money saved

[mschoff]

well since I hooked my owb up about seven weeks ago my wife and I have saved around 183.00 in electric and I have used around 12% of propane and 0 on fuel in the garage man I love this owb and my wife really likes the savings how is everyone else doing on savings. now this is of course I have dry wood to last me tell warm weather.

 

[cedarfarms]

yeah, wait till you get a full season under your belt, the savings will be big.
i"ve had my owb now 6 years, the winter before i bought it i was spending $300 per month on funace oil, oil then was almost half the price it is now. the oil tank is still over half full from 6 years ago.

but i do spend more time cutting wood though ...

 

[iCreek]

I have had my Hardy OWB installed about the same amount of time, about 8 weeks, and not seeing any savings on electric, about the same monthly bills. But our propane usage has dropped dramatically, my furnace and water heater are propane. We had spend $1100.00 in two fillings, one $600 bill in October getting ready for winter, and then another $500.00 bill in December right before the OWB install. The propane tank is stitting at about 44% of a 500 gallon tank, have only used about 2% in 8 weeks since burning wood. The 2% might have been used heating my water, as I have a water to water heat exchanger, but have only turned down my propane stat on the water heater about 20%. The way I have my Taco pump is on demand, it does not run 100% of the time, so my water flow is not real hot all the time. I think this is causing my water heater to kick on some and heat the water in the water tank with the propane. This is my first year so I am kind of testing some methods and watching the propane usage, although I have not heard or seen the propane water heater heating element lite up, I am pretty sure that is where my small propane usage is going.... Still saving money though, all my friends are at about $2000.00 in propane bills this year, and I love my OWB also.

 

[WVwoodsman]

I am not sure as to how much I have saved on electricity to heat my hot water, but I know I have saved a lot on natural gas to heat my house. When I was heating w/natural gas I spent $2300.00 for 2005 and 2006 winters. I have only had to spend about $60.00 this winter for natural gas and that is because I was out of town for a weekend. I really like the savings and don't seem to mind getting wood for the OWB.

 

[csj11]

Love it!

I have burned 0 gallons of propane and I turned the breaker off on my electric hot water heater!!!!! I installed my CB last August. Wish I had done it 10 years ago!!!

 

[Butch(OH)]

In 12 months from September 2005 to August 2006 we purchased $3000 worth of natural gas and burned 4 cords of wood to heat our 1945 Cape Cod with a 85% Eff forced air furnace, heat our domestic water and keep my shop warm (the wood). In September 2006 we installed our 4400 Woodmaster and in the same months we spent $300 for gas which is service charges and domestic water in the summer months. In that 12 months we burned about 10cords of wood in a mild winter. This winter we will probably burn 13. With the shop being heated we are heating the same as 2 homes. The electrical cost of running the Woodmaster is very small, so small we cant pick out of our bill when we turn it on. No parts or maintanace so far. Our gas furnace has run twice in two years, to test it for function. With what we have invested I think we will be about even the middle of next heating season and start saving. I do caution everyone who looks it over or inquires that 10-13 cord is a heck of a lot of wood cutting and splitting and that an OWB requires attention daily. Realize tha most who look it over are city folks moved to the country and know nothing about wood heat nor do they have a place to cut and in most cases they lack the ambition to cut a pick up load let alone 10 cords. They are not for everybody, thats for sure but I love mine.

 

[cedarfarms]

also, i would'nt worry about running out of dry wood, start mixing in some green wood now may get you through, or maybe pallets or old lumber from a deck a buddy replaced last year ..
you would'nt beleave the crap these things will burn.

but i don't have any neigbours close by though ...

 

[johnha]

Got a letter from my utility co last week. They're sending someone out to 'inspect' my natural gas meter.

 

[Husky137]

Got a letter from my utility co last week. They're sending someone out to 'inspect' my natural gas meter.

Gotta love it. Send them a bill for your time and inconvenience.

 

[johnha]

Yeah, I keep my yard locked since we have a hot tub out back. So the guy came but couldn't get in.

Is it too much to ask that the guy would take note of the 5-6 stacked, split, cords of wood that are in plain sight? If I were the inspector, I would take note of something as obvious as that.

 

[chainsawaddict]

I dont have an OWB, since october I have only used 12% of my 500 gallon propane tank to heat a 2200 square foot home. with propane around two dollars and living in a house built in 920...well ive saved some coin.:biggrinbounce2:

 

[Hugenpoet]

In 12 months from September 2005 to August 2006 we purchased $3000 worth of natural gas and burned 4 cords of wood to heat our 1945 Cape Cod with a 85% Eff forced air furnace, heat our domestic water and keep my shop warm (the wood). In September 2006 we installed our 4400 Woodmaster and in the same months we spent $300 for gas which is service charges and domestic water in the summer months. In that 12 months we burned about 10cords of wood in a mild winter. This winter we will probably burn 13. With the shop being heated we are heating the same as 2 homes. The electrical cost of running the Woodmaster is very small, so small we cant pick out of our bill when we turn it on. No parts or maintanace so far. Our gas furnace has run twice in two years, to test it for function. With what we have invested I think we will be about even the middle of next heating season and start saving. I do caution everyone who looks it over or inquires that 10-13 cord is a heck of a lot of wood cutting and splitting and that an OWB requires attention daily. Realize tha most who look it over are city folks moved to the country and know nothing about wood heat nor do they have a place to cut and in most cases they lack the ambition to cut a pick up load let alone 10 cords. They are not for everybody, thats for sure but I love mine.

Absolutely right, it's not for everyone. I find that I come home with a kink in my neck just from whipping my head around everytime I drive by something that may be free wood.

 

[wkpoor]

Nobody here mentioned the cost of putting in their OWB. I would love to have one but at about 6-10,000 dollars I can't justify it. I just have a stove in the walkout basement. Electric bill under 100.00 a month and propane fill every 3rd yr. 1800sq ft. By the time I amortize the initial cost it would take 40yrs to get a payback. Mean while I still got to work hard all winter to have the fuel to feed it. If I were to buy the logs then there is no savings. So I'm not quite understanding how those things are so great. Now if they were relatively inexpensive like 1-3,000 I would already have one. Just like used oil furnaces. Yeh thats great the fuel free and all, but man the purchase price null and voids any savings had by the free fuel. Seems like any alternative heating source has a catch, they're all cost prohibitive to install.

 

[mschoff]

savings

it cost me around 6.400.00 to buy and I installed it myself. It a shaver model my house is 1550 sq ft insulation is good propane my cost me 1.600.00 1.900.00 a year. and my hot water heater is electric and I shut off breaker to it in the winter time and like I said I have saved alot on that then my garage I used a disel heater its up to 147.00 on fuel for that intill my owb now I spend 0 $ on that so When I did the math well all I can say I wish I would have done this years ago and to get out and cut my own wood is the great thing about it great exersize It a win win

 

[mimilkman1]

Hey all new to the site. I filled my propane tank two years ago next month and still have 55% left. I only run the furnace for a week or two in the fall and spring. Love the savings, it should have itself paid for by middle of next winter. Happy cutting!:newbie:

 

[ant]

well since I hooked my owb up about seven weeks ago my wife and I have saved around 183.00 in electric and I have used around 12% of propane and 0 on fuel in the garage man I love this owb and my wife really likes the savings how is everyone else doing on savings. now this is of course I have dry wood to last me tell warm weather.

i am a few weeks old also.. i did not get my gas bill(still cook with it) nor my electric bill...


mschoff_ which owb did you get?

 

[HUSKYMAN]

Well since I installed my OWB at the same time I built a new house I dont really know what my usage would be without the OWB. In one month (Nov) my house used about 25% of a propane tank (250gal). Since then I have used about 5% per month, only because my dryer and stove are gas.

I have to get one fill up per year to avoid tank rental charges. Otherwise I would have to use 100# tank, and I dont want that in case I ever do need to run off propane for any period of time. I think I have saved about $1500 in my first winter, my energy bill is now $95 for electricity only

 

[ktm250rider]

2000 gal of propane last year at $1.99 per gallon. This year, 200 gal at close to $3 a gallon. Id say guite a bit of savings. 1/2 of the 200 was used in november before we got the 5500 hooked up. The other half, well probably not even that, is cooking and hot water since then. I think when they filled it, I was at 40%, dug it out a couple weeks ago and it was at about 35%. I still use my boiler for hot water. I like to run it once a day rather than just letting it sit there. I have seen quite an increase in electricity though which is probably attributed to the extra pumps I have running for the radiant heating in portions of the house.

 

[Husky137]

Nobody here mentioned the cost of putting in their OWB. I would love to have one but at about 6-10,000 dollars I can't justify it. I just have a stove in the walkout basement. Electric bill under 100.00 a month and propane fill every 3rd yr. 1800sq ft. By the time I amortize the initial cost it would take 40yrs to get a payback. Mean while I still got to work hard all winter to have the fuel to feed it. If I were to buy the logs then there is no savings. So I'm not quite understanding how those things are so great. Now if they were relatively inexpensive like 1-3,000 I would already have one. Just like used oil furnaces. Yeh thats great the fuel free and all, but man the purchase price null and voids any savings had by the free fuel. Seems like any alternative heating source has a catch, they're all cost prohibitive to install.

Your math must be flawed if you predicted a 40 year payback. I've saved almost 10K in the 2 years I have run my OWB. I figure in another 6 months I will be at the break even point, since I didn't do my own plumbing and electrical. My oil burner doesn't run unless I make it run to make sure it still works. MY wood is free, but even if I paid for logs or split wood, the btu's are still cheaper than buying oil.

 

[ryans4022]

ZERO gallons of heating oil burned this season thanks to the wood doctor. Its a good feeling to not conform to high oil prices isnt it. Now if we could only fuel our vechicles with wood!