Heating with wood

Running a wood stove at the cabin: dry wood, a clean chimney, ashes put away right, and what to do if the chimney catches.

What you need

Burn dry wood only, split and stacked under cover for at least six months. Dry wood cracks at the ends and clunks when two pieces hit.
Light small, with kindling and a few small splits, the draft wide open, until the chimney is warm.
Add bigger wood once it is burning hard. Give each new load a few minutes of open draft to catch before you turn it down.
Burn hot for part of every day. Long low smouldering burns build creosote in the chimney.
Take ashes out when they build up. Shovel them into the metal bucket, lid on, and set it outside on bare ground or stone.
Clean the chimney at least once a year, and more if you burn a lot.
Have the stove and chimney inspected. In Canada a WETT certified inspector does it, and many insurers want it.

Keep wood, clothes and anything that burns well back from the stove.
Look at the smoke outside. Thin and white is good. Thick and dark means wet wood or not enough air.
Test both alarms every time you open the cabin.

Don't

Do not burn garbage, painted or treated wood, or plastic.
Do not start a fire with gasoline or any fuel.
Do not put ashes in a paper bag, a cardboard box or against the wall. Coals stay live for days.

Danger

A chimney fire roars like a train, the stove pipe glows, and sparks come out the top. Shut the stove air, get everyone out, and call 911.
A stove that smokes into the room, or a headache that clears when you go outside, can mean carbon monoxide. Get out and air it. See Propane and carbon monoxide.
Hot stoves burn skin in a moment. Keep children and pets back.

A wood stove in a small cabin on a cold night is as good as it gets, and it is the thing most likely to burn the cabin down. Both are true.

A stove top fan and a kettle of water on the stove even out the heat and put a bit of moisture back in the air.

wood stovechimneycreosotecabin

Updated 2026-09-22