Putting the 354 to bed tomorrow

[Hoytman]

74F for the high today. Upper 70’s the rest of the week.

Last week had one day to 78F but nights were heading back down into the 30’s so we elected to keep the stove going last week into this week. Stove and chimney have been drafting great even during these warmer days. Seems she can pull -.02”WC during just about any weather. If the ash pan door gasket was tighter I can chug it down to -.005” … so with the more loose fitting ash door gasket and the paper clip on the flap it actually drafts better, even during the warm weather.

I’m glad to be shutting down though. It’s not suppose to rain until the weekend, so I’ll be able to sweep everything out and remove the stove pipe for cleaning before any moisture sets in.

I have to say…
The the black rocks, and my Hitzer 354, this forum and the great people here and the friends I have made have really been a blessing to us. We appreciate it all and we appreciate all of you.

Money I spent on the stove has paid for itself many times over in the past 4 seasons.

Burned right at 1.5 tons from October until today. I think I have 1-2 bags of nut left.

[hank2]

Yeah, it's about time for many. I went out a week ago. More than windowstats could comfortably deal with. Of course, it then was 30 for the next few nights. Always miss that solid heat. Heading to 80-86 degrees for several days here. Crazy!

Did exactly 5 months. A couple of weeks less than usual. Have at least a quarter ton left out of 4 tons. Usually, I burn all of that.

[freetown fred]

Yep, some time later this week. Been a good 7-8 months.

[Rob R.]

I just unloaded another ton. We still have some snow in the shaded spots, and the lake is cold. I plan to burn until Memorial Day weekend, but we will see how it goes.

[freetown fred]

I'm thinkin you're closer then me Rob.

[davidmcbeth3]

I like it 90-100F inside

[freetown fred]

That explains a lot D.

[Rob R.]

I'm thinkin you're closer then me Rob.

closer to what?

[freetown fred]

Closer to shut down date.

closer to what?

[Hoytman]

That explains a lot D.

Yep…they’re scrambled eggs.

[nut]

I let mine go out Monday. May or may not relight once again before season is over. 70-80 all week.

[ShawnLiNy]

I think I’ve only had 5-6 4-6 hour wood fires in the last 6 weeks ( I believe I have enough coal to get me through next season) still haven’t done my total clean and breakdown of my pipe

[Hoytman]

You got the stove and stove pipe all emptied and cleaned out with the vacuum yesterday. Took me about 2 hours total…that’s getting the vacuum cleaner and cyclone out, hooked up, and out away.

Normally this stove seems to have at least one back brick break every season. This year there were four broken bricks and all began the season as new bricks.

I normally clean the stove out once mid-season, but this year I waited until the end.

I think what may be causing it is fly ash gets caught above the baffle and that fly ash falls down the back slope of the baffle from above and lays against the back wall of the stove. Over time the fly ash falls back down into the stove and falls onto the top of the brick retainer and sneaks its way behind the bricks forcing them forward instead of the bricks laying flush against the back of the stove. The fly ash accumulates about mid-brick and then they break. At least that’s a wild guess from my observation. There may be something else causing although I’m not sure.

Last year I sprayed the inside of the stove with Pam. I would be curious to know what else some of you use to prevent rust inside.

I thought about spraying it down then putting a Damp-Rid container inside the stove to absorb any residual moisture, maybe even a small 15-20 watt incandescent lightbulb placed inside (a suggestion from Dean at Hitzer).

[warminmn]

I use a wide angle iron and lay on top of firebrick to keep ash from getting behind the brick in my riteway. But doesnt your 354 use a brick retainer (I think thats what its called) to hold the brick in place and stop ash from getting behind it?

I never spray anything inside stove but do burn wood after coal. But my Chubby I didnt always burn wood and never really noticed any rust problems. let air move thru the stove and pipe and you wont have issues either. But the topic of spraying things or other methods has been beaten to death thru the years so maybe search for the topic? really, its just personal choice. All or none of the ideas work just as well as the next. Its basement stoves that have the most trouble.

[ShawnLiNy]

You got the stove and stove pipe all emptied and cleaned out with the vacuum yesterday. Took me about 2 hours total…that’s getting the vacuum cleaner and cyclone out, hooked up, and out away.

Normally this stove seems to have at least one back brick break every season. This year there were four broken bricks and all began the season as new bricks.

I normally clean the stove out once mid-season, but this year I waited until the end.

I think what may be causing it is fly ash gets caught above the baffle and that fly ash falls down the back slope of the baffle from above and lays against the back wall of the stove. Over time the fly ash falls back down into the stove and falls onto the top of the brick retainer and sneaks its way behind the bricks forcing them forward instead of the bricks laying flush against the back of the stove. The fly ash accumulates about mid-brick and then they break. At least that’s a wild guess from my observation. There may be something else causing although I’m not sure.

Last year I sprayed the inside of the stove with Pam. I would be curious to know what else some of you use to prevent rust inside.

I thought about spraying it down then putting a Damp-Rid container inside the stove to absorb any residual moisture, maybe even a small 15-20 watt incandescent lightbulb placed inside (a suggestion from Dean at Hitzer).

any cooking spray is probably the best as far as spray on moisture protection/vs smell . If pipe stays disconnected or plugged that helps temperature stability an reduces excessive condensation .