F 500 V3 Oslo 4 / 20
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5.8 Creosote and Soot Formation
and the Need for Removal
When wood is burned slowly, it produces tar and other
organic vapors which combine with expelled moisture
to form creosote. These creosote vapors condense in
the relatively cool chimney flue of a slow burning fire.
The creosote that accumulates in the flue is highly
flammable and is the fuel of chimney fires. To prevent
a chimney fire, the creosote needs to be removed
by sweeping the chimney and flue connector. The
frequency of sweeping will depend on how you operate
your stove. An accumulation of 1/4” or more on the sides
of the flue or connector is considered hazardous and
should be removed.
In the event that creosote in your chimney or
flue connector ignites, the resulting fire is often
accompanied by a roaring noise and a crackling sound as
flakes of burned creosote break loose. lf you suspect you
are having a chimney fire, immediately close the primary
air control and make sure the stove door is closed. Call
the fire department and get everyone safely out of the
house.
Do not attempt to extinguish the fire in the stove. Doing
so can make the matter worse by supplying additional
oxygen , which will accelerate the fire in the chimney.
When the roaring and crackling has subsided, resist
the temptation to open the door to check the fire. The
fire may have suffocated, but could rekindle when you
open the door. After a chimney fire, do not use your
stove until the chimney and the flue connector has been
cleaned and inspected to ensure that no damage has
occured.
5.9 Adding Fuel
Reload the stove while a bed of hot embers still exists,
Follow this procedure:
• Always wear gloves when tending to the stove.
• Push the air control lever to the full open position (far
right).
• To minimize any smoke spillage, open the door
slightly before opening fully. This will allow air flow to
stabilize within the firebox and chimney flue.
• Use a stove tool or poker to distribute the hot embers
equally around the firebox and away from the air
inlet ports at the front center of the firebox floor.
• Load the fuel, usually with smaller logs first.
• Close the door and secure the latch tightly.
• Wait 5 – 10 minutes before adjusting the primary air
to the desired heat output setting. (If there remains
at least a 2” thick ember bed when reloading, it may
be possible to close the door and immediately adjust
the air control setting).
Top-Down Fire Building -
See fig. 14.
As an alternative to the traditional ”teepee” fire starter,
the Top-Down method minimizes start-up smoke and
more quickly establishes strong draft through the
chimney.
1. With the primary air control lever in the full open
position (to the right), place two short 1/4-split logs on
the firebox floor, perpendicular to the rear wall, about
6 inches apart.
2. Place kindling across the base logs.
3. Place one or two smaller logs on top of the kindling.
4. Place newspaper between the two bottom logs under
the kindling. Light the news paper and close the door.
Continue to add kindling and small logs as necessary to
build the fire. Keep the air control fully open until the
fire is well-established.
WARNING: Operate the stove only with
the doors fully closed. Operation with
the doors partially open may result in
overfiring. Also, if doors are left partially
open, combustion gas and flame may
be drawn out of the stove, creating risks
from both fire and smoke.
WARNING: DO NOT OVER-FIRE THIS HEATER.
IF ANY PART OF THE STOVE OR CHIMNEY
CONNECTOR GLOWS, YOU ARE OVER-FIRING.
A HOUSE FIRE OR SERIOUS DAMAGE TO
THE STOVE OR CHIMNEY COULD RESULT.
ATTEMPTS TO ACHIEVE HEAT OUTPUT
RATES THAT EXCEED HEATER DESIGN
SPECIFICATIONS CAN RESULT IN PERMANENT
DAMAGE.
