Here’s what I often have to do to get a fire to catch without choking out:
Anybody else have to do that?
Is it because I have too much draft?
Anybody else have to do that?
Is it because I have too much draft?
Anybody else have to leave your door open a bit to get a fire going?
- Thread starter Ignem
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Yes it is quite common. Many manufacturers even mention it in their instructions. And no to much draft would do the opposite
yes, i use the ash pan door. i use this method also if i need a little turbocharging with the damper closed (not too much, don't want to over fire).
That practice is definitely discouraged by stove manufacturers. It is probably the #1 cause of cracked bases on some stoves.
can you provide a more detailed reply. i've owned and operated this stove since 1995, and to my knowledge haven't had any issue. maybe some stoves with ash pans are ok with this method and others not.
Yes those can absolutely crack the base if the ash pan door is used. You have been lucky. Those are great old stoves btw
they're not that old! how is letting air flow through the grate to juice the fire significantly different from cracking open a side or front door?
and i can't see how i've been "lucky" since this stove has been used heavily every winter (october thru march) since winter '95/96, and i've used the ash door method as needed without abnormal damage.
i've done two break down rebuilds since new, with the prime issue the inner top breaking down (a known weak spot in this stove). replaced the grate once, the fireback twice, the baffle twice, inner top twice, damper twice. the inner right side is original, but do have a replacement.
all outer pieces are original, with typical porcelain damage (dutch west paint job a step down in quality from flagship stoves, but even those suffer porcelain damage over the years).
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25 years for a woodstove is pretty old.
And you are lucky because you havnt cracked the stove base.
The difference is air feeding up through the wood makes a much more intense fire much faster while cooking part of the base at the same time. That combination of fast heating of one section of a cast part while cooking another part of it leads to cracking many times.
On a previous stove I used the cracked ash pan door startup method to great effect until I once got distracted and had it lifting off the floor by the time I got back into the room. Luckily no damage but the incident cured me of that technique.
the ash door method does produce a turbocharge effect. i only use it as needed, not regularly. i wouldn't recommend this method to pump up the heat output, which will cause overfilling and premature metal failure.
what does that mean?! turning it into a rocket? agreed, you don't want to leave any open door situation unattended.
Was doing too many things at once. Started fire with ash pan door open, stepped out of the room for about two minutes, came back and stove was impersonating a NASA launch. Me being dumb? Yes. But I quit doing it after that.
Opening the ash pan door is essentially making a forge out of the firebed. In a cold stove the sudden heating up of the grate area while the surrounding base area is still cold can cause cracks to radiate out from the grate area. This does not happen when the stove door is left open a little. That air goes crosswise across the firebox for a more uniform heating.
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Mech e
Feeling the Heat
I have the Chevy version of that Osburn stove and my door looks much the same on initial startup.
kennyp2339
Minister of Fire
Sawset
Minister of Fire
Standard proceedure here is to leave the door propped open by the latch. Usually 5-10min, then shut the door. 5-10 more min, close the damper. At that point it's hands off for the duration. It's tempting to use the ash pan to jump start. There are equally effective ways - find a way and do that, and the concern, worry is gone.
funny, my worry isn't gone until my last fire in the early spring. sometimes i wonder how i sleep with an 800 degree fire contained in a cast iron box burning unattended.
FWIW, the Seneca manual does say to not operate the stove with the ash pan door open, in bold print.
yes, i saw that in 1996! my chainsaw manual says NEVER operate above shoulder height, but of course sometimes you have to (if you are experienced and pay close attention to exactly what is happening). Don't leave the room with the ash door cracked!
Don't crack the base of the stove by using the ash pan door is much better advice, particularly for others that might be reading this thread in the future. It's not necessary and not even helpful with top-down starts.
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