How Much Wood Do You Burn

[buck futter]

I grew up in a ranch about the size of yours, it had 2x4 walls OSB sheathed 1" polystyrene foam and then vinyl siding, the roof had 9' of fiberglass. The house was built in the late seventies with anderson windows. Wood was our sole source of heat we typically burned 3-5 cords a year. No one has mentioned another variable, the quality and type of the wood. We mostly used maple elm or birch, however some may have partially decayed which yields less heat. 18 months is the optimal amount of time for the wood to cure but I know it is not always practical. Also I lived in what would be a severe cold climate. With temps dropping to -20 f and staying there for a week or two. I think every one here is on the same page and giving you good info. However I personally would not recommend burning pallet skids or pressure treated lumber, God only knows what they were treated with and what the long term health risks are. however to each there own.:Monkey: Also a good ceiling fan is quintessential for sucess in my opinion.

enjoy,

Lucky

 

[paz]

totally useless for you to work out how much wood u need,,,but over here in aus i use about 3-4 tonne(2 small truckloads) of wood a year i guess(aussie hardwood called ironbark),,,the fire burns all winter,,keeping the house at a temp where you can comfortably walk around in your shorts,,only to be let go out to clean ashes out..house is insulated,,and fire is in lounge room,,glass front,,heats entire house...
also interesting to see that you guys cut green wood and let it dry...over here i only cut wood that has been dead for at least 10 years plus.....

 

[SawTroll]

For the first winter cut twice as much as you will need/expect.
There is two reasons for this
1. You dont know exact quantity and if you have less than needed you should buy dry firewood in winter at high price
2. Good practice here (Estonia) is to have firewood for two winters. Firewood dried two summers a much better than wood dried only one season

Yes, that is "best practice" here too!

.....but I don't think it is necessary everywhere (?)

Anyway, if he is a pyromaniac, who really knows ????

 

[fishhuntcutwood]

In the house I just moved out of, my stove was in the unfinished, poured basement, and I had to warm up all of that space before my upstairs would get warm. Add to that the house was 125 years old and very poorly insulated. I went through alot of wood, and kept my fire going from late Sept up through early May.

My new house is 20 years old, and the stove sits in the living room. I've already noticed a significant difference. I'll probably go through three cords this year, and that's a liberal estimate.

Jeff

 

[pyromaniac guy]

thank you so much for all the replies. now i see i should have given more information to you guys. the walls for the basement will be poured, but they will be insulated and finished. the company that is building my house is putting in all the hi/low returns and all appropriate ductwork that runs to the main level. the stove will be a harmon stove with an afterburner and a condensor box with a blower above it. the attic will be insulated with R30, and the doorway to the attic from the main floor will be closed at all times.

main wood sources are oak, maple, and locust. we already have a seasoned "pile", and the lot is wooded, so when the excavators (friends of ours) clear it, they are going to just knock the trees over that are in the way and place them to the side. i will then cut them when i can.

 

[superpelly]

I have a ranch home and live in northwest wisconsin. I burn about 4 cords from mid Nov. to April. I burn all day until Midnight. I'm home all day along with my wife and 2 year old and we keep the temp. in the house about 70 to 75 degrees. The stove(lopi) is located in the basement.

 

[JimL]

prolly around 20, outdoor wood boiler, has a fire in it year round.

 

[Gypo Logger]

Sure you are not stretching the tale a bit?

Well kinda......, I leave the fridge door open to warm it up a bit.
John

 

[FourMoCajuns]

Had a Hardy wood furnace (wood fired boiler) at my last place. It was a trailer and burned about 4 cord a year there. We just bought a 3920 sq ft home and plan on moving the Hardy here. Will have to see how much will be burned here but I do have over 6 cord already down. :angry2:

 

[Gypo Logger]

Well kinda......, I leave the fridge door open to warm it up a bit.
John

I forgot to mention I often have, "Three Dog Nights", when it gets really cold.
That's where the group got it's name I believe.
John

 

[Gypo Logger]

I forgot to mention I often have, "Three Dog Nights", when it gets really cold.
That's where the group got it's name I believe.
John

Here's some discography on Three Dog Night that I googled. I really like the song, "I've Never Been to Spain."
The band was the protegé of Beach Boys producer, composer, vocalist, and instrumentalist Brian Wilson, and at the time went under the name Redwood. The band changed their name based on an article describing how Australian Aborigines slept with their dogs for warmth on cold nights, the coldest being a "three-dog night."

 

[pyromaniac guy]

heh, thanks gypo, i never knew that. "mama told me not to come" to this board

 

[eyolf]

I cut about 20 cords so far. Outdoor boiler for my house, space heater in the barn (my workshop), barrel stove in the garage, plus a Jotul at wife's parents (mostly atmosphere) and add-on heater at my Mom and stepdad's.

I haven't had to buy any yet, but I hear reports of $175/cord here in the woods. A local logger has given up on some of his normal outlets for sawbolt sales, has resurrected his home-made firewood processor; banking on high oil prices for the foreseeable future. Fire chief of nearby town's volunteer FD published a long article about woodstove safety, and a plea for volunteers and donations...looking foreward to a big spike in chimney fires this year!

 

[dustydog72]

I am near Williamsport Pa, and my home is around 2000 square feet with the wood stove in the basement. My wife is home all day stuffing wood in the stove and I work in the woods and get my firewood for free so we burn more then we would need to at 5 to 6 cords a year.

 

[Lakeside53]

$225 a cord right now In seatle for dry (sure) wood. And will go up by January..

 

[bama]

I have an indoor wood furnace that put in the basement. I added a few ducts to the main living area upstairs. 1100 square feet on the main floor, same in the basement. I use about 10 cords of ash and oak each year. There is a guy in our area that is selling a pickup load(Birch) for $75. I get my wood for free at my Uncle's place. A tornado went through there this summer, so I have enough to cut for many years.

 

[Elmore]

On average I burn about 5 cords year. Usually 2-1/2 cords of pinion pine, 1-1/2 cords Cedar and 1 cord Mahogany. Everything is well seasoned and burns very well. Usually I'll start the fire with Pine then add Cedar and when I go to bed stock it with a nice piece or pieces of Mahogany. The Mahogany coals last all night and I just throw in a piece of pine to get flames again and stock it with pine and cedar all day as needed. This winter is really wierd as there is no snow yet. Usually we have 5 feet of snow now or close. I guess about 4 cords this winter.

Mahogany...yeah, right. Where in Nevada do you get Mahogany? Mustang Ranch?
Pine and Cedar? I guess that in some areas of Nevada, say Elko, a man will burn anything for heat. Even tumble weeds. At the end of WWII, the Japanese burned specimen Japanese Maples so as to survive.