Creosote Build Up

[doctorb]

dont let morons load the stove when u r not home... like people that come to let your gog out side and feel compelled to jam an entire cord of wood into your stove.

:D :D

[albirk]

Westyswoods how is the creosote build up been the last couple days? It's been cold here (single digits at night)and all the creosote in my stove is gone gust a nice thin layer on the sides the OWB is back to kicking on and of every 45 to50 min. insted of every 2 hours or more

[Logging logginglogging]

Been a lot colder here the last couple days, and now i am getting like none to scrape off the sides. I also let it burn up some when i had the door open filling the stove the other day. so that cleans it good.

[r.man]

Anyone interested in this thread should read the thread starting " Comical" and ask themselves, where can I get a dead parrot?

[forest]

My neighbor has a P&M stove and he gets lots of creosote even during cold weather (-20C). He thinks that the second chamber removes too much of the heat from the smoke thus condensing it into creosote. The chimney top according to the information I have should be at least a foot above the peak of the roof. I have found that more is usually better. More draw will insure that the smoke moves through the stove faster, keeping the metal hotter, thus lowering the rate of condensation. Keeping the spread less and the top temperature higher for the water temp would also help, but these will not be enough if it doesn't cycle fairly often. The final thing that my neighbor does is to clean it often.

[gspren]

  Westyswoods, how about an update?

[GlenFar]

Hi, I'm new to the forum but have followed this thread with a lot of interest. I have a vintage P&M 30 furnace that has sat "in the crate" since 1995 (long story) and I am now using it for the first time this winter. It works very well but I am having the same problem with creosote as Westy so aptly described and I have tried many of the recommended solutions. My question is: does anyone have any experience with the various additives that are advertised to remove creosote, in a wood furnace? (Rutland and the like.)

[beenthere]

Welcome to the Forestry Forum.

I think the addatives only remove money from your pocket.

Getting the right amount of wood needed for the heat load in demand is the best way to keep the creosote down. A cooled down fire will allow creosote to condense out on the walls, especially when there is a water jacket behind the wall keeping the temps below about 180 deg.

Dry wood is also an important part of the creosote combination to figure out. When you find it, you will like it. 

[thecfarm]

GlenFar,welcome to the forum. maybe it's the nature of the beast??  As another member said,throw wood in,get heat out.

[Logging logginglogging]

Welcome to the Forestry Forum.

I think the addatives only remove money from your pocket.

Getting the right amount of wood needed for the heat load in demand is the best way to keep the creosote down. A cooled down fire will allow creosote to condense out on the walls, especially when there is a water jacket behind the wall keeping the temps below about 180 deg.

Dry wood is also an important part of the creosote combination to figure out. When you find it, you will like it.

I used the Rutland stuff and it worked very goos, made cleaning much better, dries out the creosote so it just kind of flakes off.

[GlenFar]

Thanks a lot for the replies. I am working on getting the amount of wood right. One challenge is the swings in outside temperature this winter (-20C one day, +2C the next) and long nights when I maybe overload a bit to avoid going out to fill the furnace. I might try the Rutland remover too to see if that helps. Happy heating...

[Al_Smith]

Might be pertinate to the conversation might not .I usually make my stacks in 4 to 6-7 cord at a time ,segregated .Oak in one stack,cherry in another ,hickory in another .Maybe soft maple ,basswood or some other less desirable firewood in another.

Evidently for reasons unknown I had laid in a bunch of this less desirable wood in the front of the oak stack I'm burning this season .Not paying much attention except noting it was rather light I just burned away but noticed the stuff didn't last that long which surprised me .Burned to powder and didn't charcoal up like oak .

So evidently within the last week it was evident  I had  finally gotten to the oak because that wood stove has a layer of about 4 inchs of nice hot charcoal in the bottom now which by the way contains the most heat and is the least producer of creosote .

That said while it's a known fact that all wood by weight will produce the same BTU's of heat .By volume though there is a big difference in not only the amount used but the residaul amount of creosote they might produce .You have to burn whatever you have though not everybody has oak available to them .

[711ac]

This is prolly "out in left field" but This past fall, I was talking to a PM dealer at a fair. He was burning a new PM green chip burner. I asked about creosote and he said that he put a small cut open beer can of amonia in the intake air? chamber. Something that he had learned from the "old timers" when he was a kid. I have an indoor gasser but I agree with bumping up your temps on the boiler, it's an easy try. I like the green house idea also. Get some grow lights and we'll all be over for a fresh tomato samitch next new years! :D

[gspren]

This is prolly "out in left field" but This past fall, I was talking to a PM dealer at a fair. He was burning a new PM green chip burner. I asked about creosote and he said that he put a small cut open beer can of amonia in the intake air? chamber. Something that he had learned from the "old timers" when he was a kid. I have an indoor gasser but I agree with bumping up your temps on the boiler, it's an easy try. I like the green house idea also. Get some grow lights and we'll all be over for a fresh tomato samitch next new years! :D

I remember reading about throwing an empty beer can in every day and it would help stop the creasote, well I tried it and the cans disapeared but the creasote didn't so I quit it. Maybe it didn't work because I drink lite beer  :D maybe try some Fosters in the quart size.