Quadra-Fire 5100I-NL-B Operating Instructions, Over-Firing Your Appliance, Burning Process

	R	5100-I ACT WOOD INSERT
8	Operating Instructions

15% moisture by weight, and should be burned hot enough to

WARNING keep the chimney hot for as long as it takes to dry the wood out - about one hour. It is a waste of energy to burn unseasoned wood of any kind.

		Fire Risk		Dead wood lying on the forest floor should be considered wet,
		Do not over-fire.		and requires full seasoning time. Standing dead wood can
		Over-firing may ignite creosote or will damage		be considered to be about 2/3 seasoned. To tell if wood is
		the stove and chimney.		dry enough to burn, check the ends of the logs. If there are
		To prevent over-firing your stove, DO NOT:		cracks radiating in all directions from the center, it is dry. If
		•	Use flammable liquids	your wood sizzles in the fire, even though the surface is dry,
				it may not be fully cured.
		•	Overload with wood
				Splitting wood before it is stored reduces drying time. Wood
		• Burn trash or large amounts of scrap lumber
		• Permit too much air to the fire		should be stacked so that both ends of each piece are exposed
				to air, since more drying occurs through the cut ends than the
A. Over-Firing Your Appliance				sides. This is true even with wood that has been split. Store
				wood under cover, such as in a shed, or covered with a tarp,
1. Symptoms of Over-Firing				plastic, tar paper, sheets of scrap plywood, etc., as uncov-
				ered wood can absorb water from rain or snow, delaying the
	Symptoms of over-firing may include one or more of the			seasoning process.
	following:			C. Burning Process
	• Chimney connector or appliance glowing
	•	Roaring, rumbling noises		In recent years there has been an increasing concern about
	• Loud cracking or banging sounds			air quality. Much of the blame for poor air quality has been
				placed on the burning of wood for home heating. In order to
	•	Metal warping
				improve the situation, we at Quadra-Fire have developed
	•	Chimney fire		cleaner-burning woodstoves that surpass the requirements
				for emissions established by our governing agencies. These
2. What To Do if Your Stove is Over-Firing
				woodstoves, like any other appliances, must be properly
	•	Immediately close the door and air controls to reduce		operated in order to insure that they perform the way they are
				designed to perform. Improper operation can turn most any
		air supply to the fire.
				wood stove into a smoldering environmental hazard.
	•	If you suspect a chimney fire, call the fire department
		and evacuate your house.		1. Kindling or First Stage
	• Contact your local chimney professional and have your
				It helps to know a little about the actual process of burning in
		stove and stove pipe inspected for any damage.
				order to understand what goes on inside a stove. The first
	•	Do not use your stove until the chimney professional
				stage of burning is called the kindling stage. In this stage, the
		informs you it is safe to do so.		wood is heated to a temperature high enough to evaporate the
Hearth & Home Technologies WILL NOT warranty stoves				moisture which is present in all wood. The wood will reach
				the boiling point of water (212°F) and will not get any hotter
that exhibit evidence of over-firing. Evidence of over-firing
				until the water is evaporated. This process takes heat from
includes, but is not limited to:
				the coals and tends to cool the appliance.
	•	Warped air tube
				Fire requires three things to burn - fuel, air and heat. So, if
	• Deteriorated refractory brick retainers
				heat is robbed from the appliance during the drying stage,
	• Deteriorated baffle and other interior components			the new load of wood has reduced the chances for a good
B. Wood Selection & Storage				clean burn. For this reason, it is always best to burn dry,
				seasoned firewood.	When the wood isn’t dry, you must
Burn only dry seasoned wood. Store wood under cover, out				open the air controls and burn at a high burn setting for a
				longer time to start it burning. The heat generated from the
of the rain and snow. Dry and well-seasoned wood will not				fire should be warming your home and establishing the flue
only minimize the chance of creosote formation, but will give				draft, not evaporating the moisture out of wet, unseasoned
you the most efficient fire. Even dry wood contains at least				wood, resulting in wasted heat.
Page 24			438-0380E		April 21, 2010