Poking

 
coal nut
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Post by coal nut » Tue. Dec. 22, 2015 7:05 pm

Anyone poke their stoves on a regular basis? I usually poke my Hitzer when it builds up some dead ash in the corners. Started poking the whole bed lately and seems to burn much better and of course no ash build up in the corners. Do you poke before or after shaking? I do it before.


 
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freetown fred
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Post by freetown fred » Tue. Dec. 22, 2015 7:19 pm

I might poke corners once a month--works well for me. PS---before also :)

 
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Sunny Boy
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Post by Sunny Boy » Tue. Dec. 22, 2015 7:23 pm

Pheww ...... I thought Fred was sure gonna take this thread in another direction. :D

Well, with a rectangular firebox and coal that varies in size, I gotta work ash from at least one of the four corners each day.

Paul

 
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2001Sierra
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Post by 2001Sierra » Tue. Dec. 22, 2015 7:26 pm

I always poked my old Buderus after shaking. The fact poking has positive results makes it right. I had a shaker grate that was prone to dead spots on the sides, or really ends of the fire.

 
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freetown fred
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Post by freetown fred » Tue. Dec. 22, 2015 8:13 pm

Don't think for a second I wasn't tempted! :) This is the fine tunin where whatever works best for each individual stove is surely the route to stick with.
Sunny Boy wrote:Pheww ...... I thought Fred was sure gonna take this thread in another direction. :D

Well, with a rectangular firebox and coal that varies in size, I gotta work ash from at least one of the four corners each day.

Paul

 
grumpy
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Post by grumpy » Tue. Dec. 22, 2015 8:15 pm

:shock: :shock: :shock:

 
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johnjoseph
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Post by johnjoseph » Tue. Dec. 22, 2015 8:16 pm

freetown fred wrote:Don't think for a second I wasn't tempted! :) This is the fine tunin where whatever works best for each individual stove is surely the route to stick with.
Sunny Boy wrote:Pheww ...... I thought Fred was sure gonna take this thread in another direction. :D

Well, with a rectangular firebox and coal that varies in size, I gotta work ash from at least one of the four corners each day.

Paul
I poke my dishwasher regularly. ..does that count. ;)


 
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Sunny Boy
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Post by Sunny Boy » Tue. Dec. 22, 2015 10:10 pm

johnjoseph wrote:
freetown fred wrote:Don't think for a second I wasn't tempted! :) This is the fine tunin where whatever works best for each individual stove is surely the route to stick with.
I poke my dishwasher regularly. ..does that count. ;)
Well, there goes our "PG-13" rating. :D

Paul

 
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oliver power
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Post by oliver power » Tue. Dec. 22, 2015 11:12 pm

I poke when needed. For optimal performance, I poke daily. For shoulder months, I poke less. I've poked before shaking, and after shaking. If poking after shaking, I shake again. Both ways work. However, If I poke, then shake, the fly ash is like a dense fog, covering the glass. If I shake first, most of the ash goes into the ash pan. The glass stays cleaner, longer.

 
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windyhill4.2
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Post by windyhill4.2 » Wed. Dec. 23, 2015 10:41 am

I poke & slice from below,only. I shake the grates first & then poke/slice as needed to get the glow evenly across all the grates.

 
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nepacoal
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Post by nepacoal » Wed. Dec. 23, 2015 2:40 pm

I have two names for my twice daily routine (twice during colder months, once during shoulder months). "Poke and Stoke" or the old "Shake and Rake". I shake first then poke//rake to clear the corners and then usually one rake down the middle once a day.

 
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tcalo
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Post by tcalo » Wed. Dec. 23, 2015 4:32 pm

I poke my Chubby occasionally when I feel the need... :lol:

 
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davidmcbeth3
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Post by davidmcbeth3 » Wed. Dec. 23, 2015 4:56 pm

I never poke. I understand why people do -- I'm not an anti-poker guy. I'm just lazy I guess. :D

 
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63roundbadge
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Post by 63roundbadge » Wed. Dec. 23, 2015 6:20 pm

Dead corners are my way to throttle down the temp on warm days. I don't poke down the corners unless I need higher output. I found my Kodiak output temp easy to regulate this way.

But that's just me...

 
Waswood
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Post by Waswood » Thu. Dec. 24, 2015 6:31 am

I just learned to poke to help the dead spots . It worked for me . Although no poking now due to letting it burn out for this warm spell .


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