I am finding it difficult to clean the glass on my quadrafire 7100.My wood is not as seasoned as I wish it was but just got the fireplace a month or so ago so I found as dry of wood as I could.After a slow burn at night the glass is pretty black.Been using glass cleaner on a paper towel dipped in ash. It does finally come clean but takes forever and allot of scrubbing.What do you guys use?
What do you clean with
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jatoxico
Minister of Fire
Easy Off oven cleaner working well. Cheap, handy and gets the tough stuff. I clean every 2-3 weeks to keep things looking good.
You have already put your finger on the problem: unseasoned wood or not enough air to keep the secondaries burning until the wood burns off volatile gases. I use a damp paper towel or damp toilet paper to wipe off any haze, tossing it back on to the coals to burn. That isn't going to work for black stuff. Please don't forget to inspect your
chimney often. If black stuff is forming on your glass, think about what it's doing to your chimney where temps will be even lower.
When I was a new burner last year I had the same issues. The damp newspaper and ash worked good. Using box cutter flat edge blade for the harder corners worked good for the tough areas. I'm not a fan of the woodstove cleaners; Rutland etc, as it will drip down to the gasket and the gasket will act as a sponge, plus the cleaner is like a corrosive. Your not using Windex or anything like that right? This year the game has changed. Having seasoned wood makes all the difference. During the beginning of the season, the glass (actually ceramic, not glass) corners would get little dark, but now for a couple months, everything stays clean. Maybe a slight whitesh haze every so often.
Dirty glass can get frustrating, last year I was little ticked off thinking I'd be cleaning the glass forever not understanding dry wood logic. Now, no worries. Good luck... if you have your wood ready for next year Now, you'll see improvements next year, and of course any oak 2 to 3 years seasoning time. Be well
Dirty glass can get frustrating, last year I was little ticked off thinking I'd be cleaning the glass forever not understanding dry wood logic. Now, no worries. Good luck... if you have your wood ready for next year Now, you'll see improvements next year, and of course any oak 2 to 3 years seasoning time. Be well
I use a small piece of an extra fine Scotch Brite pad.. Dip in water and it will take off any crud.. The cleaners are all unnecessary.
A pair of vinyl gloves helps keep your hands clean
A pair of vinyl gloves helps keep your hands clean
Instead of glass cleaner, just use plain water. Instead of paper towel, use newspaper. Do not get the newspaper wet! All you want is to dampen it a bit then just touch the ash. It should not need scrubbing this way as it should just wipe right off. If you wish to finish the job with paper towels that is fine.
Hearth Mistress
Minister of Fire
White vinegar on a paper towel, if it's really caked up, I sprinkle some good old fashion Bon Ami powder cleanser. Their tag line is "hasn't scratched yet" and I use it to clean just about anything from my stainless steel cookware to my porcelain sink. However, nothing cleans glass better than a hot fire, it will do all the work for you 
I have been using Rutland Glass Cleaner and a somewhat pristine white towel. Been working just fine.
Taft231
Member
I clean mine with windex and paper towels. The key is to spray the glass when it's warm. You can watch the crud run right off the window.
I like the Rutland also but rarely have to use it. Seems to me if your needing to use a razor blade or scotch brite then fire box temps are way to low.
I recently discovered baby wipes work real good dipped in ash. However the easiest way to clean glass is just have a nice hot fire and let it do the work.
Blue2ndaries
Minister of Fire
Hi ymurf, the glass on our 7100FP gets hazy and collects some fly-ash, but really doesn't get black as I've been pretty diligent to use well-seasoned wood. That said I simply use 2 sheets of papertowel, partially wet, and dipped in ash to make a slight "paste" that really gets the glass clean. If/when the glass does get some black on it, it may require just an extra sheet of papertowel maybe a little more wet for wetter paste. Good luck!
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