How to maintain your wood burning stove
As spring is in sight, we start to think about spring cleaning our homes. A wood burning stove or fire also needs cleaning and maintaining and now is a good time to learn how to spring clean your Dovre wood burner.
Stove maintenance
Your annual service will include cleaning the appliance thoroughly, and the first thing to do is to clean inside the firebox. It is important that you wait until the appliance is completely cool to do this.
Once completely cool, remove all of the excess ash inside your wood burner. To get rid of the finer particles, we recommend using a Stovax Motorised Ashclean, which is perfect for vacuuming awkward areas.
Now that the firebox is clear of ash, check the firebricks. You can do this using a soft brush. If any are broken, these will need to be replaced, but smaller cracks can be repaired. We would recommend Stovax Fire Cement for this. For replacement firebricks, go to your local retailer.
You also need to check the door glass of your Dovre wood burner. If there are any cracks, you will need to replace the glass. If it looks in good condition, clean it thoroughly using an appropriate glass cleaner. It is also important to check the door rope seal for signs of wear, and if loose, this will need replacing. If you want to replace it, this video offers a useful guide for how to change the seal.
Chimney maintenance
Aside from your wood burner, it’s important to also maintain the health of your chimney. Your chimney can become obstructed by anything from tar to birds’ nests, so it is essential it is swept each year, at least. There are numerous factors, however, that might vary how often your chimney requires sweeping:
We have prepared a useful article on caring for your chimney here, which will provide further advice. Ultimately, it is most important to sweep your chimney after long periods of use, and before using it again.
Burn right
One big factor that contributes towards the health of your stove and your chimney is the fuel you burn. If you are burning wood, it is important to only burn firewood that has been well-seasoned or kiln dried below 20% moisture content. It is widely known that burning wood of poor quality, such as wet logs with high moisture content, or treated wood (e.g pallet wood and furniture), will result in poor quality combustion. This increases the production of smoke, tar, and harmful gases – these can damage both your stove and your chimney.
If you are buying firewood, a useful tip is to look for the Woodsure ‘Ready to Burn’ logo on the packaging. If you see this logo, it indicates the wood you are purchasing is of a good quality and of the correct moisture content. Of course, if in doubt, check the moisture content using a moisture meter.
Our recommended wood supplier is Certainly Wood – find out more about them and identifying good firewood here.
Any questions?
If you have any questions or need some further advice on stove maintenance, it is always best to contact your local retailer who will be able to provide expert assistance.
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