Keeping the rayburn alight through the night

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Keeping the rayburn alight through the night

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evy123

Joined: 29 Nov 2009
Posts: 1

Posted: Sun Nov 29, 09 5:35 pm Post subject: Keeping the rayburn alight through the night
Hi, has anyone got any tips for keeping a rayburn alight through the night? Mine keeps going out. Thanks!

jamanda
Downsizer Moderator

Joined: 22 Oct 2006
Posts: 35056
Location: Devon

Posted: Sun Nov 29, 09 5:36 pm Post subject: Re: Keeping the rayburn alight through the night

evy123 wrote:

Hi,
has anyone got any tips for keeping a rayburn alight through the night? Mine keeps going out.
Thanks!

Our wood burner will stay in with a big lump of oak, but coal will stay in even longer.

Mutton

Joined: 09 May 2009
Posts: 1508

Posted: Sun Nov 29, 09 5:57 pm Post subject:

Depends on the problem - burning up all the fuel or going out.

If burning up all the fuel, ash it. Get it well stoked up with all the lumps of fuel actually alight - as in coals glowing - then shut down the vents completely. When it has settled down a little - ten minutes or so - use the coal shovel to get all the ash from the pan and spread it across the top of the fire. Add more from the bucket of spare ash you keep handy

to make sure there are no holes in. Windier the night, thicker the ash layer.

Can also keep a fire in sometimes on a still night - keeps it warm and burning v slowly, but just as likely to go out.

This kept our old Rayburn back boiler "in" overnight just fine. Depending on the wind levels, we sometimes leave our multi-fuel stove like that until the following evening, when we shake all the ash through and open up the vents. Once the coals are glowing red again (may only be two or three left by some evenings) then fuel it up. If only a couple of coals left alight, then you will have to add a few coals at a time or you will swamp it with cold coal. Do need to ensure you have really shaken it clean and emptied enough ash out from underneath to get a good draft.

gil
Downsizer Moderator

Joined: 08 Jun 2005
Posts: 18409

Posted: Sun Nov 29, 09 6:05 pm Post subject:

What Mutton said.

Also, I used to make sure the fire had a good bottom to it [coals on the bottom layer glowing], empty the ash pan, then top stove up with more coal, shut down the vents and hope for the best. In the morning, open up the vents, check contents, and add more fuel as suitable : kindling if it wasn't going very well, and start over.

Often it went out overnight, as the updraft wasn't great.
On the other had, if it was windy it burnt out long before morning.
It was a very fine line to tread, and I found it better to expect to have to relight every day, and to be pleasantly surprised if I didn't have to.

chicken feed

Joined: 27 Aug 2009
Posts: 2677

Posted: Sun Nov 29, 09 6:50 pm Post subject:
we tend not to close any vents down just make it up with a good heap of coal and it stays in until morning all i do when i get up is riddle & poke it about and empty the ash pan to start the day over again, it will also stay in over night with bog oak. the only time it burns out is when the wind chnages direction

robin wood

Joined: 07 Jan 2009
Posts: 160

Posted: Mon Nov 30, 09 8:13 am Post subject:
1 big log, job done. 1 big log burns much slower than 2 medium sized ones, in the morning open up and away it goes. If you don't have big logs 1 medium log will last longer than 2.

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