-15-
WOOD STOVE UTILIZATION
Your heating unit was designed to burn wood only; no other materials should be burned. Waste and other
ammable materials should not be burned in your stove. Any type of wood may be used in your stove, but
specic varieties have better energy yields than others. Please consult the following table in order to make
the best possible choice.
It is EXTREMELY IMPORTANT that you use DRY WOOD only in your wood stove. The wood should have dried for
9 to 15 months, such that the humidity content (in weight) is reduced below 20% of the weight of the log. It is
very important to keep in mind that even if the wood has been cut for one, two or even more years, it is not
necessarily dry if it has been stored in poor conditions.
Under extreme conditions it may rot, instead of drying. This point cannot be over stressed; the vast majority
of the problems related to the operation of a wood stove is caused by the fact that the wood used was too
damp or has dried in poor conditions. These problems can be:
– ignition problems
– creosote build-up causing chimney res
– low energy yield
– blackened windows
– incomplete log combustion
Smaller pieces of wood will dry faster. All logs exceeding 6” in diameter should be split. The wood should not
be stored directly on the ground. Air should circulate through the cord. A 24” to 48” air space should be left
between each row of logs, which should be placed in the sunniest location possible. The upper layer of wood
should be protected from the elements but not the sides.
TESTING YOUR WOOD
When the stove is thoroughly warmed, place one piece of split wood (about ve inches in diameter) parallel
to the door on the bed of red embers.
Keep the air control full open by pulling on it and close the door. If ignition of the piece is accomplished
within 90 seconds from the time it was placed in the stove, your wood is correctly dried. If ignition takes longer,
your wood is damp.
If your wood hisses and water or vapor escapes at the ends of the piece, your wood is soaked or freshly cut.
Do not use this wood in your stove. Large amounts of creosote could be deposited in your chimney, creating
potential conditions for a chimney re.
TYPE WEIGHT
(LBS. CU. FT.,
DRY)
PER CORD EFFICIENCY
RANKING
SPLITS M I L L I O N S
BTU’s/CORD
Hickory 63 4500 1.0 Well 31.5
White Oak 48 4100 .9 Fair 28.6
Red Oak 46 3900 .8 Fair 27.4
Beech 45 3800 .7 Hard 26.8
Sugar Maple 44 3700 .6 Fair 26.2
Black Oak 43 3700 .6 Fair 25.6
Ash 42 3600 .5 Well 25.0
Yellow Birch 40 3400 .4 Hard 23.8
Red Maple 38 3200 .3 Fair 22.6
Paper Birch 37 3100 .3 Easy 22.1
Elm/Sycamore 34 2900 .2 Very Difcult 20.1
Red Spruce 29 1800 .1 Easy 16.1
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