So happy I heat with wood.

[Homelite410]

Wood heat is in my blood! Dad grew up with an old Ashley in the living room and I have heard the tales of grandpa draining the oil out of the M farmall and A John Deere, and setting it atop the old stove until it almost smoked and then pouring it back in the tractor to coax it to start on the sub zero days!

I grew up in an old farm house with a Des Moines coal furnace central radiant style and we were never cold. The house I bought 4 years ago had a brand new lp furnace installed when we bought it and the first thing I did was check out the chimney! Well all be darned the chimney already was clay lined and we were in business. My first stove was a Montgomery wards, thin, add-on furnace that with a fire 24-7, pillowed real bad inside, but for 100.00 it kept us warm for 2 years. I was at a garage sale one day and there sat a Clayton 1600 (us stoves) that been used 2 seasons. I quickly laid down the money and that one still keeps us warm now. As for the other stove I put it out by the garage and piped the heat in the window and that stove gets all the un-stackable or bug infested crap I don't want in the house! Yes I rely on power, but have a small generator to run it if the power goes out!

 

[spike60]

I didn't mean to make a stab at you personally, sorry bout that. I was referencing the argument of wood stove vs. OWB, wasn't thinking about those that don't have any wood heat available.

I also made the elctricity comment and I wasn't trying to stir up anothet OWB vs Stove debate. I was thinking primarily about folks with a gas or oil furnace. But I suppose it does apply to OWB's.

You are right that it's real easy to keep an OWB going with a small inexpensive generator. I have a buddy with an OWB who does just that. Of course, like I told him, I didn't have to go out in the cold the other night to do the generator routine like he did. But he doesn't come home to a mostly cold stove if he's been away all day long like I often do. They both have their pros and cons, but they share the most important "pro" in that we get all the wood we want and neither of us have any worries about the cost of heat.

 

[Whitespider]

...and it doesn't cost any more to keep the house at 78 rather than 68!

Sure it does... it's just that the difference isn't as noticeable because you don't get a bill in the mail.

Firewood ain't free... or, at least it ain't for most of us. I can only think of one time someone pulled in the yard with a load of cut/split firewood and just give it to me. Even forgetting the initial cost of purchasing saws, splitters and something to haul firewood... fuel, maintenance, replacement parts, etc. ain't cheap. And even if you don't count it... time has value. It just is-what-it-is, keeping your house warmer requires burning more firewood... and burning more firewood costs more because it's just that much sooner you need to resupply... and the cost of resupplying will likely be more expensive than what it was previously, simply because the price of near everything increases with time.

Indulgence is always (relatively) expensive, even with wood heat...
*

 

[Homelite410]

Sure it does... it's just that the difference isn't as noticeable because you don't get a bill in the mail.

Firewood ain't free... or, at least it ain't for most of us. I can only think of one time someone pulled in the yard with a load of cut/split firewood and just give it to me. Even forgetting the initial cost of purchasing saws, splitters and something to haul firewood... fuel, maintenance, replacement parts, etc. ain't cheap. And even if you don't count it... time has value. It just is-what-it-is, keeping your house warmer requires burning more firewood... and burning more firewood costs more because it's just that much sooner you need to resupply... and the cost of resupplying will likely be more expensive than what it was previously, simply because the price of near everything increases with time.

Indulgence is always (relatively) expensive, even with wood heat...
*

Ok spidey,

It doesn't cost THAT much more to have the house at 78 rather than 68. and as much as I love to run a saw, it's cool with me!

 

[Whitespider]

Ok spidey,
It doesn't cost THAT much more to have the house at 78 rather than 68.

"THAT" much more than WHAT?? Have you recorded all expenses?? Have you done the math??
After-all I did use the word "relatively" did I not?? Have you seen how cheap Natural Gas is right now??
No matter though... if'n ya' like your house at 78°, then that's what you should heat it to.
Near every one of us is indulgent with some aspect of our lives... heck, if ya' can't be, what the purpose of living??
I was simply pointing out that the statement, "...it doesn't cost any more...", ain't true... it's sort' like me claiming it don't cost me any more to drink an extra Budweiser rather than an extra Bush Light. The truth is, it's "relatively" cheaper to drink the extra Bush Light... but ain't none of it free.
No matter though... if'n I feel like being indulgent, I'm gonna' drink as much beer as I like regardless of the price. Just as you're gonna' heat your house as warm as you like regardless of the cost.... but ain't none of it free.

I guess I'm just too much of a realist... I realize there ain't nothin' "free" in this life.
*

 

[Homelite410]

I see what your saying .... not trying to stir the pot...

 

[Whitespider]

I was

 

[Preston]

What's an oil furnace. Is that like a kerosene heater?

 

[Homelite410]

What's an oil furnace. Is that like a kerosene heater?

Real expensive to have!

 

[Chris-PA]

Yes, I would not go back. And I can't since I disconnected the old oil fire furnace rather than replace the tank. Wood heat requires work, knowledge and some level of (almost) constant attention, but I still love it.

It would be nice to have a back up, and if I could figure out a place to put one I would like to have a pellet stove for that. One of my upcoming projects is to rebuild a room next to our kitchen, and I could put one in there - except that is where I want to install a wood fired cook stove. We need an acronym for Wood Heat Disorder.

 

[spike60]

Let' me do a little stiring and let's examine "relatively" more expensive.

Going to hook up with a couple guys today and do some cutting. Will come home with a half cord in the Dakota. Let's say that wood represents the extra wood that was used during the cold snap or the extra wood that it would cost 410 to be at 78 vs 68. So, what does it cost me to actually get this wood?

Well this particular location is 21 miles away, which is further than usual for me. So that's 42 miles round trip. Dakota gets 17mpg, but figure 15-16 on these roads with a load of wood, so that's 2.63-2.8 gallons. Use some fluids in the saws, but easily less than a tank of saw gas to fill a truck. So let's round it up to 3 gallons of fuel. Got fuel yesterday @ 3.61 a gallon. Cost to get this load of wood: $10.83. I don't factor in spare time spent cutting wood as an expense. That is only valid if you have no spare time because you spend ALL of your time working.

Plus, this is to me a recreational activity that I enjoy, and I think that applies to most of us on this forum. And it will be more productive than the second half of the day which will be spent watching Chargers-Broncos @ the local pub. Safe to say it will cost me more to watch the game than to cut the wood. LOL

But today's load of wood will have about the same heat value as 100 gallons of heating oil which @ about $4 a gallon is a whopping $400. $400 vs $10.83 Or put another way, the load of wood costs 2.71% of the cost of the oil.

So removing the hair splitting of the microscope, 410 is essentially correct in what he said about 78 vs 68.

 

[alleyyooper]

I have had my saws since after I cut my teeth so the deprecation is gone on them, more than payed for them selves. each season winter time it used to be I would go back in my woods and cut up about 14 of those 4';x8'x18" piles of wood. As the winter went I would go back again when it was even colder and hand split every thing I could any thing I couldn't AI tossed in a pile for later splitting with the power splitter. Come fall I would take the tractor and trailer back there to haul it to the pole barn where I stored it till I needed another 2 weeks worth stacked in the basement.
Way cheaper that the 400.00 plus electric heat bill I got from using electric heat for one solid month.

Now I am cutting nothing but dead ash from my woods and the place next door. I just do it all in the fall as I don't need seasoning time. With the high cost of saw and tractor fuel and fluids it still doesn't come any were for a full winters heat to want that gawd awful electric furnace will cost for just one month and worry about the temp setting the whole time.

Another benefit is I do not have to pay a member ship fee to some gym so I can get exercise too. I also am improving the deer hunting habit so that is a bonus too from my burning fire wood. It all adds up to being a whole bunch cheaper what ever way you look at it to burn fire wood instead of sitting on the couch gripping about the high cost energy and getting a fat azz and the risk of a heart attack going to the fridge to fetch another beer.

Al

 

[Homelite410]

I get to cut with some of the greatest as members and have to haul my wood 6 miles. The farmer across the road lets me clean round the edges which is where this beauty came from. Less than a mile from my door.

if Dry red elm over 36'' dbh dropped it in the field! 2.5 cords I believe and I noodled a lot so I burned 2.5 gal of saw gas on it!

 

[zogger]

I get to cut with some of the greatest as members and have to haul my wood 6 miles. The farmer across the road lets me clean round the edges which is where this beauty came from. Less than a mile from my door.

if Dry red elm over 36'' dbh dropped it in the field! 2.5 cords I believe and I noodled a lot so I burned 2.5 gal of saw gas on it!

That's a nice one. I really like getting to work up those large many branched trees. Get to run different saws and get to think about all the weights and tensions,. etc as you cut. Mental and physical exercise that pays some nice immediate dividends.

I like wood so much..I heat with it here, even though propane for heat is part of my work gig. I just don't use it, got a full tank sitting in the back yard.

 

[Whitespider]

...Cost to get this load of wood: $10.83. ...about the same heat value as 100 gallons of heating oil...

WOW‼ That must be one strong Dakota‼
Forget about how many potential BTU's "dry" wood has... let's look at actual realized BTU's (heating value) from 20% moisture wood in a typical modern stove figuring 75% efficient (yeah, right)... is this wood 20% moisture or less??

Approximate "heating value" of heating oil per gallon... 140,000 BTU.
At 100 gallon... 140,000×100=14,000,000 BTU.

Approximate "heating value" of 20% moisture wood per pound... 4800 BTU.
To equal 100 gallon heating oil... 14,000,000÷4800=2917 lbs of wood (and water).

Or... is this wood "green" and closer to 50% moisture??

Approximate "heating value" of 50% moisture wood per pound... 4400 BTU.
To equal 100 gallon heating oil... 14,000,000÷4400=3182 lbs of wood (and water).

Your Dakota hauls a 1½ ton load??
I gotta' get me one of those‼

Just stirrin' it man... just stirrin' it.
*

 

[Ironworker]

WOW‼ That must be one strong Dakota‼
Forget about how many potential BTU's "dry" wood has... let's look at actual realized BTU's (heating value) from 20% moisture wood in a typical modern stove figuring 75% efficient (yeah, right)... is this wood 20% moisture or less??

Approximate "heating value" of heating oil per gallon... 140,000 BTU.
At 100 gallon... 140,000×100=14,000,000 BTU.

Approximate "heating value" of 20% moisture wood per pound... 4800 BTU.
To equal 100 gallon heating oil... 14,000,000÷4800=2917 lbs of wood (and water).

Or... is this wood "green" and closer to 50% moisture??

Approximate "heating value" of 50% moisture wood per pound... 4400 BTU.
To equal 100 gallon heating oil... 14,000,000÷4400=3182 lbs of wood (and water).

Your Dakota hauls a 1½ ton load??
I gotta' get me one of those‼

Just stirrin' it man... just stirrin' it.
*

Gee Spidey you need to go out and cut some wood

 

[Homelite410]

WOW‼ That must be one strong Dakota‼

Air bags baby