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Burning in cycles means the loading door does not need to be opened while the wood is flaming.
This is an advantage since it is preventing smoke leaking from the heater when the door is
opened as a full fire is burning. This is especially true if the chimney is on the outside wall of the
house.
If the door must be opened while the fire is flaming, fully open air control for a few minutes
then open the door slowly.
5.5
Rekindling a Fire
Generally, when you need to cook, it is time to reload. Remove excess ash from the front of
the firebox and bring the ashes forward. Place a new load of wood on, and at the back of the
embers. Open the air control completely and close the door.
Raking the coals is useful for two reasons. First, it brings them near where most of the combustion
air enters the firebox. This will ignite the new load quickly. Secondly, the charcoal will not be
smothered by the new load of wood. When the embers are simply spread inside the combustion
chamber, the new load smoulder for a long time before igniting.
Close the air control only when the firebox is full of bright turbulent flames, the wood is charred,
and its edges are glowing.
The heater should not be left unattended during ignition and the fire should not burn at full
intensity for more than a few minutes.
When lighting a new load, the appliance produces a heat surge. This heat boost is useful for
reheating the oven and steel cooking surface, but can give a feeling of extra heat in the room if
it is already hot there. Therefore, it may be better to have a cooler room when the cookstove is
in operation.
Do not overfire the unit. The signs of an overfired unit are a roaring fire, the chimney connector
is glowing red and an extreme heat coming from the cookstove. If this occurs, DO NOT OPEN
THE DOOR. Shut-off the air inlet opening completely and wait until the glow has completely
subsided.
5.6
Air Intake Control
Once the firewood, firebox and chimney are hot, air intake can be reduced to achieve a steady
burn.
As the air intake is reduced, the burn rate decreases. This has the effect of distributing the
thermal energy of the fuel over a longer period of time. In addition, the flow rate of exhaust
through the appliance and flue pipe slows down, which increases the duration of the energy
transfer of the exhaust gases. As the air intake is reduced, the flame slows down.
Page 22
Installation and operation manual – Chic-Choc woodburning cookstove
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