akhilljack said:
most people arent going to let the stove burn out and cool down all afternoon so they can get on the roof in three feet of snow at 40 below zero just to run a brush down the pipe when all they would have to do is let it burn for an hour or so each day.
if you burn it all off every day than it doesnt build up for weeks and start one big fire.
Yes, all true. In fact, I'm amazed that this point is being argued. I'm going to assume that's due partly to some people making comments who are relatively new to burning wood, and/or have never done so full-time in very cold areas with many outdoor temp-swings.
A few general statements. American people were heating their homes in the 1600s with wood fires and chimneys made from wood sticks and mud - and some managed to survive. Every generation seems to think that all before them were not as smart and equipment not as good. I don't agree. With all technology, there is an up and a down-side.
With some older wood/coal stoves, built in the early 1900s - some burn very clean. Just too hot and too short a time. Wasteful, yes. Old chimneys though are often too cold and build up deposits. I was working in a stove/furnace factory when the 1970s "air-tight" rage was in full-swing. They offered a big advantage over the older stoves, yet helped burn many a house down by ignonant users. Big problem was, many people turned them all the way down at night, which resulted in smoldering fires and very dirty chimneys. Then, one hot fire was all it took to ignite the chimney. Now? We're in the EPA certified age and rage. Some comments were made here that, perhaps, some posters have no idea how clean these new stoves/furnaces are? Yeah, right. They have the potential to burn a lot cleaner, yes - when used correctly and with a good chimney. "Potential" is not a synonym for "all situations." Many things have changed over the years with equipment, but with wood burning for heat - many things have not, and never will.
I've worked on many chimneys with some of the newest and highest rated wood burners that did indeed, leave substantial deposits in chimneys.
In my specific case, I have three wood heating sources for two buildings. My large, three-story workshop and barn is totally heated by an old boat-anchor Thermo-Control 500. Very low tech. 1970s "air-tight" furnace. I heat all winter, turn down every night, and clean the chimney once each summer. I run it ultra hot once each day, and have done so for 20 years here, and for 10 years before that in a different shop.
My house is an large, old farm house- first part built in 1820 along with several later additions.
My main heat source is the largest Myers Woochuck woo/coal furnace - a model 4000 rated at 180,000 BTUs. I also have a Canadian chimney that has tougher burn-out specs than USA rated HT chimneys. Burns very clean when hot. But . . . when outdoor temps are in the 40s, it's hard to keep the house from getting too hot, even with a small fire. So, when temps go from minus 30F, up to plus 40F, the furnace sits, turned way down, sometimes for days. This can happen anytime during our long winter. We get many "Indian Summers." I have not yet, seen a large indoor wood furnace in operation, regardless of EPA rating, that can be run for days turned all the way down, and burn clean as others have claimed here. I try to use it as long as possible since it is hooked to my domestic hot water, whereas my smaller EPA rated woodstove, is not.
The EPA rated unit is a Hearthstone Mansfield stove. We use this in the fall and spring when warmer outside temps get more consistent. It too will leave deposits on the upper chimney when run at the lowest setting for long periods. I'll add, I've worked around wood my entire life and I know what dry wood is. Once it's in daily use, I run it full bore, as hot a possible, for a half hour every day.
For others that have one mindset - and dismiss disenting comments that don't coincide - hey, think whatever you want. I'll believe what I see and use and do what works. I'm not closed-minded and welcome new innovations. I just happen to be a bit skepical, and with good resaons.
" Ayuh... they're gone... 
