So... it felt early

[Whitespider]

It sure felt like winter came early; quite a few of us were even starting fires earlier than we could remember. Got some early snow and a couple of cold spells, but it didn't last (here anyway). I know a few have been hammered with snow, but what we got is gone now. Yesterday the drive and yard were muddy again, lookin' for temps around 40° today, with rain of all things (maybe some snow mixed in).

I was lookin' back at last year. At this time last December we'd already seen a dozen below zero mornings, and maybe 1½ times that many single digit mornings. This year we ain't been below zero once, and the few times we have hit single digits it's been just barely (like 8° and 9°)... and most of the days have still warmed into the 20s, or close. The wind, although it still blows here, ain't been anything like last year.

Believe-it-or-not, I'm in sort of a quandary. I've burned over half my (so called) shoulder season wood, and I'd like to save back the other half for spring... but it's too damn mild to start tossin' oak in the box‼ Heck, yesterday I tossed a few sticks in the box 'round 4:00 PM, and it was still 71° in here this morning. I'll likely toss in a couple-three more before headin' in to work... but that will be all until sometime after dark tonight.

In all seriousness... the last couple weeks of low wood consumption (even zero consumption on some days) has more than made-up for what I burned early. I mean... here we are, 10 days away from the New Year, and I'm on the fence as to whether-or-not I should feed the box before goin' to work‼

I can't believe I'm whinin' 'cause it ain't cold enough
*

 

[Retired]

Dad always said..."some people are never satisfied".

 

[KindredSpiritzz]

yeah i hate throwing a nice piece of hardwood on the fire when its warm out but i also look at it as im saving on firewood when its warm out. I do wish i had more shoulder season wood in my pile for times like this. Maybe next year i'll just make a shoulder season pile of 4 or 5 cords and save them for times like this. Im not complaining tho, if this is as cold as it gets all winter im happy. I see last year in the limited records i kept that January seemed to be a bitter month. Im just glad this year i don't have to look at my pile worrying if it'll make it thru the winter.

 

[hupte]

i remember last year it was still muddy on days near the end of december. and jan and feb were mostly the brutal months. farmers almanac is calling for really cold temps in the first 10 days of jan this winter.

imho, i thought last winter was exactly what winter should be like. no cars on the road for 3 days. i'm 8 miles from the nearest town. but i might as well be 1000 miles from civilization. its like stepping onto another planet for a few days. before the snow storm, everyone says "we cant get snow, i have to go to work, i have too much to do," etc... then we get the snow and they go out and play in the snow with their kids, and end up having more fun than they've had in years. lol. you forget all the problems of this world for a day and usually its exactly what we need.

 

[svk]

It was damn cold for the whole month of November. We had nearly a month straight of continuous below freezing temps. I'll take these temps all winter!

 

[lapeer20m]

It was one year ago today we awoke in the darkness to the sound of ice covered trees crashing to the earth. One every few minutes. Again and again and again. We had no power for 5 days and brutally cold temps. When the sun came up, our world looked like superman's crystal palace.

This year I started burning early, October and November were cold. Already through 25% of my years supply of firewood (2 cords)

December is almost over, and I haven't even burned through one cord this month.

Even if jan and feb are normal this year, I feel that with the wood I've not had to burn in dec I'll likely not exceed the 8 cords I planned on burning.

 

[Ironworker]

Told you so.
http://www.arboristsite.com/community/threads/my-winter-prediction.264439/

 

[laynes69]

We are looking to get into the 50's tomorrow, the 40's today. I can't believe December is almost over already. Last year we had a very cold winter, and it took quite a dent on the pile. This year however, we've only burned a cord and a half since starting in September. We had one or two days in the single digits, one night had -20 chills, and the rest in the 20-30's. Between tightening up the home and the so far mild winter, things have been easy. Things could stay this way, I wouldn't mind.

 

[hupte]

Told you so.

in all fairness its only december, we still have plenty of winter left. its a little early for the i told you so's. not saying your prediction is wrong... just saying its still early winter.

 

[BeatCJ]

The long term forecasters are saying it's twice as likely to be warmer than normal the next 3 months here in the PNW. I was a little worried in November, but yeah we went a week without a fire in the stove. Gonna need to clean the chimney, I ran the stove pretty well closed down. Just cool makes it hard to run the stove right, it's really too big for the house. It's an older Lopi 380, the precursor to an Endeavor.

 

[Whitespider]

No matter how the remainder of the year turns out... wood consumption is gonna' be way, way down from last year.
Using my guess 'n' by-gosh method of stepping it off and guessin' how high above my head the stacks are in the basement, I've burned somethin' 'round 2 cord and ain't started on the oak yet (well... maybe a stick or two here 'n' there). Even if the weather went crazy cold and I burned 3 cord oak in January-February, there's still gonna' be oak left in the basement for March... plus all the (so called) shoulder wood down there. The three month outlook, January through March, is sayin' normal temps and snow for us... could be one of those years I don't need to rob the back-up stacks outside. Heck, they still ain't predicting anything below zero in the near future.

Oh... I forgot... I've burned somethin' 'round ⅔ cord junk wood out in the shop.
*

 

[Chris-PA]

Even during the depths of the "Polar Vortex" last winter, a look at the global temperature anomaly maps shows that the middle of NA was one of the only places below normal, while most other places were well above normal. Including most of Alaska. It was just another stuck jet stream loop, which is what you can expect now - leading to large swings in temperature that stay in place for a while, but could flip at any time. Sometimes you don't have to move very far to cross the boundary and have wild changes in weather.

This weather makes me appreciate the little stove we added upstairs - it's great when we don't need as much heat, or when we need an extra boost.

 

[BeatCJ]

Yup, I think a small stove in the basement is in the works in the next couple of years.

 

[Chris-PA]

Yup, I think a small stove in the basement is in the works in the next couple of years.

This year I have been trying a different strategy of staggering the two stoves on milder days - I light the big stove in the basement for the night, but in the morning I don't reload it and just let the coals burn up. Instead I light the little stove and feed it for the day. Quite often there are still hot coals in the big stove for the next evening.

 

[unclemoustache]

I ran out of junk wood. Been burning oak and hickory for a month now. Maybe I should have burned some of my selling wood. I was expecting it to be colder too.

 

[PA. Woodsman]

So far here in PA., we had an early cold blast awhile back and I thought "okay, here we go again", as some of the forecasters were saying that this Winter will be like last years or worse, but that isn't the case-so far. Two weeks ago we had a new record temp of 71 degrees, had a few cold days after that but tomorrow they want rain and pushing the upper 50's !

But we have a LONG way to go.....

 

[lindnova]

Last year I just happened to have a lot of oak in the shed. This year I just happen to have a lot of cherry and elm in the shed. Lucky so far I guess. Next year's stacks have a lot of oak again. Would be nice to be able to plan, but I just take it as it comes. I do have a pretty large surplus stacked right now. Should sell some.

 

[Whitespider]

Right now NOAA is not predicting a cold winter (Jan./Feb./Mar.) for anyplace north of the Mason-Dixon... but the south might be a bit chillier than normal. In fact, NOAA is predicting Alaska, the western third of the lower 48, and Maine to be above average in temperature. Same thing for the precipitation outlook... normal to below normal north of the Mason-Dixon.

Of course, a three month outlook ain't something to bet the farm on... but still...

http://www.cpc.ncep.noaa.gov/products/predictions/long_range/seasonal.php?lead=1

*

 

[rancher2]

It was a strange fall and early winter here also. Harvest took forever wet grain and muddy fields. Early Nov weather straighten out harvest finished. Field work started, cat work started, more wood cut and live was good. Deer season showed up and so did the cold, snow and rain. No more wood cutting time to start burning and burn we did. Started feeding the Garn twice a day. Thought winter was here to say. Dec showed up weather got nice back to the field, cat work,
wood cutting. Weather turned again this week a little snow and a lot of rain. I guess it is time to give up on the outside work move to the shop and keep feeding the Garn with wood. If the patterns stay like they have been running the snow has been staying south of us or north and winter may not be too bad for us.
Everyone have a great holiday.

 

[TBrown]

No matter how the remainder of the year turns out... wood consumption is gonna' be way, way down from last year.
Using my guess 'n' by-gosh method of stepping it off and guessin' how high above my head the stacks are in the basement, I've burned somethin' 'round 2 cord and ain't started on the oak yet (well... maybe a stick or two here 'n' there). Even if the weather went crazy cold and I burned 3 cord oak in January-February, there's still gonna' be oak left in the basement for March... plus all the (so called) shoulder wood down there. The three month outlook, January through March, is sayin' normal temps and snow for us... could be one of those years I don't need to rob the back-up stacks outside. Heck, they still ain't predicting anything below zero in the near future.

Oh... I forgot... I've burned somethin' 'round ⅔ cord junk wood out in the shop.
*

Are you talking face cord or full cord? I'm a fair bit north of you and I would guess I've maybe at the most used a full cord.