Wood burning clean up

[Big Dave]

Sometimes I see posted pictures of folks that burn wood. The area around the stove is so clean. We burn wood and I sweep up the bark and stuff that falls off every day. So how do yall keep it cleaned up?

[ChristieAcres]

The same way you do, except we don't sweep it up every day, just when we want it cleaned up. I love wood heat! It saves us a lot of $$$.

[janetn]

I just dont worry about it anymore. The mess is just part of heating with wood. I try not to sweat the small stuff at my age anymore. The benefits of heating with wood are worth the inconvience of the mess to me.

[greg_n_ga]

Originally Posted by lorichristie

The same way you do, except we don't sweep it up every day, just when we want it cleaned up. I love wood heat! It saves us a lot of $$$.

Originally Posted by janetn

I just dont worry about it anymore. The mess is just part of heating with wood. I try not to sweat the small stuff at my age anymore. The benefits of heating with wood are worth the inconvience of the mess to me.

And or right before we take a picture we plan on postin' on the internet !!!

[Micheal]

A broom and dustpan work for me.......
Funny though, that universal broom handle just don't fit into the wife's hand - won't even be mentioning about the dust pan...

[greg_n_ga]

Originally Posted by Micheal

A broom and dustpan work for me.......
Funny though, that universal broom handle just don't fit into the wife's hand - won't even be mentioning about the dust pan...

They bigger stuff by hand. A shop-vac works well iffin ya want to go the mechanical route !

[BarbadosSheep]

there really isn't much mess. I don't keep wood in the house....it's on the porch or in the garage until I am ready to load the stove up. I usually hit the log on the porch to knock off loose stuff before I carry it in. The small amounts of loose stuff and ash on the hearth get cleaned up with a shop vac because I have found using a broom and dust pan tends to make some of the finer stuff go air-born and end up as dust elsewhere in the house. I do find I need to dust the house more frequently since we have been heating with wood.

[frankva]

Less dust/crud seems to come off the wood if you don't tap it on anything between the box and into the stove. "Clean" non mud skidded wood helps.

My favorite trick is to fill the woodbox right before a scheduled vacuuming.

I only supplement with wood.

[unregistered168043]

Wood heat saves me about $2,500 per year. Like Lori said I clean it when necessary.

[Helena]

Sweep everday. Don't use any kind of vacuum because of possibly hot coals being left in a vacuum and causing a fire.

[lordoftheweeds]

We keep a broom and dustpan next to the wood bin, sweep it up and toss it into the stove once or twice a day when using the stove.

[fantasymaker]

I have a metal pan around the wood stove, actually its 6 inches cut off the bottom of a old dumpster. I placed it to have the stove in one corner of it so that it extends farther on the front and side where the doors are.
It catches and contains a lot of the mess and gives me a bit of space to store wood in the house. I made it to catch any sparks or coals that might escape.

[Ohio dreamer]

We sweep it when it gets too messy. About once a week if using daily. I "spot clean" it when I run the vac, I deep clean the area about once a month.

[mooman]

Dust buster under a nearby chair.

[mamita]

Originally Posted by BarbadosSheep

there really isn't much mess. I don't keep wood in the house....it's on the porch or in the garage until I am ready to load the stove up. I usually hit the log on the porch to knock off loose stuff before I carry it in. The small amounts of loose stuff and ash on the hearth get cleaned up with a shop vac because I have found using a broom and dust pan tends to make some of the finer stuff go air-born and end up as dust elsewhere in the house. I do find I need to dust the house more frequently since we have been heating with wood.

I do the same. no wood in the house. we have a woodbox on the back porch, and we bring in a log at a time as needed. there is never a mess. every morning (I let my stove go out overnight) I clean the stove, stove door glass, (usually a quickie wipe, but I like to see my fire thru ultra clean glass) empty ash pan, and do a light vacuum with my little shop vac. at worst we may have a couple teenie weenie little particles by the side stove door at the end of the night, but yes.......I get those up before going to bed. I don't have extra dust or dirt from the woodstove either, so I don't ever understand the mess some talk about.

[Danaus29]

Broom and dustpan, the little stove shovel works well as a dustpan too. Shopvac ONLY when there are no hot coals or clinkers possible.

[meanwhile]

Ha ha. I just fed the wood stove upstairs and then saw your post. We just leave the mess on the floor and clean it up about every three days or if some "company" is coming. Both of our stoves are partly out of the way and so the mess is not in the way. Having a bit of chips, dust and ash on the floor is just part of wood stove use.

[whodunit]

Our stove is in the basement and I keep a shopvac nearby.

Mrs Whodunit

[JohnP]

I thought that's what spring cleaning was all about.

[andyd2023]

Originally Posted by meanwhile

...........clean it up about every three days or if some "company" is coming....................... Having a bit of chips, dust and ash on the floor is just part of wood stove use.

Same with us, I do keep a small broom and dustpan near the stove but a little on the floor is part of heating with wood.
Andrew