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Maximizing Your Stove’s Overall Efficiency
It is important to know that for high, combustion efficient, clean
burns, you will need to have sufficient temperatures inside the
firebox for thorough combustion. The best method for determining
if you have sufficient temperatures is to watch the brick lining in
your firebox. When you first light your stove, the bricks will turn a
dark brown or black. After 20 to 30 minutes of a hot fire, most of
the bricks should return to near their original light brown or yellow
color. This means the bricks have reached a high enough tempera-
ture for your stove to achieve high combustion efficiency.
Second and just as important, is achieving a high level of heat
transfer efficiency. Slowing the rate of flow through the stove or
insert enhances heat transfer, thus allowing more time for heat to
be transferred into your home. To do this, be sure to thoroughly
preheat your stove and then reduce the amount of primary air
by closing the draft control (lower left) to about 1/2 to 3/4 open.
This will decrease the excess oxygen in your flue, which carries
heat up your chimney, but should still be enough air to allow the
stove to produce its maximum heat output. (More air may produce
a lightly greater amount of heat, but will greatly increase wood
consumption). When the area being heated reaches a comfortable
temperature, slow the burn rate by closing the control to further
improve heat transfer.
To get the most out of your Country™ Collection stove, you will
need to combine good combustion efficiency with good heat
transfer practices. The following are some tips on how to operate
your stove to achieve the highest overall efficiency.
1. Thoroughly preheat your stove before slowing the burn
rate by closing the draft control.
2. Measure the stove temperature at the hottest point on
the stove top or face. Use this information to repeat burn
rates.
3. Once preheated, add wood (if needed) and partially close
the draft control (lower left).
4. Operate your stove as much as possible in the low to
medium burn ranges.
5. Do not lower the draft setting so low as to completely ex-
tinguish the flames in the firebox. Check for at least some
small flames 20 minutes after setting the draft control.
6. Do not continually operate your stove in the high (wide
open) setting. This wastes wood by carrying a great deal
of heat up the chimney and can damage your stove and
chimney.
7. Go outside and check your chimney. More than a very
small amount of smoke indicates wasted heat, creosote
build-up and pollution.
Achieving Clean, Long Burns
To achieve long burn times, after having thoroughly preheated
the stove, let the stove top cool down to 275
to 400 degrees (on
Elites, locate thermometer on the face of the insert just above
the door). Now load the firebox and set the draft control. At this
point, you may need to burn the stove with the draft open for a few
minutes to ignite the wood. All Country Collection stoves are EPA
tested for emissions at low burn with the air control completely
closed. Whether or not you should burn your stove with the air
control completely closed will depend on the following factors.
* How you load your wood
* Your chimney type, height and draft
* Your wood type and its moisture content
* The temperature of the stove
* Which model stove or insert you have