Tips for Preparing Your Pellet Stove in Wausau, WI for the Summer

Summer arrived a little late here in Wisconsin this year, so you might be behind on some of your outdoor jobs, such as packing away your heating implements for the summer. Pellet stoves are commonly used to provide some extra space heating, especially here in central and northern Wisconsin, but now that summer has finally arrived in full force, you probably aren’t going to need it for another few months at least.

With this in mind, here are a few steps you can take to prepare your pellet stove in Wausau, WI for the summer offseason.

Turn it off

Before you do anything else, you should turn off the stove and unplug it. Generally, it’s a good idea to keep a pellet stove plugged into a surge protector, just so you can avoid any potential damage to the circuit board from small electrical surges. But no matter how you have it plugged in, shut it down, unplug it and make sure the stove is fully cooled off (if you’ve used it recently) before you proceed.

Remove pellets

Your next step should be to take out any wood pellets that remain in the stove, whether or not they’ve fully burned down. Pellets are made out of kiln-dried wood fibers, so they’re going to attract and absorb moisture. If you let the pellets sit in the stove during the humid summer months, they could transfer that moisture to the inside of the stove, which makes for a big rust risk. Remove those pellets before you start any thorough cleaning.

Cleaning

Your next step is to clean the stove, and there are several parts that you’ll need to clean. The glass sections can be cleaned with a heat-safe cleaning solvent and soft cloth. Never use any ammonia-based chemicals, as they could damage the glass.

Next, take a stiff brush and sweep away the ash that’s built up on the inside walls. It’s a good idea to wear a mask and gloves for this process, as the dust can really start to get thick in the air. The more stubborn residue can be removed with a metal scraper, which likely came with your pellet stove. But if you don’t have one, you should be able to find one online or from a store that sells stove parts and accessories.

Any of the remaining residue or dust left behind can be removed with a wet/dry vacuum or special ash vacuum. However, there are some vacuums that might not be meant for use in such an application, so if that’s the case, make sure you have a high-efficiency filter that will catch all the tiny particles that are likely to come through with the soot. Never use a household vacuum for this job—it’ll damage the vacuum.

Get professional assistance

If you’re unable to get the stove as clean as you like or cannot access its inner parts, it may be a good idea to contact a professional to come in and assist you with cleaning and storing your pellet stove.

For more information about cleaning and stowing your pellet stove in Wausau, WI for the summer, contact Marcell’s Specialties Inc. today.

Categorised in: Pellet Stove

This post was written by Writer