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[Maxnchej]

I have a bl 2840 and this is my first season. How deep do you keep the ashes in the boiler? Mine are just under the brick line where the brick stools and metal starts. I have had a hard time keeping it under the line. How are others making out ?

[CornFarmer416]

I keep mine fairly low, but I also have OCD and rake my ashes/coals before I load it. I made a rake (looks like a bent pitch fork) and it works great. You can keep the ashes low as long as you load your wood consumption right depending on the temps and raking them often.

[Jwood]

If you constantly overload that's when ashes pile up

[Crow]

Mine gets that way occasionally as my schedule gets screwed up and I end up loading more than required. But make sure you give it a good stir to the bottom of the ashes and loosen up around the grate area.

[Maxnchej]

Sounds like I need to get better at loading, any tips you can give me. I shovelled a lot of ash today and it as hard hear the bottom, I'll need yo start raking it much better, I'll try it again tonight when I load. Does anyone gave a guess how deep three ashes are? Just trying to get the hang of it, any help you'll be great.

[Jwood]

Try letting the coals burn down a bit and then what are your temps there now I only fill mine full if I'm burning soft wood or if its way below zero if you are burning something like oak or maple then only fill 1/2 to 3/4 full

[Maxnchej]

I always let it burn down. Temps here are getting a little milder, will be in the 30s next week, February was the coldst month on record since they started keeping records so I did burn a lot of wood, but house was always warm  . I think I need to rack better and force more to the clean out, usually there is not much in there when I clean it out each week.

[Maxnchej]

I check the stove this morning and still a lot of bigger funks of wood and coal so I just left it going. When you check if there is still to much ash do you stir it around to get it to burn better and come back in a few hours to check if you need wood? If this is the case how do you get get a face full of dust.

Thanks for answering some of my questions, still have lots to learn.

[Jwood]

Well at that point I just pull everything flat don't need to rake to much.

[Crow]

Same thing hear Max. Milder temps here and loaded up a little heavier last night as I didn't know when I would be back this morning, stirred it up, added nothing and let it burn down some. When it gets that low there isn't much smoke if any,so just shut off the fan so you don't get a face full of ash and dust, or get a mask.

[Maxnchej]

Thanks for the tips, I'm going to Greg a mask, since the rust and envy thing can't be that good for you long term. I wanted yo have do thing before the clean out.

[oaky]

Been catching up on reading these posts. I thought I may add on my past winter experience with my first year with the BL 2840.

I noticed that my stove burns considerably cleaner with less smoke out the stack when keeping my ashes to a minimum (less than an inch), loading oak only as much needed for the next fill up, maintain around 2 - 3 inches of coals. I use a garden hoe to move the ashes around so they drop through the brick grates. Something else I noticed, if I keep an area near the center, about 12 inches, clean of any ash & coals, the wood burns even better, I think allowing more free air flow in the center will vastly improve draft air flow into the stacked wood.

And of course, keeping the secondary heat exchanger clean as well as the chimney T fitting.

[Maxnchej]

I have never cleaned Ghent fitting, I'll have to look at that this weekend.

[hotterburn4u]

Hello I have wanted to thank all of you who have been helping answer and share what you think works best in your system.. I will try to explain how important it is to keep the preheated under fire air inlets open ,I often compare the burner combustion system to a machine that needs to inhale and exhale at the right location and proportion. If the refractory grates are restricted more air is going to be forced to go above the fire. ..you will lose out on the benefits of air coming up under the fire think of the camp fire we know that if the air isn't coming from under the fire in just doesn't burn well at all. You will still get heat with air above the fire but it will likely burn more wood. You will likely blow more heat towards the heat exchanger on its way to the stack out let .Primary preheated air from under and secondary air to help burn the gases.I have experienced this gas burning when I have opened the fire door it seems to escape out the top few inches of the door, very hot and can be dangerous be careful. ..the gases are burning almost invisible because of the refractory and air another reason to keep the ashes to a minimum.

[slimjim]

You certainly have a great bunch of folks on here working together to get through the learning curves.