Spartherm Varia M60h Installation And Operating Instructions Manual page 65

Slowly add larger wood (2x4 size pieces). Lay the pieces lengthwise from side to
side in the hot coal bed with a shallow trench between, so that the primary air can
flow directly into this trench and ignite the fuel above. When the fire seems to be
at its peak, medium sized logs may be added. Once these logs have caught fire,
carefully close the door. (Closing the door too quickly after refuelling will reduce
the firebox temperature and result in an unsatisfactory burn.) Remember it is
more efficient to burn medium sized wood, briskly, and refuel frequently than to
load the appliance with large logs that result in a smouldering, inefficient fire and
dirty glass. As soon as the door is closed, you will observe a change in the flame
pattern. The flames will get smaller and lazier because less oxygen is getting into
the combustion chamber. The flames, however, are more efficient. The flames will
remain lazy but become larger again as soon as the firebricks have been heated
thoroughly and the chimney becomes heated and provides a good draft. At this
point, the roaring fire that you see when the door is opened is wastefully drawing
heated room air up the chimney -- certainly not desirable. Always operate with the
door fully closed once the medium sized logs have caught fire.
You can now add larger pieces of wood and operate the appliance normally. Once
the appliance is entirely hot, it will burn very efficiently with little smoke from the
chimney. There will be a bed of orange coals in the firebox and secondary flames
flickering just below the top firebrick. You can safely fill the firebox with wood up
to the air inlet on the backside of the firebox or, if not present, up to 50% of the
fireboxes backside height and will get best burns if you keep the appliance pipe
temperatures between 250°F (120°C ) and 450°F (270°C ). A surface thermom-
eter placed on the front top will help regulate this.
Without an appliance thermometer, you are working blindly and have no
idea of how the appliance is operating! An appliance thermometer offers a
guide to performance.
Can't get the fire going?
Use more kindling and paper. Assuming the chimney and vent are sized
correctly and there is sufficient combustion air, the lack of sufficiently dry
quantities of small kindling is the problem. Thumb size is a good gauge for
small kindling diameter.
Can't get heat out of the appliance?
One of two things may have happened. The appliance door may have been
closed prematurely and the appliance itself has not reached optimum tem-
perature. Reopen the door and/or draft control to re-establish a brisk fire.
The other problem may have been wet wood. The typical symptom is sizzling
wood and moisture being driven from the wood.
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