what do you guys mean when you use the term "bridging" ?

[Jersey Devil]

Just trying to figure out your jargon. Mike

 

[sdrobertson]

I call bridging when the wood burns from the bottom up but it doesn't fall down onto itself and keep coals. It will form a small "bridge" with a air gap under the pile so the coals will not stay on top of the nozzles so they loose gasification. A quick poke and it falls down onto itself and problem is fixed but its a pain to keep stirring it every once in a while.

 

[WoodNotOil]

I call bridging when the wood burns from the bottom up but it doesn't fall down onto itself and keep coals. It will form a small "bridge" with a air gap under the pile so the coals will not stay on top of the nozzles so they loose gasification. A quick poke and it falls down onto itself and problem is fixed but its a pain to keep stirring it every once in a while.

That is the what I would call it too. These down draft gasers need coals over the nozzle to work right. With the correct loading procedure this can be pretty much eliminated. There was a great thread on loading and starting fires on here a while back and I use Nofo's procedure from that. I will see if I can find the thread.

 

[Nofossil]

I suspect it's a downdraft gasifier phenomenon. Wood gets wedged across the width of the firebox. The fire burns out at the bottom, and the wood stays in place above. It's happened to me exactly once in four years. The primary solution is to use smaller pieces of wood.

 

[WoodNotOil]

here is the link https://www.hearth.com/talk/threads/27273/