11
chimney. Similarly, you must not fire your stove
with refuse, painted wood, pressure-impregna-
ted wood or chipboard, as these materials can
emit poisonous fumes and smoke.
Correct firing using well seasoned wood pro-
vides optimal heat output and maximum effi-
ciency. At the same time, correct firing prevents
environmental damage in the form of smoke
emissions and reduces the risk of chimney fires.
If the wood is damp and inadequately seasoned,
a large proportion of the energy in the fuel will
be used to vaporize the water, and this will all
disappear up the chimney. Thus, it is important
to use dry, well seasoned wood, i.e. wood with a
moisture content of less than 20 %. Achieve this
by storing the wood for 1–2 years before use.
Pieces of firewood with a diameter of more than
10 cm should be split before before storing. The
pieces of firewood should be of an appropriate
length (approx. 19-25 cm) so that they can lie
flat on the bed of embers.
If you store your wood outdoors, it is best to
cover it.
examples of fuel values
for different woods and their typical densities
per cubic meter, specified for 100% wood with
a moisture content of 18%.
Wood
kg/m
3
Wood
kg/m
3
Beech
710
Willow
560
Oak
700
Alder
540
Ash
700
Scotch pine
520
Elm
690
Larch
520
Maple
660
Lime
510
Birch
620
Spruce
450
Mountain pine
600
Poplar
450
It is advised not to use oil-containing woods
like teak tree and mahogany, as this can cau-
se damage to the glass.
heating value in wood
You have to use about 2.4 kg normal wood to
replace one litre of heating oil. All woods have
almost the same heating value per kg, which is
about 5.27 kW/hour for absolute dry wood.
Wood with a moistness of 18% has a efficiency
of about 4.18 kW / hour per kg, and one litre
heating oil contains about 10 kW / hour.
Co
2
release
At combustion 1000 litres of heating oil forms
3.171 tons CO
2
. As wood is a CO
2
neutral heat/
energy source, you save the environment about
1.3 kg CO
2
every time you have used 1 kg normal
wood.
1.11 operational problems
The chimney must be swept at least once a
year, we recommend the use of a NACS (natio-
nal association of chimney sweeps) registered
chimney sweep.
In the event of smoke or malodorous fumes are
being produced, you must first check to see
whether the chimney is blocked.
The chimney must, of course, always provide
the minimum draft necessary to ensure that it is
possible to regulate the fire. Please note, how-
ever, that chimney draft is dependent on the
weather conditions. In high winds, the draft can
become so powerful that it may be necessary to
fit a damper in the flue gas pipe to regulate the
draft.
When cleaning the chimney, soot and other
deposits may come to fall on the baffle plate,
remove and clean it. In cases where the wood
burns too quickly, this may be due to excessive
chimney draft. You should also check to make
sure that the door seal and ash pan seal is intact
and correctly fitting.
If the stove it generating too little heat, this may
be because you are firing with wet wood. In this
case, much of the heating energy is used to dry
the wood, resulting in poor efficiency, poten-
tially damaging the vermiculite and an increased
risk of soot deposits in the chimney.
1.12 Chimney fire
In case of a chimney fire, which often results from
incorrect operation/maintenance or prolonged
use of damp wood, close the door and the air
supply completely, to help slow/smother the fire.
Call the fire department.
The stove and chiminey must be inspected be-
fore use again.
