How often are folks refilling their stoves

[lopiliberty]

I doubt you have an air leak in the stove maybe around the door or glass. When you shut it down does the fire go almost out or does it seem like it keeps burning pretty hard. How tall is your chimney? Since there is no way to slow down the secondary air that could be what is burning through the wood so fast if the draft is excessive.

 

[Wood Duck]

I load about every three to five hours when I am home, depending on the wood I load. I try to add full loads and let them burn down to coals. If it is cold outside and I need more heat I reload with a lot of red coals. If it is warmer outside I let the coals burn down more. With this style of burning my stove never cruises at a steady temperature; instead it goes from a low of 200 to 300 on the top to highs of 700 or so. This seems to be efficient both in terms of not using too much wood and also at having clean, mostly smokeless burns.

If you asked, I'd say a cord a month is a typical wood use rate. I think I use a lot less than a cord a month, so I am not sure where I get the cord a month value.

 

[rdust]

Burn time is a lot longer than just when it "coals" out. There should be a lot of heat still in the coals. How long does it take the stove to cool off to say 250? If the stove is going from 650+ to 250 in 3-4 hours you have a problem, a non cat will be without flames a few hours into the burn then you're left with a big ole pile of coals that will make heat for hours and hours.

When I first started burning I thought the "burn" was over when the flames were gone and the wood was coals, the coaling stage is probably the biggest part of the burn. Once it starts coaling out if you need more heat open the air up and burn those coals down.

 

[tfdchief]

I prefer to load my stoves with only a few splits and load it more often, about every 4 hours. I go home for lunch so I can do that. I load more for the night but not full. I can control it better and don't have to run the stove temp so high. Being a guy who has seen a lot of houses burn down, I just don't like to push it. Just me. Been doing it that way for 40 years.

 

[Seasoned Oak]

I can't help but wonder if I have some type of air leak in my stove.last night I filled my stove pretty full cut back the oxygen at around 400 degrees and the fire only lasted about 3 to 4 hours before It was down to coals. I'm going to run a test this weekend. I'm going to take 18 splits in bring them up stairs. Those are the only logs I'm going to allow myself to burn and I'm going to try to force myself to make it last all day. I think it's crazy how people can get 12 hours out of a full load I can't even come close to that. if I can't find out whether or not it's the user error within the next couple of weeks I may have to make a call to the company that installed my stove see if they can come and check it out.thank you everyone for the suggestions day been very helpful.

WHat kind of stove do you have? Dont expect long burn times out of anything less than a 3.0 CU Ft firebox.

 

[rideau]

I can't help but wonder if I have some type of air leak in my stove.last night I filled my stove pretty full cut back the oxygen at around 400 degrees and the fire only lasted about 3 to 4 hours before It was down to coals. I'm going to run a test this weekend. I'm going to take 18 splits in bring them up stairs. Those are the only logs I'm going to allow myself to burn and I'm going to try to force myself to make it last all day. I think it's crazy how people can get 12 hours out of a full load I can't even come close to that. if I can't find out whether or not it's the user error within the next couple of weeks I may have to make a call to the company that installed my stove see if they can come and check it out.thank you everyone for the suggestions day been very helpful.

Just to be clear, when you say you cut back the oxygen when the stove reached 400 degrees, how much did you cut it back? Did you cut it back in steps until it was open 1/4 or less?

And when you say that it was down to coals in three to four hours, what do you call "down to coals"? What was the stove temp at that time? My wood may be all charred and glowing and look like coals, but still have several logs that pretty much retain their shape, and I do not add logs at that point. There is still hours of good burn time left. Rather, when I notice a significant drop in temp of the stove occurring, I open the air more, to maintain a hotter, more oxygen rich burn of the coals. This keeps temps up, and gets me to a smaller coal bed, which will light the next load just fine, but won't result in a raging fire. It will be very controllable, and I will be able to get it to charred wood/operating temp very easily and quickly, without getting a raging, off gas-ing fire that wastes lots of potential fuel by putting smoke up the chimney before the stove is hot enough for cat or secondary burn.

How deep is your coal bed? How much wood are you able to get in for a full load? Maybe post a picture of a full load?

I'm also wondering just how this is installed and how much draft you have.

 

[rideau]

To answer the question in the title of the thread, I reload the stove two or three times in 24 hours, depending on whether I put 2,3 or 4 splits in, and how large they are, and how hot I burn the stove. I probably burn between 6 and 9 large hunks of wood per day. My hoop rack holds on average 27 of my splits, and that lasts me over three days, during cold weather (below 0 F).

 

[Mitch Newton]

I load about every three to five hours when I am home, depending on the wood I load. I try to add full loads and let them burn down to coals. If it is cold outside and I need more heat I reload with a lot of red coals. If it is warmer outside I let the coals burn down more. With this style of burning my stove never cruises at a steady temperature; instead it goes from a low of 200 to 300 on the top to highs of 700 or so. This seems to be efficient both in terms of not using too much wood and also at having clean, mostly smokeless burns.

If you asked, I'd say a cord a month is a typical wood use rate. I think I use a lot less than a cord a month, so I am not sure where I get the cord a month value.

I agree Wood Duck. I am burning about a cord /month with my stove located in a large unfinished basement. The first floor temps are about 67 at night and 70-72 during the day.

 

[Mitch Newton]

I prefer to load my stoves with only a few splits and load it more often, about every 4 hours. I go home for lunch so I can do that. I load more for the night but not full. I can control it better and don't have to run the stove temp so high. Being a guy who has seen a lot of houses burn down, I just don't like to push it. Just me. Been doing it that way for 40 years.

I'm with you tfdchief.

 

[Hogwildz]

what stove is it your burning? I load about 8 splits at a time. Usually 3 or 4 large and then filling the top with mediums & smalls.
You should try large splits for long burns.

 

[clemsonfor]

I can't help but wonder if I have some type of air leak in my stove.last night I filled my stove pretty full cut back the oxygen at around 400 degrees and the fire only lasted about 3 to 4 hours before It was down to coals. I'm going to run a test this weekend. I'm going to take 18 splits in bring them up stairs. Those are the only logs I'm going to allow myself to burn and I'm going to try to force myself to make it last all day. I think it's crazy how people can get 12 hours out of a full load I can't even come close to that. if I can't find out whether or not it's the user error within the next couple of weeks I may have to make a call to the company that installed my stove see if they can come and check it out.thank you everyone for the suggestions day been very helpful.

How big is your stove/insert? If its only like 1.3-1.5cuft i can see a full load only lasting 4 hours if your trying to heat your size home.

 

[clemsonfor]

To give an idea if i load medium to smaller splits i can load 9-14 depending upon size. but like last night i had on my over night load that i loaded about 9pm (was still going with 1/4 of the box in hot coals at 7am this mourn and cat probe at 700F) and placed 8 splits i think in the box. But 2 of those were basically about and 8" round that was split in half so those 2 could count as 4 if i quarted those pieces. And i really had space for another small split up top i just did not feel like walking out to the shed to find the right one to fill that space.

 

[Caruso293]

I am burning in a Lopi Freedom Bay. It is a non cat stove with air combustion chambers. it has a 3.1 cubic foot box. It holds up to a 24 inch log and the manufacturer says it should get an estimated 10 to 12 hour burn times.the stove is located on the first floor of a traditional colonial.as far as the actual height I'm not certain it goes up my first floor up to the second floor and then about 2 to 3 feet through the roof I have regular 8 foot ceilings in each floor.when I close the oxygen off I definitely see the fire diminish to almost nothing. Usually when I'm cutting back the air I tried to do it slowly about a quarter of an inch at a time until there's a quarter of an inch left. there is usually about 2-3 inches of ash on the bottom of the floor. when I say it burns down to coals I mean at the stove top temp gets to roughly 300 degrees. thanks again for all the input this is really great.the 6 inch stainless steel liner goes up through my chimney but ?is not insulated does this make a difference

 

[firecracker_77]

I burn around 3-3.5 cords a winter.

Wow...that is hardly any for as cold as it is there.

 

[rideau]

I am burning in a Lopi Freedom Bay. It is a non cat stove with air combustion chambers. it has a 3.1 cubic foot box. It holds up to a 24 inch log and the manufacturer says it should get an estimated 10 to 12 hour burn times.the stove is located on the first floor of a traditional colonial.as far as the actual height I'm not certain it goes up my first floor up to the second floor and then about 2 to 3 feet through the roof I have regular 8 foot ceilings in each floor.when I close the oxygen off I definitely see the fire diminish to almost nothing. Usually when I'm cutting back the air I tried to do it slowly about a quarter of an inch at a time until there's a quarter of an inch left. there is usually about 2-3 inches of ash on the bottom of the floor. when I say it burns down to coals I mean at the stove top temp gets to roughly 300 degrees. thanks again for all the input this is really great.the 6 inch stainless steel liner goes up through my chimney but ?is not insulated does this make a difference

Yes, it does. An insultated liner will keep the stack warmer, get better draft, better burn, be able to burn more slowly.

 

[northwinds]

I am burning in a Lopi Freedom Bay.

When I look back in your postings, I see unseasoned oak in your recent past. Did you switch to seasoned wood or bio-bricks or are you still using that oak?

I bring that up only because you will use more wood when burning unseasoned. Fuel is expended driving the moisture out of the wood.

 

[clemsonfor]

With that stove and stack height you should be able to burn fine. I personally dont think and uninsulated liner is the problem here. Unless your oak is say less than 6 months old i dont think that is the problem either unless your stove is really picky? One year oak should still burn and give off more heat than your seeing for the amount of wood your useing.

This is really strange??

To test if your wood really is the problem, like being to wet, either get some know dry wood if you kinow someone or go to the grocery and buy 2 of those bundles and see how long the last compared to your wood.

 

[Caruso293]

I am burning wood now that has been seasoned for roughly 15 to 16 months I've split the wood I've been using and took a reading with a moisture meter. Most splits read between 18 and 20 percent. Some lower and the larger peicies were a bit higher 22 percent. Im pretty confident the wood im using is fine.

 

[northwinds]

I am burning wood now that has been seasoned for roughly 15 to 16 months I've split the wood I've been using and took a reading with a moisture meter. Most splits read between 18 and 20 percent. Some lower and the larger peicies were a bit higher 22 percent. Im pretty confident the wood im using is fine.

Doesn't sound like the problem then. You had said in November that you were getting 30% readings on fresh splits. Glad that's been sorted out.

 

[Caruso293]

Yes im saving the 30 percent wood for next season. I ended getting a pretty good batch of seasoned wood from a friend

 

[KattWildz]

Every 12 hours, 2x per day, full loads per loading.

How about 3x now with the frigid temps here for next couple days babe?? When Mama's happy,. everyone's happy!! lol

 

[clemsonfor]

How about 3x now with the frigid temps here for next couple days babe?? When Mama's happy,. everyone's happy!! lol

Related to HoggW??

 

[TradEddie]

Even that 22% wood may not be dry enough. I see a world of difference between my 18% Cherry and 22% Oak.

With good wood, I can reload at 250F, and once temps are over 400, usually 15 minutes, close the air almost completely (fully closed, then nudged open the smallest fraction I can feel). That burns for 3-5 hours, depending on how full I load, then when its down to coals, I open the door, drag the coals forward with an upturned ash shovel, and open up the air for a blast furnace effect, good for another hour. There is not much benefit to waiting until 600 to close the air, anything above 400 should give you good secondaries and long efficient burns.

With wetter wood, I can't close the air so much and it takes much longer to get above 400, both contributing to using up the wood faster.

TE

 

[Hogwildz]

Ah my woman and her first post. Welcome.
What 67 is not warm enough for you?
Lets see how cold it gets, then we can adjust so.

 

[clemsonfor]

Ah my woman and her first post. Welcome.
I hWhat 67 is not warm enough for you?
Lets see how cold it gets, then we can adjust so.

When I read it I saw 4 posts, she must of done 4 really quick!!