Quote:
Originally Posted by Poor Richard
What I do with a cold stove/ chimney is to get a decent flame started. It doesn't have to be a large flame but it does have to be something that can start pushing heat up the chimney. (For reference, a flame that is roughly and consistently at least 6" to 8" tall)
We have a ~30' vertical run of all-fuel chimney pipe to contend with before we can start placing logs inside the stove. This could be anywhere from a few seconds to a few minutes before the initial kindling burn displaces enough cold air up the chimney to eliminate the down draft effect, depending on the ambient temp.
I have a damper 18" up the stove pipe and there is an air intake on each of the front doors of our 50+ year old Old Mill stove. Generally, nothing starts getting closed down until I see temps approaching 300 however I'll run the flue damper at around 50% open until the temps are up if I know the wood is dry enough, then close it down to nearly 20% open and let the stove simmer
I believe the mistake your fire-starting expert made was piling logs into the stove before getting a basic and reliable heat source going to displace the cold air in the chimney.
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Fire starter sticks, fat wood, and a bit of paper will get you started. Question, is there a small grate on the stove floor? I add a few smaller pieces to the top of the grate and newspaper balls underneath. Light a piece of newspaper and hold it up at the flume for a few seconds it warm the draft. Drop it under the grate before you burn your hand! Start piling smaller pieces in a box shape and enjoy.
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