Advice Please

I just gave one of these away on the Christmas Karma thread...it was up for a week before being adopted...I had thought maybe Kimberly would claim it...

 

I knew nothing about this Christmas Karma.

 

Oh well, that is the way the Christmas biscuit crumbles.

 

Kimberly. I admire your inquisitive nature. Keep asking questions. HOWEVER, for you own peace of mind, here are my (novice) suggestions to keep your sanity. 1) Keep stockpiling the tulip poplar for fire wood. It's easy to harvest and dries very fast. It has moderate Btu's, less than Oak, more like soft woods. 2) Spend a couple bucks ($20-40) for a "pin type" moisture meter (sorry I didn't read all prior posts). 3) Most importantly, as you are learning your stove/chimney/weather conditions, "let your stack be your guide." If your chimney is putting out clean, heat waves only, you are doing fine. If you are making smoke or you are getting excessive, consistent creosote on your glass, you need drier wood and/or more air in the mix. FWIW, I've been fighting with some tulip poplar I split and stacked this spring. The meter says it's ~14% MC, but, the wood takes a long time to catch fire, seems to make excessive smoke and is very sensitive to when I turn down the air. As such, I think it needs more time to dry and I'm leaving it on the pile and replacing it with 1-2 year old ash and beech. That stuff burns awesome... I the end, err on the side of a little more air. This may decrease your efficiency of heating by sending some heat up the stack and giving shorter overnight burns; but, too little air leads to creosote build up and potentially chimney fires.

 

I'm not sure if it's been mentioned; If not, probably because it would be a royal PIA. Anyway, I'm assuming from looking at your chimney pic, that you have not much rise off the stove top before the inside 90* elbow (pic would help here.) What about if you come straight up off the stove top with double-wall to get a lot of rise before any turns, then two successive 45s instead of a 90, and exit the wall up higher?
But it seems like the best solution, really, would be to go straight up all the way, through the ceiling and roof. Is that possible if you locate the trusses?

 

IMHO too many people turn their stoves down too far at night, it is recommended to have at least some flames on the wood not just the secondaries when turning a stove down for a long burn.

 

I have yet to see a manufacturers instructions that read turn air down on your unattended stove.

 

Not sure what you are referring to, most instructions talk about reducing the air to a level for the heat you need, over the years I have read many people talk about no flames at all except a few that appear on the secondaries (talking non cat here) now and then.
I have had people tell me not to worry about flue temps at all on both ends of the spectrum high and low, not sure that is sound advice.

 

I'm talking about when people leave their residence (unattended stove) being the same as when they go to bed overnight (unattended stove).

 

Are you saying there is a difference?

 

I guess the point I'm trying to make is make sure the stove is in the most childproof mode it can be in-if it is lit and you won't be watching (attending) it for extended hours. Like when you go to work....hours away from a burning stove. And just the same as when you go to sleep....hours away from a burning stove.

I think all the instruction manual will read something like...if stove is to be unattended for extended periods, leave draft controls open.

Am I the only one who has read this?

 

Wow, never have seen that but now I understand what you are saying.

 

I myself am just as guilty as the next person for not turning the air open though. I will give it a little extra open if I go to sleep, but not all the way open.

If I leave the workshop, it will be wide open.

 

Can't find any instructions on the internet for leaving the air open on unattended stove in my quick search in fact so far they say just the opposite.

 

I guess I'll have to find out just where it was that I read it.

 

I dont think we are on the same page here.

 

We'll figure it out brother....just takes time!

 

I'd say this is asking for an overfire. Sounds backwards. Wouldn't every stove overfire if left wide open with a load of wood in it?
Better to make some creosote than to risk an overfire.

 

Well now, of course you wouldn't leave it wide open with a full load! C'mon!