Still learning about the wood cookstove

[PlowGirl]

On another thread, I learned about the draft regulator on the back of the stove's cooktop that circulates the heat around the oven chamber.

In another thread, I learned to warm a cold chimney by burning paper, lessening the smoking problem.

Now I have a question. Should I have gasketing material around the cooktop/plates? Not the individual pot rounds that can be lifted off separately. My cooktop has 6 burners, so 3 of these cooktop/plate sort of pieces. They don't seem to fit too snug and I'm getting some smoke even after the fire is really going good.

Another thing I've learned about wood cookstoves: the firebox isn't that big. How does anyone use these as their only heat source? I'm in OK and it's not that bad in the winter, but it's still not warm enough for me . My square footage is 20 x 35 with 2 stories, insulated with spray on foam. This place is airtight and super insulated besides being super small. The infrared propane stove on the lowest setting is plenty to keep it toasty. I'm using only well seasoned (3 yrs) hardwood, single wall black pipe through the ceiling to a heat exchanger and double wall pipe and tee to the outside. If I'm just being wimpy that's fine, I DO like it hot, even in the summer. But, am I doing something wrong to not get better heat value?

[Texas_Plainsman]

comments below:

Originally Posted by PlowGirl

On another thread, I learned about the draft regulator on the back of the stove's cooktop that circulates the heat around the oven chamber.

What brand of stove?

In another thread, I learned to warm a cold chimney by burning paper, lessening the smoking problem.

Now I have a question. Should I have gasketing material around the cooktop/plates? Not the individual pot rounds that can be lifted off separately. My cooktop has 6 burners, so 3 of these cooktop/plate sort of pieces. They don't seem to fit too snug and I'm getting some smoke even after the fire is really going good.

You should be able to move a plate off an inch or so, exposing the fire, and not get any smoke. You don't sound like you have enough draft. How for above your roof is the top of your chimney?

Another thing I've learned about wood cookstoves: the firebox isn't that big.

Depends on the brand. If its one of the old time ones with the small fire box, I don't think you could heat with it?

How does anyone use these as their only heat source?

I do. I have a Pioneer Maid. The fire box is big.

I'm in OK and it's not that bad in the winter, but it's still not warm enough for me . My square footage is 20 x 35 with 2 stories, insulated with spray on foam. This place is airtight and super insulated besides being super small. The infrared propane stove on the lowest setting is plenty to keep it toasty. I'm using only well seasoned (3 yrs) hardwood, single wall black pipe through the ceiling to a heat exchanger and double wall pipe and tee to the outside. If I'm just being wimpy that's fine, I DO like it hot, even in the summer. But, am I doing something wrong to not get better heat value?

[WeaverRose]

The old stoves didn't have a very big firebox, ours is pretty small, meaning you have to have a lot of "stove wood" cut and split before starting serious baking. It can't heat a house, it heats the kitchen up but that's it.
Also, if you haven't had a chance, when its cooled off sometime, take the lids off the top and clean underneath the top surface. Smoking can be because of a poor draft, or lousy-fitting lids (warped), but also soot builds up as the smoke/heat circulate over the oven.

[Drew Cutter]

What about a fan ? I've seen where people had fan (above the stove) that suck the heat through the furnace pipes to the rest of the house.

[Beltane]

You do have to have quite a bit of draft already, as Texas Plainsman said. Our four burners sit loosely on the stove and we usually don't have a smoking issue.

No, unfortunately it will not heat a house, but it certainly makes the kitchen roasty! We always pull our chairs up close!

Don't forget that using it effectively comes with time...when DH and got our stove we didn't know about HT and suffered through first using it. Hang in there, all stoves are different.

[PlowGirl]

The smoke is just on start-up, when I'm burning the paper to warm the chimney. It's not coming from the pot lids. The smoke is coming from the metal plates that contain the pot lids. There are three of them that fit together to form my cooktop. Should I have gasketing around the cooktop that these rectangular plates sit on? When the fire is ready for cooking, I don't have a smoking issue when I remove the round pot lids.

The stove is old. It's a Bridge Beach and Co. Steel with a cast iron cooktop.

The heat exchanger upstairs is a fan that is automatically operated at a specific temperature. It works well, as long as there is a strong fire in the firebox downstairs. I'm just having a problem with keeping a good fire going through the night, rather than just a bed of coals. I take it I can't expect that from such a small firebox.

[Helena]

I don't see why you can't use coal once you get the stove rolling. the coal will last longer and really give you a hot fire. Just be careful you don't get it too, too hot as it will warp you cast iron but I would think it would actually have to get pretty darn hot to cause any warping. Give the coal a try. I know my wood stove has a small wood box also. I can see why in the old house why the floor in front of the stoves is worn down. The wife probably spent most of her day feeding the wood box to keep it cooking. Real coal, what we call chesnut coal not the rice coal they sell for the new coal stove. Good Luck !!

[cfabe]

It sounds like maybe your stove is not really designed for heating. Remember when it was made people used it year round, in the summer you'd want a stove that *didn't* heat much to keep the kitchen cool. With a small firebox you can burn smaller sticks of wood to quickly get the stove up to temperature and then quickly burn up so it cools down. Maybe you need another stove for heating?

[Watcher48]

you can also "map " your stove for cooking. take some empty soup cans , or similar, and put water in them. As you cook watch the water in them and see which ones boil first and how long it takes them. The rate at which it boils will also tell you things. And the humidity is good for the house. It will help you speed up the time you learn where the temperature differences are. If you got enough thermometers you can even watch the tempature

[Drew Cutter]

Watcher48

Can you mark your stove after you map it ? So your not guessing anymore.

[sheepish]

My mother learned to tell whether the temperature of the stove top and oven were right for whatever cooking she was doing. She put her hand inside the oven and however quickly she had to pull it out was the indication of temperature - right for roasting, for cookies, for bread, etc. The stovetop worked the same way. She held her hand an inch above the cooktop.

You will get to know the hotspots on your cooktop.

It doesn't need gaskets and shouldn't smoke. You may need to use insulated pipe inside the house to keep the updraft you need, especially if your pipe runs are long.

[Itilley]

Years ago we tired heating with our old cookstove it really was a cold winter especially in the morning. The fire box is so small that it is very hard to get it to heat through the night. It certianly helps with keeping the house warm but not very good as the only scource of heat. But I loved that old stove and miss it.

RenieB

[puddlejumper007]

Jackie Clay. has a video on backwoods home magazine. about her wood stove ..real interesting.......pat

[Faerunner]

My father's old wood cook stove had a pretty small firebox and the best way he could keep the downstairs (2 rooms) of his house warm was to get up at 2-3 hour intervals to feed the stove every night. It was that, or bank the coals and get up early to light the fire and heat the kitchen again. He did most of his living in the kitchen, so that worked ok for him but I suggest you find a different heat source if you're planning on consistently heating the house with a tiny firebox.

We also got some smoke around the stove plates when lighting the fire but it cleared up as soon as the stove got hot. I'd say it's due to not having a strong draft while you're lighting up the paper, but that's just a guess. I just learned to get a quick fire going to avoid so much smoke.

I haven't done much cooking on a stovetop recently, but am really hoping that we'll be able to pick one up in the future because I remember it from childhood and how much fun it was, even guessing at the hot spots (which we learned pretty quick!). It's such a rewarding experience.

[7thswan]

No, you should not need a sealant on the stovetop between the plates. My fire box is 19"long x 8"wide x 10" deep. I have sealed the slide damper on the side so I have more control of the draft. I also added a damper in the stove pipe. Sometimes if I don't get enough draft and get a little smoke, I crack the door near the stove. When it warms enough it's gone. I get alot of heat off my stove, but not enough to heat a house in Michigan. I also have a woodburner for heat.Most of the old stoves were not built to burn long/efficiant. My cookstove is about 90 yrs.

[haypoint]

Old wood cookstoves look very nice. Most are not airtight and have small fireboxes. The Elmira Oval looks old, but is airtight, but is very expensive. Baker Maid and Pioneer Maid have big fireboxes, are air tight, don't cost too much, but don't look like Grandma's stove. There are several cook stoves that can heat a well insulated 2000 square foot home in the winter. They have big fireboxes.
Your general questions can be answered in a general way, more specifc questions would require information about the specific stove in question.

I had an older cook stove, about 1940 model. I liked how it took the chill off the house in the spring and fall. But in the winter, all it could do was help the wood boiler heat the house.