I've always (last 4 years) had a problem keeping my glass clean. Our Napoleon High Country has such a big firebox (4.5cu feet) that the glass just never seems to get hot enough to burn off any smoke/creosote. Anyhow this year I have tried a new technique that has really been working well. I start the fire and let it get up to temp with the doors ajar until the glass gets very hot(maybe 20 min). I sacrifice some btu's going up the chimney but when I do shut the doors the glass is so hot it stays clean. No expert here but to me it seems that the hot glass does not accumulate the smoke particles like cooler glass does. (anybody have info on that?)
And when I say dirty glass I mean dirty. Not just some soot that you can wipe away with a paper towel but in years past I would need to use newspapers and ash to scrub the soot and make a paste that slowly takes it off after rubbing hard. So the clean/hot glass trick is really worth it to me.
I am jealous of the people who can start up and shutdown and get soot on the glass but then just burn it off with high temps. Amazing to me because I have one of those cheap mag thermometers stuck to the doors and even with temps on the front doors showing 450-500 degrees it still never burns anything off. Now before someone tells me thats overtemping the stove remember this is a zeroclearance fireplace so its designed for those types of temps. Anyway with super dry wood (2yr) and this new technique my burning experience is sooo much better. - enjoy pilotjoe
And when I say dirty glass I mean dirty. Not just some soot that you can wipe away with a paper towel but in years past I would need to use newspapers and ash to scrub the soot and make a paste that slowly takes it off after rubbing hard. So the clean/hot glass trick is really worth it to me.
I am jealous of the people who can start up and shutdown and get soot on the glass but then just burn it off with high temps. Amazing to me because I have one of those cheap mag thermometers stuck to the doors and even with temps on the front doors showing 450-500 degrees it still never burns anything off. Now before someone tells me thats overtemping the stove remember this is a zeroclearance fireplace so its designed for those types of temps. Anyway with super dry wood (2yr) and this new technique my burning experience is sooo much better. - enjoy pilotjoe