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How to Properly Start a Wood Burning Stove Wood stoves can be a great method to reduce energy consumption and warm the room. They require some care. A majority of modern wood stoves comply with EPA emission guidelines. You can check for an EPA sticker on the grate or under it to ensure your stove isn't releasing harmful pollutants. How to start a Wood Fire The smell and sound of a wood fire can be a pleasant feature in any house. It's essential to understand how to build a fire on your stove. Incorrect methods can result in a fire that doesn't burn efficiently and creates creosote or smoke. These tips will help you start the fire that will warm your home with minimum effort and with the highest safety. Check the condition of your logs and coals before you start the fire. If they're wet it will dampen your fire and hinder proper burning. You may also want to open the flue to let any ash out that has been deposited into the stove. Begin by placing a handful of small dry pieces of newspaper in the stove. This will help to spark the tinder and ignite your kindling. Once these begin to burn, add a layer of larger pieces of kindling to the top of the pile. This should be done in a crosshatch pattern, so that there will be air between each piece of wood. If you own a wood stove with an automatic control for combustion it will automatically supply a controlled stream of air to your fire as it builds. This will allow the fire to burn continuously without having to open the door of your stove constantly to tend to it. Do not use too much tinder as it will cause the fire to burn at a fast rate and will not be able to use the fuel effectively. Once you've made a solid base in your stove with igniters, tinder, and embers, start the main flame by laying two large logs of the base on the grill. Then, add small logs perpendicular to these and on the top of the base logs. This method of creating the fire is known as a “top-down” fire will result in a powerful and long-lasting fire that will not overtake the larger base logs. Close the damper once your fire is established and keep it closed. The fire can be smothered if the user opens the damper prior to it being fully established. It will also reduce the effectiveness of the fire. Adding Wood Stoves can be used to heat your home efficiently and also save you money. They can be utilized in conjunction with central heating systems or furnace to provide supplemental heating in large homes. A lot of the stoves that are clean burning available on the market use advanced combustion principles that is able to separate the burning volatile compounds from combustible gases and tar. This is achieved by supplying air at two distinct stages. The first stage allows for the burning of volatile compounds and the second offers fresh air that is pre-heated. This improves combustion and decreases smells. The amount of heat you get from a stove depends on the species and the moisture content of the wood used and also the dimensions of logs. The logs must be stored in a well-ventilated space for several months before you try to burn them, to give the wood time to dry out. If the logs are soaked with excessive moisture, they will create steam, which is basically wasted energy. During the burning of the fire, you should add more wood to the stack at intervals, but not all at once. Adding too much wood at once can cause the temperature of the firebox to rise, and produces a vortex that sucks smoke and volatile compounds that have not been burned back into the flame which can decrease your stove's efficiency. Avoid using other combustibles in your stove such as cardboard or paper, because they are not wood. They have different physical properties and cannot be burned without producing dangerously high temperatures. Also, avoid using compressed combustibles such as wood briquettes, as they have a completely different chemical and physical properties from actual firewood and are not type-approved for burning in wood burning stoves. If you're installing wood-burning stoves into your home, it is important to have it properly installed and tested by a qualified. A certified WETT technician will examine your stove to make sure it is safe and reliable. They will also ensure whether your chimney is working properly. These experts can also provide maintenance services to keep your chimney and stove in top condition. They can check for leaks in the areas connected to your chimney, and fix any issues they discover. They will also make sure that the occupants of your home know and follow the fire evacuation procedures in case in the event of an emergency. Adjusting the Damper A damper regulates the amount of heat that is lost up the chimney when you're not using your stove. It can also be used to control the fire. If the flue is open but the damper is not closed enough, the fire will not burn as efficiently and will release smoke into your living area. To ensure you have the best fire with the damper properly adjusted, you have to play around with different locations and observe how each affects the flames. It is important to keep your damper open to allow air to flow into and out of the flue when a flame is burning. This lets the fire get a good fire going and helps it stay lit so you can enjoy it for hours. The right opening will prevent the fire from being starved of air and prevent it from blowing smoke. To adjust your damper correctly, you must first ensure that the fireplace has been preheated and that the wood stove is hot. This will ensure that the chimney is warm and also that it has a strong draft. Once antique wood stove is accomplished, the wood stove damper may be adjusted. After the fire has been burning for some time, you need to close the damper about three quarters of the way. This will prevent warm air from the room from escaping into the chimney, while still allowing smoke to escape. This is the most effective way to stop the fire from becoming too hot, while also keeping it burning. The draft might be stopped if you close the damper to far but a cold wind could be able to enter your home when the damper is not closed. By placing your hands on the top of the flue pipe will tell you how much the damper has sunk. If you can feel a small draft pressing against your hand, it's probably in the open position. The damper settings can differ a little from one stove to the next, and even between different types of wood. You can experiment with various settings to get a sense of the most suitable setting for your stove. Clean Up After an incident, it is important to clean the flue and stove. This can reduce the chance of an explosion in the chimney, which is the primary reason for fires caused by wood stoves. Creosote, a sticky substance that forms on the stovepipe's interior and is extremely dangerous. It is caused by the moisture and wood particles that are not burned that cannot escape the fire. This can also occur when fires are not properly lit. A regular cleaning routine helps prevent the buildup of creosote. The most effective method for doing this is by sweeping the chimney every year. It is recommended that you have your fireplace and stove professionally cleaned and inspected at least once a year, too. It is also an excellent idea to clean out the ash tray and grate regularly. It is best to only burn wood that has been seasoned because it produces less creosote. Avoid burning cardboard, paper and plastic. These items could release dangerous chemicals for the flue and air, which can be released into your home. The glass in the wood burning stove has to be cleaned frequently as well. Many modern wood stoves come with self-cleaning windows so they don't require as much scrubbing. If you're unable to make the glass on your wood stove as clean as you would like, there are stove glass cleaners you can use on the window. Other helpful tips to maintain your wood stove include turning the vent off when you're not using it and slamming a window or door to increase the flow of air. This will keep the fire burning hotter and more efficiently, as it won't have to exert as much effort to circulate air. It is advisable not to stack logs or leave them on the fire for a long duration. This could cause splits and warping. In addition, it is recommended to avoid using compressed combustible logs in your wood stove, as the paraffin they contain can melt and flow down the flue which could cause damage.