Secondary air
- tcalo
- Member
- Posts: 2068
- Joined: Tue. Dec. 13, 2011 4:57 pm
- Location: Long Island, New York
- Baseburners & Antiques: Crawford 40
- Coal Size/Type: Nut/stove anthracite
This may be a rookie question, but after nearly 10 years of burning coal I never put too much thought into it. What is the secondary air intake actually for? I assumed it was for burning wood but this doesn’t make much sense in a suspended pot stove. So my thought is it helps burn off gases when reloading fresh coal. I run mine 100% open all the time. I figured it would help with some fresh air over the bed. Am I completely off on this subject?
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- Member
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- Location: Harrison, Tenn
- Other Heating: Wishing it was cold enough for coal here....not really
Going by memory, most run it early in the burn to burn off gasses being generated and prevent poofbacks? Then they close it mostly to finish the burn......Also maybe open it before opening the door the burn off any gasses to prevent a poof......
- warminmn
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- Location: Land of 11,842 lakes
- Hand Fed Coal Stove: Chubby Junior, Efel Nestor Martin, Riteway 37
- Coal Size/Type: nut and stove anthracite, lignite
- Other Heating: Wood and wear a wool shirt
Its helpful in mild weather too, to help chimney draft and to run stove cooler.
Not all stoves have it (Hitzer 30-95, 50-93 as examples) and they work fine too.
Not all stoves have it (Hitzer 30-95, 50-93 as examples) and they work fine too.
- Lightning
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- Joined: Wed. Nov. 16, 2011 9:51 am
- Location: Olean, NY
- Stoker Coal Boiler: Modified AA 130
- Coal Size/Type: Pea Size - Anthracite
Yep, run it open for about an hour or so after loading fresh so the baked out hydrocarbons can burn, then close it to about 10%.
During warm weather burns you can leave it open full-time along with the MPD to help the draft move along.
During warm weather burns you can leave it open full-time along with the MPD to help the draft move along.
- Lightning
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- Joined: Wed. Nov. 16, 2011 9:51 am
- Location: Olean, NY
- Stoker Coal Boiler: Modified AA 130
- Coal Size/Type: Pea Size - Anthracite
Right.. that's because your using the available oxygen more efficiently. Remember, that combustion air is 80% nitrogen that goes up the chimney as nitrogen (unchanged). So if you have air coming in over the fire that's not contributing to combustion, it just gets heated and goes up the chimney.