multifuel stove question

A._Badger

Parisno wrote: »

If you take a look on DEFRAs website you will see most if not all smokeless fuels contain Pet Coke, so don't worry about it too much, I think the manufacturers of stoves are referring to burning 100% Pet Coke.

https://smokecontrol.defra.gov.uk/fuels.php?country=england

The problem stems from the unknown percentage of petcoke in some of the cheaper solid fuels on offer. I'm not one to promote HETAS (for many reasons) but I'd suggest users stick to HETAS approved fuels and be cautious of cheap, unapproved, alternatives.

There are plenty of references online to petcoke if anyone wants to Google it. For example http://www.soliftec.com/solidfuels.htm

EachPenny

A._Badger wrote: »

The problem is that smokeless fuel needs air coming up through the fire bars. If it doesn't get it, not only will it not burn properly but you will also ruin your firebars - and that will get very expensive.
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The better thing to do would be to run on either solid fuel or wood exclusively. Note that wood is not really suited to overnight slumbering due to the smoke leaving flammable tarry deposits on your liner.

Possibly not the best practice (so don't shoot me) but my aged parents have a solid fuel stove as a supplement to their central heating which is only used (for whole house heating) for a few hours a day.

From October to March the stove runs almost continuously, and they get highly distressed if it ever goes out

Their fuel of choice is currently Stoveheat Premium Smokeless which is a dense manufactured briquette with supposedly low ash output. They rake out some of the ash and top up the fuel before going to bed. Normally the stove will still be burning quite well the following morning.

To keep the stove going overnight - which is probably the key objective if you have no other heat source - you should really look for the largest densest compatible product you can find, as the density and lump size are an important factor in length of burn. For proof, compare the burn time of a large hardwood log to the equivalent mass of softwood kindling.

Low ash content also limits the risk of the fire choking itself out. Whilst possibly not ideal for the life expectancy of the stove and flue, some build up of ash also helps moderate the burn and will spread the heat output over a longer period. My AP's haven't had a problem with their burning style affecting the grate - the only thing that does is when dad throws large logs of wood into the fire

The other key factor in keeping the stove going is being able to regulate the airflow sufficiently. Not all stoves have good dampers, and if they don't work properly then excessive airflow can burn out the fuel load well before the morning. You will also need to discover by trial and error how much fuel to add before going to bed - too little and it will all be used up, too much and the fire will overburn and also use up all the fuel. Get it just right and you'll have a nice warm house at breakfast time

tightwadess

Thanks guys keep it coming lol ��

FreeBear

I've been running my multifuel stove on a mix of coal and wood over the last winter. Lighting the fire early afternoon with wood, put a couple of shovel loads of coal on, and then keeping it topped up with logs. Kept the stove set on low burn for wood, and the room stayed reasonably warm for the evening.

Didn't worry about keeping the fire going overnight as it hasn't been excessively cold this winter - A thick duvet and hot water bottle works fine.

redlady_1

I used to keep my stove in overnight and day time with coal (by that I mean some kind of anthracite etc) and then when I got home from work, riddled it and burned it hard with wood. This helped keep the build up to a minimum but I did have my chimney swept twice a year. I would riddle before bed and load up with smokeless fuel, then burn hard with fuel when I got up before slumbering again when I went to work. Weekends I used wood as I was always around