53D9025
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FIREPLACE OPERATION
You’ll need a minimum of three logs, preferably four, to make a good fire. Add kindling and new logs
as needed to rekindle a dying fire. New logs should be added at the rear grate after raking the coals
toward the front.
DO NOT OVERFIRE THE FIREPLACE.
Overfire conditions may be created by
large amounts of kindling, building scraps, or other improper fuels.
Ashes, important because they form a bed of glowing coals, should only be left to accumulate within
an inch or two of the bottom of the grate. Excess ashes can be used to check a flaming fire; or to
“bank” your fire, cover the logs with ashes. A “banked” fire will hold glowing coals for 8-10 hours,
thereby saving a fire for later use.
Wood vs. Fossil Fuels
Compared to fossil fuels, a full cord of dry hickory weighs about two tons and is approximately equal
in heating value to a ton of hard coal. On a pound basis, heavy hardwoods have about half the
heating value of coal. The tabulation shows the relative densities and heat values of a variety of dry
woods. Varieties at the top of the list (Dogwood) burn longer and those near the bottom (White Pine)
ignite and burn quicker. A combination of both light and heavy wood is desired.
Species
Density
Heat Value
Species
Density
Heat Value
Dogwood
.70-.79
100-107
Ash
.57-.61
81-82
Hickory
.70-.74
100
Southern Pine
.51-.60
73-81
Oak
.60-.73
86-99
Elm
.50-.59
71-80
Black Locust
.69-.70
95-98
Cherry
.50-.52
70
Beech
.64-.66
89-91
Douglas Fir
.45-.51
64-69
Hard Maple
.58-.65
83-88
Spruce
.41-.44
59
Birch
.55-.64
79-86
Redwood
.33-.40
47-54
Apple
.58-.62
83-84
White Pine
.35-.37
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A Few Words Of Caution
Beware of burning certain material in your fireplace. Among these are plastics, poison ivy twigs and
stems, and chemically treated woods such as discarded poles and railroad ties. These not only cre-
ate air pollution, but can induce extreme irritation for some individuals.
Use hemlock, spruce, juniper and other resinous woods with caution. They contain moisture pockets
which, upon heating, “pop” with considerable vigor.
Always use a fire screen. And always “bank” a fire, or at least push all unburned fuel to the rear of
the grate before leaving a fire unattended. Do not use this fireplace as an incinerator.
Because the termination of the chimney above the roof is exposed to wind and cold and the pressure
changes these and other environmental conditions may cause, a sufficient chimney draft may be hard
to establish at times. At other times the draft may be sufficiently disrupted to cause smoke to spill
from the fireplace opening. If problems with chimney draft occur, help start chimney draft before you
build a fire by holding a piece of burning paper near the flue opening at the top of the firebox to pre-
heat the chimney. If smoke spills from the fireplace opening after the fire is burning, open a window
on the up wind side of the house that is far enough away form the fireplace that the wind will not blow
across the fireplace opening, push the burning wood as near the back of the fireplace as possible,
and if the fireplace is equipped with glass doors, close them.
DO NOT LEAVE CHILDREN OR PHYSICALLY OR MENTALLY HANDICAPPED, OR SENILE PER-
SONS ALONE WITH A BURNING FIREPLACE.
