# Any downside to running stove on low for extended periods?



## mepellet (Nov 19, 2011)

Is there any downside to running a pellet stove on low for extended periods?


----------



## imacman (Nov 19, 2011)

Since the temps inside will be low, there is always a chance of creosote-type buildup, and windows tend to get dirty faster.  

Some stove manufacturers recommend running their stove on high for an hour or so every day....I think St. Croix is one of them.


----------



## AVIVIII (Nov 19, 2011)

I find that when I run on low for extended periods, the stove gets dirty much faster than normal. Everything gets covered in a nasty soot. If I'm running low alot, when I think about it, I'll crank it up and burn some of the soot off.


----------



## UncleAnthony (Nov 19, 2011)

AVIVIII said:
			
		

> I find that when I run on low for extended periods, the stove gets dirty much faster than normal. Everything gets covered in a nasty soot. If I'm running low alot, when I think about it, I'll crank it up and burn some of the soot off.



Same here. Some pellets seem worse in my stove than others on low .


----------



## heat seeker (Nov 19, 2011)

St Croix does indeed recommend a high burn for a while every day. I seldom do it, as I don't run my stove under #3, and that's hot enough to keep things cleaned out. It idles at #1 at times (thermostat), but not enough to crud things up.


----------



## Xena (Nov 20, 2011)

My stove gets loaded up good with ash if I run it long term on #1
and the glass gets nasty quick too.  
Running it on the highest setting (#5) for a bit is supposed
to help "burn things off" but I never saw it do much for the glass
once it's grimey.  
The manual for mine recommends 20-30 mins a day on high.  I usually
kick it up for 20 while having my coffee in the morning if for
no other reason to make sure I'm following the Mfg's recommendations.


----------



## smilejamaica (Nov 20, 2011)

my stove gets loaded up with ash also when i run it on low.  the glass gets messy also. i dont run mine to high for too long of a period cause it will heat me out of the house this time of the year


----------



## johnnycomelately (Nov 20, 2011)

mepellet said:
			
		

> Is there any downside to running a pellet stove on low for extended periods?


Yeah, when its really cold outside, it probably won't be enough heat to keep warm!


----------



## SmokeyTheBear (Nov 20, 2011)

A mess in the stove.


----------



## mepellet (Nov 20, 2011)

imacman said:
			
		

> Since the temps inside will be low, there is always a chance of creosote-type buildup, and windows tend to get dirty faster.
> 
> Some stove manufacturers recommend running their stove on high for an hour or so every day....I think St. Croix is one of them.



What do you guys use to clean the inside surfaces of the stove?


----------



## heat seeker (Nov 20, 2011)

When mine is cold, I just use a damp sponge. Works great for me. I don't clean the glass when it's hot.


----------



## ChandlerR (Nov 20, 2011)

This time of year, I run almost exclusively on low. The stove is usually off during the day but when the wife lights it at night, the thermostat is calling for heat so the stove runs on 3 or 4 until the room reaches temp, then it's down to low. My window stays clean but I do check for creosote buildup at the termination of the pipe.  Other than that, it seems pretty happy putting along on low.

When I do my weekly cleaning, I use a scraper to give the insides and good scraping, then I brush the tubes with my wire brush and hit the dust with my vac.

Chan


----------



## imacman (Nov 20, 2011)

mepellet said:
			
		

> What do you guys use to clean the inside surfaces of the stove?



If you mean the glass, the easiest things are either a damp paper towel or old rag, or  if the stains are stubborn, dip the wet towel in the stove ash, and scrub the stains off.

Magic Eraser works well too.


----------



## mepellet (Nov 20, 2011)

imacman said:
			
		

> mepellet said:
> 
> 
> 
> ...



Sorry now, I meant the inside surfaces (sides, top etc. )  I found that the damp paper towel works very well.  A lot easier than I thought it would.  I've cleaned the glass 2 times already just to keep it looking good.


----------



## imacman (Nov 20, 2011)

All I ever do to the interior surfaces is vacuum them with the brush attachment on the hose.  Scrubbing the interior is getting a bit carried away....IMO.


----------



## jtakeman (Nov 20, 2011)

Are you gettting a sticky residue on the inside stove surfaces?


----------



## mepellet (Nov 20, 2011)

j-takeman said:
			
		

> Are you gettting a sticky residue on the inside stove surfaces?




No. At least not yet. I've only burned 9 bags though. Id say half the time it was on stove temp level 1.


----------



## jtakeman (Nov 20, 2011)

mepellet said:
			
		

> j-takeman said:
> 
> 
> 
> ...



So its just the dusty residue your taking off? I would leave it till spring. When you coat the inside of the stove for the summer nap time. About all you need to remove now is what will come off with a common paint brush or the brush on the vac. If you must, The only criticle area is the heat exchanger. Any ash on it could effect the heat transfer. But whiping down the whole inside of the unit is overkill IMHO. It only takes an hour of burning and all that will be right back on the inner surface. I'd spend more time reading the manual than getting the unit that clean.


----------



## ssupercoolss (Nov 20, 2011)

i think i have come to the conclusion that i burn more pellets running it on low 24/7, than i do running it on high with the thermostat.


----------



## aaronnoel (Nov 20, 2011)

I think pellet quality is a huge factor in a clean low burn. In the past I have noticed my stove getting dirty quickly on low but not this year. This year I got the good stuff (Cubex) and have had a nice clean burn on low the whole time 24/7 a bunch of those days. I've had my glass stay really quite clean and only a small amount of white ash inside the stove. All and all I think the pellets you use makes the biggest deference in every factor of a nice running stove.


----------



## tjnamtiw (Nov 20, 2011)

futureboiler said:
			
		

> i think i have come to the conclusion that i burn more pellets running it on low 24/7, than i do running it on high with the thermostat.



Last winter, I came to the same conclusion.  The biggest plus to running at a lower temp constantly is the fact that you don't have the large variations in temp that you get when using a thermostat even with a small 'swing' adjustment.  

I have been burning on low so far this fall because of the unusually warm weather and I still get a good, vigorous burn, albeit small, so I can only assume that the pellets are being fully consumed at a high heat, which would eliminate the creosote problem.  I've never seen any creosote even at the top of my 17' of piping.


----------



## Vinelife (Nov 20, 2011)

I run mine on high all the time .... when the thermostat calls for heat anyways ...


----------



## DneprDave (Nov 20, 2011)

I burn on the lowest setting most of the time. It used to soot up the glass in a few hours. I turned the combustion air bias up just a little bit and I get a few streaks of soot after 24 hours. This is with the same brand of pellets.

Dave


----------



## DexterDay (Nov 21, 2011)

Stove burns on Low, just as good as High and Medium.. Quads get great combustion air. No user adjustments (other than feed). So the ash color is the same. 

Never seen any creosote in my stove or vent. Just grey to light grey ash.


----------



## Harman-p68a (Nov 21, 2011)

I argue with my wife all winter long about this Iwill crank it up in morning or sometime durring day and have tried to explain to her why I was doing it but you mght as well go out and talk to the pellet pile she comes in and shuts it down so when she isnt home I jack it up let her breath for awhile .I notice a difference running on low but I am also using blends this year when I was using softs nice fine black very little ash.


----------



## GrahamInVa (Nov 21, 2011)

Harman-p68a said:
			
		

> I argue with my wife all winter long about this Iwill crank it up in morning or sometime durring day and have tried to explain to her why I was doing it but you mght as well go out and talk to the pellet pile she comes in and shuts it down so when she isnt home I jack it up let her breath for awhile .I notice a difference running on low but I am also using blends this year when I was using softs nice fine black very little ash.



Maybe you should get one of theses! LOL


----------



## DirtyDave (Nov 23, 2011)

same here setting 1 since its warm in daytime.   using blazer fuel pellets  no creosote build up yet that I can find. Flame looks good. just got 94 whitfield advantage to stem hemoraging natural gas bill.


----------



## RidgeRunner56 (Nov 23, 2011)

futureboiler said:
			
		

> i think i have come to the conclusion that i burn more pellets running it on low 24/7, than i do running it on high with the thermostat.



But which is more costly in the end, a few extra bags of pellets or a new ignitor every couple years?  I'm wrestling with this now.  When on auto, stove ignites about once an hour, gives a nice 5 minute burn and then slowly shuts down again.  Not going thru many pellets, but wonder about how long the ignitor will last with that much use.


----------



## flynfrfun (Nov 23, 2011)

RidgeRunner56 said:
			
		

> When on auto, stove ignites about once an hour, gives a nice 5 minute burn and then slowly shuts down again.  Not going thru many pellets, but wonder about how long the ignitor will last with that much use.



Are you saying that within 5 min your stove starts, heats and shuts down?  Or does it go thru the start cycle (5-15min), heats for 5min, then goes into shut down cycle (20-30min)?  So really you are heating for most of the hour the stove runs

Can't imagine only heating for 5min.  If my house required that little heat, I don't think I'd bother having the pellet stove come on.  Either you have a very small house or the temps are not very low right now or you like it cool in the house.

One way to help save your igniter if you want to continue is to adjust the swing on your thermostat to a larger value like 3F or more.  This way the stove will have to bring the temps up from a lower point and run longer.  But, then it will stay off longer as well.  Fewer ignition cycles.

My personal take on this situation is that if the stove is starting up every hour, you are probably better to let the stove run on low.  Startup takes a lot of pellets to get the stove started and then get the stove heated up.  Very likely about the same amount of pellets as the stove running on low for 1hr.  You will get more heat out of the stove since it gets up to temp and stays there.  Of course if this is too much heat and the house gets too hot, then like I said above, adjust the swing to a larger value and that should work.


----------



## heat seeker (Nov 23, 2011)

I installed a thermostat with a narrow swing in order to save my ignitor, among other things. The stove goes from low to high pretty often, but does not use the ignitor because it doesn't shut off. I haven't noticed an increase in pellet usage, it is still providing heat while in low mode. Just my take on it. If it's warm enough out, I shut the stove off during the day and let the sun keep the house warm.


----------



## ironpony (Nov 23, 2011)

only downside is, it uses less pellets 
therefore I do not get to buy more


----------



## briansol (Nov 26, 2011)

I burned for basically 3 seasons on pretty much nothing but low before i bought the thermostat.  I don't like my place hot, so low keeps me around 63 or so when its cold out running constantly.   I used '2' on the really cold nights.


It all depends on the pellets you are burning and yoru stove.   I never had any issues, and frankly, i get more soot and glass mess running the thermo on 3 and low for an hour then off, then restart method.


----------



## DneprDave (Nov 26, 2011)

The view side of my house is all floor to ceiling double pane glass. There was an open air porch outside that side of the house, it was useless in the fall and winter. We enclosed the porch with double pained glass and insulated the ceiling and floor, but it would still freeze out there some days in the winter.

I bought a used Whitfield Advantage II pellet stove and installed it on that 400 square foot porch. The lowest setting keeps it nice and warm most of the time. I set it on the "2" setting when it will be near freezing outside. If I leave the sliding glass door to the house open, the pellet stove also heats the house pretty well. I've noticed that the oil furnace only starts very early in the morning, augmenting the pellet stove when the night is at its coldest.

We use that porch all the time now, thanks to the pellet stove. Time will tell if we have saved any money on fuel when we fill the oil tank next summer. I have a feeling that there will be a savings.

Dave


----------



## RidgeRunner56 (Nov 26, 2011)

> Are you saying that within 5 min your stove starts, heats and shuts down?  Or does it go thru the start cycle (5-15min), heats for 5min, then goes into shut down cycle (20-30min)?  So really you are heating for most of the hour the stove runs
> 
> Canâ€™t imagine only heating for 5min.  If my house required that little heat, I donâ€™t think Iâ€™d bother having the pellet stove come on.  Either you have a very small house or the temps are not very low right now or you like it cool in the house.



Yes, Yes, and Yes.

Full cycle is about an hour from start up to shut down.  House is small, less then 1,000 sq/ft on one floor of living.  And while we had some snow already this year, temps are usually only dropping into the 30's and rising to 50 in the daytime.


----------

