Wood Heat: Stoves, Percentage of Heating, Firewood

[chowdozer]

I heat 100% wood unless I'm out of town. Then the thermstat is set at 55. My heating bill averages $50 a winter. Doug fir, maple, madrona, cherry. Right now I have >10 cord cut and split from my property. This winter I burned less than 2 cord for a 1200 sq ft rambler. The stove is a very modified Orley.

 

[SWI Don]

About 80% wood heat.
~2800 sq ft 100 year old queen anne farmhouse. Insulation is fair to poor - it has been reinsulated by the drill - blow - & plug method but it was long enough ago things have settled out. Most windows were/are original.
Backup is high efficency natural gas (pipe line runs right across the road).
Thermostat went on the blink last winter so had a high heat bill. Bought a new programable and only time heat comes on is about 20 min before my wife gets up in the morning (3:30).
Upstairs is electric heat $$$. Put new windows in upstairs and helped alot. Too bad we put them in in Jan when it was the coldest all winter. It takes a lot of heat to heat an upstairs for a weekend or three with NO windows at all. Long story lots of scraping and priming the old sills, and stops. Project for this summer is to get the dual rate meter installed on the electric heaters upstairs then electric will only be about $.04 a Kwh.

Stove is a new last fall Country Flame BBF catalytic stove. Does a good job heating downstairs. I probably haven't pushed it to hard as far as fire size. Burn about 4-5 cords year. Wife lit a fire this afternoon.

Wood is self harvested from Dad's timber and anywhere else I can get some. Mostly burr oak, some hedge (osage orange), mulberry (fence rows), some honeylocust, a little black locust, a beech (last winter according to the id of the contractor that put my windows in), ash, and some piss (Chinese) elm. My neighbor burns exclusively red elm but the guys that have access to it are real possessive of it.

Equipment:
Husky 372 - big saw, Echo 3400 little saw, Brave splitting maul, 72 3/4 ton chevy, and a 65 ford pu box trailer. Hopefully by this fall I'll have my hyd splitter done.

Don

 

[buckwheat]

'was splitting and stacking a little last evening before I filled up the stove for a cold night. Sure it's a lot of work, but when you think about the money being saved on oil... heating with wood is downright patriotic!

 

[ontario026]

100% wood. 53yr old house, 2 story with a Newmac Classic stove w/blower in the finished basement. about 600 Sq ft per level so 1800 Ft total... some ducting in the house for some heat transfer, but no where near forced air..

Used about 3-3.5 bush cords this winter, some hard maple, some soft maple, ash, and a bit of iron wood... all cut and split by me, and acquired anywhere that I could get it...

Just curious for the people burning 6 or 7 cords per year? are you talking full cords or face cords? I couldn't imagine burning that much, my Newmac runs 24/7 and I don't think it'd be possible to burn that much in a winter with it....

Matthew

 

[danrclem]

Just curious for the people burning 6 or 7 cords per year? are you talking full cords or face cords? I couldn't imagine burning that much, my Newmac runs 24/7 and I don't think it'd be possible to burn that much in a winter with it....

Matthew

I wondered about that too. I'm sure location has a lot to do with it but that sure is a lot of wood. I have 6" walls in my house and it is insulated good with good windows though. That will make a big difference too.

Danny

 

[Pcoz88]

:jawdrop: :jawdrop: :jawdrop: :jawdrop: :jawdrop: :jawdrop: :jawdrop: :jawdrop:

 

[Pcoz88]

Iam not for sure how much I used.It was just a guess.Probably more like 3 or 4 cords. opcorn:

 

[036 pro]

hi all

i heat with wood 100% wood here in wis during the cold season.we have a outside wood stove it is a centry boiler. we heat 2 houses and a wood shop.we do all our own wood cutting and splitting.we burn about 13 to 15 cords a year.the wood is white oak,red oak,maple,walnut,elm,box elder,cherry. the heated water from the woodstove also plumbed into the waterheater with a heat exchanger. we do have propane back up have not use it for last 5 years at all. but it does get checked every fall just in case!!
we have a wood supply from the farm.

 

[Leebo]

We heat about 90% with wood using a Hearthstone Mansfield in a 1-1/2 old new house...about 1900 SF with 2 X 4 walls, IG windows, house wrap & very well insulated. 10% propane when we are away. The house has 54 sashes, so we get a good amount of passive solar heat when the sun is out in the winter. We burned about 3-4 cords last year but it wasn't much of a winter. Mostly mixed hardwoods: Red Oak, White Oak, Ash, Elm, Cherry and about a 1/3 of a cord of 4"-8" thick Western Red Cedar drops from an ongoing project at work. I cut everything from my property mostly from blowdowns and standing dead...the 2 oaks are old growth monsters which have died a natural death. One I'm about to start on this year is over 60" dbh. I split everything with a Danuser Splitter(about 30 years old) with a 3 point hitch, which runs off the rear hydraulics of a 1958 Ford 801 tractor. Not the prettiest set up, but it gets the job done.

 

[RockinB]

We heat about 90% with wood using a Hearthstone Mansfield in a 1-1/2 old new house...about 1900 SF with 2 X 4 walls, IG windows, house wrap & very well insulated. 10% propane when we are away. The house has 54 sashes, so we get a good amount of passive solar heat when the sun is out in the winter. We burned about 3-4 cords last year but it wasn't much of a winter. Mostly mixed hardwoods: Red Oak, White Oak, Ash, Elm, Cherry and about a 1/3 of a cord of 4"-8" thick Western Red Cedar drops from an ongoing project at work. I cut everything from my property mostly from blowdowns and standing dead...the 2 oaks are old growth monsters which have died a natural death. One I'm about to start on this year is over 60" dbh. I split everything with a Danuser Splitter(about 30 years old) with a 3 point hitch, which runs off the rear hydraulics of a 1958 Ford 801 tractor. Not the prettiest set up, but it gets the job done.

Nice looking home. Congrats!

 

[aokpops]

only heat I have

its the only heat I have since 1981 100 percent

 

[Leebo]

Nice looking home. Congrats!

Thanks. We are enjoying it. The house is a stock design with a lot of interior modifications from BC Mountain Homes.

www.bcmountainhomes.com

 

[phlynott]

8-9 cords

I heat 80-90% with wood. Got lucky and fell into a deal for 60 acres worth of 1 year old logged tops. Mostly maple and oak, some ash. Stove is a Russel made by decton iron works, about 30 yrs old. Recently had it tied into the rest of the heating system (high effeciency propane). Not exactly thrilled with the dual setup, so I disconnected the relay that was kicking on the blower on the gas furnace, seems to work better now. 100 yr old farmhouse, timber framed, R55 insulated in attic, zero in walls, approx 2300 sq ft.


Joe

 

[sunshineband]

almost 100% wood heat

we burn wood from late October/early november until the middle of April.

i live on a farm and cut fallen trees or those struck by lightening, or when a neighbor or friend calls and asks me to cut wood like yesterday

we have a Buck fireplace insert....we live in an old, poorly insulated ranch house, and we use fans to circulate the heat out of the living room and down the hall into the bedrooms The old house is equipped to be heated with diesel fuel and I did that the prior year and spent about $1,200 to $1,500. I figure I saved $2,000+ this past year. I spoke with one guy that spent $3,000 on heating this past year.

i am cutting now on cool evenings and mornings so we will have dry wood this fall. i burn at least 5 chords a year.

i use a Stihl 041 with a 20 inch bar. it is a wood cutting monster when it has a good, sharp chain. But it burns the fuel and it is heavy. And, of course, it has no chain brake so I have this somewhat irrational fear that I'm going to end up limbless someday from kickback. But it eats trees, it always starts and it has very strong compression so I can not rationalize spending $450 for a new Stihl that might end up not being as good. I use a Echo 4400 with a 18 inch bar and that small chain (a .325) to cut up the limbs. It will run at least 30 to 45 minutes, maybe longer, on a tank of gas and is much lighter...it seems to run forever compared to the Stihl. But it is slow on anything more than 6+ inch in diameter. For 7-12 inch cuts I put the 16" 3/8 chain and bar on the Stihl and take it through that stuff like a hot knife through butter.

I really enjoy cutting wood and the exercise and thought required to not get yourself in a tough spot with fallen trees.

My wife enjoys spiltting wood and does most of the splitting. She looks like a model, and has the figure of one too, and that's a pretty cool combination. My kids have to bring it in every evening and that's a good chore for them. The kids also take out the ashes once per week.

I am an attorney and the wife is a stay at home mom that home schools. I cut up fallen trees for people that can't afford a tree service, and firewood for people that need it but are a little short on cash.

Life is good here in Kentucky. We never needed to heat our place with wood when we lived in Atlanta, but in Atlanta I never had a good context for telling my kids about the grasshopper and the ant and how our family is like the grasshopper by cutting wood in the spring in preparation for the winter that is sure to come.

 

[mactel]

we burn wood from late October/early november until the middle of April.

i live on a farm and cut fallen trees or those struck by lightening, or when a neighbor or friend calls and asks me to cut wood like yesterday

we have a Buck fireplace insert....we live in an old, poorly insulated ranch house, and we use fans to circulate the heat out of the living room and down the hall into the bedrooms The old house is equipped to be heated with diesel fuel and I did that the prior year and spent about $1,200 to $1,500. I figure I saved $2,000+ this past year. I spoke with one guy that spent $3,000 on heating this past year.

i am cutting now on cool evenings and mornings so we will have dry wood this fall. i burn at least 5 chords a year.

i use a Stihl 041 with a 20 inch bar. it is a wood cutting monster when it has a good, sharp chain. But it burns the fuel and it is heavy. And, of course, it has no chain brake so I have this somewhat irrational fear that I'm going to end up limbless someday from kickback. But it eats trees, it always starts and it has very strong compression so I can not rationalize spending $450 for a new Stihl that might end up not being as good. I use a Echo 4400 with a 18 inch bar and that small chain (a .325) to cut up the limbs. It will run at least 30 to 45 minutes, maybe longer, on a tank of gas and is much lighter...it seems to run forever compared to the Stihl. But it is slow on anything more than 6+ inch in diameter. For 7-12 inch cuts I put the 16" 3/8 chain and bar on the Stihl and take it through that stuff like a hot knife through butter.

I really enjoy cutting wood and the exercise and thought required to not get yourself in a tough spot with fallen trees.

My wife enjoys spiltting wood and does most of the splitting. She looks like a model, and has the figure of one too, and that's a pretty cool combination. My kids have to bring it in every evening and that's a good chore for them. The kids also take out the ashes once per week.

I am an attorney and the wife is a stay at home mom that home schools. I cut up fallen trees for people that can't afford a tree service, and firewood for people that need it but are a little short on cash.

Life is good here in Kentucky. We never needed to heat our place with wood when we lived in Atlanta, but in Atlanta I never had a good context for telling my kids about the grasshopper and the ant and how our family is like the grasshopper by cutting wood in the spring in preparation for the winter that is sure to come.

Your family sounds very Wendell Berry- ever read his work?

As for us: our first year heating with wood (since I was a child). We only got to burn for 1/2 a month and cut our bill in half. I am hoping next winter to heat 90% wood. I have access to a property that was just logged- all cherry. It is a pretty sweet deal. BUT- gonna need a pickup or I will put saved $$ into my Forester's suspension>>>

 

[Millman]

I heat 95% with wood. Mostly ash, maple and cherry. Highest oil bill - $18 for two months. The oil company doesn't come anymore, I have to call them. 1200 sq. ft. Colonial, no heat upstairs. That's why I had 5 kids. Heat with a Avalon Rainer. Go through about 10 face(16" logs.) I had it delivered for the past 3 years but went to log loads this year, much nicer to cut myself. Millman

 

[tree pusher]

100% wood for heat,Electric for water. Burning 7/8 cords in my 1350 sq ft , 1960 house , Poplar , Maple , Ash and oak ( Frozen manitoba ) Currently working on about 200 cords of obove mix to sell split and delivered , Wood is taken from 67 acres of bush which is being cleared and stumps removed and windrowed in one go .
Wood is cut in the bush and loaded with front bucket into grain trucks , Hauled to yard , Split and piled ( Selling green or seasoned wood year round ).

My toys are
Cat D7E powershift
Case 580g Backhoe
Massey Ferguson 390 4x4 + loader
Ford 7600 Little gem
Ford TW 20
Versatile 876
Versatile 895
John deere 2130
Tractor splitter
Jonsred 2050
Stihl 036
Stihl MS260

 

[Leebo]

My toys are
Cat D7E powershift
Case 580g Backhoe
Massey Ferguson 390 4x4 + loader
Ford 7600 Little gem
Ford TW 20
Versatile 876
Versatile 895
John deere 2130
Tractor splitter
Jonsred 2050
Stihl 036
Stihl MS260

Welcome to AS, tree pusher. Looks like you are a little heavy on rolling stock and light on chainsaws. :hmm3grin2orange:

 

[Oregon_Rob]

90% wood, we have a 2000 sqft manufactured house, very well insulated. My stove is a quadrafire, very efficent, we only go through 1.5-2 cords a year. In the old house (1929 farm) with an old stove, we went through 5-6 cords. The newer stoves are much more efficent.

Saws
009 (hate this saw)
Jonsered 801 (old & heavy but i love her anyway)
Husky 385xp (Wow)
One on the way 346xp