Wood burner cleaning.

I use the poker in the grate to clear most of the ash, then I empty the ash pan into a pedal bin liner & hoover the rest up with my Henry. I use the nozzle to collect any dust on the hearth & mantle. Quick wipe of the glass. Takes about 5mins. We only burn wood.

Exactly what we do Iam64. It really works well.

Mr i always did the woodburner - I’ve got to know mine now and like it.

Don’t empty all the ash, leave a good layer, your fire will burn better. Never use paper, use natural firefighters if poss, ordinary ones if not. Build a small pyramid of kindle over the fire lighters. Wait till they’re burning well before adding a small log to start with. I combine hard and soft wood as they burn differently, I use what the fire needs next

Glass cleaning - easy, rolled up newspaper, damp and dipped in ash. I wipe with a damp cloth as well. If your fire burns well, the glass won’t blacken up much

Fabulous, toasty warm

Jaxjacky

Never vacuumed ours in France, dustpan and brush, same as everyone else, cleaned the glass the same too, it took about 20 minutes.

Same here. I've never even thought of vacuuming the wood burner. I just empty the ash tray when it's full, riddle down what's left on the grate and let it do its thing. The glass is always clear as our wood is very well-seasoned. Why do you want it to look so pristine?

Dust pan and brush. Of course there is dust, you are disturbing ash which is very fine. Try damping the bristles on the brush before sweeping up. I dread to think what you are breathing in given your account of ash dust going evetywhere.

If you want a wood burner to look immaculate get a gas look alike
Otherwise empty ash when necessary likewise clean glass when needed
Drag mop across hearth when passing with one in hand

I either sweep up the ash with a dustpan and brush or vacuum it up - no special vacuum cleaner required. Also leave a bed of ash as recommended by the woodburner manufacturers.
Does anyone know how to clean up the glass ? Previous owners burnt all sorts of rubbish on it and the glass is now opaque. Chimney sweep said the glass would need replaced and have tried the usual method of rubbing it with damp newspaper dipped in ashes but no joy.

*thought

MaizieD - I wasn't picking on people so sorry if you thought that... I
thoight I was being helpful by flagging it up.
It wasn't clear unless you read the thread.

I also assumed it was only wood initially which doesn't involve any kind of "clinker" - but it's not.

I empty the bottom of my multi fuel stove into an aluminium bucket then into the bin when it’s all cold.
Tip from my chimney sweep - clean the glass with diluted white vinegar. I new keep a squirty bottle and some kitchen roll in the kindling basket and it honestly just wipes all the blackness off the door.

Thanks for all the advice - I do like the inglenook to look pristine between the times I use the stove, so it’s quite a job as the hearth is 6ft wide and 3ft deep. I find it hurts my knees and back stretching into the stove.
It’s on now, but I’ve decided not to use it regularly.

Thanks Karmalady GN is so full of helpful information .
We thought it was ok to mix wood and coal in our burner. we used both together last night. Won’t repeat as don’t want to damage our multi burner.

Georgesgran, I bought my vac from Aldi. I don't use it very often.
You don't need to clear all the ash every time. I open the riddle and push some ash through to the pan. You need to leave layer of ash, your fire will start easier.
I made a rookie error , when I burnt ovals, I put the ash on the garden. I lost quite a few plants.
I have just timed myself. It took under 10 minutes and that included cleaning the glass.
Enjoy your fire.

It is best not to use a mix of ovals/anthrocite plus logs. More acid is produced which goes up the flue and the flue will corrode faster

My henry does not clog, I get rid of most of the ash first by hand, henry is good for the final pristine clean at the front of the stove

Amazon have ash vacuums just bought my son one for Christmas

NotSpaghetti

The problem is that the OP has a multi-fuel.

I think that is very different to a wood burner to be honest as she says she is burning something with the wood - anthracite eggs (??).

Well, the thread title says 'wood burner' so perhaps we could be forgiven for responding as though it were just a wood burner.

Whether wood burner or multifuel it really shouldn't take an hour to clean after being used once. I'm wondering what standard of 'clean' *Georgesgran' is looking for. I get the impression that it is higher than most

Even with a multifuel burner it isn't necessary to remove every iota of ash after use, just keep the grate well riddled and empty the ashpan when it's full.

Any vacuum cleaner with good suction will clean the actual hearth because there really shouldn't be much ash on it to clog the cleaner.

WD40 does a brilliant job cleaning the slate fireplace.

We can use wood or coal or both but don’t clean the burner out completely until the end of the season.

The problem is that the OP has a multi-fuel.

I think that is very different to a wood burner to be honest as she says she is burning something with the wood - anthracite eggs (??).

I certainly wouldn't use a Dyson, we had one once and the filter seemed to need replacing very often even if we only used it for floors, heaven knows what would happen with ash!
I suppose that a cleaner with a washable filter would be OK, but otherwise it would get very expensive if you were using a HEPA filter which would clog up with the fine ash.
We kept a metal pan under the grate so we could just pull in out and cover it before taking it out to the bin. Then a quick brush with a fireproof dustpan and brush when necesssary, but I don't think we did this very often.

I never remove ash from the stove. Simply build the next fire on the ash. Once in a blue moon I empty the ash can but never riddle the grate. I wipe the glass every day with damp newspaper (the Guardian is very good for this) and every couple of months use the alkaline cleaner from Amazon. The little ash that escapes onto the hearth is readily vacuumed up once a week or so.

I use an old Vax and clean the glass with Oven Mate. It is indeed a wonder product, paint it on, wipe off with cold water, it makes ovens look like new & is brilliant on the wood burner glass as well.

*grandetanteJE65. This is why a bottle of glass cleaner lasts a season. I just give the glass a quick wipe to get rid of the very faint haze that follows any fire.

If the air flow is correct for the wood you are burning, the glass should not need cleaning.

But certainly cold wood ask on damp newpaper is the best cleaner.

I used to have to run two wood burners in a creaky old house we had, it would take me 10 minutes or so for each one and I would do the glass weekly.
I would just sweep out the ashes into a metal bucket then sweep around the hearth.
A full clean would be dorm in late spring.