How to Build a Wood Fire
and Keep it Going
A Seneca leaves the factory with the catalytic combustor installed.
In the United States it is against the law to operate this wood heater in a manner inconsistent with the operat- ing instructions in this manual, or if the catalytic com- bustor is deactivated or removed.
High-Efficiency Wood Burning
with Catalytic Combustion
Smoke from a wood fire is really escaping energy that has not been burned to produce the heat. Combustion temperatures of 1100°F (595°C) are required to burn the smoke, and a level this high seldom is present in a fire set to burn several hours. As a result, long fires in conventional stoves lose a great deal of potential heat up the chimney as smoke.
A catalytic combustor captures this heat by lowering the temperature at which smoke will burn. This makes high efficiency possible even with long, low level fires.
ST743
Fig. 24
Catalytic combustion is activated with two adjustments: by closing the stove damper, thereby exposing the smoke to the combustor, and by opening the combustor air control. The combustor needs extra air during medium and high burns, and the SenecaÕs combustor air control must be fully open to supply it. During low burns, the combustor air control should be open only a 3/4 turn.
Closing the stove damper also reduces the draft, so to avoid putting out the fire or deactivating the combustor, close the damper only when a fire is well established.
When starting a fire, wait until the fire is well estab- lished and there is an ember bed of at least two inches before closing the stove damper.
Never kindle a fire with colored paper or paper that has colored ink or a glossy surface, and never burn treated wood, garbage, solvents, or trash. All of these may poison the catalyst and prevent it from operating
Dutchwest Seneca
properly. Never burn cardboard or loose paper except for kindling purposes. This can cause smoke to spill into the room and effect the combustor operation.
In general, the temperature in the stove and the gases entering the combustion must be raised to approxi- mately 800°F (430°C) to ensure that catalytic activity is initiated. During the
Even though it is possible to have gas temperatures reach several hundred degrees within two to three minutes after a fire is started, the combustor may stop working or the fire may go out if the fire is allowed to die down immediately. Once the combustor starts working, heat generated by burning the smoke will keep it working.
The best operating range for the combustor is a reading of
To determine whether the combustor is operating, check the probe thermometer in the top of the stove. If it reads 800° (430°C) or higher, it is likely that the combustor is operating. If temperatures are lower than this, increase the intensity of the fire either by adding fuel or by increasing the amount of primary air.
Another way to tell if the combustor is working is to observe the amount of smoke leaving the chimney when the damper is activated and when it is not. This procedure is described on Page 24.
Conditioning Your Stove
Cast iron is extremely strong, but it can be broken with a sharp blow from a hammer or from the thermal shock of rapid and extreme temperature changes.
The cast plates expand and contract with changes in temperature. When you first begin using your Seneca, minimize thermal stress by allowing the plates to adjust gradually during three or four initial
Starting and Maintaining a Wood Fire
Wood may be loaded into the Seneca from either the front or the side. Loading from the front is useful for kindling a new fire or adding an occasional log, but we recommend side loading as the most convenient way of regularly adding several logs at a time.
Your Seneca may be operated with the front doors open, for
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