When to add more wood to the fire?

[KaptJaq]

My wife always asks if it is time to add more splits to the fire. I tell her to ask the cat. In the picture below the old man, 17 years old, is saying the fire needs wood. If he is completely on the hearth he is letting us know the fire is out and he is getting the last of the heat from the tiles...



A healthy, happy, and warm Holiday season to all!

KaptJaq

 

[Swedishchef]

Very nice picture!

Add when you have to start putting layers of clothing back on

Andrew

 

[Ashful]

Looks a bit simpler and more reliable than WES999's rig:

https://www.hearth.com/talk/posts/1255052

 

[wood burning cop]

i was also wondering about the cycle of a stove. i have read on here that you let it go down to coals and then reload on top of that. is there a reason why you would let it get down to that and let the temp drop vs. adding wood more ofter to keep the stovetop up to say 500-650 degrees. is there any benifit to letting it go down to coals. thanks for any input you have on the topic

 

[remkel]

i was also wondering about the cycle of a stove. i have read on here that you let it go down to coals and then reload on top of that. is there a reason why you would let it get down to that and let the temp drop vs. adding wood more ofter to keep the stovetop up to say 500-650 degrees. is there any benifit to letting it go down to coals. thanks for any input you have on the topic

The only concern I would have is adding a full load of fuel onto a large bed of coals....seems to me you could have too much off gassing resulting in the stove temps taking off.

 

[KaptJaq]

i was also wondering about the cycle of a stove. i have read on here that you let it go down to coals and then reload on top of that. is there a reason why you would let it get down to that and let the temp drop vs. adding wood more ofter to keep the stovetop up to say 500-650 degrees. is there any benifit to letting it go down to coals. thanks for any input you have on the topic

If I don't let the coal bed burn down once in a while it builds up too much, less room for the new load.

On sunny days when I am the only one in the house from 9AM to about 3PM I usually let the coals burn down. It works well for me: A load of small splits about 6AM to heat the house for showers and breakfast. Everybody else off to school or work by 9AM. Instead of another reload I let the coals burn down while the sun maintains the house temps. If it is a really cold day I will add a few small/soft splits during the day to keep the place warm and help the coals burn. A full load about 3PM as the sun fades, keeps the house nice through dinner and until bedtime. The overnight load about 11PM.

KaptJaq

 

[brian89gp]

i was also wondering about the cycle of a stove. i have read on here that you let it go down to coals and then reload on top of that. is there a reason why you would let it get down to that and let the temp drop vs. adding wood more ofter to keep the stovetop up to say 500-650 degrees. is there any benifit to letting it go down to coals. thanks for any input you have on the topic

If I am around I do the 400-700 range. Reload at 400 and have it run up to 700. I have a large house that can suck up any amount of heat I throw at it though.

 

[schlot]

If I am around I do the 400-700 range. Reload at 400 and have it run up to 700. I have a large house that can suck up any amount of heat I throw at it though.

Love the picture. My dogs let me know if it's warm enough. LOL.

I have a question also regarding the loading. Our stove is in our bedroom (no other option but to have it there). Our house is very small and therefore our bedroom isn't large either. I have a fan blowing into the bedroom that keeps the other rooms warm.

I have found that by taking the stove up to the 400 to 500 range for any extended time, the bedroom temps just get too hot. We have gotten use to 80 - 82 in the bedroom but beyond that it's uncomfortable.Therefore I usually run the stove at 300 range to 400 range but this makes loading up for an all night burn impossible. I'm not using shoulder wood (cottonwood, aspen) any more so using harder woods does help some. I also try to put on rounds on as the last load of the evening too. Even with that I tend to wake up around 3 to 4 to restart the fire for the morning routine.

Because of the lower temps I run (read creosote), it's part of my routine that every other day I run the stove up to 700 to 800 range.

Any ideas that I might try to help extend a "warm" heat?

 

[corey21]

Nice pic.

The only concern I would have is adding a full load of fuel onto a large bed of coals....seems to me you could have too much off gassing resulting in the stove temps taking off.

+1

 

[wood burning cop]

so it would be ok to do some small reloads as long as the coal are not too high and this would keep the temps up and then one in a while let the coals burn down and do a full reload?

 

[KaptJaq]

so it would be ok to do some small reloads as long as the coal are not too high and this would keep the temps up and then one in a while let the coals burn down and do a full reload?

In my opinion, yes. That is what I basically do during cold days. Just keep an eye on it for a little while after the reload to make sure the stove is stable.

KaptJaq

 

[oldspark]

If I am around I do the 400-700 range. Reload at 400 and have it run up to 700. I have a large house that can suck up any amount of heat I throw at it though.

pretty much what I do, if I need more heat I will put wood in at any time I want, never have had the stove run away from me.

 

[rdust]

i was also wondering about the cycle of a stove. i have read on here that you let it go down to coals and then reload on top of that. is there a reason why you would let it get down to that and let the temp drop vs. adding wood more ofter to keep the stovetop up to say 500-650 degrees. is there any benifit to letting it go down to coals. thanks for any input you have on the topic

I personally have no interest in touching a stove that much. I have no concrete data but for me burning full loads seems to be the more efficient way to go.

 

[firebroad]

My wife always asks if it is time to add more splits to the fire. I tell her to ask the cat. In the picture below the old man, 17 years old, is saying the fire needs wood. If he is completely on the hearth he is letting us know the fire is out and he is getting the last of the heat from the tiles...

View attachment 83977

A healthy, happy, and warm Holiday season to all!

KaptJaq

Love it! I wish my "thermostat" was that obliging. Mine only sleeps on my favorite chair.
1

 

[wood burning cop]

i was only looking at the benefit of trying to keep the house a more even temp. with the longer cycles you get a greater swing in the temp in the house.

 

[oldspark]

i was only looking at the benefit of trying to keep the house a more even temp. with the longer cycles you get a greater swing in the temp in the house.

Excatly and when we have cold temps and south winds I need the heat, run your stove as you see fit for your needs.

 

[corey21]

Some times the last month or so i have been only putting one split in but that don't happen to much when my house gets to warm i just don't reload then when ti drops down some i just rekindle the fire.

 

[Backwoods Savage]

We are getting close to that time of the year when soon there will be posts wanting to know what folks do with all the coals. They will have the problem of so many coals that there is not enough room left in the stove to stock up for a good overnight burn. A very common problem and it is worse for those who do not have good dry wood.

What we found out (yes, we had that problem when we bought this stove) is that when the weather does turn cold (it will) and we need more heat, just before the burn reaches the all coal state, we turn the draft wide open. This will hold the stove temperature up while burning down the coals. Some ask if this isn't sending extra heat up the chimney. It will some but we really do not notice the flue temperature rise much if at all but it burns down the coals. It really has to hurt those poor souls who actually go to the extreme and shovel hot coals out of the stove and take them outdoors. What a waste...

 

[David Tackett]

This may be unconventional, but what I do is watch the thermostat when the coal cycle is going on. When the thermostat drops a degree or two the stove is longer heating or maintaining heat, time to fill 'er up again.

 

[Ashful]

This may be unconventional, but what I do is watch the thermostat when the coal cycle is going on. When the thermostat drops a degree or two the stove is longer heating or maintaining heat, time to fill 'er up again.

That's what I do too... I try to watch the thermostat on the wall in the rear foyer, and the stove-top thermo. It's always a game to wait until the wall thermostat shows the room temp dropping, while still having enough temp left on the stove-top thermometer to get an easy re-light.

 

[Wood Duck]

I burn mostly with full loads. I don't reload until the coals are partially burnt away. If I reload too soon I have coals building up a little more each load. In general I can let the coals burn away during the day, then at night load a little sooner and end up with lots of coals in the morning.

My stove does not produce even heat, but the thermal inertia of the house helps even out the temperature. We also use electric baseboard heat in some of the rooms which evens things out.

 

[Hickorynut]

I smell smoke or at least gases if I open the door to add wood before it is down to at least big coals or where you can break it up in coals. So generally add wood and in about 3 hours add more wood. Yes, no totally happy with the stove for sure.

 

[oldspark]

I smell smoke or at least gases if I open the door to add wood before it is down to at least big coals or where you can break it up in coals. So generally add wood and in about 3 hours add more wood. Yes, no totally happy with the stove for sure.

Do you open up the air and wait a few minutes before you open the door, why are you not happy with the stove?

 

[remkel]

I smell smoke or at least gases if I open the door to add wood before it is down to at least big coals or where you can break it up in coals. So generally add wood and in about 3 hours add more wood. Yes, no totally happy with the stove for sure.

Do you open up the air and wait a few minutes before you open the door, why are you not happy with the stove?

+1. I would also add that you may be opening the door too quickly.

 

[Treacherous]

I smell smoke or at least gases if I open the door to add wood before it is down to at least big coals or where you can break it up in coals. So generally add wood and in about 3 hours add more wood. Yes, no totally happy with the stove for sure.

I notice your Lopi Freedom has a bypass like my Endeavor. Could you possibly have a draft issue?

What is your flue configuration? Is your house really tightly sealed and maybe could use an OAK?

I've never had smoke spill out of my Endeavor. I always make sure to open the bypass before opening door.