J A Roby Cuisiniere available at Obadiah’s Woodstoves

I know that you are excited to build your first fire in your new wood cook stove! I know I was! But it is best to slow down and take a few precautions to assure that you do not damage your stove or ruin your paint.

Precautions

• Heat gradually –one of the first things to remember is, heat your new wood cook stove gradually. This will help the paint adhere to the metal. Do NOT build a strong fire for your first fire. If the fire is too hot, it can damage your stove or cause the paint to lift off or to discolor.
• Raise windows / open doors–Raise the windows and open the doors in your house. The first fire will be stinky! You need good ventilation because the paint will give off noxious odors, fumes, and smoke as it cures.  It took several hours for this to clear enough to close my windows.  As a matter of fact, I sat on the front porch it was so bad!  So I would definitely do this early in the day.

A List of DO NOTS

• DO NOT overload firebox. Keep wood below upper brick row.
• DO NOT build fire near your glass door.
• DO NOT use things like gasoline, charcoal starter, or any liquid lighter aid in your heater.
• DO NOT use green wood/ make sure wood has been cut and dried for several months for it to season—green wood will not burn or heat well and can also cause creosote buildup. 
• DO NOT leave your admissions lever at horizontal position for long periods of time—getting fire too hot can damage your stove. 

For the first fire, I gathered a double handful of small twigs that had fallen from our oak shade tree.  I placed a couple of waded up paper towels covered by two flaps from a small cardboard box under the twigs in the floor of the firebox.  On top of that, I added 4 small sticks of wood. 

Before lighting the fire in a J A Roby wood cook stove, you will need to adjust two controls. 

The first is called the air admission lever.  It is located on the left side of the stove near the firebox.  This lever will need to be in the horizontal position.  On stoves with a damper—open it. 

The second lever is called the deviation selector.  It is located near the stove pipe on top of the stove. This lever controls whether the smoke and heat from the firebox goes around the oven to heat it, or up the chimney.  If it is positioned all the way to the LEFT, the smoke and heat go up the chimney.  This is the position that you want to start the fire.  

Later, when you start to bake in the oven of your wood cook stove, you will want to position this deviation selector to the right to allow the smoke and heat to heat your oven.  

After taking the PRECAUTIONS ABOVE, follow these 8 steps to light the fire in your wood cook stove:  (for J A Roby stoves—others work similarly)

• Turn admission handle to horizontal position—Open the damper on stoves with a damper.
• Make sure all cook eyes are on snugly.
• Close the deviation selector —position selector all the way to the LEFT/ allow all smoke to go up the chimney, not around the oven.
• Add kindling to oven and light/ Do NOT add much wood because you do NOT want a strong hot fire for your first fire.
• Leave firebox door slightly ajar/ do not completely close.
• When fire is going good, completely close firebox door—keep deviation selector (damper) at open position / lever at left of firebox still in horizontal position.
• When fire is going good and you have a good ember bed, add small firewood sticks. 
• You can slowly try adjusting the admissions lever to the vertical position.  If your fire starts to go out, open it gradually back towards horizontal until fire is burning at desired level. 

There is nothing like heat from a wood burning stove!  It warms like no other heat.  I always feel chilled no matter where the thermostat is set on an electric or gas unit.  

When I think of a wood stove, I think of cozy winter nights, a flickering fire, hot chocolate, and parched peanuts.  I hope you enjoy your wood burning cook stove as much as I enjoy mine.  

Visit us again at Cozy Kitchen Wood Stove for recipes and other tips for vintage cooking, gardening, and just good ole country living!