Best way to light a woodburner with down draft?

[mickdundee]

I reckon the hair dryer would work though, I’ve just never tried it

[monkeybusiness]

I have this issue with one of our stoves (a clearview that was always a doddle to light in our previous house). I’ve basically got it nailed now through trial and error - I shut the door of the room it’s in thus sealing it off from the rest of the house (not amazingly sealed!) and open a window. Then light as normal (paper, cardboard, anything flammable from the recycling bin, some small logs) with vents wide open and door open a crack. The door open is the key and not something I’ve ever had to do previously with this or other stoves. It seems wrong and likely to fill the house with smoke which is why it took me so long to try it (without the door open the stove was always filling with smoke to the point where it would start to find its way out of joints in the flue and around the door). Works perfectly for me every time now.

[Stubby]

3 minutes ago, monkeybusiness said:

I have this issue with one of our stoves (a clearview that was always a doddle to light in our previous house). I’ve basically got it nailed now through trial and error - I shut the door of the room it’s in thus sealing it off from the rest of the house (not amazingly sealed!) and open a window. Then light as normal (paper, cardboard, anything flammable from the recycling bin, some small logs) with vents wide open and door open a crack. The door open is the key and not something I’ve ever had to do previously with this or other stoves. It seems wrong and likely to fill the house with smoke which is why it took me so long to try it (without the door open the stove was always filling with smoke to the point where it would start to find its way out of joints in the flue and around the door). Works perfectly for me every time now.

The Burley I have has an actual notch on the door catch for having it open a critical amount when heating the flue .

[openspaceman]

9 hours ago, sandspider said:

As above. I live in a cold, still valley and have trouble with downdraft on both my woodburners. When cold, a breeze blows out of them which makes them hard to light without getting smoke everywhere. Both installs are fairly.new and correct height chimneys etc so I don't think there's a problem there.

I can't add much to what has already been said but if there is a cold draught from the stove when you open the door this points to a circulation in the house. The house is warmer than outside so that warm air from the house is rising and getting out somewhere, this has to be replaced so the cold slug of air in the chimney moves into the house, similar to the way they used to ventilate mines.

 

I have seen this before with a new installation AGA in a large victorian  that wouldn't draw, in that case the  AGA was removed as they considered it unsafe, but the reason was that the AGA was a lifestyle desirable but the house was owned by a well to do family who had full central heating and maintained all rooms at 20+C and there was a large open fireplace a fair distance from the kitchen. Thus air from the house was leaking upstairs as well as up the lounge chimney so the AGA flue was the way the air got in to replace it.

 

A hair dryer may work but if you want something a bit more powerful and light the logs

 

http://woodpelletfuel.co.uk/leister-wood-chip--pellet-boiler-igniters-75-c.asp

 

Never seen this make but it looks similar to the one I have on my woodchip stoker.

[chopper brown]

I have this issue on a newly fitted stove. 5kw with twin lined flue but has plenty of draw. Really good once it's warmed up but when you open the door you can feel the cold draft coming down.

I light it with flamers and kindling only as I found paper creates too much smoke while it warms.

The door has to be open otherwise the burner fills with smoke and escapes out the vents.

Only 4 bits of kindling and then steadily add one at a time until it's warm and away you go.

The flamers are basically wood shavings dipped in wax and go really well.

Hope this helps.

Jim

[david lawrence]

there used to be electric pokers with a fan which would light the fire from scratch

 

bit like a super power hair dryer on legs 

 

perhaps you could find one of these to try ?

 

just run it with no wood in to start with 

 

 

[david lawrence]

the electric firelighter is called a grenadier

 

on there web site

Many customers use their Grenadier for pre-warming problem flues before lighting the fuel.

 

£120 thou

 

perhaps you could track one down to try before spending all that cash

 

 

[billpierce]

Pop a gas axe in there for a bit?

Seriously though you can get gas poker lighter type things for 30 earth pounds on ebay

[SbTVF]

One wood wool flamer plus a Jenga pile of kindling on top of last nights ash, (8 pieces plus some thin bits on top) maybe small piece of log lent against the stack either side. Put the door to. Let it get on with it.

Paper is a bad idea imo.

[openspaceman]

16 minutes ago, david lawrence said:

the electric firelighter is called a grenadier

 

on there web site

Many customers use their Grenadier for pre-warming problem flues before lighting the fuel.

 

£120 thou

 

perhaps you could track one down to try before spending all that cash

 

 

Looks like a bargain compared with the link I posted.