JANUARY 2014
page
www.fisherstoves.co.nz
sOme OTher useFuL Tips
Fuel load geometry:
Small pieces of firewood arranged loosely in a crisscross pattern burn quickly because
the combustion air can reach all the pieces at once. Larger pieces placed a little more compactly burn
slower. Once your heater has reached maximum temperature, it is more efficient to top up frequently with
about 25% of a full load rather than let the fire die down and need to completely refill it.
smALL AND LArGe FueL LOAD GeOmeTrY
Fire in cycles:
Don’t expect perfectly steady heat output from your
Fisher heater. Solid fuel heaters burn in cycles. A cycle is the time
between the ignition of a load from charcoal and the consumption
of the load back to a coal bed. Plan the firing cycles around your
household routine. If someone is home to operate the heater, build
a small hot fire. If you must be away from the house during the day,
build a long-burning fire.
The small, hot fire:
A small, hot fire is a small amount of wood
burned quickly. Use it when you just want to take the chill off the
house. The small hot fire technique eliminates the smouldering
fires that are common when people don’t need their heater running
hot all the time, like in spring and autumn. To build a small hot
fire, rake the embers evenly in the firebox and place several small
pieces of firewood on it. The bottom layer should be placed to
ensure that combustion air can flow over the embers and along
the length of the pieces of wood. The next layer should be stacked
loosely in a crisscross arrangement. Open the air inlet to produce
a hot, bright fire. After approximately 15–20 minutes the air supply
can be reduced slightly as the fire progresses, but never enough to extinguish the flames. When only
charcoal remains, the air supply can be reduced further to prevent cooling the ember bed. Reload with small
pieces often, as full loads will smother the ember bed.
A smALL-sTACKeD FueL LOAD
Good for short-duration fires.
A LArGe-sTACKeD FueL LOAD
Good for extended burning cycles
(see above)
LOADiNG FOr A smALL
hOT Fire
Rake the embers evenly. Load
the wood loosely in a crisscross
arrangement. Let the fire burn
brightly until most of the solid
wood is burned before reducing
the air setting.
