How to Properly Operate a Woodburning Stove
Wood stoves are an affordable and cozy method to heat your home. Smoke from wood stoves can be hazardous to your health. It's important to understand how these appliances work and to operate them properly.
Modern stoves utilize secondary or catalytic combustion to control emissions. Older stoves and open flames release high levels of particulates.
The firebox
The firebox is the heart of any fireplace system. It's where you create a fire to heat your home and provide ambiance. It's a simple concept, but there are many important details that must be accounted for to keep your wood burning stove safe and efficient.
The firebox can be thought of as an open-air combustion chamber with walls and an enclosure. The majority of fireplaces have a prefabricated metal firebox or masonry firebox. The type of firebox you pick will depend on your preference as well as the kind of fireplace you own.
Most wood-burning fireplaces make use of a constant flow of air to start the fire and burn fuel. Fresh air is drawn into the stove through the adjustable dampers within the doors of the stove. This lets the fuel burn efficiently and helps reduce toxic gases that are caused by unburnt or incomplete combustion. old wood burning stove are taken up by the chimney, and safely out of your house.
Modern stoves that have catalytic secondary combustion employ a special catalyst that allows the unburned gasses to create additional heat. This creates a cleaner and less polluting smoke than traditional wood stoves that do not have secondary combustion. Modern non-catalytic wood stoves are available however they are usually less efficient than those with secondary combustion that is catalytic.
Certain wood-burning stoves come with backboilers that are used to heat water in addition to space heating. These are referred to as "combination" or "hybrid" stoves and have been around since the beginning of the 20th century.
Wood burning stoves can only be operated with well-seasoned wood. Freshly cut (green) wood has a high moisture content that can lead to low flue temperatures as well as excessive creosote accumulation in the chimney. This can cause chimney fires, which could damage your stove and even be hazardous to the health of your family.
If you're looking for an expert to inspect your wood-burning stove or perform firebox repairs, ensure that the chimney technician you choose is certified by CSIA certification and has testimonials from their customers on their website. It's also important to ask about their pricing and what is the type of work they can do.
The pipe for ventilation
Wood stoves require ventilation to eliminate the smoke from the combustion process and keep the home warm and healthy. Venting helps eliminate carbon monoxide, nitrogen dioxide and excess moisture from the process of combustion. It also reduces the impact of heat loss and air pollution outside. Wood, gas and pellet stoves all have different requirements for venting. It is important to maintain the stove's venting system on an every year to ensure safety and efficiency.
The ventilation system consists of the firebox and the ventilation pipe. The chimney and the ventilation pipe are used in conjunction to create draft, bringing smoke from the stove through the fireplace and into the outside air. Draft is created by the differences in temperature and density between hot wood smoke and cold outside air. The more hot the smoke, the more it is able to rise up the chimney and through the ventilation pipe.
Most modern wood stoves are EPA-certified as low-emission units. This means they emit far fewer pollutants than older models, and contribute to global warming and other environmental issues. Most newer stoves also include pollution controls that limit how much they emit while ensuring that the carbon emissions are burned in an efficient manner.
Older stoves with open flues emit a lot more carbon dioxide, which is poisonous gas that should not be allowed to escape into the home. This can happen if the chimney isn't clean or there is inadequate ventilation, so it is crucial to install carbon monoxide detectors into your home.
Before installing a new or used wood stove, measure the distance from where the stove sits on the floor to the chimney opening on the ceiling or wall. Multiply this number by two to find the minimum length of stovepipe you need. You can choose to use single-wall or double-wall stovepipe and must account for proper clearances from combustibles.
When the stove first starts to burn then adjust the air vent until a stable flame has been established and the combustion is stable. It is best to avoid using wood based logs in the stove because they may contain volatile chemicals that could cause the air vents to malfunction.
The chimney
The chimney might not be something that homeowners give a lot of thought to, but it's a complex system that requires careful attention. The chimney is made up of a variety of components that are essential to the safety and efficiency of your stove.
The wood-burning stove's combustion gases are emitted to the outside through the firebox, the ventilation pipe, and the chimney. This is crucial to reduce carbon dioxide levels and prevent harmful emissions. To achieve this the chimney and flue must to be sufficiently hot to allow the gases out of the fireplace, without cooling. This is achieved by using a woodburning stove with an extremely high heat output, and by adding regularly new logs to the fire.
The majority of modern woodburning stoves are built to work with a chimney that's taller than older models to achieve a better drafting effect. This could be a problem in the event that your chimney's height exceeds the maximum height for your area. If this happens the chimney could compete with the house stack for draft, which can cause the gases to cool prior to exiting. This could result in a pause in the flow of gas and the formation of creosote.
One of the most common mistakes that homeowners make is to open and shut the door to the fireplace too often which could negatively impact combustion. It is important to keep the fireplace door as shut as you can and only open it when you need to add firewood or ash. If you leave the door open for too long can allow hot air to escape the stove, causing the logs to get cooler and more difficult to light, and releases volatile compounds that are not burned into the room.
Another common mistake that people make is to use other kinds of combustibles inside their woodburning stoves, which could result in higher emissions or even chimney fire. The reality is that woodburning stoves are built and optimized to burn wood and not other kinds of combustibles.
The flu
To ensure proper air flow, woodburning stoves require flues that are the right size. The flue should be at least 25 percent larger than the stove pipe that connects the stove and chimney to allow sufficient smoke circulation. A wood stove must be set on a non-combustible hearth that has a clear space in front of the fireplace opening.
Modern stoves have catalytic combustion systems which reduces the amount of harmful byproducts that get released into the chimney. This feature can help increase the efficiency of wood stoves by burning a flame which generates more heat while emitting less pollution. However, using other kinds of combustibles, such as coal, could cause issues, including lower efficiency and more emissions.
It is crucial to use dry or seasoned wood when you are burning wood in your stove or fireplace. If the wood isn't properly seasoned or dried, it could release a large amount of water vapor into your chimney. This can result in low flue temperatures and possibly a chimney fire.
Another way to prevent the possibility of a chimney fire is to have a professional examine and clean your flue system on a regular basis. This includes the stovepipe, chimney and the chimney itself.
A dirty stove or system may lead to an unclean draft in your chimney, which could cause carbon monoxide build-up within your home. This can be dangerous to your family and you shouldn't allow it to happen.
A good rule of thumb is to have your chimney and stove cleaned by a professional once a year. This will help keep the stove and chimney functioning efficiently.