Wood Burning Safety When Not At Home?

[questarthews]

This isn't a review, but a question I've been thinking about for safety when not at home.

Before getting our stove installed last month we picked up the CO detectors, fire extinguisher, etc. and I saw they have detectors that are "connected" and can contact you when not at home. So now I'm thinking about getting one of these, as well as some sort of camera that can be aimed at the stove and accessed from our phones if the alarm goes off, allowing us to determine if there's an actual emergency and get the fire department on their way.

Does anyone have any experience with a setup like this?

 

[Slocketman]

I don't, but that sounds like a good idea if you need that piece of mind while away.

There are lots of video/audio devices (baby monitors & security cameras) that could give you a remote view of the room, combine that with a smoke/CO alarm that can remotely alert you somehow & Bob's your uncle

Personally I've burned my stove overnight & continuously for days on end enough to not feel like there's any more fire hazard than my gas range or furnace. Of course I do still have CO & smoke alarms but not of the advanced remote-alerting variety.

 

[questarthews]

Generally, I'm not too concerned either.

However my wife doesn't like the idea of leaving it while we are both at work. I'm sure she'll get used to it as well over time though.

My real concern is that with my job, I'm on call and may not be able to stick around as long as I'd like after loading the stove every time. This would ease both of our minds in this case.

I'll do some more research and if I set up a system like that, I'll report back my experiences.

The other thing I thought would be nice is some sort of connected thermometer that could let me know if it begins heating out of control, but that may be too much to ask

 

[Slocketman]

Hm, a WiFi connected stove thermometer...
The(broken link removed to https://www.adurofire.com/aduro-stoves/aduro-smart-response/)has an app but only transmits via Bluetooth, though with a little Arduino/Raspberry Pi fiddling that could be forwarded across WiFi.

Further discussion:
https://www.hearth.com/talk/threads/stove-thermometer.164299/

 

[Medic21]

@Mrpelletburner can prob steer you in the right direction. He has more electronics for his stove than I have in my house lol.

 

[questarthews]

Hm, a WiFi connected stove thermometer...
The(broken link removed to https://www.adurofire.com/aduro-stoves/aduro-smart-response/)has an app but only transmits via Bluetooth, though with a little Arduino/Raspberry Pi fiddling that could be forwarded across WiFi.

Further discussion:
https://www.hearth.com/talk/threads/stove-thermometer.164299/

Very cool, I'll look into that some more. You may have just found my next birthday present

 

[questarthews]

@Mrpelletburner can prob steer you in the right direction. He has more electronics for his stove than I have in my house lol.

I figured the heats involved would be too much. Should have known better, lol.

 

[Zack R]

You'll get comfortable after a while, after all the fire is trapped in a steel box. We had some of the same hesitations at first but now leave the house without issue or worry since the stove has "proven" to us over the last year that it will behave while we are gone.

If you have to leave before the fire is settled in set the air control to the middle so that it won't overfire and it won't smolder. You won't get the long burn times in this instance but it will work just fine.

 

[questarthews]

You'll get comfortable after a while, after all the fire is trapped in a steel box. We had some of the same hesitations at first but now leave the house without issue or worry since the stove has "proven" to us over the last year that it will behave while we are gone.

If you have to leave before the fire is settled in set the air control to the middle so that it won't overfire and it won't smolder. You won't get the long burn times in this instance but it will work just fine.

Thanks, I've had to do this a couple of times now since posting this thread. Went out to the truck yesterday and looked back at the house to see a thick cloud of smoke pouring out and down the chimney. Yikes! Definitely closed it down too far, lol.

I just found out I'm about 4 ft too short on my pipe as well, so will get that remedied to see what difference that makes.

 

[xman23]

Just thinking what we do when going out. Normally the house is up to temp and a bed of coals. So the reload is 3 split with the air almost off. We know exactly how that will burn the full cycle. My stove is predictable, so not any chance of a runaway fire.

 

[questarthews]

Just thinking what we do when going out. Normally the house is up to temp and a bed of coals. So the reload is 3 split with the air almost off. We know exactly how that will burn the full cycle. My stove is predictable, so not any chance of a runaway fire.

Thanks, I think this will be the same. It seems like a really good stove, so once we get the chimney finished and wood in better condition, it'll go smooth

Right now I have to babysit it before I can even shut the door all the way or it simply smolders.

That'll get done soon and I can sleep more at night since I won't have to spend so much time with the stove

I enjoy it, but I enjoy sleep, too.

 

[Zack R]

Thanks, I think this will be the same. It seems like a really good stove, so once we get the chimney finished and wood in better condition, it'll go smooth

Right now I have to babysit it before I can even shut the door all the way or it simply smolders.

That'll get done soon and I can sleep more at night since I won't have to spend so much time with the stove

I enjoy it, but I enjoy sleep, too.

If you have to babysit to avoid smoldering there's a chance your wood isn't fully seasoned or that the chimney cap is getting clogged up. This is the same thing that happens to mine if I use marginal wood to start a fire, with dry wood it takes right off and I can close the door with the air control open within a minute or so.

Extending the chimney as you mentioned will help with draft. Let us know how it runs once the extension is complete.

 

[JRHAWK9]

I use a couple cheap Foscam R2 IP cameras to monitor my furnace.....various temps, draft and level of burn on the computer while I'm at work. They can also be used on a phone with their app. It allows for complete remote control of it as well...pan, zoom, tilt. Also has infrared for dark places. See attached.



Basement is in complete darkness.

 

[Wood1Dennis]

I like electronics as much as the next guy, but I simple never felt a need to monitor the furnace so closely.
I too was nervous when I first started using this new system. But it has proven itself very predictable & reliable. For me it is about a standard routine. Especially when I regularly leave the house with the furnace burning I have it pretty well nailed down.
Usually when I get up in the morning in winter, if the house has cooled enough and the thermostat is calling for heat I stir the coals, load an appropriate amount of wood and open the damper full. I watch it to make sure it is going good and set the damper to a medium setting so that she gets going good. Then I'm upstairs with the furnace unattended.
An hour or so later just before leaving for the day I go down and check on it. If I need to I add wood. I just close the damper down to a minimal setting, and I let it go.
When I get home from work 10 or 11 hours later there will be good coals to stir up and I get to do it again for the evening.

 

[JRHAWK9]

I was never nervous about it. I don't do it out of a necessity, I do it as a hobby, it's my obsession during winter....lol I like to know the firebox, plenum, stack, return air, supply air temps as well as outside air temp at our location (we are normally a few degrees colder by us in the lower lying area than what it shows online). I don't cut firewood out of need either, but as a hobby, and I have PLENTY.

Running a Kuuma is pretty uneventful and I too have my routine. There is no waiting for anything though, unless I'm starting a fire. Then I just have to wait a minute or so after striking a match for the primary damper to open and then I can load and walk away. The computer takes care of the primary air damper for me. I just like to play with things to see how I can improve on the results, that's all. It's just my personality. My other half is constantly asking me, "can't you leave ANYTHING alone?!" You need data points if you want to improve on those data points. Although the firebox one is just for fun. I have not, or will not try to mess with how it burns, as it's already optimized. Most all of my playing around has been with my return/supply air. How to increase the delivered efficiency and more effectively get the BTU's to show up as increased house temp. I have succeeded in doing that and would not have been able to do it if I was not monitoring those temps.

One thing which could come in handy down the line monitoring all those vitals is if anything should ever go out of whack, it would be pretty easy to diagnose if noticing one of the vitals is out of norm. If you don't know what norm is, you'll never know if anything has deviated from it It's establishing a baseline for any future troubleshooting one may have to do.

Take for instance right now. This morning I forgot what the forecast for today was going to be, so I guessed at how many lbs of wood to load. I believe I loaded 35lbs. I came upstairs and checked the forecast. As soon as I saw mid/high 20's and sunny, I knew I had put too much wood in, and told my GF just that. I can check from work to see the house is currently at 78° and at what state the Kuuma is at 6.5 hours after loading (firebox 800°, 115° plenum temps)....along with all the other temps can tell I have ~2-3 hours more of heat left. I just like the ability to see this stuff while at work. It also confirms I did load too much wood.

 

[questarthews]

If you have to babysit to avoid smoldering there's a chance your wood isn't fully seasoned or that the chimney cap is getting clogged up. This is the same thing that happens to mine if I use marginal wood to start a fire, with dry wood it takes right off and I can close the door with the air control open within a minute or so.

Extending the chimney as you mentioned will help with draft. Let us know how it runs once the extension is complete.

My wood is definitely not properly dried. When I was testing it, it was 27% and up.

I've been bringing in several days worth to dry some, as well as cut it up smaller since that stuff really took forever to get going.

I'll be trying out the solar kiln mentioned in a couple of threads this summer so next winter isn't so bad, plus I'll be loading up well ahead.

 

[questarthews]

I use a couple cheap Foscam R2 IP cameras to monitor my furnace.....various temps, draft and level of burn on the computer while I'm at work. They can also be used on a phone with their app. It allows for complete remote control of it as well...pan, zoom, tilt. Also has infrared for dark places. See attached.

View attachment 238377

Basement is in complete darkness.

View attachment 238379

Thanks, that looks like a pretty cool setup. Once I get everything else put together I'll get to work on this. I've also been thinking about a camera outside to see if it's smoking or not, lol. I don't want to smoke out the neighbors, especially as this is new and they were here first.

And aside from that, I spent a lot of time reading up on this stove before deciding to get it for its clean burn, while also fitting in my budget. Like many others on this forum, I want to have the cleanest burning stove around me, so I'll be a bit anal about it at times, I'm sure.

 

[Zack R]

My wood is definitely not properly dried. When I was testing it, it was 27% and up.

I've been bringing in several days worth to dry some, as well as cut it up smaller since that stuff really took forever to get going.

I'll be trying out the solar kiln mentioned in a couple of threads this summer so next winter isn't so bad, plus I'll be loading up well ahead.

If you are planning to cut, split and stack your own wood its never too early to start for next winter. Hardwoods are great but take a long time to season. If I were you I'd gather up plenty of douglas fir to start with and stack it in long single width rows to season (after splitting). Preferably where it is exposed to wind and sun. Top cover for the winter and then leave it fully exposed all summer.

 

[questarthews]

If you are planning to cut, split and stack your own wood its never too early to start for next winter. Hardwoods are great but take a long time to season. If I were you I'd gather up plenty of douglas fir to start with and stack it in long single width rows to season (after splitting). Preferably where it is exposed to wind and sun. Top cover for the winter and then leave it fully exposed all summer.

For the most part, I'll have wood delivered. Just don't have much space for handling the whole process on location. But this next summer will definitely see a yard covered with stacks getting ready for next year.

 

[Mrpelletburner]

@Mrpelletburner can prob steer you in the right direction. He has more electronics for his stove than I have in my house lol.

I am using the Nest indoor camera along with an Ecobee thermostat. Besides being able to view past recordings, the Nest camera can also send push notifications to my phone. The push notifications are handy as I can receive an alert if the flood detector or septic alarm goes off.

Stove, flooding and septic piece of mind all when away from the house.