Hello,
First of all, thanks to everyone for the very informative site. I've been lurking for awhile and thanks to all of you, I've become a very informed woodburner.
This is my first season (stove installed in October) and as such, my 4 cords in the backyard won't be ready until next winter. So, we've been using purchased wood this year. I've bought a cord of maple/fir/cedar, and also about half a pallet of Home Fire logs. Both of which I have been very pleased with. Here are a couple pics of our stove:
My father-in-law wanted to contribute to our dwindling purchased supply for a Xmas gift, and knew of a local mill outlet in Tacoma that sells compressed wood bricks. The pallet was $225 with a claimed 17 million BTU. The bricks were dry and smelled strongly of pine. Two pickup trucks later, they are stacked in my garage and we have been burning them for about a week.
This is the outfit we purchased them from:
(broken link removed to http://www.lowpricedcedar.com/product_detail.php?prodid=43#)
No response from the distributor yet. I have asked who manufactures them so I can use the info to further track issues.
The bricks burn well and we are happy with the heat output. However, we have started noticing white accumulations on the inner side walls of the stove. Another thing we have noticed is that the upper brick supports and secondary tubes get a glossy hue mid-way through the burn. I remember reading somewhere that these parts should never be "shiny", but no explanation as to "why" was given. Take a look at the pics..... Salty??
Can anyone who has experienced a salt corroded woodstove put my mind at ease, or should I be reloading these bricks into the truck and getting a refund? And, if this is a salt problem, could I safely use the remainder of the pallet and just never buy them again? And even more, if it is salt, can I just scrape it off and prevent further corrosion, or is my stove already permanently damaged and doomed to decay?
Thanks to Google, I dug up this interesting piece. Not sure if the same company produces these logs, but from what I have found, I am guessing they are. Sounds like the logs are floated to the mill, in saltwater.
(broken link removed to http://www.mikepellegrini.com/weblog/2008/04/manke_clean_burn_wood_pellets.php)
I'm going to get real "technical" tomorrow morning after things have cooled down. Index-finger-to-mouth method will probably be the most telling. But, if it is salt, I still need to know what I can do about it.
Thanks in advance for any input,
Stay warm,
Beave
First of all, thanks to everyone for the very informative site. I've been lurking for awhile and thanks to all of you, I've become a very informed woodburner.
This is my first season (stove installed in October) and as such, my 4 cords in the backyard won't be ready until next winter. So, we've been using purchased wood this year. I've bought a cord of maple/fir/cedar, and also about half a pallet of Home Fire logs. Both of which I have been very pleased with. Here are a couple pics of our stove:
My father-in-law wanted to contribute to our dwindling purchased supply for a Xmas gift, and knew of a local mill outlet in Tacoma that sells compressed wood bricks. The pallet was $225 with a claimed 17 million BTU. The bricks were dry and smelled strongly of pine. Two pickup trucks later, they are stacked in my garage and we have been burning them for about a week.
This is the outfit we purchased them from:
(broken link removed to http://www.lowpricedcedar.com/product_detail.php?prodid=43#)
No response from the distributor yet. I have asked who manufactures them so I can use the info to further track issues.
The bricks burn well and we are happy with the heat output. However, we have started noticing white accumulations on the inner side walls of the stove. Another thing we have noticed is that the upper brick supports and secondary tubes get a glossy hue mid-way through the burn. I remember reading somewhere that these parts should never be "shiny", but no explanation as to "why" was given. Take a look at the pics..... Salty??
Can anyone who has experienced a salt corroded woodstove put my mind at ease, or should I be reloading these bricks into the truck and getting a refund? And, if this is a salt problem, could I safely use the remainder of the pallet and just never buy them again? And even more, if it is salt, can I just scrape it off and prevent further corrosion, or is my stove already permanently damaged and doomed to decay?
Thanks to Google, I dug up this interesting piece. Not sure if the same company produces these logs, but from what I have found, I am guessing they are. Sounds like the logs are floated to the mill, in saltwater.
(broken link removed to http://www.mikepellegrini.com/weblog/2008/04/manke_clean_burn_wood_pellets.php)
I'm going to get real "technical" tomorrow morning after things have cooled down. Index-finger-to-mouth method will probably be the most telling. But, if it is salt, I still need to know what I can do about it.
Thanks in advance for any input,
Stay warm,
Beave