My Log Burner Not Getting Hot.

Grz.26

Dear All.

Bit frustrated, we have had our log burner in now for the good part of the month, and we have broke it in nicely. I have heard reports of people having to take their clothes off, but once i get mine started I can feel it getting a little warm, but as hard as i try I cant get it that hot. I can still touch the top on the stove although yes its hot, but not hot enough to heat the room. Its a little 4kw jobby. I think i must be missing something...

any ideas?

kind regards

Richard

patjenkins

Grz.26 wrote: »

Dear All.

Bit frustrated, we have had our log burner in now for the good part of the month, and we have broke it in nicely. I have heard reports of people having to take their clothes off, but once i get mine started I can feel it getting a little warm, but as hard as i try I cant get it that hot. I can still touch the top on the stove although yes its hot, but not hot enough to heat the room. Its a little 4kw jobby. I think i must be missing something...

any ideas?

kind regards

Richard

Hi Richard.

What brand is it and what are you burning on it? We had a problem with wet wood once and switched our fuel and it sorted the problem right out.

Grz.26

It is a country 4. from charnwood. The wood I have was ordered from a guy down the road, i do not know what kind of wood. but it was £40 for a tip truck load. it seems seasoned. dry and wood fraying at the ends...

A._Badger

Charnwood are excellent stoves, so it won't be that, unless it has been poorly installed.

The chances are you simply aren't feeding it with sufficient wood. Newcomers get very fearful of driving stoves hard, but they are better run that way. Get it going, then build a good, deep fire. You want to aim for a bed of red hot wood with a log or two on top of that - it's the soon-to-be-charcoal that produces the heat, not the flames.

Good luck!

Grz.26

right. im gonna give it right seing to tonight then!

redlady_1

If you have got a tip truck full of seasoned wood for £40 then I want that blokes number!!!! I pay £120 roughly. Also, if you dont know what wood it is then you dont know what it is made up of and how each tree burns. It's a learning process. Some burn hotter than others.

Grz.26

I might buy some more then!

patjenkins

When we had problems, the installer came round with a wood moisture content measuring device and our wood was 30% moisture where it should be below 20%.

He also said if you have too much draw on the chimney, this can pull the heat away from the fire, so you might need a damper...

patjenkins

Grz.26 wrote: »

I might buy some more then!

Also make sure the wood is hardwood not softwood and you are lighting the fire properly, here is an extract from the greener company:

Lighting your Wood Burning Stove – The Perfect Fire

Lighting a Wood Burner is an art form. Some people get frustrated when lighting their stove, but if you follow our fool proof advice, your stove will be roaring in no time.

Scrunch up or tie in knots 8-10 (depending on the size of stove and logs) large sheets of newspaper and place these on the bed of the combustion chamber.
On top of the paper place a handful of dry twigs or kindling and light the newspaper.
As the kindling/twigs take light, add more to the flames creating a small bonfire.
As soon as the kindling/twigs begin to char, add to the stove a few dry seasoned logs, trying to angle them so that the flames are hitting the angles of the logs. Make sure you do not suffocate the fire, if you get a build up of smoke, you have suffocated the fire.
Now close the door/doors of the stove, not fully, but maintaining a 1 inch gap/crack. This gap will create a rush of air to be drawn from the room, into the stove and up the chimney. If you have suffocated the fire, this will clear the smoke and get the fire going, if you haven’t suffocated the fire you will see the flames burning intensely. Leave the door cracked like this for 10-15 minutes or until you see appropriate.

Lighting your Wood Burning Stove – The Perfect Fire

Grz.26

I can hear the air whistling down the chimney. I think they maybe a little too much draw..>?

Does this prevent things working properly..?

patjenkins

Sound like you might need a Flue Damper for your stove. We looked into getting one (but found out we were burning crap wood!) they basically slow the draw down and you can adjust them appropriately.