Page 19
Isle Royale Wood Stove
R
February 4, 2005
250-5763B
OPERATING INSTRUCTIONS (Cont’d)
OPACITY
This helps to determine how cleanly your stove is burning. Opacity is measured in percent; 100% opacity is when an object
is totally obscured by the smoke column from a chimney, and 0% opacity means that no smoke column can be seen. As you
become familiar with your stove, you should periodically check the opacity of the smoke column emitted from your chimney.
This will allow you to know how to burn your stove as nearly smoke-free as possible (aim for a goal of 0% opacity).
There are many ways to build a fire. The basic principle is to light easily-ignitable tinder or paper, which ignites
the fast burning kindling, which in turn ignites the slow-burning firewood. Here is one method that works well:
1
. Place several wads of crushed paper on the firebox floor.
Heating the flue with slightly crumpled newspaper before
adding kindling keeps smoke to a minimum.
2. Lay small dry sticks of kindling on top of the paper.
3. Open Start-Up Air Control and Primary Air Slide Control fully. After 5 to 15 minutes, when the fire is well established, gently
pull Start-Up Air Control forward until resistance is felt. Do not allow control to "spring back" into the open position.
4. Make sure that no matches or other combustibles are in the immediate area of the stove. Be sure the room is adequately
ventilated and the flue unobstructed.
5. Light the paper in the stove. NEVER light or rekindle stove with kerosene, gasoline, or charcoal lighter fluid; the results can
be fatal.
6. Once the kindling is burning quickly, add several full-length logs 3 inches (76mm) or 4 inches (102mm) in diameter. Be careful
not to smother the fire. Stack the pieces of wood carefully: near enough to keep each other hot, but far enough away from
each other to allow adequate air flow between them.
7. When ready to reload the stove, add more logs. Large logs burn slowly, holding a fire longer. Small logs burn fast and hot,
giving quick heat.
8.
Adjust the Start-Up Air Control and Primary Air Slide Control; the more you close down (slide right) the Primary Air Slide
Control, the lower and slower the fire will burn. The more you open (slide left) the Primary Air Slide Control, the more
heat will be produced. The Start-Up Air Control is only used for the first 5 to 15 minutes.
9. As long as there are hot coals, repeating steps 7 and 8 will maintain a continuous fire throughout the season.
NOTE:
The special high temperature paint that your stove is finished with will cure as your stove heats. You will notice an odor
and perhaps see some vapor rise from the stove surface; this is normal. We recommend that you open a window until the
odor dissipates and paint is cured.
NOTE:
Stove should be run full open for 15 minutes a day to keep air passages clean.
WARNING! DO NOT LEAVE THE FIRE UNATTENDED WHEN THE
DOOR IS UNLATCHED. UNSTABLE FIREWOOD COULD FALL OUT
OF THE FIREBOX CREATING A FIRE HAZARD TO YOUR HOME.
CAUTION: Before lighting your first fire in the stove: 1) make certain that the baffle is correctly posi-
tioned. It should be resting against the rear support; 2) Follow instructions on page 22 for cleaning
plated surfaces, and; 3) Remove all labels from glass.front.
BUILDING A FIRE
CAUTION: Never use gasoline, gasoline-type lantern fuel, kerosene, charcoal lighter fluid, or similar
liquids to start or “freshen up” a fire in this heater. Keep all such liquids well away from the heater
while it is in use.
