Accessories Recommendations

[Apiator]

Just installed my Avalon Olympic Insert (hats off to y'all who do this for a living), and have a few questions about some accessories I will soon need. I thought there was a recent thread with ideas about gloves, ash rakes etc... but cannot find it. So what do I really need? Thermometer, ash broom??? Any ideas will be appreciated!!

Thanks in advance.

 

[Dix]

Gloves... the longer the better.

 

[flewism]

Thermometer one of those magnetic ones will work, mostly to keep it from getting to hot .

Gloves , welding glove work well or I'm sure the stove shop sells them.

A steel ash shovel and a steel bucket, for ash removal about once or twice a week

The ash rake is not required but does help, I could not find one so I made it, just a 2.5" by 6" by .100 thick steel plate welded to 18" of black pipe

A small, medium or large shopvac with a drywall filter, this is for vacuuming up the ash dust around the hearth after you remove the ashes, again once or twice a week. keeps the area tidy , Do not vacuum inside the insert with it, I know I just had to say it.

A fireplace poker and tongs for pushing things around. The wife likes playing with the fire. She is getting to be an expert at keeping the secondary burn going, she like the look of it. The tongs are not required.

Plenty of dry wood,

Have you done the small fires yet to dry out the firebricks?

 

[firefighterjake]

Gloves: Best way to load a stove without burning yourself or damaging the stove or its components (i.e. just chucking a split into the stove and risk bashing the baffles)

Thermometers: Best way to know what your stove is doing and "where" it's going . . . helps avoid over-firing the stove and under-heating the flue (which can lead to creosote build up)

Brush/pan: No need to buy the fancy kit . . . but you will want something to clean up the inevitable mess that occurs from ash spill out, wood chips, etc. on the hearth

Poker: Not always necessary, but I like to use this to help carefully reposition wood if the split isn't quite where I want it to be in the firebox

And of course matches, kindling and seasoned firewood. . . .

 

[smokinj]

I have a furance dont know if this would work in a stove, but I like the small spade shovel is'a about 2 1/2 ft long and the head is 12in across its the only tool I use think it was 12.00 bucks

 

[LLigetfa]

A good ash hoe, ash rake, ash shovel, and ash pail can save your marriage. Use the rake to separate the ashes from the coals, the hoe to move the ashes around, the shovel to remove the ashes and the pail to cart it out.

 

[Apiator]

Thanks for all the ideas. Another question... We have wood floors in front of the hearth. Is there some kind of flame retardant mat/small rug I can put in front of the hearth so my wife doesn't kill me when the inevitable burn mark "magically" appears on my wood floor??

Thanks.

 

[Gooserider]

The exact nature of the tools that you will want for playing with the fire and handling the ashes depend somewhat on the design of the stove, whether or not you have an ash pan dump, etc... They are also somewhat of a question of "personal style"... You may need to experiment a bit to find out what works best for you, and possibly tell us what brand / model stove you have to see if other owners of the same brand have any specific suggestions. The gloves are pretty much essential, the other stuff you will need some of, but just what is a bit unpredictable...

I also suggest that you have a GOOD large size fire extinguisher mounted near the exit door of the house just in case. (Put it near the exit so you have to run to the door to get the extinguisher, and work back towards the fire, this will help prevent you from being trapped if the extinguisher doesn't...)

As to floor protection - if you installed per code, you SHOULD have had a good fire proof hearth extending at least 18" in front of any loading door - this is specifically intended to give those embers a place to land w/o burning anything... However if you feel that is not enough, you should be able to find a lot of fire resistant carpets in many different styles and colors either at your local fireplace shop or on line - look for "hearth rugs"

Gooserider

 

[jebatty]

Matches, kindling and well-seasoned firewood likely are the unanimous recommendations.

Have used our wood stove in the living room for 19 years and never used or needed gloves. Flue thermometer (mine is magnetic) I think is impt, once you learn your stove's burning characteristics, to easily adjust the stove's air controls to your stove's best and safest performance curve. I use an old paint brush to clean up spilled ashes, a small shovel to scoop out built up ashes, and an old steel pail to hold the ashes before spreading them out over the yard. I also have (don't know what it's called) a tool, metal rod with a horizontal blade mounted at the end, which I use to rake hot coals forward, as they tend to accumulate in the back of the stove. The coals in the front burn to ash more quickly than those in the rear. The only thing I bought new was the thermometer. Rest were used items sitting around the house, including the raker tool.

Hot coals have a way of jumping pretty far in front of the stove. Our stove sits on ceramic tile extending 18" out from each side and 36" in front, and then carpet all around. Not infrequently a coal will jump out more than 18", especially when raking coals forward. The tile has saved the carpet from many burns.

 

[savageactor7]

Leather gloves only! a proper ash bucket with top and shovel, 'L' shape poker. Oh...and make that a one piece shovel they have decorative shovels that are riveted...I wouldn't trust them.

Burn well.

 

[LLigetfa]

Oh...and make that a one piece shovel...

Threaded handles have been known to come loose in use and spill hot coals onto the floor. Locktite the sucker!

 

[firefighterjake]

Thanks for all the ideas. Another question... We have wood floors in front of the hearth. Is there some kind of flame retardant mat/small rug I can put in front of the hearth so my wife doesn't kill me when the inevitable burn mark "magically" appears on my wood floor??

Thanks.

You can buy hearth rugs for extra protection . . . just do a google search, check out LL Bean, on-line woodstove supply places or local dealers.

In my case I've found that by going a few extra inches on the hearth itself most hot coals and ash spills are contained to the hearth and easily taken care of . . . I cannot recall many hot coals spilling on to the wood floor . . . if they have, I just have scooped them up (while wearing my handy dandy gloves) and put them back into the firebox before any damage occurs -- as I said, pretty rare for this to happen due to the hearth.