First fire...

[OldHorseman]

   The ol' woodstove is crackling away nicely now...  First fire of the season got a bit delayed.  I was just looking out the window a couple weeks ago thinking that soon I'd need to spark the stove up, when I noticed a goddamned bird poking its head out through the stovepipe.  Hadda' wait until I got into town for new pipes, then the rain kept putting off the repair...  Finally got it done today. Really could have used it last night.  Good thing we still have other options to heat the place...

   The pipes only lasted a few years... Mostly due to a couple mistakes on my part, I think.

   First, I used plain galvanized pipes, which can rust pretty quick outdoors.  This time I used a black elbow and painted the long pipes with coats of high-temp black...  Would have just bought black pipes, except they didn't have any in 5' lengths, and I don't need a lot of extra joints in the thing.

   (I also bought enough pipe and fittings to do the replacement again in the future, in case SHTF and I can't get more in years to come.)

   Second, I remembered to put overlapping layers of chicken-wire inside the chimney cap to keep the idiotic birds out this time...  It wasn't just the last trapped bird trying to peck his way out that was a problem...  His mummified predecessors held moisture in the pipes during the humid, fire-free Summer, and rusted them out from inside.

   While I was at it, I made the chimney pipe a few feet taller to try and get a more reliable draw.  It's burning great with the damper in the closed position right now. 

   Lu and I will have to get serious about fetching-up some deadfall for firewood.

[rdocr]

For a better draw, insulate the outside pipe. Double wall pipe is available for this. The inner pipe is stainless and it lasts quite well. Never have had a SS pipe deteriorate.

The other thing is to keep the exhaust pipe as straight and vertical as possible.  Straight up is as good as it gets.

I got a new fangled woodstove a while back and they said not to put a damper in the exhaust stack. I am trying that, but I still wonder. So far it works to conrol with the combustion air damper.

Here in Oregon, they have gotten real strict about wood burning, especially the EPA.

That's a contained in my book, All That's Practical About WOOD: As A Fuel, Heating, Stoves.

Noadays, I use wood as the backup fuel and Wod Pellets ( don't have to chop or split them) for my primary heating source. Hey, that's another book, The Wood Pellet Handbook

Of course, during the Daytime when the Sun is out, I turn off the heater and use the Sun's heat. We have been doing that for forty years. And Yes, that's another book, How To Build and Benefit From a PASSIVE SOLAR SPACE HEATER.
We first used them in San Diego county so it aught to work for you, too.

We had our first frost Dec 5 and that was followed by a freeze, down to 22F at night and 30F days. I had 150F heat coming into the living room from the Solar collected described in the book above. My heater turns off when the sun gets serious, about 9:00AM. I call it FREE HEAT.

Sure saves on fuel costs, as well as the labor involved. I don't really like splitting wood any more.

Since the 1970's I have been real stingy about how I heat our place. During that first shortage gas prices increased   X!0.

So far,  Heating has resulted in ten books on how to do it better, all from our own practical experience. Now with LATOC on the  near horizon, they are back in style.

LOL

Ralph,

[OldHorseman]

For a better draw, insulate the outside pipe. Double wall pipe is available for this. The inner pipe is stainless and it lasts quite well. Never have had a SS pipe deteriorate.

   Sounds expensive.  Only double-wall pipe I saw was the bits designed for going through the wall or roof.

The other thing is to keep the exhaust pipe as straight and vertical as possible.  Straight up is as good as it gets.

   Problem being that straight-up means going through the ceiling/roof, which will eventually leak.  Most old stoves around here are done like mine, with a horizontal pipe going out through a wall, then a tall vertical chimney pipe outside the building.  The horizontal section in the house also releases extra heat that otherwise would go straight out the stack.

I got a new fangled woodstove a while back and they said not to put a damper in the exhaust stack. I am trying that, but I still wonder. So far it works to conrol with the combustion air damper.

   Mine is an old-fashioned cast-iron stove...  They don't close up that tight.  Even with the vents fully closed, it can get enough air in to burn too hot (gobbling up too much wood as well) unless I use the damper to reduce draw.

Here in Oregon, they have gotten real strict about wood burning, especially the EPA.

   Around here, we don't ask permission from little tin gods for this kind of thing.

Of course, during the Daytime when the Sun is out, I turn off the heater and use the Sun's heat. We have been doing that for forty years.

   Yes, we only heat at night most of the time.  Place warms up nicely even in the coldest days...  Unless ol' Sol goes on strike, which he seems to be doing here lately.

   Biggest trick there was to plant big fruit trees around the house instead of pretty evergreens.  Yeah, they're ugly in the winter when the leaves shed-off, but they let the sun through...  Then they fill out in the spring to shade the place.

[houseoftang]

The stainless double or triple walled pipe is quite expensive.  Newer fancier stove places have it, like the ones around here.  You'd be out hundreds of dollars for the pipe alone (and maybe more than just hundreds).

[BigFatherA]

Even wore re the insulated stainless steel ones - which are code around here.  My piping cost more than my new EPA rated stove

[Dry Observer]

Of course, during the Daytime when the Sun is out, I turn off the heater and use the Sun's heat. We have been doing that for forty years.

   Yes, we only heat at night most of the time.  Place warms up nicely even in the coldest days...  Unless ol' Sol goes on strike, which he seems to be doing here lately.

   Biggest trick there was to plant big fruit trees around the house instead of pretty evergreens.  Yeah, they're ugly in the winter when the leaves shed-off, but they let the sun through...  Then they fill out in the spring to shade the place.

Also, if something strikes a spark, you're not surrounded by self-incinerating evergreens.

Landscaping note: Do not put rhododendrons anywhere near your house. They burn like torches and can be ignited by anything short of freezing rain. 

Pretty, though.