# Glass Cleaning while Hot or Warm - Sierra Wood Stove



## Looking_for_an_insert (Nov 23, 2013)

I've got a nice older Sierra Wood Stove with Glass Front door.  It also has a side door with screw in vents.

When cold:  Vinegar works well to clean the glass while cold.  I use a razor blade to scrape off the black coating, but it's much easier if I use vinegar.  Q:  Am I doing any harm by using the razor while doing this cold.

When hot:  I haven't tried it, and wonder if anyone knows a good way to get a window a little clean while running and either warm or hot?


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## My Oslo heats my home (Nov 23, 2013)

I'm not sure I would want to clean it when it's hot, anything cold may want to cause a small explosion.


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## turbocruiser (Nov 23, 2013)

My Oslo heats my home said:


> I'm not sure I would want to clean it when it's hot, anything cold may want to cause a small explosion.


Assuming that stove has "ceramic glass" it should not matter much at all since "ceramic glass" is able to withstand temperature extremes without expanding or contracting much at all.  I've never tried to clean the glass when it was too hot to quickly touch but when it is warm a cotton cloth dipped in ash immediately does an amazing job completely cleaning everything.  Don't have to use cleaning chemicals at all.  Hope that helps.


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## Backwoods Savage (Nov 23, 2013)

Welcome to the forum.

I agree with Oslo about not cleaning when it is hot. There has been mixed reports of cleaning with razor blade. Not sure I would do that but some have. Vinegar should be fine. Do you use white vinegar?

Not sure what stove you are burning but when you are getting black glass, that is one of the first signs that you wood is not dry enough. Our glass doesn't get black except for recently when we tried a dumb experiment and burned some wood that we cut last winter. It turned black then so we quickly switched back to the well-seasoned wood and it cleaned right up on its own. We do get some haze from fly ash so occasionally that gets cleaned. Just a few times each winter for this though. Certainly not a daily or weekly thing.


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## Looking_for_an_insert (Nov 23, 2013)

turbocruiser said:


> Assuming that stove has "ceramic glass" it should not matter much at all since "ceramic glass" is able to withstand temperature extremes without expanding or contracting much at all. I've never tried to clean the glass when it was too hot to quickly touch but when it is warm a cotton cloth dipped in ash immediately does an amazing job completely cleaning everything. Don't have to use cleaning chemicals at all. Hope that helps.



Would you use a warm cotton cloth that was wet or dry,  then dipping it in ash?  Did you mean cold ash, or hot ash from the side of the wood stove?


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## cableman (Nov 23, 2013)

I thought the magic eraser was good till i tryed this!


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## Looking_for_an_insert (Nov 23, 2013)

Backwoods Savage said:


> I agree with Oslo about not cleaning when it is hot. There has been mixed reports of cleaning with razor blade. Not sure I would do that but some have. Vinegar should be fine. Do you use white vinegar?



I use white vinegar and it seems to work great.  Just don't want to break anything while trying it hot.  I have seasoned firewood, but it may have been a little humid from being outside.  Seems to cloud up after a few days unfortunately.  Maybe the wood will be dryer as the winter progresses.  Best seems to while cold spray with white vinegar, then razor it off, but any experience or advice would be appreciated.


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## turbocruiser (Nov 23, 2013)

Looking_for_an_insert said:


> Would you use a warm cotton cloth that was wet or dry,  then dipping it in ash?  Did you mean cold ash, or hot ash from the side of the wood stove?



Sorry I sort of left out some important information there, I use a warm wet cotton cloth (typically square sections cut out of rags) and then dip that into the ashes in the inside of the stove to make a sort of slurry that scrubs the glass clean.  I have also tried the Rutland products like the liquid glass cleaner and the paste glass conditioner and they all work very well but honestly the warm wet rag with warm ashes works as well as anything as far as I can conclude.  Hope that helps.


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## BrotherBart (Nov 23, 2013)

The old Sierra is gonna crap up the glass anytime you burn. The method you are using works as well as any. It ain't gonna stay clean. Clean glass airwash was incorporated in stoves 10 years after that stove was made.

BB - Burned in a Sierra for 21 years.

And heading this thread to the Classic Stove room.


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## Mohawk Dave (Nov 23, 2013)

Also, if/when using a razor blade on the glass, always push forward. Never drag it backwards. Potential for scratching.


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## BrotherBart (Nov 23, 2013)

And don't ever think it is gonna be clear. The glass they used had a brown tint to it right out of the box. 

Enjoy the old stove and burn really dry wood in it and keep it over five hundred degrees stove top temp and it will burn fairly clean. And clean that chimney often.


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