removing ash from stove at season's end

[JamesGuido]

been burning wood for heat since '90.
on my third and most likely last woodstove.
have always removed ash from my stoves almost daily during the burning/heating season...
until i joined this joint.
you folks taught me to leave ash in the ash pan... nice. i like.
now, at season's end, can i leave it in there and just clean out the stove?
or should i clean out ALL the ash?

Thank you all for teaching me some new tricks and for some fresh ideas as well, greatly appreciated!

 

[begreen]

That's your call. As long as it's dry it's pretty inert.

How has the new stove worked out for you this season?

 

[kborndale]

I remove all the ash at the end of season, I get in there with the shop vac. If left in there I can smell the ash over the summer.

 

[begreen]

I remove all the ash at the end of season, I get in there with the shop vac. If left in there I can smell the ash over the summer.

Might be negative pressure, perhaps due to a closed-up house with AC running? If so, cleaning it out is a good plan. We pretty much have windows open from June or July thru Sept. It's rare for us to run the heat pump in AC mode.

 

[gthomas785]

I remove all the ash for the summer. Depending on the humidity where you live it may not matter, but ash becomes caustic if it gets damp and will rust your stove.

 

[xman23]

Must be a bit of ash for a season. Clean down is what I would do.

 

[wagdog]

I clean it out when the heating season is over.

 

[JamesGuido]

Thank you all for your responses... I know now what I will do.

How has the new stove worked out for you this season?

The Jøtul F500, for us, has been phenomenal... compared to our old 1993 VC Encore, the Jøtul doesn't take much to heat the house, seems to burn longer... and i have gotten use to using the side door only. I thought I would miss top-loading, however, I do not.

our stoves from 1991 - 2021.

 

[esparent]

Thank you all for your responses... I know now what I will do.

The Jøtul F500, for us, has been phenomenal... compared to our old 1993 VC Encore, the Jøtul doesn't take much to heat the house, seems to burn longer... and i have gotten use to using the side door only. I thought I would miss top-loading, however, I do not.

View attachment 277556View attachment 277557View attachment 277558
our stoves from 1991 - 2021.

What are those rings around the first 16" of the oldest stove in those pictures? Are they some sort of radiator fins? Never seen anything like that.

 

[kennyp2339]

I typically do my big end of season cleaning once I'm certain that I'm done burning (usually happens the fist week of May) I brush the chimney, clean the cap, clean the black pipe, vacuum the debris that falls from the chimney then clean the ashes out of the fire box, test my gaskets and inspect the stove for any wear or damage, this insures that I'm ready to rock and roll with no thought process come the end of October or early November when I need a fire.

 

[JamesGuido]

What are those rings around the first 16" of the oldest stove in those pictures? Are they some sort of radiator fins? Never seen anything like that.

dust collectors.
yeah, something like radiator fins... thin, funky spring steel type of strips that clip end to end wrapping around the flue.
they're still available... do they work? dunno, got tired of cleaning them, i tossed them out.

 

[Sawset]

Early June is usually the last fire here. At that point the stove is cleaned completely of ash, wire brush it a little to get rid of flakes and crust and to make sure the ash pan seats all the way back, clear the dog house and squirt a little graphite, and put a little on the door hinges and latches too. The chimney can wait - a lot of times I would want it cold outside/warm inside, to carry the brush dust up and out with a strong draft, so spring, fall, winter for that, not near summer time. We burn fairly clean, so every couple years for brushing seems to be the norm now. We also let ash pile up for quite some time before shoveling that out. I've gotten so I don't even open the front door anymore, even for that. Shovel out the ash from the side door, to the level of the grate. A wet wash cloth or two cleans the glass through the side door from the inside. Even in the cold of winter, ash will build up for a couple weeks before removing it.

 

[kborndale]

What are those rings around the first 16" of the oldest stove in those pictures? Are they some sort of radiator fins? Never seen anything like that.

Creosote makers.

 

[fvhowler]

Spring: Clean out stove, vacuum, clean glass
Fall: Take apart top of stove, clean pipe/chimney (bottom up), check baffle, check and replace gaskets if needed

I prefer not leave ashes in stove over summer and do my stove maintenance in fall in preparation for burn season.

 

[Bad LP]

I fully shovel, clean and vac both the insert and boiler. I already did the insert but then used it again so a "do over" is in order. The boiler will most likely not get fired up again so this weekend I'll handle that.

 

[JamesGuido]

We burn fairly clean, so every couple years for brushing seems to be the norm now. We also let ash pile up for quite some time before shoveling that out. Even in the cold of winter, ash will build up for a couple weeks before removing it.

same here...
i brush the flue every 2-3 years... found very little coming out so i've let it go every other year or so... besides, i hate ladders.

 

[jetsam]

I like to clean out everything, usually June when lows are in the 60s. I traditionally get it started with a firebox full of sticks and pinecones from outside the front door, and that load makes plenty of ash.

Cleaning out everything once a year gives you a chance to inspect your firebrick.

 

[begreen]

same here...
i brush the flue every 2-3 years... found very little coming out so i've let it go every other year or so... besides, i hate ladders.

We're on a couple year flue cleaning cycle as well. All I have gotten for the past several years is about a cup of brown powder. Seasoned firewood rules.

 

[Simonkenton]

Remove it. It could absorb moisture during the summer and cause problems.

 

[Dix]

I clean it out, replace bricks if needed, sweep, etc.

Dump the ash in the flower beds. Poor woman's lime

 

[begreen]

Remove it. It could absorb moisture during the summer and cause problems.

Depends on the stove and the climate. If the stove has no grate and a firebrick floor then there is little to harm. And we do not have the summer humidity seen on the east coast. I leave it be because I may be lighting up in June or possibly in early July. The stove gets cleaned in Sept. No sign of corrosion or other issues after 12 yrs. Yeah, I'm lazy but much more busy outside now.

 

[firefighterjake]

Some years I've cleaned the ash out . . . some years I simply kept burning and then forgot to clean it out until Fall. In either case, it seems as though there was no harm or foul in either cleaning it out at the end of the burning season or leaving it in there.

 

[Grizzerbear]

I take my ashes out and thoroughly clean the firebox after I have swept the flue which I do around May 1st. We have very high humidity in the summer so I want it out of there. After that I block off the flue from the stove at the flue collar and put a tub of damp rid in the firebox and seal her up. If the humidity didn't get so high I wouldn't worry about it.

 

[john sulllivan]

my wife would clean out the wood stove at the end of the season, replace any gaskets that where bad and give it a coat of stove back. "vc intrepid 2". i would cut and split the wood. she would also help with splitting and stacking. we burnt wood for twenty years. we where much younger in them days.