Purchasing An Antique Wood Cook Stove To Actually Use

A short Guide to touch base on some important points on this Subject. Ever hear the phrase "I've Been Cooking All Day, Slaving Over A Hot Stove"? In the warm months, actually using an Antique Wood Cook Stove to cook you family meal will make this Self-Explanatory. The novelty will wear off quickly. When using a large Cast Iron Stove there is a lot of surface that must be heated before cooking can gemence. You will also need smaller pieces of wood to load that very small firebox, most will acgeodate a 16"-18" length of wood, bit they Must be split to a smaller size to allow the efficient burn that a cookstove requires. The stove was designed to burn long enough to cook your food, but will not burn all nite as most of today's Airtights claim. Thus, you will indeed be feeding it a much larger volume of fuel and much more frequently. Also remember that coal was often used when these stoves were in vogue, and many were designed to use it. Though wood is still an option, Stove Coal was often the mainstay for some kitchen stoves, and in less you're well versed in that type of gebustion, you may be in for some disappointment.
Today, most antique cook stoves have been Restored when you find them for sale. Be wary of the Over-Restored Stove, as I have seen many that have had the oven's interior painted with a Silver Enamel, that is not designed to resist the high temperatures, let alone the Noxious and Possibly Poisoness Fumes it can produce when your family's turkey is roasting away. These ovens were not vented, so though they can retain a better flavor in the food you are cooking, they could possibly deliver some flavors that could indeed make you ill. This is actually quite a serious matter, and one to consider when purchasing your stove. Natural cast iron inside the oven, or an inert polish if you must, NO PAINT!!!!
I have been restoring Wood Stoves since 1970, and know my way around them pretty well. I can tell you for a fact, however, that it required months of experience using them before I could consider stating that I could cook on an antique cook stove, and do it well. We're so used to turning the dial, flipping the switch, setting the timer. With wood cooking, you must know your stoves draft controls thoroughly, as well as how much wood to use, what type, and how often to replenish it, to maintain a constant temperature. Also of importance is the cleaning of the stove. How many folks vacuum the bottom of their refrigerator today? All that dust? The wood stove requires regular cleaning of the soot buildup around the Oven, let alone the Ash in the woodbox. The soot build up will slow the heat that surrounds your cooking area, in effect creating a turbulence. And, it's unavoidable, it will happen, and must be cleaned regularly.
In closing, I truly enjoy cooking on a wood stove, I do it almost 365 days a year. My children have grown up with it, and actually expect the great meals that are created through all the work involved. But we still have our Regular Gas Range available to use, as sometimes it's just not practical to take the time, when you must work for a living, to cook on a wood stove. It's a Novelty, It's Indeed Fun, and Has it's Rewards to be sure. But consider what you are indeed getting into before Buying one to Use! Thank you for Reading my Guide.