Silly questions regarding chimney cleaning and ash removal

[newwoodinsert]

Hi all!

I posted a while back about nearing install with our new insert. We are new woodburners, though my in-laws are VERY experienced (though a bit old-school in certain ways). Anyway, the useless firebox is out, we have our chimney liner, insulation, insert, etc. We're hoping to have everything installed within the next 2 weeks, and we live near Rochester, NY, so I expect we'll be as close to 24/7 burners as our work schedules allow us.

Anyway, here are my 2 foolish questions:
(1) How do you clean the ashes out of your stove/insert when you are burning 24/7? I know I'll want an ash bed of about 2 inches or so, but when it gets to be more than that, won't the fire need to die down a good bit in order to clean out the excess ash?
(2) Same kind of question, but for cleaning the chimney. If you're burning 24/7, when do you check your chimney? I mean, I know that folks here recommend at least monthly when you are getting used to your new stove, if not more often, but how do you do it? And isn't it unsafe to check a chimney by climbing up a snowy, icy roof? I see people talking about bottom-down cleaning, but again, how does that work, esp. when burning 24/7?

Thanks for your patience with what I'm sure are foolish questions.

 

[kettensäge]

Hi and welcome.
There are no foolish questions.
I clean my ash in the morning before refire for the day. Not every morning but when needed. No need to completly remove all ash just what is excessive.

Handle hot ash/coals safely.

Check the chimney after the fire is out for a while. Once you get experience you will find the frequency that best fits your set up. I check mine once a year in the fall before the first fire of the season.
I never any need to actually clean it as I burn well seasoned wood at the right surface temps, and I have a liner which is basically self cleaning under the right conditions.

24/7 doesn't actually mean 24/7. You will need to have down time for maintenance.

 

[Backwoods Savage]

Welcome to the forum newwoodinsert.

Some silly answers to your silly questions. ;-)


To clean the ashes, you just wait until you have nothing but coals and let those burn down a bit if possible. We just use the poker and sort of push the coals one way to the side and scoop out some ash. Then move the coals to the side where you just cleaned and scoop out some more ash. Job done.

Checking chimney. Best done when fire has almost burned out or down to coals so that you can see well up the chimney otherwise you'd be trying to look through the smoke.

When cleaning the chimney we let the coals burn down quite a bit before doing the cleaning. The actual cleaning for us takes all of about 10 minutes so it is not a problem. We do clean from the bottom as we have a Tee that makes it easy to shove the brush up through that. For top down, yes, climbing on the roof is always a test and certainly not the best time when the roof is covered with ice and snow. Can't really recommend not knowing what your situation is like.

 

[tcassavaugh]

welcome...pretty much the same here but i have a small hatch to put my ashes through and they drop into a bin below the stove. i have an old metal garbage pail, probably 15 or so gallons that i bought at ace long ago i place my ash in when the bin gets full. easy to take out and dump on a rainy day. i like the top on it as it helps keep it a little cleaner. make sure the pail stays on a noncombustable surface. you'll get the hang of it over time and work out a routine that works best for you.

cass

 

[newwoodinsert]

Thanks, guys. Sometimes it is just the little things ya need to know for sure!

 

[BrotherBart]

You will find that in the morning after a night burn the front half of the firebox is ash and the coals will be at the back. That is the best time to take a few scoops out before reloading.

 

[firefighterjake]

Hi all!

I posted a while back about nearing install with our new insert. We are new woodburners, though my in-laws are VERY experienced (though a bit old-school in certain ways). Anyway, the useless firebox is out, we have our chimney liner, insulation, insert, etc. We're hoping to have everything installed within the next 2 weeks, and we live near Rochester, NY, so I expect we'll be as close to 24/7 burners as our work schedules allow us.

Anyway, here are my 2 foolish questions: As mentioned . . . there is no such thing as a foolish question . . . well except maybe a question like "Which is the best way to split my wood with a hydraulic splitter?" since the clear answer would be "Horizontally."

(1) How do you clean the ashes out of your stove/insert when you are burning 24/7? I know I'll want an ash bed of about 2 inches or so, but when it gets to be more than that, won't the fire need to die down a good bit in order to clean out the excess ash? In my own case having an ash pan helps, but the same process occurs even without an ash pan . . . generally you want to do this after a long, overnight fire when you have just a few coals . . . at this point you can stir up the ash/coal mix which will cause more of the ash to drop into the ash pan or you can start moving the hot coals to the side and scoop out the ash . . . some folks also use ash rakes for this purpose . . . in either case the goal is to remove the excess ash and leave the hot coals so you can toss some kindling on the coals in a bit and have the fire start up again lickety split.

(2) Same kind of question, but for cleaning the chimney. If you're burning 24/7, when do you check your chimney? I mean, I know that folks here recommend at least monthly when you are getting used to your new stove, if not more often, but how do you do it? And isn't it unsafe to check a chimney by climbing up a snowy, icy roof? I see people talking about bottom-down cleaning, but again, how does that work, esp. when burning 24/7? I check and clean my chimney monthly . . . again . . . typically in the morning before doing a reload. In my own case I have an out-and-up set up meaning I go through the wall to a T outside and then the chimney goes up . . . due to this configuration I can easily remove three screws and run my chimney brush up from bottom which makes this task very easy. Thanks for your patience with what I'm sure are foolish questions.

 

[Backwoods Savage]

When will Jake ever learn the proper way of splitting wood? Not horizontally, but VERTICALLY is the way to go. Saves a lot of work.

 

[firefighterjake]

When will Jake ever learn the proper way of splitting wood? Not horizontally, but VERTICALLY is the way to go. Saves a lot of work.

HehHeh . . . I always try to slip these digs in . . . and you always seem to find 'em.

 

[GLopi]

I have been doing this for a while, and I have the same question....how do you burn for more than a day, if your stove requires that you open the door, and pull out a "trap" door, in order to fill your ash pan....Read On. :

I am in my 40's, and I have been cutting/burning wood for 20 years., I bought a Lopi-Avalon Yankee Bay pellet insert, because
I was done burning wood., I have asked a dozen people how often they have to clean their pellet inserts. Most say every week or so.
My stove was proffesionaly installed. I clean my stove better than a service person would. It gets completely disassembled, vacuumed
re-assembled..I get about 12 hours out of it, before the ash "tray" is full, not much ever makes it to the ash "pan", because of the poor design of the stove. After 2 bags, the stove is completely covered in ash, tray is full, there is only a tiny slot, for the ashes to make it down to the removable pan...after only 2 bags worth.
So, anyone that gets 4-5 days between cleanings, what "magic" process are you using?
I have used every single brand of pellet out there, and never a Big-Box store brand of pellet.
My air / fuel settings are perfect, as I use a carbon smoke meter to measure it. ( just like your furnace guy does)
When I bought this stove, I was told I would only have to clean it "once a week"...that's funny.
If anyone would like to purchase a stove, that is only two years old, just inquire. It's in perfect condition, and better maintained than most people's.