How to guides
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Lighting the fire…
Light the fire quickly by starting with plenty of kindling. Use small, dry sticks, dry fir cones, and firelighters to start with. Then place larger, seasoned logs (with a moisture content of 20% or less) on top.
Fully open all the air controls, light the fire and shut the door.
Let the fire burn for around 10-15 minutes. You should see the flames filling up the firebox but not being sucked up the chimney.
Open the door carefully and place on some slightly larger logs. After a few minutes, when these have got going, place some full-sized logs on top.
If there is more than one air control, you can now close the one which draws in air directly from the room - see your manufacturer’s instructions.
The temperature of the fire will rise now that this ‘primary’ control has been closed. Your stove pipe thermometer should show the heat rising towards its optimum temperature.
At this point you can reduce the ‘secondary’ air control. This will slow the rate of burn, but take care not to reduce it too much. The glass should stay clear and there should still be some flame in the box.
After around 15 minutes of burning at its optimum temperature check to see if there is any smoke coming from the chimney. If there is, then simply open up the control a little, wait for the fire to build, then check again.
Using seasoned logs
Cutting and storing your logs correctly will ensure that you always burn wood in the most efficient way.
Make sure that you cut logs to a size that will comfortably fit in your stove and allow you to shut the door. Splitting them will allow the moisture to dry out faster.
Seasoning logs means allowing all the natural moisture to dry before burning. This doesn’t simply mean keeping the rain off them, but cutting and splitting, then stacking the logs to allow movement of air around them.
Depending on the tree species and log diameter, you may need to store them for a period of two years or more before they are ready to use.
Siting the log store in a sunny position, facing the prevailing wind (here in North Somerset this is from the south-west) can help reduce the amount of seasoning time.
Ideally you will have three log stores: One that you are filling, one that is seasoning and one that is being used. If this is not possible, you may need to empty out your log store periodically to store the most seasoned logs at the front.
You should always check the moisture content of logs before burning. Push the moisture meter into a recently split log. It should be 20% or less to burn safely and with minimum particle emissions.
Need more?
Click the play button to watch these helpful 'how to’ videos from Burnright.
‘Getting it right’ - How to light your fire
‘Wood and Moisture’ - How to test your wood
Environmental issues
It’s an uncomfortable and inescapable fact that burning fossil fuels causes air pollution, whether that is from gas and oil boilers, or coal, wood or peat fires. It is the responsibility of every homeowner to ensure that they use their appliances in the least impactful way. When we burn wood, carbon dioxide is released - but the same CO2 would be released anyway if the tree were to die and rot down.* The difference in having a fire is that particles are also released. Learning how to operate your wood-burning stove correctly can reduce particle emissions by up to 80%**. The good news is that unlike fossil fuels, logs are a sustainable resource.
Smoking chimneys, deposits on the glass, tarry deposits in the chimney or flue are all indications that you are not operating your stove correctly. Your chimney sweep can offer guidance on how to do this.
* Source: Norwegian Wood, Chopping, Stacking and Drying Wood The Scandinavian Way by Lars Mytting
**Source: Burnright.