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[dabears1980]

New to running a OWB, so still trying to learn the art (or science) of getting it right.

We have a 2007 6048.  Had it set around 175 I think, and temps dropped below zero overnight.  Woke up to a freezing house, checked the burner, and it was at 116, but with nearly a full load of wood still in there, burning and smoking.  Pushed wood around a bit, added a bit more, and cranked it up to 185.  Temp is back on the rise, up to 150 in 2 hours, but what could have caused this...?  We are burning oak, some of which is green I would imagine.

Our boiler line runs into the house through a gas forced exchanger in a traditional furnace, water heater exchanger, and also radiant heat throughout an addition to the house. 

thanks in advance!

[Jwood]

Set temp was a little low my guess would be the green wood with not enough coals if you are going to keep burning green wood you have to have lots of coals and if it were me buy the fan upgrade for the boiler, I believe they make one.

[dabears1980]

thank you.  I am open to any and all advice running this thing.  I like the heat we get from it, but I feel like we are not optimizing our usage, and going through more wood than necessary using it.   

[hondaracer2oo4]

Oak that is green needs lots of heat to burn off water in it. Without a fan to help the coals heat up the wood you are relying on just the coals to do the work. Probably would have been ok but with a cold night the house called for a lot of heat and brought the water temp down which further hurt your ability to burn off that water before the wood would put off any heat. If you are going to burn green wood, esp. oak, get yourself a nice thick 4 inch coal bed built up and the water temp all the way up.

[Jwood]

I agree with Honda. With the fan you are creating a hotter fire faster, what you had last night was probably a little smoldering campfire in your boiler.

[dabears1980]

any idea where to look for the better / bigger fan?  it's so weird that now the fire is just raging and up to temp...thank you all!

[hondaracer2oo4]

Do you have the add on fan option? Most CB classics don't have a fan, only a damper door.

[ST98]

I have the fan for my 6048 but never put it on. I think it was around 300.00 when I bought it last year.  I only bought it due to our state regs.

Did it bridge during the night?


 

[TLuckoski]

What type of wood are you burning? How seasoned is your wood? Those are two big issues seasoned wood and burning good hardwood.

[fireboss]

Is that fan made out of gold lol ! The most I have seen them is 150$  check e bay, my friend got a used one for 65$ 2 yrs ago and still running strong! The fan is the way to go

[dabears1980]

what does bridge at night mean?  - lol sorry i'm 100% novice

[Jwood]

When the wood wedges together not allowing it to fall as the coals burn so the wood stays elevated above the coals and then burns out due to not sitting on the coal bed. Did I explain that correctly?

[patton acres]

I put a fan on mine this year(5036) Its like a dif. bolier. I really like it

[mlappin]

The reason it took off when you stirred it up is most of the moisture has finally been boiled out of the wood. Burning less than seasoned wood can be a real pain in the *ss especially your first year with a OWB.

Here's a pretty comprehensive thread on burning green wood, large coal bed, split it, etc are all covered.


http://outdoorwoodfurnaceinfo.com/forum/index.php?topic=6907.msg57352#msg57352

[Log hog]

Most wood guys love Oak and it's true that it has the most BTUs for the money. It also takes a long time to fully season.  You can burn green wood in these things but you need a good coal bed or enough fully seasoned wood to dry it. My opinion was its a wood quality issue