9.6.3 Firing Each New Load Hot Press the reload button, place the new load of wood on and behind the charcoal. Close the door. Firing each load of wood hot accomplishes a few things: • drives the surface moisture from the wood, • creates a layer of char on the wood, which slows down its release of smoke, • heats the firebox components so they reflect heat back to the fire, and • heat the chimney so it can produce strong, steady draft for the rest of the cycle. DO NOT LEAVE THE FURNACE UNATTENDED WHILE A NEW LOAD IS BEING FIRED HOT. DO NOT OVERFIRE. When you burn a new load of wood hot to heat up the wood, the furnace and the chimney, the result will be a surge of heat from the furnace. This heat surge is welcome when the room temperature is a little lower than desirable, but not welcome if the space is already warm. Therefore, allow each load of wood to burn down so that the space begins to cool off a little before loading. 9.6.4 Control of the air supply Once the firewood, firebox and chimney are hot, the air combustion controls will close gradually to maintain the optimal combustion chamber temperature. 9.6.5 Building different fires for different needs Your house will need far less heat in October than in January to be kept at a comfortable temperature. If you fill the firebox full in fall weather, you will either overheat the space or turn the furnace down so much that the fire will be smoky and inefficient. Here are some suggestions for building fires to match different heat demand. 9.6.5.1 Small fires to take the chill off the house To build a small fire that will produce a low heat output, use small pieces of firewood and load them crisscross in the firebox. The pieces should be only 3” (76 mm) to 4” (102 mm) in diameter. After raking the coals, you can lay two pieces parallel to each other corner to corner in the firebox and lay two more across them in the other direction. This kind of fire is good for mild weather when you are around to tend the furnace and should provide enough heat for four hours or more. Small fires like this are a good time to use softer wood species so there will be less chance of overheating the house. 9.6.5.2 Long lasting low output fires Sometimes you will want to build a fire to last up to eight hours, but do not need intense heat. In this case use soft wood species and place the logs compactly in the firebox so the pieces are packed tightly together.
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