Quadra-Fire 1900 owner manual Building a Fire, Wood Selection and Storage

2.THIMBLE: An approved thimble must be used when the connection from the stove is made through a combustible wall to a masonry chimney. There are several methods you can use for connection through a combustible wall, two of which are illustrated in this manual. For additional methods, consult local building authorities or use the standards set forth in NFPA 211.

Also, listed prefabricated metal thimbles are available for use with wood stoves. The manufacturer’s installation for the thimbles must be strictly followed to assure the safety of the system. Be sure to maintain the designated clearances to combustible materials.

A. BRICK CHIMNEY THIMBLE ASSEMBLY: Construction of the brick thimble assembly requires 12” (305mm) of brick around a fire clay liner. Be sure the point of penetration allows an 18” (457mm) clearance from the connector to the ceiling. For a 6” (152mm) chimney connector, an opening of 30” (762mm) must be cut in the wall to maintain the required 12” (305mm) of brick separation from combustibles. It will be necessary to cut wall studs and install a header and sill frame to maintain proper dimensions and to hold the weight of the brick (Figure 8).

FIGURE 8

OPERATING INSTRUCTIONS (cont.)

BURNING GUIDELINES (cont.)

MEDIUM: After a wood load has been burning on high for at least 15 minutes (longer for very large pieces or wet wood), close (pull out) the air control rod to the desired setting.

LOW: After a wood load has been burning on high for at least 15 minutes (longer for very large pieces or wet wood), close (pull out) the air control rod, gradually making sure to maintain flames in the stove. It is very important to maintain flames in your stove during the first few hours of a low burn, to avoid excessive air pollution.

BUILDING A FIRE

Before lighting your first fire in the stove, make certain that the baffle is correctly positioned. It should be resting on the rear baffle supports (see page 22 for baffle installation instructions). Also refer to care and cleaning of plated surfaces section on page 20 before lighting your first fire.

There are many ways to build a fire. The basic principle is to light easily-ignitable tinder or paper, which ignites the fast burning kindling, which in turn ignites the slow-burning firewood. Here is one method that works well:

1.Place several wads of crushed paper on the firebox floor.

2.Lay small dry sticks of kindling on top of the paper.

3.Open air control fully.

4.Make sure that no matches or other combustibles are in the immediate area of the stove. Be sure the room is adequately ventilated and the flue unobstructed.

5.Light the paper in the stove. NEVER light or rekindle stove with kerosene, gasoline, or charcoal lighter fluid; the results can be fatal.

6.Once the kindling is burning quickly, add several full-length logs 3” (76mm) or 4” (102mm) in diameter. Be careful not to smother the fire. Stack the pieces of wood carefully: near enough to keep each other hot, but far enough away from each other to allow adequate air flow between them.

7.When ready to reload the stove, add more logs. Large logs burn slowly, holding a fire longer. Small logs burn fast and hot, giving quick heat.

8.Adjust the air control: the more you close down the control, the lower and slower the fire will burn. The more open

the control, the more heat will be produced.

As long as there are hot coals, repeating steps 7 and 8 will maintain a continuous fire throughout the season.

NOTE: The special high temperature paint that your stove is finished with will cure as your stove heats. You will notice an odor and perhaps see some vapor rise from the stove surface; this is normal. We recommend that you open a window until the odor dissipates and paint is cured.

NOTE: On a cold start-up, you may see a small amount of smoke coming from the underside of the stove until chimney draft is established. This is normal, and will stop when the loading door is closed.

WOOD SELECTION AND STORAGE

Dry and well-seasoned wood will not only minimize the chance of creosote formation, but will give you the most efficient fire. Even dry wood contains at least 15% moisture by weight, and should be burned hot enough to 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.

Dead wood lying on the forest floor should be considered wet, and requires full seasoning time. Standing dead wood can be considered to be about two-thirds seasoned. To tell if wood is dry enough to burn, check the ends of the logs. If there are cracks radiating in all directions from the center, it is dry. If your wood sizzles in the fire, even though the surface is dry, it may not be fully cured. Splitting wood before it is stored reduces drying time. Wood should be stacked so that both ends of each piece are exposed to air, since more drying occurs through the cut ends than the 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, plastic, tar paper, sheets of scrap plywood, etc., as uncovered wood can absorb water from rain or snow, delaying the seasoning process.

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