Starting Fires & Fire Starters

[Parallax]

Yesterday, I fired the Ashford back up. It was rainy and cold and the forecast called for continued rain through Tuesday.

Since I was really tired, I decided to light off with the Blaze King fire starter that came with the stove. It went off fine but the smoke wasn't venting up the pipe but rather curling back into the stove. Then the smoke started coming into the house. I'm not sure from where. Does the stove itself leak when it's not drafting?

A few minutes later, it began coming out of the place in the chimney pipe where the two sections are screwed together. The top pipe sits over the lower pipe but, since the smoke was descending, it was spilling out through the tiny space between the pipes. Again, is this normal?

Obviously the problem was my inexperience starting fires. I opened the windows and set up a big fan to drive the smoke out, then opened the door to the stove and began blowing onto the fire. The air began rising up the stove pipe. I then left the door cracked for 30 seconds and everything was fine after that.

My concern is just whether the stove and pipe should be absolutely tight always or if it's normal to get some smoke leakage under these circumstances.

Also, how can one order more of the Blaze King fire starters? Is it alright to use other fire starters?

Is it alright to use another brand, such as Lightening Nuggets, which are made with "recycled forest by-products" and paraffin wax.

 

[SteveKG]

You can use any fire starter you want. Many of us here use Super Cedars. Do a search. I also make my own out of pine cones I dip into melted paraffin.

With some models of stove, leaving the door cracked open a tiny bit while the start-up is in progress is normal. I don't have any experience with yours, but it may well be like that.

Stove pipe sections are not usually air tight, unless you have some sort of stainless welded together at the junctions. The draft keeps smoke/gas from seeping out those connections.

 

[bholler]

It will be much harder to start the warmer it gets. And yes if you have no draft smoke can come out lots of places. It sounds to me like your pipe is upside down as well the male end should always face towards the stove. In other words the top pipe slides into the bottom one.

 

[Ram 1500 with an axe...]

Yep.....too warm to be lighting fires, what happened to you is completely normal......
I recommend fat wood, 1 or 2 pieces wrapped in newspaper gives a fool proof start at a good price......
Super cedars are great, just a little too expensive for me.....
Those lightning nuggets suck, I gave mine away when I got my fat wood......

 

[NWfuel]

The Blaze King fire starter is a Super Cedar.
Thomas

 

[fossil]

Super Cedars are the best thing since split wood. Costs me a whopping 15 cents to start a fire.

 

[Have maul will travel]

I would echo bholler's comment about your stovepipe being installed upside down. You want to keep anything coming down the pipe inside of your stovepipe and have it end up in the stove if necessary. Once your chimney heats up the draft will keep any smoke going up inside your chimney it's the stuff coming down the pipe, creosote etc. getting into your living room that you want to avoid.

 

[blueguy]

IIRC, the OP has double wall pipe - the outer sleeve of the upper pipe will sit lower than the inner sleeve of the lower pipe section.

My Sirocco does the same thing as you described if I try and use Super Cedars alone when starting up a cold stove on a damp day. The problem is there is no draft until your flue starts to heat up. Easy way to solve it is by lighting up some newspaper bows before your load and Super Cedar. When starting from cold, I put the splits in, a hunk of SC on top, and leave enough room for a couple newspaper bows on the very top to get the draft kick started. Works every time and no smoke to boot

 

[fossil]

how can one order more of the Blaze King fire starters?

http://www.supercedar.com/

Hearth.com members get a 10% discount, just type in "hearth14" where the discount code goes when ordering. Shipping is free and lightning fast. Great company with a great product. Rick

 

[Parallax]

It is a double wall pipe. From the outside, it looks like the lower pipe is feeling into (inside) the upper pipe. Is this alright?

When I did that bad start, smoke was coming down the wall of the pipe and also finding places to get outside the stove, though I'm not sure where. Thanks for explaining this is normal.

I see both firestarter options -- supercedars and fat wood. It looks like the supercedars can be cut into quarters. Is that correct? Is one better than the other? Is one less expensive than the other? If one were to order fat wood, where's the best place to get it?

 

[fossil]

It is a double wall pipe. From the outside, it looks like the lower pipe is feeling into (inside) the upper pipe. Is this alright?

Yes.

 

[Parallax]

Yes.

Why was the smoke leaking out? Shouldn't the double walled pipe contain it?

Also, is it normal for a home with a wood stove to smell a bit of wood smoke? That's what's happening for us whenever I run the stove. I'm wondering if there are adverse health effects.

 

[blueguy]

The smoke is coming out the seams due to no / very little draft. Double wall pipe is crimped at the top, effectively joining the inner and outer pipes together. It's normal.

I had a wood smoke smell as well, and it seemed to be coming from the cat thermometer hole. I replaced my flue thermometer with a new one, and used the old gasket to seal it up. The smoke smell went away. I have also read of some who's chimney height was slightly too short due to bends in their flue that gad the same issues. Adding on to the pipe solved it.

I've never used Fatwood, but I do have a case of SC here, and I'm very happy with how easy they are to light. One disk lasts me about 4 or 5 days in the shoulder season

 

[fossil]

The smoke came out because you had no draft. Under normal conditions, with a properly drafting stove, the pressure inside the flue is lower than ambient, so anywhere the stovepipe is not completely sealed (which is perfectly normal), a little room air will be drawn into the flue, rather than flue gases coming out. In your situation, the opposite was true. Your stove pipe is correctly installed. Rick

 

[Parallax]

Thanks and thanks.

 

[highanddryinco]

Tried this last year with great results.
Had had a couple of large (cheap) jugs of hand sanitizer in the house. Put about 4 - 6 pumps into the little tiny Dixie cups like so many of us have sitting next to bottle of mouthwash at the bathroom sink.
Burns clean and hot for several minutes and the Dixie cup walls stay intact down to the level of the remaining gel.
Haven't put a cost per pump to this method yet but it sure seemed economical.

 

[Parallax]

Tried this last year with great results.
Had had a couple of large (cheap) jugs of hand sanitizer in the house. Put about 4 - 6 pumps into the little tiny Dixie cups like so many of us have sitting next to bottle of mouthwash at the bathroom sink.
Burns clean and hot for several minutes and the Dixie cup walls stay intact down to the level of the remaining gel.
Haven't put a cost per pump to this method yet but it sure seemed economical.

I wonder if the chemicals in the sanitizer might harm the stove. Probably not given that it's for use on one's hands and we're talking about a tiny bit of the stuff.

 

[Huntindog1]

I wonder if the chemicals in the sanitizer might harm the stove. Probably not given that it's for use on one's hands and we're talking about a tiny bit of the stuff.

Creosote is pretty corrosive its self.

People with Cat stoves do have to be careful with all kinds of stuff so as to not damage the cat element. Like colored newspaper is what I always heard.
Thats why i like my non-cat stove.

 

[TradEddie]

If you do need to start a fire in low draft conditions (August), crack open a nearby window, and place a large sheet of newspaper barely crumpled on top of the fire. Light your fire then immediately light the newspaper (or vice versa). The quick blast of heat from the newspaper usually jump starts the draft.

TE

 

[Parallax]

If you do need to start a fire in low draft conditions (August), crack open a nearby window, and place a large sheet of newspaper barely crumpled on top of the fire. Light your fire then immediately light the newspaper (or vice versa). The quick blast of heat from the newspaper usually jump starts the draft.

TE

That's exactly what I did last time I started the stove (about two weeks ago, on a rainy night). It worked well. There was zero, or close to zero, smoke leakage.

 

[BCC_Burner]

If you do need to start a fire in low draft conditions (August), crack open a nearby window, and place a large sheet of newspaper barely crumpled on top of the fire. Light your fire then immediately light the newspaper (or vice versa). The quick blast of heat from the newspaper usually jump starts the draft.

TE

I have also found that placing a lit candle (3 wick is my preference) in the stove for 20-30 minutes prior to building your fire. Even this small amount of heat is enough to switch up a reverse draft and get things moving in the right direction. I also do this in the summer when I notice the smell of woodsmoke in my house from a negative draft.

 

[Parallax]

I have also found that placing a lit candle (3 wick is my preference) in the stove for 20-30 minutes prior to building your fire. Even this small amount of heat is enough to switch up a reverse draft and get things moving in the right direction. I also do this in the summer when I notice the smell of woodsmoke in my house from a negative draft.

That's an awesome idea. Thank you. Will try that for sure.

 

[ddahlgren]

To take the chill off on a off season night you need a hot fast fire to get the draft going and plenty of light kindling is the fastest way. I use scrap wood old pallets cedar shingles that sort of thing. Trying to go with what works in January is going to fail badly.

 

[Parallax]

In January I wouldn't expect the stove to shut down even once.

 

[ddahlgren]

In January I wouldn't expect the stove to shut down even once.

Unfortunately with my little stove if I do not check every 3 or 4 hours it will burn to coals and play the catch the embers kindling game.