Guide to using the woodburner @ Skysail cottage

As winter approaches and the nights begin to draw in, what better way to spend chilly evenings than being nestled up next to a wood burning stove?

Before you fire up your wood burner and use it we have compiled some tips on how to light a wood burner alongside other top woodburner tips.

How to make a fire in a wood burner

There are several stages to making a successful fire in a wood burner. If a fire is built and lit incorrectly, it can prevent the stove from getting hot. Follow these steps to make a successful wood burner fire:

Firstly you will need to ensure your wood is well seasoned and dry with a moisture content of less than 20% – if buying wood in smaller volumes look out for the Woodsure ‘Ready to Burn label’ which guarantees this.

When lighting your stove we recommend the top down method.

1) Leave some ash – the most efficient way to light a wood burning stove is to leave a little bit of ash from previous fires. However, you should still ensure the majority of the ash is cleaned out to avoid blocking air circulation.

2) Place 1-2 smaller logs on the stove bed

3) On top of this build a stack of 6-8 softwood kindling sticks

4) Then place a natural fire lighter inside

5) Fully open the air control as this will maximise the supply of oxygen in the wood burner needed to get the fire going.

6) Light the fire lighter and close the door but leave it slightly a jar

7) This helps to heat the chimney flue and burn hot and clean

8) Once the fire is burning well close the door and reduce the air intake

9) Re-fuel little and often

10) Every time a log is added open the air control again until the fire is burning well and then return the control to normal

How hot does a wood burner get?

Most wood burners range in temperature and can reach 190 – 343 degrees Celsius (375 – 650 degrees Fahrenheit). However, how hot a wood burner gets can depend on several factors including poor draft on the stove, air vents left closed or not open enough, incorrectly built/lit fire and use of wet wood.

How many logs do I need to put in a wood burner?

It is important not to overload your wood burner with logs, as this will mean the fire does not have enough oxygen to burn effectively. For a constant heat, have one or two small logs in your wood burner at once,

you can always add more logs but taking out a burning log is more of a challenge if you have put in too much.

How to get maximum heat from wood burner

There are several factors that could prevent your wood burner from achieving maximum heat, including:

• The type of wood that is being burnt.

• The moisture content of the wood.

• How effectively the air supply to the fire is controlled.

Achieve the maximum heat from your wood burner by:

• Using softwoods to quickly get the fire started.

• Using harder woods once the fire has started to produce more heat for longer periods.

• Ensuring all wood burned is dry and doesn’t contain large amounts of moisture (as mentioned earlier we recommend a 20 per cent or lower moisture content threshold for firewood).

• Periodically adding a few pieces of wood, rather than waiting for the flame to die down or adding large amounts of wood in one go.

• Using air vents correctly to control airflow to the fire.

• Ensuring your room has adequate ventilation to give the fire an oxygen supply.

How to keep a wood burner going

The below tips will help make a wood stove burn for longer:

• Avoid using wet wood in your wood burning stove.

• Reduce the air coming through the air vents to make the fire last longer.

What trees are the best to burn on a wood burner?

The best wood for burning on a wood burner are:

• Ash

• Oak

• Birch

• Beech

• Cherry

• Sycamore

How to put out a wood burner

Safely put out your wood burner by following these steps:

• Starve the flames of oxygen by ensuring the stove door is completely closed.

• Close all air vents and wait until the flames have died down to embers.

• Wearing heat-resistant gloves, open the door and spread the remaining embers/pieces of wood using a fire poker.

Safety

Do not leave a lit wood burner unattended whist still alight.

Do not overfill the log burner.

Do not store wood, kindling or fire lighters within 1m of the woodburner.

Do not empty ash from fire until the fire and ash is cold, then put ash in marked can and after use put the ash can outside the rear of the property.