Clean out your woodstove blowers.

[Katahdin]

If you heat with a woodstove with an electric fan blower, and haven't checked it in a couple years, its probably clogged with dust, cat hair, dog hair, and who knows what else. I've cleaned out mine and my mother's woodstove blowers with compressed air and now the stoves are putting out noticeably more heat. Both blowers were pretty filthy after several years of use. The dust and grime cuts off air flow which is especially critical for fireplace inserts where there is not much radiant surface area exposed. Pellet stoves may need to have their blowers cleaned too. Just though I'd pass this on to the other wood burners out there.

 

[RoyJackson]

All that crap is probably a fire hazard too...

 

[Jstpssng]

I had a nice soapstone that I got a good deal on... I didn't know I needed to clean out the heat exchanger in the fireboxw and over a 2 year period turned a $1600 woodstove into scrap metal.

 

[RoyJackson]

I had a nice soapstone that I got a good deal on... I didn't know I needed to clean out the heat exchanger in the fireboxw and over a 2 year period turned a $1600 woodstove into scrap metal.

You didn't get a manual with the stove?
Did you warp the stove plate? This can happen if you overfire them for an extended period.

 

[Jstpssng]

You didn't get a manual with the stove?
Did you warp the stove plate? This can happen if you overfire them for an extended period.

I bought it used, and never thought to download an owners manual until after the fact. I thought a woodstove was a woodstove. One night said heat exchanger fell in pieces into the firebox... It never drafted very well until then. In hindsight the reason I bought it for $20 was because it was already clogged... plus they were to busy smoking other stuff to worry about cleaning the woodstove. ;-)