fire, try closing down the air as soon as possible without completely extinguishing the flame.
Thanks, I will try that, I started closing the air at about 450 degrees on this burn. I’m at the 2 hr. mark and most of the active flames are gone, I have some whisky blueish flames now and bright red logs. Stove is now about 425. Burn time seems a little short but what do I know.
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SpaceBus
Minister of Fire
You probably don't want a long burn time right now anyway. As the season continues you will get better at getting the most heat out of the wood.
Where was that measured, stove top or stove pipe? The stove top takes a long time to warm up. With the Castine I could start turning down the air at 250º on a cold start up. Not all the way down, just about 50% or until the flames got lazy. Then let the fire regain strength and close it down again. A flue thermometer is a better guide for more consistent timing of when to start closing down the air.
That is the stove top temp, I don’t yet have a flue pipe gauge. I have 100% stainless pipe and a very short horizontal section coming out of the stove before it goes up the chimney flue, so not a lot of room to put a gauge
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I am anticipating a extremely strong draft and thinking of using some aluminum tape to partially block off the air intake if it becomes a problem
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It may be better to go by visuals without a flue thermometer. There is a lag time getting the stove body up to temp unless on a warm reload. Start turning down the air once the fire starts burning robustly regardless of stove top temp. Turn it down in increments as mentioned above.
Yes, once the mass of wood is fully heated it is going to outgas rapidly and secondary combustion will be robust. That is why turning down the air as quickly as possible without squelching the flame completely works better.
Get used to the stove before considering modifications. Is this a version 2 or the new version 3 model?
It is not the new hybrid Oslo so I guess it’s the version 2, I bought it earlier this summer. I will definitely try turning down the air as soon as the fire becomes robust next time.
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firefighterjake has been burning in the F500 for a decade? or so. He's helped a lot of F500 owners optimize their technique. You are off to a good start. At least the wood appears to be nicely seasoned? What are you burning?
I have been struggling to get my hands on some seasoned wood. I have about a cord mixed hardwood, maple, ash, cottonwood, that my moisture meter is reading mid to high 20’s and about half a cord of oak that I put in a solar kiln in August that is around 25%. So I don’t have great wood this year. I have about 4 cords on wood split and stacked that I cut this summer (mostly oak and maybe a cord of maple) that I plan to use next year (going to do a bigger solar kiln and start it in May or June).
So I won’t get to burn my stove too much this year as I just don’t have dry wood
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So I won’t get to burn my stove too much this year as I just don’t have dry wood
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Maple and cottonwood, stove was about 3/4 full, probably could have fit one maybe two more small splits
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Sawset
Minister of Fire
I've had the same stove for quite a while now. I use a probe type thermometer in the stove pipe to determine when and how much to regulate the damper. I also have a stove top gauge, but generally use it for reference only, and for determining if I'm ever nearing an overfire condition.
Startup from a cold start goes something like:
Damper open, side door slightly propped open and light
Probe goes to 4- 500
Side door closed
Probe fluctuates, heads back to 500
Damper closed to nearly shut
Stove is left in that condition for the duration. Watch the probe for a bit to make sure the fire has caught hold enough to be able to leave it alone. Amount of heat needed determines when to add more fuel.
Dry wood allows the temps to rise to operating temps quickly, 15min to shut the door, 5-15 to shut the damper. Usually 20-30min to get everything stabilized enough to walk away. Wet wood, you may need to watch and adjust for a long time. It pays to have dry wood.
Reloading a warm stove means all of that is cut way back, sometimes to nothing at all - throw a couple splits in and walk away, or maybe not - experience will tell working with your draft, wood quality etc.
Probe temp of 4-500 can vary lower, if your willing to watch the process closer to make sure it doesn't drop below the dreaded 250-300 mark. I usually just ramp it up fast, start shutting it at 4-500 , so I can move on. You want the stack temps to get beyond that 250-300 mark as quick as possible to prevent creosote condensing.
Startup from a cold start goes something like:
Damper open, side door slightly propped open and light
Probe goes to 4- 500
Side door closed
Probe fluctuates, heads back to 500
Damper closed to nearly shut
Stove is left in that condition for the duration. Watch the probe for a bit to make sure the fire has caught hold enough to be able to leave it alone. Amount of heat needed determines when to add more fuel.
Dry wood allows the temps to rise to operating temps quickly, 15min to shut the door, 5-15 to shut the damper. Usually 20-30min to get everything stabilized enough to walk away. Wet wood, you may need to watch and adjust for a long time. It pays to have dry wood.
Reloading a warm stove means all of that is cut way back, sometimes to nothing at all - throw a couple splits in and walk away, or maybe not - experience will tell working with your draft, wood quality etc.
Probe temp of 4-500 can vary lower, if your willing to watch the process closer to make sure it doesn't drop below the dreaded 250-300 mark. I usually just ramp it up fast, start shutting it at 4-500 , so I can move on. You want the stack temps to get beyond that 250-300 mark as quick as possible to prevent creosote condensing.
Sawset
Minister of Fire
The first year I didn't have very dry wood to work with either, silver maple left uncovered and outside. I was able to use it though, as long as I was willing to work with it to maintain stack temps. It was a struggle, but the stove was new and I was willing, so it all worked out well. It meant giving it more air, for much longer, to maintain proper temps.
Do you have double wall pipe? I was thinking of getting a washer style thermocouple and secure it to the pipe with a self tapping screw, I will only be able to place it about 8” back from the stove outlet because of the tee connector. What surface temps of the flue pipe am I aiming for?
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Sawset
Minister of Fire
This is what I use. Most use a dial probe specifically for wood flues, with various reasons to back up the choice. This is what I have and have had good luck using it. 6" probe drilled into 6" double wall stove pipe about 18" above the stove. Surface gauges would be less accurate, but possibly easier to install. To be used on single wall only. They would offer an approximation if inside flue gas temps.
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I like that, unfortunately that wouldn’t work for me as I have single wall, and I would have to get my head behind my stove inside the fireplace to actually see it
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If you are going digital then a thermocouple probe should work. It will provide more accurate reading.
Woody Stover
Minister of Fire
I have the same rear-vent tee setup. I just set a magnetic surface meter on the tee snout. It doesn't stick since the snout is stainless, so I have to keep an eye on it to make sure it doesn't move. The surface meter is somewhat hard to see for me, I usually need a flashlight but I don't need to "get my head behind" the stove .
At any rate, I don't like to see much more than about 500 or so on the surface meter on the tee, about 6" back.
Right, be aware that with a surface meter you have to adjust, convention says that the actual interior temp is double what a surface meter reads. My meter lying on the flue is only about 6" back from the flue exit, so I guess more adjustments would have to be made since the usual position for a surface meter is 12-18" above the stove top on a vertical connector pipe, and those are the temps we most often see reported here.
Sawset
Minister of Fire
This is what I have, but not hooked up yet, with a 2000deg probe thermocouple:
A lot of guys are going with something like this:
Universal 1/16 DIN PID Temperature Controller [SYL-2362] - $41.25 : Auber Instruments, Inc., Temperature control solutions for home and industry
Auber Instruments, Inc. Universal 1/16 DIN PID Temperature Controller [SYL-2362] - Product Note: If you want to use this controller to drive multiple (3 or more) single phase AC SSRs, or a 3-phase SSR, please contact us or leave a note with your order. This temperature controller offers great...
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A lot of guys are going with something like this:
Universal Thermometer (Meter Only) [AT100] - $41.50 : Auber Instruments, Inc., Temperature control solutions for home and industry
Auber Instruments, Inc. Universal Thermometer (Meter Only) [AT100] - Product update: For customers who like to order AT100 meter with WRNK-191 thermocouple, please see combo listing AT100TC. Features LED digital display, easy to read from distance. Powered with AC adapter for continuous...
www.auberins.com
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Here is a pic of my flue pipe, the tee snout is about 8-9 inches long. If I put a thermometer there am I going to get a reading that really means anything or is it too close to the stove? Once the liner gets past the block off plate it is insulated all the way to the top. Also this is in the center of my home not an outside wall
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