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BURNING cont’d from page 10
over 30 grams per hour, or built in fireplaces, which can emit up to 90 grams per hour. There are a couple of different technologies that make EPA-Certified stoves work so well, but they all operate on the principal that in order to
burn wood clean, you need “complete combustion.” The more complete the combustion, the less sooty smoke you have rising out of the chimney. The problem with old woodstoves or fireplaces is that they are too simple inside; with just a firebox and a flue, the wood and exhaust don’t get hot enough
to completely combust all the wood particles; these particles rise out of the chimney as smoke.
One of the simplest components of an EPA-certified stove is firebox insulation. In order to ensure that the fire gets hot enough for complete combustion, the firebox is insulated all the way around. Additionally, the incoming air takes a circuitous path into the firebox, and along that path it gets heated up by the existing fire--and the hotter the air that fuels a fire, the hotter the fire’s temperature will be.
There are two main types of EPA-certified wood burning appliances: catalytic and non-catalytic. A catalytic stove contains a honeycomb-like catalytic combustor within its flue that, through a chemical reaction, causes wood smoke to burn up at a lower temperature, meaning the entire stove doesn’t need to be as hot as it would otherwise need to be in order to attain complete combustion. Wood stoves like this are very effective, and have emissions that sometimes rival pellet stoves in their cleanliness and efficiency. However, the catalytic combustor needs to be cleaned at regular intervals,
remember certain concepts when using your wood burning appliances: • Burn dry, seasoned wood.
• Never burn garbage
• Allow proper air flow into, and out of, your stove
and occasionally replaced, for this technology to work properly. Non-catalytic stoves do not use such a device; they depend on higher temperatures,
and recirculation of the exhaust within the firebox, to achieve complete combustion. These types of stoves have baffles within them that causes the exiting exhaust to take a long, circuitous route, being heated and re-burned along the way, before it goes up the chimney. Non-catalytic woodstoves
• Clean and maintain your appliance and chimney
• Use only manufacturer components in your appliance
The rural areas of the Northern Sonoma County Air Pollution Control
need maintenance as well, to ensure the airflow is working properly and the insulation and baffling are intact and functional.
District, especially the river valleys, are full of pockets where the air sits stagnant, particularly on cold days. In these areas and in general, it only takes one person burning badly to turn the air quality nasty in an entire neighborhood. We all need to work together to be good neighbors and good stewards of our environment to ensure that wood burning can remain sustainable as our population grows. Think about your family and your neighbors when you’re lighting your toasty, cozy fire, and be sure to burn smart and burn clean.
There are certain things some people do that can sabotage the technology and cause more smoke to rise out of the chimney. This isn’t just more smoke, it’s more lost fuel not being turned into heat. The more smoke you emit, the less efficient of a heat source you’re getting from your wood fuel. It is important to
Jessica DePrimo is an Air Quality Specialist III and Grant Program Manager, NSCAPCD www2.epa.gov/burnwise
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