Colder weather means crisp nights and the cheery glow of the woodstove. But if you stay at the Nook in the Fall or Winter seasons, it’s not just for decor…it’s for comfort and heating water.
photography by Stefano Barbera
That coil of metal (right) is actually the damper or flue handle, and it’s located on the left side of the stovepipe. When you load up the stove with kindling (or are adding more wood), it needs to be in the UPRIGHT POSITION. {A nifty trick to first getting the kindling lit, is to open the doors of the cabin a crack and allow fresh air to enter the cabin…which is well insulated and tight like a drum}. The 2 round metal “dials” (or lower dampers) located on the stove doors, control the air intake, and need to be turned fully open when first starting the fire. When your fire is burning nicely… add a few larger pieces of wood, close the cabin doors again (so mice can’t sneak in and eat your crackers), and adjust the damper (see below) to deflect more heat into the cabin. Doing this adjusts the burn level of the fire. Remember : you calibrate the heat by adjusting those 2 “dials” to controls the air that feeds the fire, while at the same time adjusting the upper damper on the stovepipe.
damper closed
ALWAYS open the damper on the stovepipe (or flue, see below) to the upright position BEFORE opening the woodstove door to add more wood. This allows smoke to go up the chimney and NOT go inside the cabin. PLEASE do keep the door closed when using the woodstove, and NEVER place candles nearby when it’s in use.
damper open
The Nook is compact, so you won’t need alot of wood…like only one or two logs of hardwood per evening !!… to keep warm in the Fall. What you WILL need to do, is replenish the wood supply in the bins inside that you have used during your visit (for the convenience of the next guests). If the fire is still lit when you leave (please avoid this if possible), you may also close all the dampers, which will choke off all air and extinguish the fire.
Welcome Allison and Jim, and have a wonderful visit this Thanksgiving weekend at The Nook. It looks like the rain may let up, and it may be just right for a bonfire. So have a peek at this video on Bonfire Basics at the Nook, made by 12 year old film maker Jacob. I sure hope he’ll do some more how-to videos! Thanks so much Jacob W and Carl W !! Let’s do some “Winter Cooking Basics”…yes?
*For now, you can read more about how things work at The Nook, on the online Instructions Manual *
Happy Thanksgiving All (and a heavenly thanks to Dave Pride for the wonderful MamaBear Fisher Stove…and Tim Hicks for helping to carry the big beast inside!)