Benefits of a Catalytic Stove and Cleaning Tips

20 July 2010      

Your wood burning stove is the primary heat source for home heating. The catalytic combustor in your wood stove is the heart of your wood stove. Keeping your wood stove operating at its optimum efficiency increases the stoves performance. Installing a catalytic combustor in the wood stove forced all smoke to be re-burnt before it entered the chimney. This resulted in cleaner emissions in the air.
 
The most surprising result of adding the catalytic combustor to the wood stove was a huge increase in heat output from the stove. In order for the catalytic combustor to engage the stove must reach an internal temperature of around 1100 degrees. Once the catalytic combustor is engaged it slows down the burning process in the stove. The wood is slowly cooked as opposed to being burnt. The slow cooking of the wood is a more thorough burn which results in total combustion. Coals and ash are reduced to a fine white powder. The total combustion utilizes the wood as a fuel source with no waste.
 
The increase in heat output by using less wood to heat your home has been a huge savings. Keeping your catalytic combustor operating properly adds to the wood stoves efficiency. Burning firewood that is not seasoned puts excess moisture into the wood stove and this can cause the ceramic cells in the combustor to deteriorate. Keep your combustor clean and it can last five years or longer providing heat into your home. If the catalytic combustor starts to crumble it must be replaced.