What Is In Your Stove Right Now?

[thewoodlands]

Maybe I should try your way of reloading by stuffing the firebox and then letting it catch. I have found some success at getting a bottom row going and then adding a few more then a few more until up to temp and close air down incrementaly. What is everybody's method of loading a full box?

That makes sense. Coincides with the research I have done and the manual. I am afraid that if I stuff it it will run wild in a blink of an eye or the flue temp will rise so quick I will need to shut the air down too soon and then get a smoldering fire. I guess I will have to tinker with it. My reload has been working for me but it would be nice to open the door once instead of a few different times, but not the end of the world. Creating less smoke is a plus though if true.

Our draft is good but at 20 below it's really great especially with seasoned wood. Find out what works for you and your setup with the different types of wood you have.

When I started burning, I never gave it a second thought about filling the stove with our best hardwood, I've changed my mind years ago. There's very good info on this site so when these members that have been burning much longer than I have give you info, use it.

I checked our stovetop temp just a few minutes ago, it settled in at 550.

 

[thewoodlands]

I have an Osburn 3300, no bypass, just single air control and a key damper that I am only slightly closing to offset the strong draft a bit. SBI says my max stove top temp is 900° but it seems to run great between 625° and 750° which is the max I have hit. Also, I am burning mainly red oak with MC between 17-20%, so probably unlikely to overfire unless I forgot about it.

Nice stove, how do you like it?

 

[BrownT10]

Nice stove, how do you like it?

I think it will be a good stove and have since warmed up to it after a few weeks of frustration. When loaded and pushed it will provide the heat we need. I heat from the basement and rarely turn heat on on the first floor. The stove is under our living room and fairly close to a stairwell so not much issue heating the main floor. So far, so good but still trying to get it dialed in with minimum babysitting and maximum efficiency.

 

[thewoodlands]

We bottomed out at 19.3 this morning, more of the maples went in the wood stove on top of some nice coals.

 

[Diabel]

Coldest morning thus far this season, 25*f. Just reloaded with hemlock/basswood mix. Should be good til about 3:00-4:00pm

 

[rottiman]

Got up to 26 here today. Supposed to drop to 16 tonight. Mixed diet of hardwood is on going in and the temp is a very comfortable 72 here in the nest. All is good.

 

[thewoodlands]

Got up to 26 here today. Supposed to drop to 16 tonight. Mixed diet of hardwood is on going in and the temp is a very comfortable 72 here in the nest. All is good.

The wind we had today "wood" get into the old bones when I was working outside, how was it in your area?

We're at 19.4 already.

 

[MMH]

Stayed chilly today, I kept the stove going with some splits here and there; high tomorrow in the 30s with lows around 10 for tonight and tomorrow night. I’ll bring some mahogany in.

 

[stoveliker]

Red oak cut offs. 41 now, 33 tonight.

View attachment 286107

These cut offs lasted from 10 pm until 3 pm the next day. Kept the stove going with some pine bits and pieces until now (9 pm).

It was blustery today. Windy.

Now 37. Tonight will be 31 F.

Just loaded up with red oak pieces again.
Almost done with them. Then sassafras splits.

Not loaded very well/ full, but it'll be okay given the burn until 3 pm today with only slightly more.

 

[NickW]

Ash

 

[BrownT10]

A load of red oak overnight. Filled the box pretty full with a single load as opposed to adding a little at a time. Seems to be working well once it caught.

 

[thewoodlands]

We had a pellet stove before we ever bought the land that I usually cut on so tonight the old yankee pellet stove received its first bag of the year, we're at 15.5 already so the constant heat throughout the night should keep the house around 71, the pellet stove is in the basement too.

Since Curran Renewable Energy is a local family from where I grew up and have workers from the surrounding area, we use their pellets.

We'll start the wood stove back up tomorrow morning, maybe even put in a few more loads of hardwood before Thanksgiving.

 

[stoveliker]

That is nice; buying pellets that have many big names in the business, from a local company.

 

[BrownT10]

Still trying to maximize efficiency and clean burn. Do those with tube stoves find a you can achieve a clean burn with minimal smoke with only secondaries going and little to no primary flames? I am trying to find the balance while maintaining stove top and flue temps. Here is what I got going. No smoke in tee near stove, some smoke out the chimney, but it's dark and seems that exhaust shows in the dark more, similar to a truck exhaust.

 

[BrownT10]

A few minutes later

 

[NickW]

I am still working on perfecting my technique... Generally you should have some primaries firing.

On a full load I need to choke the air down to fully closed to 1/8 open to keep it under control, but at some point overnight it'll die out mostly and smoke the glass and leave mostly charcoal in the morning instead of coals. I am playing with letting the wood char more before shutting it down and starting the overnight load earlier to open the air up to 1/4 open before going to bed.

 

[thewoodlands]

That is nice; buying pellets that have many big names in the business, from a local company.

When we were kids and maybe playing sports in the summer or at a camp on the St.Lawrence River, the Curran boys were in the woods with their father felling trees at a early age, they were always hard workers.

Two of the boys took the business to a new level when they got bigger with Seaway Timber Harvesting, later on when the pulp mill in Cornwall Ontario closed they were hauling logs a longer distance so they started the pellet mill.

They were still having to haul some logs to Quebec (sawmill) so I'm pretty sure they purchased the equipment and started their own, I'm pretty sure that's in Ogdensburg New York.

 

[thewoodlands]

That is nice; buying pellets that have many big names in the business, from a local company.

This is the truck they started out with, I'm not sure who the young kid is on top of the logs but behind the truck is Pat, I think he took the company to a new level with the help of his brothers.

 

[stoveliker]

Cool pic. Hard times sometimes, but honest and therefore satisfying work.

 

[Diabel]

Cool pic. Hard times sometimes, but honest and therefore satisfying work.

Hard work dur sure

 

[MMH]

Currently 19 out, have 3 mahogany splits on bottom E/W and topped off with pine N/S.

 

[Grizzerbear]

Had a small post oak fire last night. The stove will go cold today since it will be in the 60s. Its suppose to be pretty windy with 30 mph gusts today. The wind is coming before a cold front that will come through this evening with rain and bump us down to highs in the 40s tomorrow.

 

[kennyp2339]

Brief warm up tomorrow for turkey day, I will load up the garage rack today with my 10day supply. Cold winds coming back for Friday and possibly our first snow event for Sunday night into Monday, after Friday its looking like long term cold for a while, I'm personally loving it.
I will keep burning my uglies until I cant make it to that portion of the yard with the wheel barrel, once that happens I'll switch over to the good stuff.

 

[thewoodlands]

We had 12.2 this morning, the pellet stove kept the temp up here at 68. I switched over to the wood stove for the day, we could hit 39 today.

 

[rottiman]

Was down to 10 here at 3 a.m.. Woke up to 17 @ 6 and it is now 28. Supposed to top out @ 43 later today. Gonna keep the stove idling along all day.