Page 2 RAIN October 1979 WOOD STOVE NEWS: . onwinter coming, fireplaces by Bill Day Colder weather in the next few months will mean that your woodstove or fur- •nace will be asked to perform faithfully for another winter. To achieve that expected performance, it is wise to perform a few simple maintenance chores before the season begins. A good cleaning and inspection can be accomplished by wire brushing and vacuuming the stove interior. If you are interested in efficiency, then note that one-eighth inch of soot inside the stove walls decreases heat transfer approximately 30 percent. Potential problems discovered early will not likely become critical. Stoves which have developed air leaks, have also begun to lose heating efficiency. Leaky stoves or fu maces tend to develop "hot spots," become overheated, and often will deteriorate much faster than normal. Welded steel box stoves whose doors or door frames have warped should be returned to the dealer or manufacturer. If the warranty has expired or is unenforceable, I suggest you replace the unit with one which is both repairable and more efficient. Listed below are some common chores and examinations to perform. Common sense dictates that your chimney needs an inspection and cleaning unless it was done following the "7879" heating season. All chimneys deteriorate over a period of years. Masonry chimneys tend to lose mortar and need minor repair. Prefabricated chimneys tend to be affected by chimney fires and should be examined occasionally to determine that the steel liner has not "sagged" or become distorted. InandtheDOE structions for cleaning chimneys are found in: Chimney & Stove Cleaning, by Christopher Curtis and Donald Post, 1977, Garden Way Publishing, Dept. 1717, Charlotte, V'f 05445, $1.00 postpaid. Bill Day's Consumer's Guide to Wood Stoves, RAIN, journal ofAp- , propriate Technology, 2270 N.W.--1-rving, Portland, OR 97210 ($2.00 plus 20 percent postage and handling). Observation 1. Place trouble light inside stove in darkened room. Examine door and door frame for light leaks. 2. While trouble light is inside stove, check for light leaks around seams and joints. 3. If the appearance of the stove is rusty or pale grey-white. • During the past few years, I have seen a great many government funded "research" or "development" projects. A great many of these are simple duplications of existing work published in the 1920s, '30s or '40s by engineering experiment stations at "land grant" colleges. One of the worst yet is titled "Analysis of Heat-Saving Retrofit Devices for Fireplaces" authored by Robert D. Busch and Richard Irland, published March 1979 by the New Mexico Energy RAIN Institute. This report features inaccurate statistics developed under unscientific conditions.: misleading conclusions which could encourage use of inefficient fireplaces as sensible heat sources, with po mention of possible consumer safety problems resulting from the use of the devices studied. On the other hand, a previously published document, "Measured Performance of Fireplaces and Fireplace Accessories" by Jay Shelton, $2.00, 36 Hawthorne Drive, Williamstown, MA O 1267, is the most useful and accurate study presently available. • The Department of Energy, at this time, seems to be encouraging (perhaps at the expense of other options) industrial wood fuel use. The domestic consumer is completely ignored in the budget planning of_three of the four Regional Solar Energy Centers. Federal Mode of Action to be Followed Replace door gasket if light is visible. Some older stoves did not use gaskets, and a good seal cannot be achieved. Maintenance of newer welded,stoves must be done by the stove dealer or manufacturer usually under the implied or limited warranties. I consider stoves one to five years old with warped doors or door frames to be defective. Fill any gaps by applying furnace cement . (usually a clay, asbestos and water mixture) from the inside. No special tools are needed. Wipe off any excess cement which appears on outside of stove. Remove rust with a wire brush or emery cloth. Do not sandblast! Apply stove polish or high temperature silicone finish. DOE thinking seems to be at odds with the stated wood use policy vocalized by President Carter. Recently, the President endorsed the use of wood heating stoves and is sponsoring a 15 percent income tax credit to encourage their use. Skyrocketing sales of wood burning home appliances are an obvious reflection of the positive economic benefits now available from wood fuel. If the DOE policy makers were awake, they could direct and promote the curJ our!J.al ofAppropriate Technology RAIN is a national information access journal making connections for people seeking n:10re simrk and sati_sfying lifestyle~, working to make their communities and regions economically self-reliant, building a society that 1s durable, JUSt and ccolog1cally sound. RAIN STAFF Phil Conti Pauline Deppen Debra Whitelaw Del Greenfield Tad Mutersbaugh Yak Lansky Jill Stapleton-Layout CONTRIBUTORS Steven Ames Phil Hcnshaw Tom Bender Steve Johnson Typesetting: Irish Setter , Printing : Times Litho Cover: Ancil N ancc RAIN, Journal of Appropriate Technology, is published 10 times yearly by the Rai~ U ~brella, l~c., a n?n-profit _corporation located at 2270 N. W. Irving, Portland, Oregon 97210. Telephone: 503-227-5110. Copyright© l lJ79 Ram Umbrella, Inc. No part may be reprinted without written permission.
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