Getting heat out of the fireplace

[Fried Chicken]

Well I wanna revisit the thread after the annual breeze of cold that came through here.

Wow burning wood in fireplaces is underrated. It won't exclusively heat the house, so the heater is definitely still running, but at night the heater turns off so as not to disturb the sleep... the fireplace gets loaded before the night...

I swear; the fireplace somehow removes the feel of cold from the house. The house is more comfortable at a lower thermostat temperature. I suspect, since it's ground level, it's pulling all that ground level cold air away or something. (Heater vents on ceiling).

The house stays comfortably warm throughout the night without the heater running if the fireplace has been on. It's still wasteful as **** in terms of wood.... but the wood is free.

 

[snobdds]

Isn't radiant heat great. It beats convection heat any day.

 

[Fried Chicken]

Isn't radiant heat great. It beats convection heat any day.

I'm not even in the same room as the fireplace!

 

[Billhook]

Open fireplaces certainly have their place, and not just for heat but also for creating a warm friendly atmosphere when you have family or guests. There is something in our genes that we inherited from our ancestors that makes us feel secure staring into flickering flames. Conversation is easier, but silence is also easier when everyone just feels happy staring into the flames!.

 

[Hermio]

Well I wanna revisit the thread after the annual breeze of cold that came through here.

Wow burning wood in fireplaces is underrated. It won't exclusively heat the house, so the heater is definitely still running, but at night the heater turns off so as not to disturb the sleep... the fireplace gets loaded before the night...

I swear; the fireplace somehow removes the feel of cold from the house. The house is more comfortable at a lower thermostat temperature. I suspect, since it's ground level, it's pulling all that ground level cold air away or something. (Heater vents on ceiling).

The house stays comfortably warm throughout the night without the heater running if the fireplace has been on. It's still wasteful as **** in terms of wood.... but the wood is free.

Wood is free? I would count my labor as worth something, as well as costs of my chainsaw, fuel, tractor to haul the wood, etc.

 

[sean donato]

Wood is free? I would count my labor as worth something, as well as costs of my chainsaw, fuel, tractor to haul the wood, etc.

your labor is worth nothing outside of work. Not making money= costing money. You don't need anything wood processing specific if you're not burning. depreciation rate is so long for the average fire wood hack it's dollars a year to have the specific equipment. The truck, trailer, and tractor are all used for other tasks. I know of very few people thay can say they use any of their truck, trailer, tractors exclusively for wood processing. Anyone that does is either in a business or hasnt attempted to track littel the equipment is actually used for wood processing. Sell the equipment and you'll fund heating oil/gas whatever for years and not have to lift a finger.

 

[Hermio]

your labor is worth nothing outside of work. Not making money= costing money. You don't need anything wood processing specific if you're not burning. depreciation rate is so long for the average fire wood hack it's dollars a year to have the specific equipment. The truck, trailer, and tractor are all used for other tasks. I know of very few people thay can say they use any of their truck, trailer, tractors exclusively for wood processing. Anyone that does is either in a business or hasnt attempted to track littel the equipment is actually used for wood processing. Sell the equipment and you'll fund heating oil/gas whatever for years and not have to lift a finger.

I suggest you read "Basic Economics" by Thomas Sowell. Money is not wealth. It is merely a convenient means of trading wealth. Real wealth is composed of property and human capital. And yes, my time is human capital. It is a scarce or limited resource which has alternate uses. (That is the definition of economics: the study of allocation of scarce resources which have alternative uses). My time can be used for many alternative uses. Time spent on firewood processing is time not spent on something else, so that is a real cost. And my saw, wood splitter, woodbox for my tractor and my other log handling equipment cost me about $5000, not to mention fuel costs and maintenance costs. For all that, I usually use about 6 cords of firewood per year, which saves me about $500/year on electricity costs. So, the wood is definitely not free. And in my case, it is really not a good return on investment. But I like doing it, and that makes it worthwhile for me.

 

[sean donato]

I suggest you read "Basic Economics" by Thomas Sowell. Money is not wealth. It is merely a convenient means of trading wealth. Real wealth is composed of property and human capital. And yes, my time is human capital. It is a scarce or limited resource which has alternate uses. (That is the definition of economics: the study of allocation of scarce resources which have alternative uses). My time can be used for many alternative uses. Time spent on firewood processing is time not spent on something else, so that is a real cost. And my saw, wood splitter, woodbox for my tractor and my other log handling equipment cost me about $5000, not to mention fuel costs and maintenance costs. For all that, I usually use about 6 cords of firewood per year, which saves me about $500/year on electricity costs. So, the wood is definitely not free. And in my case, it is really not a good return on investment. But I like doing it, and that makes it worthwhile for me.

Your last sentence is all you need to say to justify why you heat with wood, and have the accompanying tools/equipment. "I like doing it." Even though, by your own words, it's a waste of time and resources for you. Ie, your time spent doing it is worthless, and you could be doing something else to further your "wealth." It's pretty much that simple.

 

[Hermio]

Your last sentence is all you need to say to justify why you heat with wood, and have the accompanying tools/equipment. "I like doing it." Even though, by your own words, it's a waste of time and resources for you. Ie, your time spent doing it is worthless, and you could be doing something else to further your "wealth." It's pretty much that simple.

Yeah, although enjoyment is a kind of wealth, too. If I go to a movie or play, I spend my money, which could be used for something else. But what I get for my money is enjoyment. That is worth something to me. Wood heating does have a tangible benefit, though: it works when the power goes out, which it did here on Tuesday morning when the temperature was -3F. Thankfully, the power was out for only about an hour.

 

[dboyd351]

your labor is worth nothing outside of work. Not making money= costing money. You don't need anything wood processing specific if you're not burning. depreciation rate is so long for the average fire wood hack it's dollars a year to have the specific equipment. The truck, trailer, and tractor are all used for other tasks. I know of very few people thay can say they use any of their truck, trailer, tractors exclusively for wood processing. Anyone that does is either in a business or hasnt attempted to track littel the equipment is actually used for wood processing. Sell the equipment and you'll fund heating oil/gas whatever for years and not have to lift a finger.

You know absolutely nothing about economics.
If you tried to run a business using your stated costs of equipment, labor and materials you would quickly go broke.

 

[sean donato]

You know absolutely nothing about economics.
If you tried to run a business using your stated costs of equipment, labor and materials you would quickly go broke.

You're funny. For years I managed the road crew for a former employer. Which included dealing with scheduling, our equipment purchases/maintenance, meeting budget, dealing with customers, parts, and billing. All while being expected to have at least 40 hours of wrench turning my self. Basically lived out of my service truck for years. Nearly lost my marriage running someone else's business. I dam well know what wealth is, and you clearly don't have a clue. I make less money and am a very wealthy man. My time not at work isn't worth three cents. My fire wood hobby costs money, doesn't make me a dime. My kids sure enjoy helping split wood, and I enjoy being with them. Plus it keeps me in shape. The tractor would be here even if I decided I was never gonna split wood, so would the truck and trailers. Guess what? I don't need to worry about depreciation on any of my equipment, because it's not used to make me money.

 

[Hermio]

You know absolutely nothing about economics.
If you tried to run a business using your stated costs of equipment, labor and materials you would quickly go broke.

I have been running my own business for 22 years. It is an engineering consultancy. Before that, I managed various markets for my former employer. As for firewood costs, I did not make any quantitative statement about labor costs. I also did not specify fuel costs. The capital equipment cost I listed is accurate for the equipment I use specifically for firewood processing. My chainsaws cost me $1180 and $400. My wood splitter cost me $2000. My tractor-mounted wood box cost me about $500. My splitting mauls, log lifters, cant hooks, peaveys, hookaroon, splitting mauls, axes and various splitting wedges make up the balance. I did not include my tractor because firewood is not its principal use.

 

[SS396driver]

I’ve always had a maul or axe and a chainsaw or two around even when I wasn’t burning firewood. So I don’t even count them into my “cost” of doing firewood . My splitter yes but it’s about 8 years old and I’ve done nothing to it but change fluids . The Kubota is mostly used for other purposes around the property same as my truck . I enjoy doing firewood that’s why I do it . I can afford to stop using wood for heat and just pay for utilities.

I don’t count labor on something I enjoy just like my classic vehicles if I counted the hours and hours of work I could have just bought them already done and come out ahead .

 

[Sidecarflip]

Here we go again and why I rarely post a comment on any thread on here because every thread on this site for the most part turns into a pizzing match. Been said numerous time that 'opinions are like butt holes, everyone has one but most of them stink'

I peruse this site daily looking for valuable information pertaining to my saws and other related equipment and I avoid opinionated comments.

We all have opinions and for the most part, they are just that. Opinions.

 

[Hermio]

Here we go again and why I rarely post a comment on any thread on here because every thread on this site for the most part turns into a pizzing match. Been said numerous time that 'opinions are like butt holes, everyone has one but most of them stink'

I peruse this site daily looking for valuable information pertaining to my saws and other related equipment and I avoid opinionated comments.

We all have opinions and for the most part, they are just that. Opinions.

That's just your opinion.