17
WOODSTOVE UTILIZATION
TESTING YOUR WOOD
When the oven is thoroughly warmed, place one piece of split wood (about
fi
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 if was placed in the oven, 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 oven. Large amounts of creosote could be deposited in your chimney, creating potential conditions for a chimney
fi
re.
TAMPER WARNING
This wood heater has a manufacturer-set minimum low burn rate that must not be altered. It is against federal regulations to alter
this setting or otherwise operate this wood heater in a manner inconsistent with operating instructions in this manual.
THE FIRST FIRES
The fresh paint on your stove needs to be cured to preserve its quality. Once the fuel charge is properly ignited, only burn small
fi
res in your stove for the
fi
rst four hours of operation. Never open the air control more than necessary to achieve a medium burn rate.
Make sure that there’s enough air circulation while curing the stove. The odors could be smelled during the 3 or 4
fi
rst
fi
res. Never
start your stove outside. You will not be able to see if you are over heating.
IGNITION
After making sure that the stove air intake controls are fully open (completely pull-out towards you), place several rumpled sheets
of paper in the center of the combustion chamber. Place 8 to 10 pieces of small dry kindling wood over the paper in the form of a tent.
You may also place a few pieces of heating wood, but choose the smaller ones. No chemical product should be used to light the
fi
re.
Before igniting the paper and kindling wood, it is recommended that you warm up the chimney. This is done in order to avoid
back draft problems often due to negative pressure in the house. If such is the case, open a window slightly near the stove and twist
together a few sheets of newspaper into a torch. Light up this paper torch and hold it as close as possible to the mouth of the pipe
inside the combustion chamber to warm up the chimney. Once the updraft movement is initiated, you are ready to ignite the stove
by lighting the paper and kindling wood inside the combustion chamber.
When you have achieved a good bed of hot embers, we recommend the following burn procedures:
CAUTION: Never alter the damper slide or the adjustment range to increase
fi
ring for any reason. Doing so could result
in heater damage and will void your warranty.
CAUTIONS:
ASHES COULD CONTAIN HOT EMBERS EVEN AFTER TWO DAYS WITHOUT OPERATING THE STOVE.
THE ASH PAN CAN BECOME VERY HOT. WEAR GLOVES TO PREVENT INJURY.
NEVER BURN THE STOVE WITH THE STOVE DOOR OR ASH CLEAN OUT OPENING UNSEALED . THIS
WOULD RESULT IN OVER FIRING THE STOVE. DAMAGE TO THE STOVE AND EVEN HOUSE FIRE MAY
RESULT.
AW180
Primary Air Settings
(Slide Damper is located in center of stove under hearth plate)
(Damper Adjustment: Pulling out on damper decreases air)
Electric Blower Speed Setting (Variable)
(Blower is on High when turned “ON”,
Rotate clockwise until stop for “LOW”.)
Burn Rate
Adjust Damper from fully closed
Burn Time
Blower Speed
Low
3/16” (4.7mm)
@ 30 minutes
Low
Medium - Low
1/4” (6.4mm)
@ 30 minutes
Low
Medium - High
9/32” (7.1mm)
@ 30 minutes
Low
High
3/4” (19mm)
all minutes
High
The amount of visible smoke being produced can be an effective method of determining how ef
fi
ciently the combustion process
is taking place at the given settings. Visible smoke consist of unburned fuel and moisture leaving your stove. Learn to adjust the air
settings of your speci
fi
c unit to produce the smallest amount of visible smoke. Wood that has not been seasoned properly and has a
high wood moisture content will produce excess visible smoke and burn poorly.