>JD>  A sure way to a creosoted chimney is to load up the old
 >JD> stove and choke it down for a long, slow burn. You'll probably have to  
 
 > Here, creosote is a paint used as a wood preservative. Is that what 
 > you mean? The wood fuel that is used, comes from the forest. No creosote.
Although I don't remember the exact chemistry, Alec, creosote is a substance 
distilled from wood during burning. A hot fire will consume it in the firebox 
or cause it to go up the stack. A slow, smokey fire will cause the gases to 
condense in the chimney, causing what I've always called 'creosote buildup'. 
This substance is quite flammable, so a heavy buildup can be touched off by a 
hot fire, burning in the chimney. 
Although I've personally never experienced it because I try to be careful, 
I'm told that it sounds much like a roaring jet engine, shooting sparks out 
of the top of the chimney. This often caused older homes with wooden shingles 
to burn, and can easily damage any chimney, even refractory-lined flues. 
Modern Stainless Steel, double-wall solid-pack insulated chimneys will 
usually stand *one* chimney fire without burning through, but may sustain 
damage. You should always carefully inspect any chimney after a fire.
 
If you live in an old home, you should inspect the chimney carefully before 
using it at all. Many old chimneys were unlined, just bare brick; 
deteriorated mortar joints can allow sparks to set the surrounding wood on 
fire, burning your house to the ground.
During the wood heating craze of the 80's, there were many articles and books 
published on the subject. Simply burning wood for heat is not rocket science, 
but doing it safely does require some care and adherance to certain rules. 
A stove must have proper clearance to a wall, for instance. (36"/1 meter) 
This is to prevent overheating the wood framing; cooking it for several 
heating seasons will lower the ignition temperature, so it doesn't have to 
get very hot at all before igniting and possibly burning your house down. You 
can reduce this distance a lot if you install a heat shield, something like 
sheetmetal on 1" standoffs with clearance at the floor and ceiling so air can 
circulate between it and the wall. So-called 'convection stoves' that have a 
jacket around the firebox can also be operated closer to a wall than radiant 
stoves.
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