Ah, you stumped me then but I'd say, yes, nothing wrong that I know of with opening up the throttle at the end of a heavy bed of coals to get ready for the next.
Am I babying my insert too much?
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Ah, you stumped me then but I'd say, yes, nothing wrong that I know of with opening up the throttle at the end of a heavy bed of coals to get ready for the next.
Didn't think it was that mean but I see your angle. Probably a lot of variables at work (from wood type to insulation to draft to the fact that he's in CT and you're in Western NY) but he is giving ranges not exact temps.
As for myself, I'm more in the 75 to 65 wind down when I burn so far, so I know what you mean.
That's where I would like to get to ... but it's going to take a couple years if not more
Sure seems like damp wood will slow the coal burn-down. It doesn't seem possible that any moisture would be left at that point, but... I'm trying an experiment now; When re-loading, I'm putting a couple soft Maple or Cherry splits in where the load burns last. I'm thinking the Oak coals will have longer to burn down, and maybe if I need to burn down more coals, they will be from the softer wood, and will burn down faster....we'll see.
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Sledhead00
Member
Well I didn't want it to come across that I was calling him a liar or anything... I'm just a bit cranky after coming home at 4pm after 11.5 hrs of work to a house that was 57 and I realized just how spoiled I was by the wood I had last yr as even in the heart of winter I could count on 63-65 after the same amt of time..
WoodpileOCD
Minister of Fire
Colorado Boy. I've found that if I put a couple of very small splits on the coal bed and open it up it burns the coals down faster. At least I think it does. If you have any pine, that works great for this.
Interesting idea - maybe it kicks the draft back into overdrive? I'll have to try that!
So, in the effort of reporting back, since I got home at 4:30 I got the stove chock full of birch and maple with a top level of kindling and birch bark and one of my homemade fire starters (dryer lint, saw dust and a touch of parrafin in an egg carton "cup"). Lit that pile, closed the door and took the dogs for a walk.
By the time I got back a little after 5 the top-down stack was well on it's way and within an hour of lighting it had reached a temp of 400. I started shutting down the air and it got up close to 500 and, 3.5 hours later, it's still cruising around 72 in the lower level of the house thanks to a box fan going into our 20x30 sunken living.
Have my midnight reload stacked up next to it and enjoying my second glass of bourbon. Outside temp? 10 and dropping.
Life is good.
By the time I got back a little after 5 the top-down stack was well on it's way and within an hour of lighting it had reached a temp of 400. I started shutting down the air and it got up close to 500 and, 3.5 hours later, it's still cruising around 72 in the lower level of the house thanks to a box fan going into our 20x30 sunken living.
Have my midnight reload stacked up next to it and enjoying my second glass of bourbon. Outside temp? 10 and dropping.
Life is good.
Well neighbor, is your fan on low, like mine. I've opened the air to kick up the flames some and burn it down some. Not sure when the reload will be, perhaps after I wake up from watching TV at some point.
Edit: I also aerated the coal bed with the poker.
Edit: I also aerated the coal bed with the poker.
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Yup, fan on low the whole time and I just flipped all the coals myself. So, Sand Lake - you're out almost to Stephentown then! What's the temp like over there?
I've got 8 degrees on the screen porch over the wood rack but that's on an exterior wall...
Renjilj
New Member
Is that a torch and pitchfork I see? I can't fault you for the skepticism, the #'s beg to be questioned some.. Though you did miss the 3rd note about the 5 degree end of the thermometer gets reloads more like 8 hrs. Could prob do 10-12 hrs, but likely would dip into the mid 60's in the house. Too cold...
In the 20's-30 no prob with 10-12 hours heat/reload with mid-upper 70's in main house, 67-70 in beds. Have literally had 82-84 and felt like your eyes were shriveling up. Maybe it's the wood burning gods smiling down on me after procrastinating for 2 years...!
For example, Today in CT was upper 20's out and crazy wind all last night and today(10-25mph). Chills in the singles-teens. Loaded at 6:10 this AM and came home at 6PM to fan still running and stove at 170-180. House at 73, beds 69, and wife complaining it was cold! I only reload when temps dictate. I kid you not.. Way better performance then I ever expected out of this thing.
Someone said it- tons of variables in play from one to another... and arguably temps have been favorable for winter. Haven't really had a cold week like this for a while so I expect to be back closer to 8hr reloads
I did invest the time and effort to fully insulate the liner and the entire FP is Roxul insulated behind the insert with a layer of Durarock between (based on suggestion here). Believe this made the biggest difference in keeping a significant amount of heat in the stove for long periods. Otherwise I can't explain it. Can't even say all the wood is that great. I mix good with ok wood. Splits on the small side. Liner perfectly clean. Ash clean outs 1-2x a week.
I adjusted the thermistor so it keeps the fan running longer. Before this, it would take forever to turn on, and turn off while the stove had more to give. This made a noticeable difference.
I haven't seen less than 71 in main house since it was installed in Oct. The beds do require a fan in hallway if I want to keep them in low 70's. At night they have dropped to 65-68 with fan off. Filled the oil tank in early Sept 189g (when I thought prices were as good as it was gonna get, oh well). The gauge just went to the south side of the halfway mark. I burn about 250-300 gal year for HW..
I have heard from others here with similar performance.
![[Hearth.com] Am I babying my insert too much?](https://www.hearth.com/talk/data/attachments/149/149644-ed406d948ccb7a4524aa403e431b33ac.jpg?hash=f12usQSDBz "[Hearth.com] Am I babying my insert too much?")
I see space for one more split..................
Is there any fire in there? The wood looks dry. Mine is higher MC and I struggle to get some heat out of it if I put that much wood in I need to build it differently. I wonder what I'm supposed to be doing I guess LOL.
petes_sakes
Member
I have the 2200 and have the same issue at times. I am a new burner, but I have dry wood, and I feel I let my stove get up to good temps before turning my fan on. It's coincidental that is's the same manufacturer, but maybe we are both not correctly loading for the design of the stove. I have noticed less coals when I load for better airflow. For example, having at least a half inch between the sides and back of the stove and the splits. Also stacking tall and leaving that same half inch between each of the splits has helped. I still have issues from time to time though, and I burn mostly hardwood. It's just strange that we are in 2 different regions with different types of wood, and experience the same problems....
Good stuff! I think I had almost 8 pieces in at my final reload at 11 - good, hot coals this morning (when it was 5 out - yes 1,2,3,4, FIVE) and I had another load up to temp within half an hour before work.
Rinse and repeat today, tomorrow and Thursday!
The 2400 is a beast. I have a taller stack so I usuall have good draft. I find I have to shut the air all the way down or the fire burns to fast. There's tons of heat coming out, I mean hot! With softwood if I run the air to open it burns up fast. I will try giving it a little more air to help with burning down the coals. Also I have been loading NS and I like it better.
petes_sakes
Member
I could imagine, I cant even put my hand a foot in front of the 2200 air discharge when its got the secondary's going. The 2400 must be a force to reckon with! Does the 2400 have a small air intake at the bottom front of the firebox(right below the center of the door)? My stove has one, it is small, but I have started to stack with sort of a channel on the bottom to let this small air inlet feed the underside of the fire. Its not enough to melt down the stove, but I feel letting that bit of air get to the base of the fire burns the load more evenly.
Schmev
New Member
This is exactly what I do and I've had good results so far. If I stack EW with a split directly in front of the air inlet in the front/center of the firebox i find it's a little harder to get an even burn or get back up to temps after reload. I'm new to this but it takes a little trial and error. I try not to overthink it.
Our house has brand new windows/doors/etc and I can tell you the 2400 gets most of my downstairs (house is 2100 sq feet) up to 77ish pretty easily.
I agree completely. As soon as secondary combustion slows/stops in my insert, the temperature in the house starts dropping. I have to feed wood hourly to keep temperatures somewhat steady in the house. I can easily go 8 hours or more without adding wood and start it right up again from the coals, but my house would be cold as hell without the furnace kicking in.
How do you feed wood hourly when the firebox is full and blazing? I have found it best to do smaller loads and reload every 4 to 5 hours. The 2400 puts off lots of heat even after the wood has burned down to coals.
If I am around, and want to keep temperatures steady, I feed a split or so an hour to keep secondaries fired up.
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