Fish house wood stove

[widetrack]

I just purchased one of those Alaskan wood stoves designed for a Wall tent. I plan on using it in a fish house.

My question is, the instructions say to put a inch of sand, or dirt in the bottom of the thing before building a fire in it. For a fish house this isn't going to be very practical for me. Can anyone tell me the reason for this?

Is it to prevent burning out the bottom of the stove?, and if I don't do it, how much use will I get out of it before I burn it out.

Thanks.

[Surface Tension]

Its to keep the bottom from burning/roting out. I used pebbles instead of sand. I don't like sand because it can hold moister and that'll rot out the bottom real quick.

[widetrack]

Thanks.

I'm going to have to scratch my head and come up with something different... Maybe a cast iron ash pan of some sort...

[Surface Tension]

Just curious why the sand or dirt isn't an option for you.

Are you packing this stove in? In which case you might not need to worry about adding anything. At most a piece a sheet metal would be fine I'd think.

[widetrack]

Yes, I'll be packing it.

thanks for the tips...

[1DIRTBALL]

Widetrack, If weight is your biggest concern, why not use those lava rocks like I have in my gas barbeque? They weigh next to nothing and won't retain the moisture. 1DIRTBALL