4 Preventable Wood Stove Mistakes
Most responsible hot tenters take steps to educate themselves on the safe and responsible use of tent stoves. There is also a lack of good information on tent stoves in one place from a trusted and experienced source. We’ve compiled years of customer feedback and our own practical experience in the field to help identify the most common tent stove problems.
Most Common Mistakes with Tent Stoves
1. Incompatible Expectations
Choosing the right tent stove is crucial for a satisfying experience.
- Avoid cheap or makeshift options.
- Understand stove functionality to make an informed purchase.
2. Stove Placement
When setting up a canvas tent with a stove, consider installing a modular stove jack yourself instead of relying on pre-installed ones. Proper stove placement depends on the stove type and desired temperature inside the tent. High-quality stoves near the side wall can efficiently heat the tent, while poorly placed stoves may leave you cold. When unsure, center mounting is a good rule of thumb.
3. Tent Compatibility
Almost any canvas tent can be fitted with a stove jack to accept a tent stove. The more space inside a tent, the more heat you will need to raise the temperature. Canvas tents vary in size and shape. The conical shape of a tipi or Sibley is much more efficient to heat than a boxy wall tent even when the square footage is the same. A wall tent may require significantly more heat output from a tent stove than a similarly sized Sibley. A large tent stove may produce too much heat to be placed near the steep slant of the canopy in a small tipi. When in doubt, contact your tent manufacturer and ask for a recommendation, or contact CanvasCamp!
When in doubt, put it out!
There is no substitute for personal responsibility, safety precautions, and a fire extinguisher. Never start a fire you are not prepared to attend constantly and extinguish completely. YOU, the operator of the stove and the starter of the fire, are solely responsible for putting that fire out. Even if your tent stove is defective and malfunctions in the course of normal use, that sense of profound injustice and frustration is not an effective fire fighting tool. If you are inclined to counter by arguing the finer points of civil liability torts and consumer protection laws, you may be right – and you should definitely not be starting a fire.
Here’s a checklist for handling any stove issues:
- Get all non-essential personnel outside
- Always have a fire extinguisher handy. Keep it in the same spot so you know where to find them and make sure it’s ready to go at a moment's notice.
- Glove up with thick heat resistant gloves -- keep them next to your fire extinguisher
- Keep your stove clean. Clear your flue pipe, spark arrestor, and flue damper before every fire
- Have and use a CO detector and educate yourself about carbon monoxide and tent stove safety.
Incompatible Expectations
Choosing the wrong tent stove to meet your expectations is far and away the most common cause of unhappy
The most common reasons people end up unhappy with their tent stove is simply choosing the wrong one, or not properly knowing how to operate a stove. Sure, you can make a stove from a coffee can and foil, or grab a super cheap one online—but chances are, it won’t work well or be much fun to use. Even budget stoves that look decent often cut corners on performance or convenience. The good news? A little understanding of how stoves work can help you look past the marketing and pick one that actually meets your expectations.
