What happens when you burn coated/glossy paper? My catalitic wood stove said do not burn coated paper and I was told that coated paper would hurt the catalitic. I beleive the manual on my eclassic 2300 said the same thing but there is not catalitic, so what happens if coated paper is burnt? Why is it bad?
I understand it has to do with the chemicals in the smoke.
Likely as much an EPA emissions thing - - again. Burning anything will be next on their list.
I'm not sure what the catalysts are made of in a wood stove, but some catalysts are very sensitive to certain chemicals. If they get contaminated by the wrong thing, the catalyst is ruined and will have to be replaced.
This is what drove the switch to unleaded gas. The lead in the exhaust destroyed the catalytic converters in the cars (probably a different catalyst than what's in a woods stove).
John Mc
coated paper contains a parafin or wax of some sort.
im wondering if they make the catalyst stoves run dirty to make the catalyst work, they did it on cars.
they overly make the engine run pig rich to make the catalyst work.
Many modern vehicles do not have air injection systems. Instead, they provide a constantly varying air-fuel mixture that quickly and continually cycles between lean and rich exhaust.
Little known fact .The original Ford 460 produced nearly 500 HP in it's original form and using the acceptable method of measuring HP in use at that time .The HP was rather erronious with that method though
Never the less when they were forced to use converters in order for that big engine to allow enough unburned gasoline to fire the converter the valve timing was retarded by about 1/2 of a tooth on the crankshaft /cam timing chain . It reduced the available HP by about 30 and the milage by about 2 or 3 per gallon on a Lincoln .
So that seemed to be historically speaking the EPA cutting off its nose to spite its face .Not perhaps the first instance and by all means not nearly the last considering past track records .
Coated or glossy paper has kaolin a very fine clay material possibly that coats the converter and causes problems. Frank C.
Quote from: bandmiller2 on December 30, 2011, 09:28:37 PM
Coated or glossy paper has kaolin a very fine clay material possibly that coats the converter and causes problems. Frank C.
BM2 is correct the coated paper has clay mixture used in the process.
So if that is the issue why can't I burn it in my eclassic 2300. No cat in that.
I don't think it has anything to do with catalysts or converters. It's all about putting chemical compounds in the exhaust of the stove. They probably have to put that warning in their instructions to meet their EPA approval.
Around here you are still allowed to burn your household waste products in open burning pits or barrels, but according to the EPA, absolutely no corrugated boxes in your open burning or you will get fined.
So I think the ban in your stove is to just not put any extra chemicals in to the air.
I don't know if cardboard causes a problem or not ,it burns up okay though .Besides that I don't think the EPA bon fire police are any more proactive than the rumored chainsaw police they seem to worry about .
Around here they wouldn't whine too much unless you were burning old tires or something .In addition farmers can burn fence rows crop residue and the like .As far as I'm concerned I've got just as much rights myself to burn slash weather I own 600 acres or not .If a little cardboard box or ten gets tossed in the fire ,so what .