I've been told that fireplaces are inefficient and in fact make things
worse since they suck hot air out of the house once you put the fire
out. But I heard that heating stoves help matters, like this one:

http://www.amazon.com/Vogelzang-Moun...8?ie=UTF8&s=hi

Please share your opinion.

Thanks

Aaron Fude

wrote in message
oups.com...
I've been told that fireplaces are inefficient and in fact make things
worse since they suck hot air out of the house once you put the fire
out. But I heard that heating stoves help matters, like this one:

http://www.amazon.com/Vogelzang-Moun...8?ie=UTF8&s=hi

Please share your opinion.

You hear right. Wood stove do lower the cost of your present fuel but
replaces it with the cost of wood and labor to haul, etc. I used to heat
about 50% of my house with wood but I've not used it for a few years. Why?
It is much easier to fill the oil tank than haul wood sometimes. Right now
I don't have the time. If you can get wood free or cheap, it is worth
having and it will also heat during a power outage.

On Sun, 08 Oct 2006 04:50:22 GMT, "Edwin Pawlowski"
wrote:


wrote in message
roups.com...
I've been told that fireplaces are inefficient and in fact make things
worse since they suck hot air out of the house once you put the fire
out. But I heard that heating stoves help matters, like this one:

http://www.amazon.com/Vogelzang-Moun...8?ie=UTF8&s=hi

Please share your opinion.

You hear right. Wood stove do lower the cost of your present fuel but
replaces it with the cost of wood and labor to haul, etc. I used to heat
about 50% of my house with wood but I've not used it for a few years. Why?
It is much easier to fill the oil tank than haul wood sometimes. Right now
I don't have the time. If you can get wood free or cheap, it is worth
having and it will also heat during a power outage.



My inlaws install wood stoves, and they get customer feedbacks. One
is about keeping your stove's fuel as cheap as possible, and many
customers comment about how pallets are free and burn hot. Their
customers burn it in chucks, nails and everything, and when they clean
it out, they sweep out the metal parts too.

Been seeing 'free pallet' signs around here, and was thinking about
it.

later,

tom @ www.NoCostAds.com

wrote:
I've been told that fireplaces are inefficient and in fact make things
worse since they suck hot air out of the house once you put the fire
out. But I heard that heating stoves help matters, like this one:

http://www.amazon.com/Vogelzang-Moun...8?ie=UTF8&s=hi

Please share your opinion.

Thanks

Aaron Fude

Fireplaces - you are correct. They are a loosing proposition. They
are very efficient in getting rid of firewood for very little gain in
heat.

Stoves - depends on your firewood cost. In my case I pay nothing for
stumpage so my cost is the equipment maintenance needed to cut/haul the
stuff. I heat almost 100% with wood and my tove, PU (also needed for
hauling other things), saws, etc. were amortized years ago.

Harry K

"Tom The Great" wrote in message
...
On Sun, 08 Oct 2006 04:50:22 GMT, "Edwin Pawlowski"
wrote:


wrote in message
groups.com...
I've been told that fireplaces are inefficient and in fact make things
worse since they suck hot air out of the house once you put the fire
out. But I heard that heating stoves help matters, like this one:

http://www.amazon.com/Vogelzang-Moun...8?ie=UTF8&s=hi

Please share your opinion.

You hear right. Wood stove do lower the cost of your present fuel but
replaces it with the cost of wood and labor to haul, etc. I used to heat
about 50% of my house with wood but I've not used it for a few years. Why?
It is much easier to fill the oil tank than haul wood sometimes. Right
now
I don't have the time. If you can get wood free or cheap, it is worth
having and it will also heat during a power outage.



My inlaws install wood stoves, and they get customer feedbacks. One
is about keeping your stove's fuel as cheap as possible, and many
customers comment about how pallets are free and burn hot. Their
customers burn it in chucks, nails and everything, and when they clean
it out, they sweep out the metal parts too.

Been seeing 'free pallet' signs around here, and was thinking about
it.

later,

tom @ www.NoCostAds.com


My uncle used to resize old pallets for a specific customer.We heated with
the 6-12 inch pieces he had as scrap.It worked wonderfully.

Been seeing 'free pallet' signs around here, and was thinking about
it.

later,

tom @ www.NoCostAds.com


My uncle used to resize old pallets for a specific customer.We heated with
the 6-12 inch pieces he had as scrap.It worked wonderfully.

most pallets are made of cheap pine, that leaves tons of creosote bad
chimney fire alert...

I had a friend who bragged he heated his home with firewood and heck it
was FREE.

I asked him about the work, by the time he drove to the supply, cut the
trees down, cut the trees up, loaded the firewood, drove home, unloaded
the firewood, split the wood, stacked the wood, let the wood dry,
hauled the wood indoors, burned the wood, maintained his stove and
chimney, then hauled the ashes out......

all that hard work he would of done better working for minimum
wage.........

his wood source was free, but the work wasnt.

he is back to using oil, and enjoying his summer having fun on weekends
rather than back breaking work.........

wrote:

Been seeing 'free pallet' signs around here, and was thinking about
it.

later,

tom @ www.NoCostAds.com


My uncle used to resize old pallets for a specific customer.We heated with
the 6-12 inch pieces he had as scrap.It worked wonderfully.

most pallets are made of cheap pine, that leaves tons of creosote bad
chimney fire alert...

I had a friend who bragged he heated his home with firewood and heck it
was FREE.

I asked him about the work, by the time he drove to the supply, cut the
trees down, cut the trees up, loaded the firewood, drove home, unloaded
the firewood, split the wood, stacked the wood, let the wood dry,
hauled the wood indoors, burned the wood, maintained his stove and
chimney, then hauled the ashes out......

all that hard work he would of done better working for minimum
wage.........

his wood source was free, but the work wasnt.

he is back to using oil, and enjoying his summer having fun on weekends
rather than back breaking work.........


Most people don't have the opportunity to work
more for wages, they just have a 40 hour week. If
you can work more hours at an easy job, great.
We heated our home for years with a wood stove and
saved a bundle (note the savings were tax free).
Paid all the capital costs, stove and accessories,
chain saw, etc. in less than 3 years. The
amount of work getting wood, unloading, splitting,
and stacking it each year average 4 Saturdays of
about 8 hours. Pretty good return for giving up
only 4 days (32 hours) of recreation each year.

BTW, some of the backbreaking tasks that you list
don't involve any effort, e.g, letting the wood
dry and burning the wood, and other tasks only
take a few minutes, e.g., hauling out the ashes.

Most people don't have the opportunity to work
more for wages, they just have a 40 hour week. If
you can work more hours at an easy job, great.
We heated our home for years with a wood stove and
saved a bundle (note the savings were tax free).
Paid all the capital costs, stove and accessories,
chain saw, etc. in less than 3 years. The
amount of work getting wood, unloading, splitting,
and stacking it each year average 4 Saturdays of
about 8 hours. Pretty good return for giving up
only 4 days (32 hours) of recreation each year.

BTW, some of the backbreaking tasks that you list
don't involve any effort, e.g, letting the wood
dry and burning the wood, and other tasks only
take a few minutes, e.g., hauling out the ashes.

my friend who heated his whole home... took a father and 2 teenage sons
about 12 weekends a year to cut haul split stack the 5 cords of wood
needed.......

thats a ton of work, the woodlot was a long ay from the house but the
wood was free.......

their home was big.......... and not well insulated. i suggested they
use the work time to remodel their home and add super insulation. their
dad said just cut more wood...

12 weekends 24 days times 3 guys times 10 hours a day 720 hours with
travel time.... they claimed to save 3500 bucks a year, at best it was
a wash after taxes, since they had gasoline costs........

life is a tradeoff.......

wrote:
Most people don't have the opportunity to work
more for wages, they just have a 40 hour week. If
you can work more hours at an easy job, great.
We heated our home for years with a wood stove and
saved a bundle (note the savings were tax free).
Paid all the capital costs, stove and accessories,
chain saw, etc. in less than 3 years. The
amount of work getting wood, unloading, splitting,
and stacking it each year average 4 Saturdays of
about 8 hours. Pretty good return for giving up
only 4 days (32 hours) of recreation each year.

BTW, some of the backbreaking tasks that you list
don't involve any effort, e.g, letting the wood
dry and burning the wood, and other tasks only
take a few minutes, e.g., hauling out the ashes.

my friend who heated his whole home... took a father and 2 teenage sons
about 12 weekends a year to cut haul split stack the 5 cords of wood
needed.......

thats a ton of work, the woodlot was a long ay from the house but the
wood was free.......

Sure is a lot of work for 5 cords. I usually got
3-1/2 to 4 cords in 4 days with the help of my
wife (she just helped move blocks to the pickup
and handed them up to me to stack in the pickup).
A long way? I normally drove about a round trip
of 100-125 miles for each load (by the way the
driving time is include in the 8 hours per load).


their home was big.......... and not well insulated. i suggested they
use the work time to remodel their home and add super insulation. their
dad said just cut more wood...

12 weekends 24 days times 3 guys times 10 hours a day 720 hours with
travel time.... they claimed to save 3500 bucks a year, at best it was
a wash after taxes, since they had gasoline costs........

5 cords is worth $3500? that's $700 per cord!
When I was heating with wood, a cord cost about
$70, maybe $150 currently for a cord of pine, fir,
Douglas-fir, etc. A cord of fruitwood (apple,
pear, cherry, etc.) currently costs about $200.
Must have been some amazing accounting.

If they used only 5 cords for a big house that
wasn't insulated well, they must live in a rather
mild climate and have mild winters (I have a
fairly small well insulate house). So, say 8
months divided into $3500 is about $440 per month
for heat. The maximum I currently pay is $110 a
month for gas heat and less that $450 for a 5-6
month heating season.


life is a tradeoff.......


Sounds like your friend and his sons are not only
terribly inept at gathering and sawing wood, but
also have severe math deficiencies. I say that
because I'm small, not that strong, and work
fairly slowly and am amazed at a coworker who,
with one son could gather and cut 6-8 cords in one
day. Of course he used one big truck and not a
pickup.

A lot of cold air comes in the chimney of my wood burning FP after the
fire goes out when I go to bed. The (heat and glo brand) gas FP insert
in my other home is THE BOMB when it comes to effeciency and convienence
(doesn't have a chiney, just a vent).
CP

wrote:
I've been told that fireplaces are inefficient and in fact make
things worse since they suck hot air out of the house once you put
the fire out. But I heard that heating stoves help matters, like
this one:


Aaron Fude


Plenty of responses so far. Each has made valid points. But there are
many variables.

Case in point, I have a 50+ year old cape in NY. Insulation was
adequate by the standards when it was built. Primary heating system is
a 90% rated gas fired hot air system. House had a Heat-o-lator fireplace.

Being a single home owner it makes little sense to keep the thermostat
up while I'm away at work. Plus the insulation standard means the house
isn't overly tight. But I like a warm house. Choice was simple, either
crank up the thermostat or use an auxiliary method of heating. Had used
the fireplace but is really more decorative than efficient.

Solution for me was a wood burning insert. Like the free standing stove
you referenced these are amazingly efficient. Obviously costs vary
based on where you live and how you source the fuel. I purchase split
wood from a dealer. Bought during Springtime generally results in deep
discounts. I stack it myself and get a good six months of extra seasoning
time before the heating system begins.

As I said I like a warm house. My thermostat stays set around 66-68.
Once I get home I light off a few logs and the immediate area will be 70
within an hour. Later I'll control the fire to hold a 75-78 range.
Being a cape style of home the rising air automatically keeps the second
floor area comfy as well. Weekends I often use wood heating exclusively.

All things considered my heating costs are 30-40% below that of
neighbors and friends who have similar homes. But I'm enjoying comfort
about 10 degrees higher than they are. Also something to be said for
that radiant heat and glow while watching Sunday football with the dog
laying at your feet.

On Mon, 9 Oct 2006 06:22:40 -0400, (Charles
Pisano) wrote:

A lot of cold air comes in the chimney of my wood burning FP after the
fire goes out when I go to bed. The (heat and glo brand) gas FP insert
in my other home is THE BOMB when it comes to effeciency and convienence
(doesn't have a chiney, just a vent).
CP


Regular FP's are like air pumps out. If you don't have a seperate
supply of air to it, which many don't, then it draws on house air.
This causes for much heat loss, and why some communities thought of
banning them, because of the smoke, and very little heat return.

A good wood stove rocks, imho.

later,

tom @ www.Consolidated-Loans.info

the numbers on the wood number of cords are as I remember them, it was
6 to 8 years ago.

I did note they could BUY the wood easier and cheaper than collecting
it....

no matter what they did, its more about anyone today thiinking of this
running the numbers for their siituation

wrote:

Been seeing 'free pallet' signs around here, and was thinking about
it.

later,

tom @ www.NoCostAds.com


My uncle used to resize old pallets for a specific customer.We heated with
the 6-12 inch pieces he had as scrap.It worked wonderfully.

most pallets are made of cheap pine, that leaves tons of creosote bad
chimney fire alert...

Wrong. At least from my experience. I have never burned them but the
ones I have cut up to get rid of were made of poor grade oak and
mahogany.

Pine does not 'leave tons of creasote'. That is an old wives tale
spread by people who have never burned wood or done any research.
Properly cured pine is no more dangerous that other wood and all it
needs is to maintain a clean chimney, just like all other woods.

I had a friend who bragged he heated his home with firewood and heck it
was FREE.

I asked him about the work, by the time he drove to the supply, cut the
trees down, cut the trees up, loaded the firewood, drove home, unloaded
the firewood, split the wood, stacked the wood, let the wood dry,
hauled the wood indoors, burned the wood, maintained his stove and
chimney, then hauled the ashes out......

all that hard work he would of done better working for minimum
wage.........

So you might want to factor in the health benefits of the exercise (I
do), the recreation aspect (I love being out in the woods, getting
exercise, communing with nature, etc).

his wood source was free, but the work wasnt.

he is back to using oil, and enjoying his summer having fun on weekends
rather than back breaking work........

I suggest that if his (or any one's) wood making is 'back breaking'
they should learn how to work smart. I am 71 with two artificial hips
and am currently working on finishing up my 10th cord for the summer.
Haven't noticed any problems with my back.

You have posted that same 'rant' (yes it is a rant) in the past. I
suspect you are trolling.

Harry K.

Harry K wrote:
wrote:
Been seeing 'free pallet' signs around here, and was thinking about
it.

later,

tom @ www.NoCostAds.com


My uncle used to resize old pallets for a specific customer.We heated with
the 6-12 inch pieces he had as scrap.It worked wonderfully.
most pallets are made of cheap pine, that leaves tons of creosote bad
chimney fire alert...

Wrong. At least from my experience. I have never burned them but the
ones I have cut up to get rid of were made of poor grade oak and
mahogany.

Pine does not 'leave tons of creasote'. That is an old wives tale
spread by people who have never burned wood or done any research.
Properly cured pine is no more dangerous that other wood and all it
needs is to maintain a clean chimney, just like all other woods.

I had a friend who bragged he heated his home with firewood and heck it
was FREE.

I asked him about the work, by the time he drove to the supply, cut the
trees down, cut the trees up, loaded the firewood, drove home, unloaded
the firewood, split the wood, stacked the wood, let the wood dry,
hauled the wood indoors, burned the wood, maintained his stove and
chimney, then hauled the ashes out......

all that hard work he would of done better working for minimum
wage.........

So you might want to factor in the health benefits of the exercise (I
do), the recreation aspect (I love being out in the woods, getting
exercise, communing with nature, etc).

his wood source was free, but the work wasnt.

he is back to using oil, and enjoying his summer having fun on weekends
rather than back breaking work........

I suggest that if his (or any one's) wood making is 'back breaking'
they should learn how to work smart. I am 71 with two artificial hips
and am currently working on finishing up my 10th cord for the summer.
Haven't noticed any problems with my back.

You have posted that same 'rant' (yes it is a rant) in the past. I
suspect you are trolling.

Harry K.


Hear, hear!

wrote:
I've been told that fireplaces are inefficient and in fact make things
worse since they suck hot air out of the house once you put the fire
out. But I heard that heating stoves help matters, like this one:

http://www.amazon.com/Vogelzang-Moun...8?ie=UTF8&s=hi

Please share your opinion.

Thanks

Aaron Fude

I've never got into the wood-burning thing, but I have a lot of
relatives that do and have done a bit of research from time to time.
Here's some miscellaneous information:

1. A good wood-burning stove probably has about the same efficiency as
most modern, gas-burning furnaces (~80%).
2. A cord of wood weighs about 2000 pounds. So, I assume that's
equivalent to about 2 pick-up loads.
3. Depending on the type of wood and how dry it is a cord of wood
contains anywhere from 12.1 (pine) to 24.6 (Hickory) million BTUs.
4. On my last gas bill I paid $8.52 per decatherm (DTH). A DTH equals 1
million BTUs. Therefore, a cord of wood is equivalent to about $103.00
to $210.00 worth of natural gas depending on what type of wood you use.

I pondered the same thought in 2004 when deciding how to better my
heating situation.
After weighing the costs and benefits, this is what I did:
1) Instead of putting in a gas or wood insert into the fireplace I just
plugged the fireplace with a chimney balloon. this kept cold air from
comming in throught the fireplace damper since I wasnt going to use it
anymore anyway. ($40)
2) I bought a 90% efficient power vent furnace and water heater.
($3,800 installed)
3) I caulked my windows and replaced the front door which leaked cold
air (Cost $120)

Comparing my next heating bill I figured I saved $350 over November -
December - January. (if I dont figure in the increase in heating gas
that happened in 05)

Overall, I am more inclined to look for ways to eliminate wasted heat
than look to get cheaper heat, but that is just me...

Jerry

German Jerry wrote:

Comparing my next heating bill I figured I saved $350 over November -
December - January. (if I dont figure in the increase in heating gas
that happened in 05)

Jerry


Wrong comparison. Use CCF or therms used instead. Then you can better
compare the amount of gas used.

That sucking air is a myth. A fireplace may not heat a whole house but
in a room that is occupied most often will save on heat costs as the
t-stat can be lowered and the chill will not be noticed. I wouldnt buy
a house without a fireplace.

wrote:
I've been told that fireplaces are inefficient and in fact make things
worse since they suck hot air out of the house once you put the fire
out. But I heard that heating stoves help matters, like this one:

http://www.amazon.com/Vogelzang-Moun...8?ie=UTF8&s=hi

Please share your opinion.

Thanks

Aaron Fude

Ok to me the long and short of it are as follows:

Do you want to be able to heat your home even without electricity? Are
you in an area that sometimes loses power? Wood or some gas stoves will
work for that.

Are you able to put wood/kindling in the firebox or would you rather
light a gas stove? (most gas stoves have peizo lighters that work with
the flick of a switch)

Is cheap or free wood available where you live (is [propane or natural]
gas available and how expensive is it?)

After considering all those questions, I opted for wood heat. I bought
an airtight wood stove that uses denser, outside air (does not draw
heated, less dense air in from the house) I have ready access to wood
and I feel it's good for me to cut and split it (kind of feels good
too, even though I have a bad back/neck it's satisfying on some level)
and when the power goes out we're still warm.

The only gas available here is propane and I estimated it takes about
1/2 gal of propane to heat my home for 2-3 hours. At around $2.00 a
gallon that would cost me about $3-4 per night or more if I used it
during the day as well. That could cost far more than wood - a half
cord ($35 here) lasts about 2-3 months. You do the math.

Jeff

wrote:
I've been told that fireplaces are inefficient and in fact make things
worse since they suck hot air out of the house once you put the fire
out. But I heard that heating stoves help matters, like this one:

http://www.amazon.com/Vogelzang-Moun...8?ie=UTF8&s=hi

Please share your opinion.

Thanks

Aaron Fude

wrote in message
ups.com...
That sucking air is a myth. A fireplace may not heat a whole house but
in a room that is occupied most often will save on heat costs as the
t-stat can be lowered and the chill will not be noticed. I wouldnt buy
a house without a fireplace.

Could you elaborate a bit?

Fires need oxygen to burn. Exhaust gasses are vented up an open chimney.
Make up air has to come in from some place. Sure some heat is radiated back
to the room, but how can you be sure that more is radiated back than goes up
the chimney? Keeping in mind that there is always an exception to any
"rule", and that generalities are generally wrong, perhaps a bit of
explanation would help here. Myth all the time? Some of the time? None of
the time?

Edwin Pawlowski wrote:
wrote in message
ups.com...
That sucking air is a myth. A fireplace may not heat a whole house but
in a room that is occupied most often will save on heat costs as the
t-stat can be lowered and the chill will not be noticed. I wouldnt buy
a house without a fireplace.

Could you elaborate a bit?

Fires need oxygen to burn. Exhaust gasses are vented up an open chimney.
Make up air has to come in from some place. Sure some heat is radiated back
to the room, but how can you be sure that more is radiated back than goes up
the chimney? Keeping in mind that there is always an exception to any
"rule", and that generalities are generally wrong, perhaps a bit of
explanation would help here. Myth all the time? Some of the time? None of
the time?



Testing a fireplace is relatively simple. On a
cold day with the house temperature around 70,
turn off your primary heating system, start your
furnace, monitor the change in temperature. Limit
the heating are by closing of the room(s) with the
fireplace. Compare with another test with similar
temperatures but don't run the fireplace.

We have a fireplace that was built with the wrong
dimensions and it sucked heat out of the house.
The solution was to add a glass fireplace screen.
No more negative effect. Added a heat exchanger
(basically a box with a fan and connecting tubes
to move room air through the heated box) and
efficiency was vastly increased. However the
fireplace was still a poor heater compared to our
wood stove.

Fires need oxygen to burn. Exhaust gasses are vented up an open chimney.
Make up air has to come in from some place. Sure some heat is radiated back
to the room, but how can you be sure that more is radiated back than goes up
the chimney? Keeping in mind that there is always an exception to any
"rule", and that generalities are generally wrong, perhaps a bit of
explanation would help here. Myth all the time? Some of the time? None of
the time?

If the house is at the same temperature as the outside, lighting
lighting a fire in the fireplace will make at least that room
warmer. Some heat will be radiated out the of the fireplace,
and not all of the air thus heated will be ejected up the chimney.

Cold air will be sucked in from outside to replace the exhausted
air, but that can't be colder than the room was to start.

If, on the other hand, the room is heated by some means other
than the fire, then the amount of heat needed to heat the
replacement air may exceed the amount of heat radiated into
the room. This depends on the temperature of the outside air,
of the pre-heated inside air, and on the design of the fireplace.

If your house is heated to the cannonical 72F, and the outside
temperature is below freezing, then running an open fireplace
is likely to be a net loss. Unless you've got a really big
fireplace.

A glass or even wire firplace screen can be used to restrict
the amount of air into the firebox to that needed to actually
run the fire, but most people aren't interested in doing that
much management.

of course, if you're designing your house, one of the easiest
ways to fix this problem is to supply the fireplace with
combustion/exhaust air from somewhere that's not in the
heating envelope. I don't know if you can do anything using
the ash-pit in fireplaces built with them or not.

--Goedjn

wrote:
That sucking air is a myth. A fireplace may not heat a whole house but
in a room that is occupied most often will save on heat costs as the
t-stat can be lowered and the chill will not be noticed. I wouldnt buy
a house without a fireplace.

Not a myth at all. At least in my personal experience. I installed a
Heatilator (tm) recirculating fireplace back when. On a cold, cold day
I had a fire going. Thermostat was off. Kept chucking wood in and
watching the thermometer. It kept going DOWN.

Fireplaces are good only for two things.

a. Romance.
b. Getting rid of firewood.

They are no good at all for heat other than directly in front of them.

Harry K

Well, suppose your fireplace puts out 60,000 BTU and your house is
losing 80,000 BTU.

You are using free firewood for 60 and the other 20 are being supplied
by your furnace. Lets see now, you're paying for 20 instead of 80. Is
that cheaper?

--

Christopher A. Young
You can't shout down a troll.
You have to starve them.
..

"Harry K" wrote in message
ups.com...


Not a myth at all. At least in my personal experience. I installed a
Heatilator (tm) recirculating fireplace back when. On a cold, cold
day
I had a fire going. Thermostat was off. Kept chucking wood in and
watching the thermometer. It kept going DOWN.

Fireplaces are good only for two things.

a. Romance.
b. Getting rid of firewood.

They are no good at all for heat other than directly in front of them.

Harry K

On Thu, 12 Oct 2006 14:58:03 GMT, "Stormin Mormon"
wrote:

Well, suppose your fireplace puts out 60,000 BTU and your house is
losing 80,000 BTU.

You are using free firewood for 60 and the other 20 are being supplied
by your furnace. Lets see now, you're paying for 20 instead of 80. Is
that cheaper?


Depends on what your house looses when you're NOT running the
fireplace. Or would loose, if you didn't have one which is
likely to be even less.

Goedjn wrote:
On Thu, 12 Oct 2006 14:58:03 GMT, "Stormin Mormon"
wrote:

Well, suppose your fireplace puts out 60,000 BTU and your house is
losing 80,000 BTU.

You are using free firewood for 60 and the other 20 are being supplied
by your furnace. Lets see now, you're paying for 20 instead of 80. Is
that cheaper?


Depends on what your house looses when you're NOT running the
fireplace. Or would loose, if you didn't have one which is
likely to be even less.

In my case. by shutting down the fireplace, the furnace could keep the
house warm. That was the last season I used that fireplace. Went to a
stove and kept the house toasty with almost no oil at all from then on.
Summary comes down to I was burning wood for a heat loss through the
fireplace, i.e., efficiently getting rid of firewood.

Harry K

On 10 Oct 2006 00:08:21 -0700, wrote:

-snip-
4. On my last gas bill I paid $8.52 per decatherm (DTH). A DTH equals 1
million BTUs. Therefore, a cord of wood is equivalent to about $103.00
to $210.00 worth of natural gas depending on what type of wood you use.

The *huge* variable everyone seems to miss in these 'scientific'
calculations is the efficiency with which a central heating unit
distributes the heat. First off- you have a thermostat that is
easily regulated - and little waste heat being created. [no 90degree
rooms- night or weekday setbacks]

Secondly, if done right a central heating system heats the outside
walls making the house feel comfortable at a lower temp. Not to
mention zoned heat or built in humidifiers.

If wood is free- a space heater might save some on heating. They are
handy to have in an emergency-- and they add to the ambiance. But if
you are buying wood- forget about it.

Jim

Jim Elbrecht wrote:
On 10 Oct 2006 00:08:21 -0700, wrote:

-snip-
4. On my last gas bill I paid $8.52 per decatherm (DTH). A DTH equals 1
million BTUs. Therefore, a cord of wood is equivalent to about $103.00
to $210.00 worth of natural gas depending on what type of wood you use.

The *huge* variable everyone seems to miss in these 'scientific'
calculations is the efficiency with which a central heating unit
distributes the heat. First off- you have a thermostat that is
easily regulated - and little waste heat being created. [no 90degree
rooms- night or weekday setbacks]

That's true. I never thought about that.


Secondly, if done right a central heating system heats the outside
walls making the house feel comfortable at a lower temp. Not to
mention zoned heat or built in humidifiers.

If wood is free- a space heater might save some on heating. They are
handy to have in an emergency-- and they add to the ambiance. But if
you are buying wood- forget about it.

Jim

I had an avid hunting friend years ago, that happened to mention that
hunters never kill porcupines, because if someone gets in trouble in
the wild, they are easy to get and could provide food in an emergency.

That's the way I've always felt about burning softwood. Why not save it
for a national emergency or something? You're probably losing money by
burning it anyway. On the otherhand, If you happen to already have a
wood-burning stove and if you happen to have a 3/4-ton truck and if it
happens to be empty and if you happen to be camped next to some good
hardwood and if it happens to be free for the taking, then it probably
makes a lot of sense to take it home and burn it.

That's a lot of "if's" though and I've always thought there are easier
ways to save money.