Is there anything better....?

[freemotion]

I bring my ash can right out to the pasture and spread them...it improves the soil. I throw some right on the compost pile for the hens to dust in, and a few right in the coop, too. Nothing goes to waste! Dontcha love it?

 

[FarmerDenise]

I always try to save some of the ashes in order to give them to the chickens in the summer. I was glad that SO forgot to clean out the fireplace this spring. I had ashes for my deer skin experiment (making lye water) and for the chickens to get a dustbath.

 

[justusnak]

We have had ours burning several times already. Last night it got down in the upper 30's! When I got up this morning, the house was at a cozy 70 degrees, and there were still hot coals in the woodstove. I quickly brushed out the dead coals...kept a handfull of the hot ones...added some brush to get it going, and poof! A great warm fire in minutes. The other day it was coly and rainy...we lit the woodstove, and I put a big pot of chili on there to cook slowly all day. Ohhh, the warmth and the great smell of the chili. We stayed in most of the day, enjoying the fire and chili! We NEED out woodstove. Can't afford the propane for the furnace to run all winter. Of course we fill the propane tank....just in case.

 

[freemotion]

By mid-November, our stove is usually running full-time. As long as there is a glowing ember in there, I can get the fire started in minutes. Early on, we just make a small fire in the evening to take the chill off when we sit and watch tv.

Right now, though, we just pull out our fleece clothing, vests, and slippers! And a few dogs and cats to stay warm!

 

[i_am2bz]

I can see I'm definitely in the minority here, but as SS as I like to be, there's nothing like throwing a switch & being warm. We couldn't get the fire too hot in the morning b/c we were both going off to work all day & didn't want to leave a fire roaring away with no one home. Some of our neighbors had chimney fires that way. Oh yes, don't forget the chimney sweeping every fall - my ex did it himself with the long brushes - soot everywhere....It was nice having a fire now & then, but to heat 100% with it (or nearly so), no thanks!

 

[Beekissed]

Actually, one can bank up the fire before you leave for work and should have a nice bed of coals when you come home. If the fire is roaring away you have too many leaks in your system.

Flipping a switch is great...I love flipping the switch for my lights and no longer having to light a kerosene lamp. But everything has a trade off.

I live in the most beautiful area in WV and I do it very cheaply, though there is no way to earn a good living here. All the wages are low and the nearest big town is 50 miles away over a huge moutain.

Heating with wood allows me to maintain a low budget life so I can enjoy few neighbors, the most stunning landscape around, fresh air and all the other perks of country living.

I know its not for everyone, but when I hear about all the trouble with keeping livestock near and in a town/city setting and all the rules about living in the city or urban areas~like not being able to hang out your clothes or have compost piles....it makes me want to go outdoors and hug my land!

Its all part of the bigger picture of living SS....trade offs that reap great rewards!

 

[TanksHill]

For all your folks with fireplaces....my stove pipe ells right into the chimney in the middle of my house. Couldn't you just put a regular wood stove in and feed your pipe into the front of your chimney? It would take cutting a hole in the chimney and blocking off your fireplace opening.

Still...it would be worth it.

Bee,
I think you can do this with a masonry fire place if the chimney is is good shape. I don't believe I can do it with mine. We have one of those metal box in the wall kind. It plumbed with gas but we mainly burn wood in it. It has glass doors and really only heats the family room. Barely.

Just another one of those, "If I did it again I would do it differently" isms....

Maybe next time.

g

 

[Old Sew'n'Sew]

Beekissed wrote: To us this is not really a novelty or romantic...its the cheapest and most efficient way to heat this old farm house. So the wood chips, the work, the mess? Its all a great trade off when I don't have to pay $400 a month electric bills.

Ditto here!

Wood burning is not optional here, been doing it for 25+ yrs. in this big old coal company house, at over 3,000 ft. in the mountains. I have two wood stoves and I start'em up on Nov. 1. It's cold enough now but I'll wait because by the time April comes I will have had enough.

Last year almost 300 inches of snow! I consider my wood stoves a matter of life and death. I don't mind the exercise and the routine of burning wood, and I look forward to the season. DH scavenges most of our wood for free,.... "I cut that old tree in my yard do you want to come and get it ?" etc. ...

In this techie world many have no tolerance for the slow way to get warm. Wood burning with an airtght stove, need not be such a chore, Bee is correct, just bank up the stove, and turn the dampers down for the night, and you should get a 6-8 hr steady burn and you don't have to relight the stove in the morning. Poke up the coals and give it some air by opening up the dampers, add some wood and your good to go for another 4-6 hrs.

We stack enough wood beside the stove to last several days, and keep a hearth broom handy and dust pan to sweep every time you tend the stove. I keep small dust vacuum sweeper plugged in by the woodburner in the kitchen.

" He who cuts and burns his own wood is twice warmed." (Same for she who burns the wood.)

 

[Old Sew'n'Sew]

Beekissed wrote:
For all your folks with fireplaces....my stove pipe ells right into the chimney in the middle of my house. Couldn't you just put a regular wood stove in and feed your pipe into the front of your chimney? It would take cutting a hole in the chimney and blocking off your fireplace opening.

Still...it would be worth it.

P. S. Vermont Castings makes a cast iron fireplace insert that will make your fireplace into an airtight and efficient burn. I think they are equipped with air blowers. An investment for sure, but I have had my wood stoves for a long time, divided by the amount that I paid back then, and it cost me about $40.00 per year that I have burned wood with them, and I will still be able to use them many more years to come.

Don't forget to clean out your flue every month if you are burning this way, this is a must. Ask your local volunteer fire dept. some of them provide Chimney fire prevention services.

 

[journey11]

I'm with you, Bee. Nothing better, IMO!

We have a wood burning furnace in our basement. I love heating with wood. It's such a dry, cozy heat and I like that it is cheaper to use. I hang almost all of our laundry to dry and I love that it will dry a pair of jeans overnight. My carpets are badly in need of cleaning--I wait til the stove is going so that they will dry quickly.

We had a free-standing coal/wood burning stove at our old house and also a smaller, pretty, antique woodstove. I really do prefer the older stoves that you can cook on top of or throw a few baked potatoes in the corner. But since we are raising our family, it does give me less stress having the wood furnace in the basement where I don't have to worry about the toddler getting hurt on it.

I have sinus problems too, but I won't give up my wood stove for it. I just run a cool mist humidifier all winter and since we got the chimney pipes insulated with ceramic wool, it never smokes back on me anymore (which makes a big difference). One of these days I'm going to have that sinus surgery done where they open your passages more--I think it would be worth it.

For economy and the wonderful QUALITY of heat, I'll always burn wood. I love that I don't have to watch the thermostat!