Glenwood 116 to Help Out Little Tiget

That coal sticking is called "bridging". It's quite common, especially in narrow firepots with larger size coal. Even the larger firepots like your 116 can bridge with nut coal if it's burned at a high enough temperature.

The coal gets soft at high temperatures and can become slightly sticky thus fusing together and to the firebrick of refractory lining as it burns.

With a "draw center" type grate - one where you can slide the center section of the grate out part way to dump clinkers - that bridging can be a help to avoid dumping still burning coal when clearing the overnight ash build up and clinkers before they get too big.

The bridging holds the still usable coal up in the firepot until the draw center is pushed back into position and then the entire grate is shaken, and/or, the firebed is pushed down with a fire poker.

To help reduce the tendency to run hot you might try using smaller sized coal, or mixing smaller sized coal in with what you have. That will reduce the average size of the pieces and create more resistance to air flow up through the firebed to help slow the burning ability. Plus it will slightly increase the fuel density in the firepot. So it will slow the burn, plus give a bit more fuel to burn, thus giving longer burn times.

By changing, mixing, or sorting coal size you can change the speed and heat output of coal stoves to better match what you need.

During the day when we want more heat and faster temp changes for cooking, I use the larger coal pieces that roll to the outer edges of the coal pile in the bin. Those larger pieces let the firebed breath easier, faster and therefore hotter. At night I dig from the middle of the pile where the average size is much smaller. That gives me a slower, longer lasting fire for longer overnight burn times.

Paul

I'm very interested in these, not sure butI think they are called 4 o'clocks. The only ones I have seen other than the Godin's were yours and mine and an Ankarsrum Viking. So two from Holland/ Sweden. Probably lots of info in Dutch

That's the cookstove in your avatar? That's quite the cookrange. Thanks for the explanation. You Don't think it hurts the firebrick? I think I read in a post about ash solidifying. I Don't like the way it looks but I Don't want to damage anything by overcleaning, which I have done on occasion to other things accidentally.

Wren wrote:That's the cookstove in your avatar? That's quite the cookrange. Thanks for the explanation. You Don't think it hurts the firebrick? I think I read in a post about ash solidifying. I Don't like the way it looks but I Don't want to damage anything by overcleaning, which I have done on occasion to other things accidentally.

Yes. We do all our cooking/baking on it for about 9 months of the year. For when you have a few hours to read, Cookin' With Coal

Over many years of use the clinker scale can build on the walls of the firepot liner reducing it's size and making it tougher to shake down bridging and ash as easily.

You can help reduce that buildup by daily scraping the clinker scale buildup off the liner by running a fire poker, or flat steel bar down between the coal and the liner to scrape it off before it becomes too hardened. Don't hit toward the liner, or scrap at an angle to it - scrap with the tool parallel to the surface and your far less likely to hurt the liner.

It only takes a few seconds each day and helps clear ash from around the edge of the firepot better than just shaking alone. That outer edge is where ash tends to want to stay more than out into the firebed.

Paul

Jenny, listen to Paul, and some of the other "experienced" members. They know all the tricks, so make sure you're takin notes, cause there'll be a test on Friday.

Wren wrote:Joeq, that's a beautiful little stove! Are those little gothic windows?! I'd love to see a few more pictures. I have never been able to find any information on the Tiger,other than from the person who said their grandma brought it from Holland. Do you know anything about that one? The Petit Godin was the most similar I could find too, and the specifications are pretty close. They suggest nut coal but it seemed to burn very hot and the coal stuck to the sides of the brick half way up and then fell about six inches when loading. Awkward and I'm too new at this to know why that happened.

I think it was about 40 degrees and the Tiger brought 76 degrees to a 12 x20 kitchen with a much used back door off it and big window. About zero it was 72, but that's with no insulation in last five feet of ceiling yet. I do find it hard to get started and haven't read carefully enough about charcoal or firestarter and Don't want to hurt the stove after it has survived. Replacing firebrick will be a problem I guess. The Tiger is about 11 inches in diameter and 33 once the elbow is in the back. What are the measurements of yours? Very graceful.

Here's a couple more pics of what I call a "pencil neck" stove Jenny. It's very skinny, but will fit tight where I want to install it. The barrel only measures 8" externally, and the pot inside I'm guessing between 6-7". It's hard to tell because the slag is huge on the inside. The height of the stove is about 42". It'll just be a temporary room heater, for an evening, but it might be fun. We'll see. Hope to see more of yours.

All allowed except the wood stove. I wonder if I would do better with four inch pipe? I thought we had to go six. I shouldn't admit to this , perhaps, but finding a four inch elbow was difficult so the one in the photo is the one an old guy's grandma used. I used stove blacking on it and it looked nice and...well I couldn't see light when I shone a flashlight through in the dark but when in desperation to light that anthracite I lit a healthy wood fire it glowed red. I have found a nice one with a door for ash on a site called glowing embers if I can get them to ship it. Then is a six to four inch reducer. Maybe it would burn better as you suggest with a four or five inch pipe you're thinking maybe six feet at least? I plan to redo a few things during nice weather and store the pipe until winter, but that would be when I will change things I guess. Dunno.No pics allowed at moment.

Nice photos. It seems so unusual. Really pretty. Is that coloured mica in the windows? I like the detailing in the legs even. There's something about the little ones.

The metal bonnet was still warm one morning. I Don't know if it is just to absorb heat or if it helps keep the coal burning in cold weather.

So on the top of the Tiger, is that lever controlling a damper for "over-fire" air, such as the case when burning wood?

Sunny Boy wrote:That coal sticking is called "bridging". It's quite common, especially in narrow firepots with larger size coal. Even the larger firepots like your 116 can bridge with nut coal if it's burned at a high enough temperature.

The coal gets soft at high temperatures and can become slightly sticky thus fusing together and to the firebrick of refractory lining as it burns.

With a "draw center" type grate - one where you can slide the center section of the grate out part way to dump clinkers - that bridging can be a help to avoid dumping still burning coal when clearing the overnight ash build up and clinkers before they get too big.

The bridging holds the still usable coal up in the firepot until the draw center is pushed back into position and then the entire grate is shaken, and/or, the firebed is pushed down with a fire poker.

To help reduce the tendency to run hot you might try using smaller sized coal, or mixing smaller sized coal in with what you have. That will reduce the average size of the pieces and create more resistance to air flow up through the firebed to help slow the burning ability.

Paul

My #8 has the original liner in the pot so it's got a course texture to it after 112 years of operation....BUT...something I learned this year that helps immensely is after I fill the pot with stove size, I put about five handfuls of nut on top. It seems to give a more complete and even combustion and the bridging has been cut dramatically. Just some food for thought.

I wonder if adding the layer of nut coal lowers the firebed temp just enough to drop it below the fusing temp range ?

Paul

Thank you both, I will try that. I would hate to ruin the brick. So if your brick is 112, it is possible to keep it in running condition? I'd love to keep the Tiger healthy.

Joeq. do you mean the lever at the front or back? The white handle at the front is for opening the loading door. The little round knob just under it slides right to open air while loading...and the one at the back is I think just a damper that turns. Has a hole in and straight sides a little so closed Isn't closed tight.

yeah, I see some of it Jen, but there seems to be more than meets the eye. Looks a little "involved". I'm sure that it all has it's purpose.

Yeah. Even the simple stoves remind me of boilers on a ship for some reason. The picture will get clearer as time goes by. What else could they be for?