burnt03
Feeling the Heat
Sorry velvet, I thought your last post was an answer to John's post (#68). So when you close down for an overnight burn, do you have much for flame?
Regency i3100
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Sorry velvet, I thought your last post was an answer to John's post (#68). So when you close down for an overnight burn, do you have much for flame?
Well, if I put a lot of wood in there, there's more flame, naturally, even at the same air opening of 1/4". But, if it's burning real well, and I feel like it, I'll put it all the way in. That goes for in the morning when I leave for work too-generally 1/4" out and fan on low. I ramp down the air gradually (within time constraints) without losing the flames.
Something else happened this morning related to the door's designed max opening of 90 degrees, which caused me to write a note to myself. Self: when reloading, don't burn forehead on open door.
Something else happened this morning related to the door's designed max opening of 90 degrees, which caused me to write a note to myself. Self: when reloading, don't burn forehead on open door.
i tried raking the coals to the front of the fire this morning. threw 2 small logs in the back. they did not light. are u guys using fire starters to light up fires the next day? how do the logs light up otherwise if they arent in contact with any of the coals?
You want the combustion air from the doghouse to blow across/through the coals onto the wood. That heated air will ignite you new load... What size splits are you putting in there, John?
You raked the coals to the front and threw the splits in the back? Shouldn't they be on top of the coals? I just poke the coal bed a little and level it out with the poker. I also have some splitter scrap that I put in trash cans that I've put on top of the coals for kindling. The stove seems to produce a pretty even bed.
The splits don't need to be on the coals. The heated air will ignite them fine. They do need to be small in order to get them started, if there's nothing left but coals.
i use the same rutland fire starters, velvetfoot...are you using kindling with them? then addding logs after its hot enough? i am still having some issues starting her up in the morning........ Daksy, the splits i usually place in there are ~ 18 inches long and no more than 3-4 inches in diameter...smaller splits than what i would normally throw in a blazing fire.
etiger2007
Minister of Fire
etiger2007
Minister of Fire
Now I need to know if Im doing this wrong, when I reload I rack the coals to the front of the stove the back of the fire box is just brick. I load from the back to the front, usually two splits in the back ( bigger ones one on top of the other) two on the coals and what ever else I can fit on top of those. The fire obviously starts with the wood on the coals and the ones in the back I thought where catching fire later in the burn thus giving me a longer burn time. Im reading to rake the coals forward and only load the back. Any suggestions.
I don't need kindling with the fire starters, but I have about 3 cans of the kindling stuff left that I want to burn up.
For example, yesterday, my wife was gone all day and things were a little cold when I got home. I poked and leveled the ash/coal bed, put some of the splitter junk down, put some splits in (front to back), put one of the little fire starter squares under the wood by the doghouse hole, totally opened the air control rod, turned off the fan, lit the square, closed the door to a crack, did some stuff in the kitchen while keeping an eye on things, closed door when things got started, turned on the fan manually, progressively shut down air control (not letting flames die out) until control rod was 1/4" out. At some point, I turn on the fan to low and 'auto' so it turns itself off, if it ever gets that cold (in retrospect, I don't think it got that cold).
In the depth of winter, I'm sure things will be different. Maybe keep the rod out a little more, and put fan on high.
I'm no expert; that's just what I do, for now anyway.
For example, yesterday, my wife was gone all day and things were a little cold when I got home. I poked and leveled the ash/coal bed, put some of the splitter junk down, put some splits in (front to back), put one of the little fire starter squares under the wood by the doghouse hole, totally opened the air control rod, turned off the fan, lit the square, closed the door to a crack, did some stuff in the kitchen while keeping an eye on things, closed door when things got started, turned on the fan manually, progressively shut down air control (not letting flames die out) until control rod was 1/4" out. At some point, I turn on the fan to low and 'auto' so it turns itself off, if it ever gets that cold (in retrospect, I don't think it got that cold).
In the depth of winter, I'm sure things will be different. Maybe keep the rod out a little more, and put fan on high.
I'm no expert; that's just what I do, for now anyway.
Sounds to me like you nailed the reload. I do the same. Full air on the coals for a minute or so if they need to wake up a bit, then reload. Sometimes a stick of kindling on the coals to ensure a quick light.
Gabe
Maybe this time of year? I mean, you have to stuff it full of wood when it gets cold, no?
PS: I really loading front to back, ie, north-south.
is there an "ideal" moisture level with wood? I've heard anything less than 20% is fine but will say 10% burn better? most of my wood is between 12-18% according to my moisture meter.....
mfglickman
Minister of Fire
Did you do a fresh split and get 12-18% on the interior? If so that's nice wood.
This happened to me all the time last year with sub-prime wood. This year with good coals it starts right up - with small coals I toss some kindling or a couple of small splits onto the coals, leaving the bigger stuff in the back to burn slower.
i purchased this wood about a month ago. seems like good wood. i test every piece but it seems even with some pieces reading 15%, they will "fizz" a little when i place them i the fire.
mfglickman
Minister of Fire
Not to harp on it but do you split it and test it? Or are you just testing the already split edges?
i am testing the already split edges....should i try splitting some pieces smaller and testing that way?
We have had an I3100 for a couple of years now and really like it.
First off just to clarify a little, the I3100 and HI300 are a little different, the I3100 has a 2.9cuft firebox, the HI300 is 2.3. That 1/2 cuft makes a big difference in this case (our Nap stove has 2.25 cuft and can't come close to the perf of the I3100.)
1. For starting we now use the Pine Mountain starter "log" firestarters. They're kind of a brick thing. We break one in half, throw a couple of splits on the bottom, the 1/2 brick and a couple of splits over top of the brick. Open the air full, close the door tight and 1/2 later, fire is going well. This is the only way my wife will start a cold fire. No smoke, no fuss. Have you checked your door seal and gasket? Try the dollar bill test to make sure you don't have a little seapage into the room. Also as someone else mentioned, make sure you have no stove or bathroom fans running when you're starting a new fire, this will draw smoke back into the room in most cases. Plus there's no dinking around with an open door (dangerous) or fussing with it. Those starter logs come in boxes of 24, so using 1/2 at a time gives us 48 cold starts, usually way more then we need in a season. Last year we started once in Dec and didn't use another until end of Feb. For re-loads, I turn off the blower and rarely get much smoke back into the room. As soon as I close the door, blower goes back on.
2. Operating the I3100 is pretty simple, but can be a little tricky. You may not be letting it get hot enough to burn efficiently (presuming you now have some decent dry wood). The thermometer will help. We have ours just above the LHS corner of the door on the front face. I also have a cheap IR gun which I use more to check the magnetic than anything. I let it get up to between 500 on the front of the stove (which is a little cooler than the actualy stove top temp becuase of the way the insert is "wrapped" in steel. Once it gets up to that temp, we shut down 1/2 way for a few minutes, then all the way down. With that we get nice secondaries and the stove temps usually go up some as the stove gets hotter from the sec burn. When we started I had similar issues and my installer suggested getting it to the temps I mentioned. It worked much better even with somewhat "wetter" wood. I leave the blower on low speed all the time (except in the early fall/late spring) and it pushes out enormous amounts of heat.
3. In your area you should be getting a decent mix of hardwood - it all burns great. If you have lots of Oak, split it small and let it season for 2 years if you can.
4. "Burn time" seems to have the ad hoc definition of something like "amount of time between loading the stove to the gills and when you can put in more wood without having to re-start from scratch"
Truth be told, for the nights, I fill it up N/W as much as I reasonably can and usually 8 hours later when I get up, I simply throw a couple of splits on in the morning and open the air full. If it's really cold, I'll fill it up in the morning and it catches pretty well. If you're only getting 3-4 hours, either you're not filling it up enough, maybe turning down too late, not turning down enough, maybe not getting hot enuf to turn down fully, some combination of the above.
5. We use a single 12" floor fan to circulate air in our 1800 sqft bungalow - 1/2 open concept. Our bedroom was 78F last night when we went to bed - O/S temp was 28F. I tried using my central blower and it really wasn't that effective, plus it's a much more expensive fan to operate. If it works for you, great - try a smaller fan blowing in to the stove room for fun just to see if it works and you may be able to leave the furnace fan off.
I'd suspect that you have a combination of a) some wood that is less than seasoned and b) need a little adjustment to your technique (temp b4 turn down etc). Once you get it dialed in you'll be toasty warm I'm sure.
First off just to clarify a little, the I3100 and HI300 are a little different, the I3100 has a 2.9cuft firebox, the HI300 is 2.3. That 1/2 cuft makes a big difference in this case (our Nap stove has 2.25 cuft and can't come close to the perf of the I3100.)
1. For starting we now use the Pine Mountain starter "log" firestarters. They're kind of a brick thing. We break one in half, throw a couple of splits on the bottom, the 1/2 brick and a couple of splits over top of the brick. Open the air full, close the door tight and 1/2 later, fire is going well. This is the only way my wife will start a cold fire. No smoke, no fuss. Have you checked your door seal and gasket? Try the dollar bill test to make sure you don't have a little seapage into the room. Also as someone else mentioned, make sure you have no stove or bathroom fans running when you're starting a new fire, this will draw smoke back into the room in most cases. Plus there's no dinking around with an open door (dangerous) or fussing with it. Those starter logs come in boxes of 24, so using 1/2 at a time gives us 48 cold starts, usually way more then we need in a season. Last year we started once in Dec and didn't use another until end of Feb. For re-loads, I turn off the blower and rarely get much smoke back into the room. As soon as I close the door, blower goes back on.
2. Operating the I3100 is pretty simple, but can be a little tricky. You may not be letting it get hot enough to burn efficiently (presuming you now have some decent dry wood). The thermometer will help. We have ours just above the LHS corner of the door on the front face. I also have a cheap IR gun which I use more to check the magnetic than anything. I let it get up to between 500 on the front of the stove (which is a little cooler than the actualy stove top temp becuase of the way the insert is "wrapped" in steel. Once it gets up to that temp, we shut down 1/2 way for a few minutes, then all the way down. With that we get nice secondaries and the stove temps usually go up some as the stove gets hotter from the sec burn. When we started I had similar issues and my installer suggested getting it to the temps I mentioned. It worked much better even with somewhat "wetter" wood. I leave the blower on low speed all the time (except in the early fall/late spring) and it pushes out enormous amounts of heat.
3. In your area you should be getting a decent mix of hardwood - it all burns great. If you have lots of Oak, split it small and let it season for 2 years if you can.
4. "Burn time" seems to have the ad hoc definition of something like "amount of time between loading the stove to the gills and when you can put in more wood without having to re-start from scratch"
Truth be told, for the nights, I fill it up N/W as much as I reasonably can and usually 8 hours later when I get up, I simply throw a couple of splits on in the morning and open the air full. If it's really cold, I'll fill it up in the morning and it catches pretty well. If you're only getting 3-4 hours, either you're not filling it up enough, maybe turning down too late, not turning down enough, maybe not getting hot enuf to turn down fully, some combination of the above.5. We use a single 12" floor fan to circulate air in our 1800 sqft bungalow - 1/2 open concept. Our bedroom was 78F last night when we went to bed - O/S temp was 28F. I tried using my central blower and it really wasn't that effective, plus it's a much more expensive fan to operate. If it works for you, great - try a smaller fan blowing in to the stove room for fun just to see if it works and you may be able to leave the furnace fan off.
I'd suspect that you have a combination of a) some wood that is less than seasoned and b) need a little adjustment to your technique (temp b4 turn down etc). Once you get it dialed in you'll be toasty warm I'm sure.
Wow, I didn't realize the I3100 had a 2.9 ft3 box! That's fantastic. I will I could've fit something like that. Maybe I was thinking about another Regency model-the i2400?
Yeah - the HI300 and the I2400 are closer in size and I think they share some of the same construction (tho I'm not 100% sure on that). The HI300 is nice, but wasn't big enuf for what I wanted.
shouldnt i be able to start a fire with kindling with the door WIDE open with no smoke coming into the house? now this installer is saying he may have to "insulate" the chimney....
etiger2007
Minister of Fire
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