# how far into your pile are you?



## Rob_Red (Nov 30, 2021)

Tomorrow is December 1st and I've already burned a little over 1/4 cord. 1600 sf home with a <2 sf fire box stove, heating 100% with wood so far.

The weather for the foreseeable future is looking to be mostly in the mid/low 30's

Hows everyone else faring?


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## stoveliker (Nov 30, 2021)

I burned quite a bit less of my splits. I had quite a few uglies etc though (and a minisplit). Maybe 1/4 face cord of splits.
I am a bit hesitant given the predictions that the second half of the winter could be colder than normal (La Nina etc) in view of my limited supply.


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## MongoMongoson (Nov 30, 2021)

We have not had the furnace on yet.  We have hydronic heat...  a big old heated slab.  I have not been keeping track of wood consumption, but it seems high considering the relatively mild temperatures.  That is because we have the slab sucking up heat, I guess.  

We will be out of town this weekend, so we will have to turn on the floor heat.  Once the slab is warmed up, our wood consumption will drop significantly.


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## shortys7777 (Nov 30, 2021)

You probably live close to me and I'm guessing I've burned 1/8th of a cord. Have yet to turn the heat on either. I haven't had to keep it going 24/7 yet but I get some coals I can re light on. Wife and I are out of the house for work so I fire it back up around 4-5 most days. Load before bed then load before I leave for work so my house isn't in the 50s when I get home.


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## Sailrmike (Nov 30, 2021)

1/3 cord burned this year, more than expected for being so early in the season. 1/4 tank of oil too


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## GadDummit (Nov 30, 2021)

I'm only 1/3 of a RICK, so 1/9 of a cord. But it's only been cold 2 days this year and we were itching for that smoky feel to start the winter. Today is 73 degrees, tomorrow 75, then a real bad cold front comes through on Saturday that'll knock us down to 59. Anything below 60 degrees and, just like molasses, I get hard and freeze up. 
Then again, when it's 110 outside I'm going strong and making hay.


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## rottiman (Nov 30, 2021)

Rob_Red said:


> Tomorrow is December 1st and I've already burned a little over 1/4 cord. 1600 sf home with a <2 sf fire box stove, heating 100% with wood so far.
> 
> The weather for the foreseeable future is looking to be mostly in the mid/low 30's
> 
> Hows everyone else faring?



About  the same.  Went to full time burning on Nov. 19th.


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## ericm979 (Nov 30, 2021)

1/6 of a cord so far.

it's been weird weather- it was colder than usual and rained a lot in October, now in November it's warmer than usual and sunny.  Too warm to run the stove.  The fire season ending rain was welcome but we need more since it was so dry last year.


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## Caw (Nov 30, 2021)

I've burned about 1/2 a cord so far in Central MA. I heat my 1700 sq ft with 100% wood in a 1.85 cu ft Osburn 1600 insert. 

I could have used less wood but we've been enjoying it warm inside and I'm well ahead on wood so why not!


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## enordy (Nov 30, 2021)

Rob_Red said:


> Tomorrow is December 1st and I've already burned a little over 1/4 cord. 1600 sf home with a <2 sf fire box stove, heating 100% with wood so far.
> 
> The weather for the foreseeable future is looking to be mostly in the mid/low 30's
> 
> Hows everyone else faring?


Sounds about right - I'm a little more than that, but I started with tulip - warmed me up 3 times: once splitting it, once "constantly" bringing wheelbarrow loads into the garage, and once when I burned it 🤣


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## ABMax24 (Nov 30, 2021)

2/3 of a cord so far, would have been more but we spent the coldest week away while our newborn was in the NICU.


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## Grizzerbear (Nov 30, 2021)

Maybe a 1/4 of a cord if not a little less for probably 80% of our heating needs. If the heat pump kicks on when it's over 45 and I'm out of the house then so be it.  It has been pretty warm here this fall and the 7 day forecast is calling for more warm weather. Sure hope this weather pattern changes soon.


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## patrickk222 (Nov 30, 2021)

maybe a fifth of a cord


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## Rob_Red (Nov 30, 2021)

ABMax24 said:


> 2/3 of a cord so far, would have been more but we spent the coldest week away while our newborn was in the NICU.


Hope everything is ok


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## Rob_Red (Nov 30, 2021)

Caw said:


> I've burned about 1/2 a cord so far in Central MA. I heat my 1700 sq ft with 100% wood in a 1.85 cu ft Osburn 1600 insert.
> 
> I could have used less wood but we've been enjoying it warm inside and I'm well ahead on wood so why not!


Part of what I like about wood heat is being able to have a surplus and having more heat than we need without worry.


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## ABMax24 (Nov 30, 2021)

Rob_Red said:


> Hope everything is ok


Thanks. It should be.


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## Grizzerbear (Nov 30, 2021)

ABMax24 said:


> 2/3 of a cord so far, would have been more but we spent the coldest week away while our newborn was in the NICU.



Amazing work they do in the NICU. My sister had a daughter that was around 4 months premature. The diapers they used for her were smaller than a flip phone. She was on oxygen because her lungs weren't developed. She is a healthy 4 year old firecracker now. Just amazing what they can do. Hope all is well.


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## clancey (Nov 30, 2021)

Yea I was premature too just under 4 pounds and born at home and look at me now..old clancey


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## RandyBoBandy (Dec 1, 2021)

Sitting at 1/3 cord at the moment. I’m usually around 1/3 per month give or take.


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## firefighterjake (Dec 1, 2021)

I never really bother worrying about how much wood I use or have since I have several years worth of ready to burn wood every single year . . . but I would guess I have burned around a cord of wood this year -- mostly punks, chunks, uglies and pine.


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## GadDummit (Dec 1, 2021)

firefighterjake said:


> mostly punks, chunks, uglies and pine.


That sounds like the list of my highschool girlfriends.


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## Caw (Dec 1, 2021)

firefighterjake said:


> since I have several years worth of ready to burn wood every single year


It's a beautiful thing! I love being ahead. No stress about consumption during the the season. If you want heat, load'er up!


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## sweedish (Dec 3, 2021)

2 cords ish once I burn the stuff I brought in today. 2/3 of that is what I classify as “softwood” IE pine, boxelder, aspen, pin cherry. The other third is black cherry or better.


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## thewoodlands (Dec 3, 2021)

Five face cord of pine (started burning in Sept.) once the s/s wood was done we moved on to hardwood, when we're finished with the last of the rack we're burning from that will make one face cord of hardwood.

Last year we burned 50 bags of pellets, hopefully we're around that same number this year but if we go over that's fine, we started with 150 bags in stock at a local dealer so we're set for three years or a little less on the pellets.


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## JRHAWK9 (Dec 3, 2021)

Since you asked.  2,334lbs and 1,521 HDD's as of yesterday.


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## Gearhead660 (Dec 3, 2021)

Been burning nothing but uglies.  Gone through 3 bins so far, about .5 cord I would guess.   Only 1 bin left then into the good splits.  Heating a big ol farm house.


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## ozarkoak (Dec 5, 2021)

Hardly anything has been burned in my stove yet. Just a few fireboxes full. I have not even got to the uglies yet.  Most of my uglies are pretty large knotty stuff and it really has not been cold enough for that yet. Supposed to cool down the next few day but warm up again by the end of the week. I'm not sad about my wood saving so far this year.


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## firefighterjake (Dec 6, 2021)

Checked my oil tank this past weekend . . . I may not know exactly how much wood I have burned, but I can tell you I have only burned 19 gallons of heating oil so far this year.


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## BigJ273 (Dec 6, 2021)

Not far at all. 63 here today.


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## hedge wood (Dec 6, 2021)

My season started in May this year with the Garn  after a leak repair. I have burned about three full cord of mostly hedge for domestic and heating the house. Haven't turned the floor or the air handler on in the shop yet. Probably going to need some heat in the shop this week.


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## HandSplit (Dec 6, 2021)

Rob_Red said:


> Tomorrow is December 1st and I've already burned a little over 1/4 cord. 1600 sf home with a <2 sf fire box stove, heating 100% with wood so far.
> 
> The weather for the foreseeable future is looking to be mostly in the mid/low 30's
> 
> Hows everyone else faring?


Same area of the country and I got through about 1/4 cord into my stack. I have a 2000 sq ft home, but only burn weekends and night time. I use the oil heat during the day.


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## syd3006 (Dec 6, 2021)

Was cold today about -7 Fahrenheit, got about 8" - 10" of snow  yesterday so I spent a few hours plowing snow. I have my wood separated in the shed so have fall and spring wood and colder season wood piled separately. In total I have probably burned about 2/3s of a cord of wood.


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## KindredSpiritzz (Dec 7, 2021)

Probably burned 1/2 a cord so far. Used my gas furnace some in early Nov to conserve some wood


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## BrownT10 (Dec 14, 2021)

I am probably close to 3/4 cord, maybe a little less. I heat from the basement so will naturally burn more often than other during warmer days but I thought I would use less wood with this new EPA stove, however it is the opposite. Not because it is inefficient, but because it is basically running nonstop with a day off here and there. Cold starting the Defiant everyday, and getting it up to temp and then leaving wasn't practical so I often wouldn't bother until I got home. Now I have coals left in the morning and reload. Needless to say I am not saving on wood, but I am ok with that with propane at $3.95/gallon on my last delivery, which should last until next summer at least. I may be short of wood this year but I have already been preparing for the next couple of years with a bigger supply. Live and learn.


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## velvetfoot (Dec 14, 2021)

About 1/2 cord of about 4 cords stored in the garage.


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## EbS-P (Dec 15, 2021)

Not very far at all.  it’s 67 outside now.    No cold weather in the forecast here.


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## MEngineer24 (Dec 15, 2021)

Not as far as I figured I’d be by this point. Maybe ran 3/4th of a cord through the stove this season. This cyclical weather has really saved me some. Figuring on colder weather starting in January though.


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## bigealta (Dec 15, 2021)

Mostly the shorts and uglies on top of the stacks. Had enough shorts to do a few North South loads in the jotul f400. About 8 Inch long shorts and chunks. They burned great so will be burning NS with shorts in the future rather than chucking them in randomly on established coals.


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## NewGuy132 (Dec 16, 2021)

If I were to guess probably a little more than 1/3 of a cord and 1/4 of a tank of oil.  I am out of the house during he day so I'm just burning nights and weekends.  It's been a fairly warm winter here so far.  High of nearly 60 today.


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## osagebow (Dec 16, 2021)

Very slow start here in western VA. mayyybe 1/3 cord. That's pushing it.


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## ABMax24 (Dec 16, 2021)

I'm at 1-1/3 cords, the cold weather has really set in now, we are going to be getting close to -40 tonight.


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## Diabel (Dec 16, 2021)

ABMax24 said:


> I'm at 1-1/3 cords, the cold weather has really set in now, we are going to be getting close to -40 tonight.


Wow -40! It was +16C in Ottawa today. And look what is going on in the US. Crazy weather times for sure.


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## MissMac (Dec 16, 2021)

Less than 1/4 of a cord for sure, but about 150 gal of propane.  Been mostly furnace up until a few weeks ago.


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## rottiman (Dec 16, 2021)

Between 1/2 & 3/4 of a cord.  According to the weather forecast here it will start picking up shortly though.  We had record high temp here today.  Front is going thru right now and the temp has dropped 5 degrees in the last 45 minutes.  Was 58 here today and supposed to drop down to 25 later tonight.


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## Dobish (Dec 20, 2021)

1/4 cord max... its been way to warm here lately!


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## Riff (Dec 21, 2021)

A little under a third of a cord. Been warm enough that even my cold hating wife hasn't asked as often for a fire.


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## WoodBurnerInWI (Dec 21, 2021)

In my wood shed bins, all 8 of them still have some amount of wood in them with 6 still being 100% full (and also full of wood that is not ready yet). Bin #1 and #5 are the two currently being worked on and just recently bin #5 the front stack of wood has been used which is probably about .5 cords. So I would estimate so far 1 full cord of split wood has been burned just using the splits from bin #1 and #5, going 24 hrs a day since Halloween with a few random shut downs due to too warm of outside temps. I couldn't tell you cord wise the amount of shorts, uglies, etc I have but still have a decent pile of them left on my pallets and I try and use them when the least amount of heat would be needed. For the rest of this winter I have nearly 2 cords of hickory that needs to go and after that I have 2 cords worth of ash I can dig into if need be and would be ok to burn. After that it would be oak, elm, and locust all of which I want to burn starting next winter. So basically I need to stock up heavily on ash as soon as bin #1 or #5 is empty. I can move my locust into there and then have 2 10 ft pallets open to new logs, hopefully this will occur by Feb at the latest.


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## Tbleppy (Dec 23, 2021)

already burned through it 
living in mountains with two woodstoves
one for upper floor one for lower floor
have tons of manzanita and have some oak
collecting since july into a shed and just ran out a few days ago
been collecting again although its now wet wood


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## rottiman (Feb 23, 2022)

Closing in on the 1st of March and I am right around the 3 cord mark for the season thus far.  I usually burn 24/7 till the 1st of April before switching over to propane.  How is everyone else making out on the consumption so far ?


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## Ashful (Feb 23, 2022)

About 6.5 cords down, another 3.5 to go, before I turn my attention from firewood to mulch and turf.


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## rottiman (Feb 23, 2022)

Ashful said:


> About 6.5 cords down, another 3.5 to go, before I turn my attention from firewood to mulch and turf.


Wow.......... I have never burned that much up here in Ontario.  Have you burned that much or do you mean processing 10 cords?


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## stoveliker (Feb 23, 2022)

I am about 5 face cord in (and about half of one face cord in uglies). They were about 17" long, so in total nearly 2 cords.
For 1700 sqft. Other than the minisplit that I use when it is above 40 F for 24 hrs or more this has been the only heat source this year. No oil.


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## rottiman (Feb 23, 2022)

stoveliker said:


> I am about 5 face cord in (and about half of one face cord in uglies). They were about 17" long, so in total nearly 2 cords.
> For 1700 sqft. Other than the minisplit that I use when it is above 40 F for 24 hrs or more this has been the only heat source this year. No oil.


No one in this area measures in face cords for the most part.  Bush cord (128 cu ft) is the more common sizing.


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## stoveliker (Feb 23, 2022)

A bush cord is a cord. Hence my mention of both quantities.


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## Gearhead660 (Feb 23, 2022)

Around 3-3.5 cord so far.  On course to hit normal amount in a heating season.  Odd since I have been having 2 fires going and been working from home this year.


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## Tar12 (Feb 23, 2022)

2.5 cord so far..it will end up being 3 cord or a little over by the time its all said and done..


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## all night moe (Feb 23, 2022)

I was doing well until I had shut down the stove.

Now I have to use the wood furnace for the remaining season. The wood I have left was for a conventional stove. For the furnace, it's a fart in the wind.


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## kennyp2339 (Feb 23, 2022)

2 and 1/4 cords burnt, average between 3.5 to 4 cords per burning season.


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## mcdougy (Feb 23, 2022)

2.5 cord thus far between house and shop. Seems like a normal year consumption wise.


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## Caw (Feb 23, 2022)

I'm around 2.75-3 cords burned so far this season...counting the 5 days worth I brought in the basement today. Hard to be exact as my first stack wasn't quite full. I plan on 4 cords +/- 0.5 per season so it's going to end up being a light year barring any crazy March weather.


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## Ashful (Feb 24, 2022)

rottiman said:


> Wow.......... I have never burned that much up here in Ontario.  Have you burned that much or do you mean processing 10 cords?


Burned.  I burn up to 10 cords per year.

I processed another 12 cords over the last year, filling up some new sheds.  I had let my stock get lower than usual during the super rainy and muddy years of 2018/19, and while I planned and built a new storage system.  I used to keep roughly 30 cords stacked on two rows of pallets totaling 250 feet long x 3' wide x 5' high, but I'm aiming to hover closer to 20 cords in the future with a combination of reduced usage and dryer storage (so hopefully less time CSS'd).


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## NewGuy132 (Feb 24, 2022)

Did some work on my stacks yesterday and I'd say I'm right around a cord, maybe just over a cord.  Just using the stove to supplement, I've still used a few hundred gallons of oil.


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## zmender (Feb 24, 2022)

About 350gal of oil and 2 cords of wood since November. I think long term answer is better insulation in the house.


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## NewGuy132 (Feb 24, 2022)

zmender said:


> About 350gal of oil and 2 cords of wood since November. I think long term answer is better insulation in the house.


Yes insulation would help me out greatly.  Also an appropriately sized stove.  If I were to guess I am closer to 400 gallons since Nov.  I did just over 1000 gallons in the 2020 calendar year.  I started burning late 2020 so I am looking forward to the totals for 2021.  Not looking forward to the $4 a gallon for oil though.


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## zmender (Feb 24, 2022)

It's getting ugly with oil at 3.5~3.9 per gallon - 400~500 per month in oil and another 150-200 in wood is getting very painful. Between August and Nov when heat was off I went through about 220 gallons - still that's a 70gal/month baseline even with heating being minimal. Something isn't quite right.


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## kennyp2339 (Feb 24, 2022)

zmender said:


> It's getting ugly with oil at 3.5~3.9 per gallon - 400~500 per month in oil and another 150-200 in wood is getting very painful. Between August and Nov when heat was off I went through about 220 gallons - still that's a 70gal/month baseline even with heating being minimal. Something isn't quite right.


For sure, residential hot water only shouldnt be more then 3/4 gal a day in the summer, my average is less then 1/3 a gal a day for domestic hot water, granted my holding take is insualted and will hold 165-170deg water for 18hrs @ 55gal if I remember correctly.


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## Ashful (Feb 24, 2022)

kennyp2339 said:


> For sure, residential hot water only shouldnt be more then 3/4 gal a day in the summer, my average is less then 1/3 a gal a day for domestic hot water, granted my holding take is insualted and will hold 165-170deg water for 18hrs @ 55gal if I remember correctly.


I think holding losses are usually pretty low, unless tank is in cold space.  Fuel consumption should be almost entirely dependent on number of users, with slight adjustment for long uninsulated pipe runs. 

Last I checked, our consumption was right around 1.0 gallons per day, household of four. 

Will check my heating oil usage for the year later tonight, I’ve been getting lazy on tracking it, the last two years.


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## NewGuy132 (Feb 24, 2022)

zmender said:


> It's getting ugly with oil at 3.5~3.9 per gallon - 400~500 per month in oil and another 150-200 in wood is getting very painful. Between August and Nov when heat was off I went through about 220 gallons - still that's a 70gal/month baseline even with heating being minimal. Something isn't quite right.


That seems a little high for off months. Last year was our first summer in the house and we got our last delivery in April or May and didn’t get another one until October. Even at that point they called me to ask if I was sure that our hot water used oil (it does). It was a brand new tank when we moved in so maybe the seller got a good insulated one. 

Just got an oil delivery last week. $4.29 a gallon.


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## JamesGuido (Feb 24, 2022)

only wet (18-24%) left... 
had another cord brought in... filthy dirty bottom of the pile mixed hards... 
also have some old apple laying around that was never used for smoking... been burning that inside when i've been outside to take in the sweet aroma...

hopefully, i'll make it thru with this dirty wood.


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## weatherguy (Feb 24, 2022)

I've burned a little over 2 cords and a half tank of oil, oil is for hot water also. I usually end up burning 4 cords and I think I'm a little below that pace this year. I have 3 cords seasoned so I'm good the rest of the year.


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## bigealta (Feb 24, 2022)

Lost track but filling stacks back faster than depleting them so that's good.


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## mcdougy (Feb 24, 2022)

FWIW household of 4 here consumes aprox 3/4 to 1 gallon of propane a day for hot water.Its a  Condensing 50gal tank . We don't use the full 400 gallon propane tank within a year thus far. Wood does the entire heat load. Wife likes to use hot water for washing machine and there seems to be a load going nonstop. 4 showers a day and 1 load of dishes.


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## Ashful (Feb 24, 2022)

Just pulled the records.  I'm right around 64 - 66% of our yearly consumption on all fuels as of today, having to make some rough guesses on use since last bill on each.  Our yearly consumption averages:

10 cords red oak (full cords)
970 gallons #2 heating oil
80 gallons LPG
19,340 kWh

The kWh figure includes lighting and cooling, I haven't spent the time to separate out what fraction of that goes toward heating.


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## MMH (Feb 25, 2022)

We’ve had a very mild winter here. I’m a little over half through my pine stack (2.1 cord stack), and half a face cord of mahogany. I also burnt a bit of red elm which I wasn’t keeping track of but it was a very low amount burned this year. We’re usually burning 24/7 by late October-early November and this last season we didn’t start until December.


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## sweedish (Mar 14, 2022)

About 7 cords


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## sweedish (Mar 14, 2022)

sweedish said:


> About 7 cords


More than last year, but about the same as previous year. Been colder this year, a lot thicker ice on the lake than last year.


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## stoveliker (Mar 15, 2022)

About 1 and 3/4 of a cord. And no oil used (said he, foolishly determined for this year). I did use solar electrons on the minisplit when it was above 40 F for more than 24 hours.


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## NickW (Mar 15, 2022)

Rough guess about 4 cord including what's been taken up to the northwoods because my wood up there was iffy.

Consumption is slowing down with the longer warmer days. Electric bill is way down all winter from any other year thanks to better seasoned wood and the flue probe 😁. Home is 2400' with electric baseboard heat, Dec & Jan electric bills were both only about $200 and are usually closer to $300... Feb was under $120 and is usually over $200! electric baseboards, water heater, clothes dryer, stove, 2 freezers, 2 fridges, hot tub...!

Last year was the first full season with the new stove and used 3 7/8 cord total (2 3/4 hardwood, 1 1/8 softwood). This year is more of a guess as the wife & boys filled the garage wood storage area so I never got an accurate measurement and hauling some up north. Feel like it's comparable usage.


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## Ashful (Mar 15, 2022)

NickW said:


> Last year was the first full season with the new stove and used 3 7/8 cord total (2 3/4 hardwood, 1 1/8 softwood). This year is more of a guess as the wife & boys filled the garage wood storage area so I never got an accurate measurement and hauling some up north. Feel like it's comparable usage.


Glad it's working out for you.  That's the type of success story we all love reading.

But when you're quoting usage to within ±1/8 cord, it makes me wonder how you get so accurate.  Even my "10 cords" estimate could be off more than a cord, as I lose at least that much volume from my stacks in 3 years of drying.  Put otherwise, I might split 11 cords to end up with less than 10, at the end of three year's drying.  Sometimes I'll call that "11 cords", other times "10 cords", it depends on whether I was more recently looking at new or old stacks.

My old stacks were all 6 feet high, as tall as me standing on the pallets upon which I stacked them.  But by the time I use the wood three years later, I could see over the piles, and my eyeballs are not on top of my head.

So, aside from the "green cords" vs. "dry cords" question, how on earth are you measuring to ±1/8 cord accuracy, over a span of nearly 4 cords?


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## NickW (Mar 15, 2022)

Stacks are measured after stacking outside for my "original" count. In fall when moved inside the garage I have marks in my storage area indicating how much is in each side.

For example... I just finished css some softwood. 2 rows of 16" splits 4.25' x 28', so 4.25x28x2÷4÷8=7.4375 face cord÷3=2.4792 full cord. I get between 1 3/4 & 2 cord (depending on who stacks how high...) in the softwood storage side. 

Now.... I might get it all in at the 2 cord mark. My sons and wife might get to the 2 cord mark and still have 1/2 cord outside...😉

I might have to go check next time I'm back home to see how much smaller my older stacks are compared to when they were green.


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## NickW (Mar 15, 2022)

And.... for those who insist on arguing there is no such thing as a "face cord"... if you had 18" lengths instead of 16" lengths, the stack would be 2.789 cords (dimensions÷16"x18" or ÷1.3333×1.5). Or 20" lengths would be 3.099 cords (dimensions÷16"×20" or ÷1.3333×1.66667).

🤣🤣🤣🤣


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## Bobbob (Mar 15, 2022)

I have used about 3.5 cords of mostly silver maple. Down about 3 cords since changing out the Hitzer 983 for a Buck model 81.  What a difference! Instead of being a year ahead on my stash I'm instantly 2 years ahead. My back thanks me😁


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## kennyp2339 (Mar 15, 2022)

Under 3 cords so far, stove is going cold from now till the foreseeable future due to temps in the low 60's and higher now, maybe just small fires for rain days here on out (hopefully) It was a cold and fairly snowless winter here, yet my wood usage has dropped again. Crazy to think because we had some thick ice on the lakes this year 13" was the thickest which is sort of unheard of in NWNJ, the little bit of snow we did have, did stick around for about 9 weeks which is also pretty good.


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## Ashful (Mar 16, 2022)

NickW said:


> And.... for those who insist on arguing there is no such thing as a "face cord"...


I don’t think anyone’s arguing that there’s no such thing as a face cord.  The trouble is, it’s a measure of area (32 sq.ft.), whereas a cord is a measure of volume.  There’s no guarantee of the volume of wood being discussed, when using “face cords”, which is why it is outlawed as a unit of measure for the sake of firewood in many states.


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## NickW (Mar 16, 2022)

Ashful said:


> I don’t think anyone’s arguing that there’s no such thing as a face cord.  The trouble is, it’s a measure of area (32 sq.ft.), whereas a cord is a measure of volume.  There’s no guarantee of the volume of wood being discussed, when using “face cords”, which is why it is outlawed as a unit of measure for the sake of firewood in many states.


Was attempting to be amusing... I personally find some of the arguments about face cords funny and was anticipating someone arguing my calculations because I get to face cords and divide by 3.


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## kennyp2339 (Mar 16, 2022)

NickW said:


> Was attempting to be amusing... I personally find some of the arguments about face cords funny and was anticipating someone arguing my calculations because I get to face cords and divide by 3.


Thats how I think of it, also its a geographical thing, upper mid west and central Canada does a lot of measurements by face cord or bush cord, out in the East we primarily use the term full cord in our descriptions. No big deal in my book.


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## MissMac (Mar 17, 2022)

I think i'm somewhere around 2 cords in, and 200 gal of propane.  Lots of wood to keep me going for the rest of the heating season - certainly don't plan on blowing through much propane if I can help it.  That stuff ain't getting any cheaper!


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## zmender (Mar 18, 2022)

Probably 2.5-3 cords, plus maybe 500lbs of biobricks, plus about 300-400gals of oil since November. First year in the house and spending a lot of time figuring out optimum way to heat.

I'll end season with about 1~1.5 cords of wood remaining .. need to take in about 3~5 cords of wood in spring to get ready for upcoming 2 years.


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## 2drx4 (Mar 21, 2022)

She's done as of tomorrow.  I brought the last of the wood in last night and will only have enough for one more burn.

So that's about 4 cords.  I guess I need 5 or 6 for next year if I want to have almost zero use of the NG furnace.


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## Caw (Mar 21, 2022)

I've used about 3 cords in the house and another 0.25 cords ish through the evaporator this season. Almost exclusively red maple this year with a little bit of oak/ash mixed in. Overall it was a very light season. I have enough left in my basement stack for the last few fires of the season here (included as burned already in my above estimate). Stove has been cold all week but I think we'll have a few overnight fires this week as a few of the nights are dipping back to 28-32 degree range then we'll call it a season. Sweep coming out mid April for the annual cleaning. 

Total usage: 3 cords for heat, 0.25 cords for maple syrup. Ended up with about 80 oz of the sweet stuff!


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## mynx (Mar 23, 2022)

I have burned just about 10.5 full cords, and still burning…… It’s still getting down into the 20s at night :-(


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## Ashful (Mar 23, 2022)

mynx said:


> I have burned just about 10.5 full cords, and still burning…… It’s still getting down into the 20s at night :-(


That's a lot of wood, esp. considering it's only March.  What are you burning it in?


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## Isaac Carlson (Mar 24, 2022)

I think we have burned around 6-6.5 cord.  Most of it was silver maple, so it went fast.


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## Ashful (Mar 24, 2022)

Isaac Carlson said:


> I think we have burned around 6-6.5 cord.  Most of it was silver maple, so it went fast.


I have several absolutely enormous silver maple trees across my rear property line.  At some point, one or two of them will surely die of old age, so I was wondering how they'd burn.  So far, the only things coming off of them had been either due to rot or infestation, and not worth splitting and stacking.

They do grow impressively large.  I'm guessing some of these are nearly 5 feet diameter and 150+ feet tall.  They're 2x - 3x taller than all the surrounding walnuts, ash, and evergreens.


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## SpaceBus (Mar 24, 2022)

This year we added a portable AC/heating unit (heat pump) and that has really cut back on our wood consumption and I no longer have to get up in the night to load stoves. Usually we burn four cords a winter, but we are down to just under three cords this season, which has ben admittedly mild overall even with some cold snaps. Not only did we burn less wood overall, nearly two whole cords were slab wood. I'm happy to be burning cordwood again!


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## stoveliker (Mar 24, 2022)

Why do you not like slab wood?


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## SpaceBus (Mar 24, 2022)

stoveliker said:


> Why do you not like slab wood?


It can be tricky to load into my stoves. Slabs are easy to pack too tightly preventing enough air between fuel for a good burn, or on the other hand they can be too loose and burn too fast. Most slabs are fairly thin, flat, and wide, and makes it tricking for a good hot reload, at least with my cookstove. I do split the big slab chunks from the butts of the logs, and sometimes I will resplit them with a hatchet when it's time to load. Cord wood is just better fuel, but the slabs do dry very fast, especially CSS in a shed.


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## mynx (Mar 24, 2022)

Ashful said:


> That's a lot of wood, esp. considering it's only March.  What are you burning it in?


You’re telling me it’s a lot of wood! I heat about 4000 ft.² of house and a 700 square-foot shop exclusively with wood. I have a Garn 2000 boiler. While my house is very well insulated and I have great windows, it gets really cold here and my house is exposed to a lot of wind


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## Ashful (Mar 24, 2022)

mynx said:


> You’re telling me it’s a lot of wood! I heat about 4000 ft.² of house and a 700 square-foot shop exclusively with wood. I have a Garn 2000 boiler. While my house is very well insulated and I have great windows, it gets really cold here and my house is exposed to a lot of wind


I'm always interested to see the processing, moving, loading processes of others who are using this much wood.  You're actually a bit ahead of me, I had been averaging 10 cords per season between two wood stoves, but have started scaling back on running the second stove.  Hauling that much wood up a flight of stairs and thru a very long house gets tiring, after more than a decade of doing it, especially with knees complaining more each year from over-use/abuse.  I assume you can load the boiler from outside or walk-out access to the firewood?

I believe I'm getting close to 60% of my heat from wood, but I don't keep enough data on electric usage to really nail that down.  I know I use about 10 cords of hardwood + 1000 gallons of heating oil, and estimating these make about 60% and 30% of my total BTU's, with an approximate remainder of 10% being a few minisplit systems and random electric baseboards.  My climate is milder, my average January lows are 2F above yours, but my space is larger and likely less efficient.  I'm burning primarily red oak, the last several years, but now starting to get into some piles of shagbark hickory and ash collected in more recent years.


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## bigealta (Mar 24, 2022)

Hard to track as i have a bunch of small stacks vs long, easy to keep track of, stacks. Guess about 3 cords plus or minus 1/2 cord, and just under 100 gal. oil. Plus A bit of electric oil filled plug in radiator to keep basement warm enough in 1 area to keep pipes from freezing. 

Will be doing "inventory" of current stacks, about 90% filled now, to see if i'm good for year 2, or possibly even year 3. (Ha...Good luck with that)

90% oak


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## bigealta (Mar 24, 2022)

Got lucky walking the dog the other day. Guy down the street was putting out Oak splits dry and ready to burn at the street. I walked home as fast as i could. Dog was like what's up dude? Got back there fast and ended up with the CRV 3/4 full with red and white oak splits. Stacked them right outside our load in door/room. Burning it now. Should be enough to finish off the season.


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## mynx (Mar 24, 2022)

Ashful said:


> I'm always interested to see the processing, moving, loading processes of others who are using this much wood.  You're actually a bit ahead of me, I had been averaging 10 cords per season between two wood stoves, but have started scaling back on running the second stove.  Hauling that much wood up a flight of stairs and thru a very long house gets tiring, after more than a decade of doing it, especially with knees complaining more each year from over-use/abuse.  I assume you can load the boiler from outside or walk-out access to the firewood?
> 
> I believe I'm getting close to 60% of my heat from wood, but I don't keep enough data on electric usage to really nail that down.  I know I use about 10 cords of hardwood + 1000 gallons of heating oil, and estimating these make about 60% and 30% of my total BTU's, with an approximate remainder of 10% being a few minisplit systems and random electric baseboards.  My climate is milder, my average January lows are 2F above yours, but my space is larger and likely less efficient.  I'm burning primarily red oak, the last several years, but now starting to get into some piles of shagbark hickory and ash collected in more recent years.


I am getting much more efficient in my wood handling.  Most of my wood comes as a log truck load of logs that are off-loaded in an easily accessible location.  For aesthetic reasons it is a distance from my storage crib.  I cut and split enough (27 ton splitter from TSC) to fill my Gator 6x4 and drive that back to the wood crib and stack it.  Was, rinse, repeat.  From there it is easy.  My boiler is in an insulated heated room in my shop, which is 10 feet from the storage.  I raise the overhead  door, roll my Rubbermaid cart out, fill it up, and roll it back in.  If it’s super cold that gives me wood for one day (2 burns); in warmer weather (in 30’sF) 3 days (1 fire per day).  Bringing this small batch of wood in lets it warm up before burning (every little bit helps)

I am still new to this “heating with wood” thing and figuring out my consumption.  My wood early in the season was still a bit wet - 25-28% MC - so 10.5 cords is probably on the high side of my true need


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## Stearn786 (Mar 24, 2022)

Think I've used about 6 cord so far, and 40 bags of pellets. Oil usage is minimal is my house tho, only runs during the day while I'm at work. And we keep it at 70-72 all the time when we're home. Normal winter is usually 7-8 cord, so we're about on track


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## Isaac Carlson (Mar 24, 2022)

Ashful said:


> I have several absolutely enormous silver maple trees across my rear property line.  At some point, one or two of them will surely die of old age, so I was wondering how they'd burn.  So far, the only things coming off of them had been either due to rot or infestation, and not worth splitting and stacking.
> 
> They do grow impressively large.  I'm guessing some of these are nearly 5 feet diameter and 150+ feet tall.  They're 2x - 3x taller than all the surrounding walnuts, ash, and evergreens.


They burn well, no complaints there.  You can light it with a match.  It just doesn't have much for btu's, so you burn more of it, which means more processing/moving.  It's great for spring/fall and for making bbq.


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## mynx (Mar 24, 2022)

zmender said:


> Probably 2.5-3 cords, plus maybe 500lbs of biobricks, plus about 300-400gals of oil since November. First year in the house and spending a lot of time figuring out optimum way to heat.
> 
> I'll end season with about 1~1.5 cords of wood remaining .. need to take in about 3~5 cords of wood in spring to get ready for upcoming 2 years.


Doing some rough math, 1 cord of oak/maple = approx 170 gal heating oil ( 24 million btu/cord for oak, 139000 btu/gal oil


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## bigealta (Mar 24, 2022)

mynx said:


> Doing some rough math, 1 cord of oak/maple = approx 170 gal heating oil ( 24 million btu/cord for oak, 139000 btu/gal oil



That puts a cord worth around $765 (170X $4.50per gallon)


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## Ashful (Mar 24, 2022)

mynx said:


> Doing some rough math, 1 cord of oak/maple = approx 170 gal heating oil ( 24 million btu/cord for oak, 139000 btu/gal oil


That's pretty close to the estimate I've been using, assuming stove average efficiency is not far from the oil-fired boiler or furnace.


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## mynx (Mar 24, 2022)

bigealta said:


> That puts a cord worth around $765 (170X $4.50per gallon)


I figure it takes me eight hours to cut the split and stack a full cord. Even if I charge myself $50 an hour for labor, and $100 per cord for the logs I come out way ahead. I almost $4000 ahead.


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## Isaac Carlson (Mar 25, 2022)

I can't justify buying propane, oil, or electric for heating when we can heat with wood for less than $100 a year, all costs included.


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## Ashful (Mar 25, 2022)

mynx said:


> I figure it takes me eight hours to cut the split and stack a full cord. Even if I charge myself $50 an hour for labor, and $100 per cord for the logs I come out way ahead. I almost $4000 ahead.



This is why you always see me arguing with people, in those rare threads where someone claims you can't save any money by burning wood.  I save literally many thousands of dollars per year, having paid for the cost of two somewhat expensive BK's  inside of a single year.

Here's one of the more recent amusing posts, on the subject:






						Number of older stoves vs EPA in U.S.
					

I know a few people who had old stoves, then upgraded to something EPA hated it went back and will never buy a new stove.   Can’t blame ‘em.  Throw a bunch of 30” logs in a massive firebox walk away do it again tomorrow.  We have them here too. It wouldn't surprise me if half of the stove still...




					www.hearth.com


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## stoveliker (Mar 25, 2022)

Ashful said:


> Here's one of the more recent amusing posts, on the subject:
> 
> 
> 
> ...



The funny thing in that thread is that if he uses 2 cords of wood which would amount to a gas bill of less than 750, his efficiency in wood burning is very low and he does not realize that...


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## Ashful (Mar 25, 2022)

stoveliker said:


> The funny thing in that thread is that if he uses 2 cords of wood which would amount to a gas bill of less than 750, his efficiency in wood burning is very low and he does not realize that...


Excellent  point.  Of course, that didn't stop him from arguing on behalf of his vast experience on the subject.


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## zmender (Mar 25, 2022)

I came across this website for calculating $/BTU:






						Fuel Cost Calculator-Biomass Fuel Cost Calculator -
					

A simple biomass fuel cost calculator to calculate your fuel needs and biomass fuel savings. It can be used for cord wood, wood pellets and wood chips.




					woodboilers.com


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## mynx (Mar 25, 2022)

Isaac Carlson said:


> I can't justify buying propane, oil, or electric for heating when we can heat with wood for less than $100 a year, all costs included.


$100/yr is impressive.  When i count fuel and oil for the chainsaws, utv and tractor, depreciation, repairs, etc, its a lot more than $100.  While it’s not directly analogous, my cost of operation for my 100 hp tractor  is about $40/hr


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## stoveliker (Mar 25, 2022)

I also count the obviated need for gym membership cost ( splitting by hand)  :D 

(I don't count anything as I am not doing the calculation. Addictions don't need financial justification ;-)  )


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## Ashful (Mar 25, 2022)

mynx said:


> $100/yr is impressive.  When i count fuel and oil for the chainsaws, utv and tractor, depreciation, repairs, etc, its a lot more than $100.  While it’s not directly analogous, my cost of operation for my 100 hp tractor  is about $40/hr


I agree with your sentiment, on everything but the tractor.  I've not owned a tractor yet, that I've not sold for at least what I put into it.  What's lost is the value of inflation, if I buy a tractor for $10k in 1990 and sell it for $10k in 2010, I'm not entirely re-couping $10k in 1990's dollars.  But the fact remains, I've never sold a tractor for less than 95% of what I paid for it, whether buying new or used.


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## NickW (Mar 25, 2022)

That sounds like the justification I need with the wife to go get some more equipment...


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## DonTee (Apr 1, 2022)

I was close to using all my seasoned wood this winter. I had 10 face cords, and I’m burning the last one now. I figure I’ll still have small fires until it’s above freezing at night consistently. 

The woodstove is my only heat source right now. I agree about saving a lot of money burning wood. I have some acreage, and cut all my own firewood. 

I have a diesel Ford 3000 tractor. I can idle that thing through the woods all day pulling firewood. It’s pretty decent on fuel. I have a Farmi winch on it, and usually fill the loader bucket up with limb wood, and pull a few logs out behind me. 

I spend 100-200$ per year on fuel for the tractor/chainsaw/splitter, and other supplies.  

I couldn’t imagine cutting wood without a tractor. But I know some people who just use a 4 wheeler with a trailer. And that seems to work just fine too. 

The best thing about hearing with wood is you can make the house hot and not feel bad about it. My house usually stays at 70-78 degrees in winter. I can’t imagine how much it would cost to keep it at those temps with propane or kero.


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## Ashful (Apr 1, 2022)

Ford 3000, ye say?







That was my cutting partner hauling some of my drops out of the woods.  We put a lot of miles on that old Ford.  He passed away in 2020.


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## DonTee (Apr 2, 2022)

Here’s a pic of mine from last summer. I’ve had her for just over ten years. Got it from a family friend who bought it new. The hour meter shows 2500 hours, but it stopped working over 20 years ago I was told. 

The engine has not been rebuilt. It has a little blow by but not too bad. I keep up with the maintenance on it.


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## kennyp2339 (Apr 2, 2022)

Alright, so I burnt 2 3/4 cords worth of wood that was allocated for this year in my shed, (1) full bay which was 2 full cords and (1) row of another identical 3 row bay, I have since switched over to uglies to have night fires, although I'm burning 24/7 prob 4 more days then def switching over to evenings and nights only since daytime temps are now hitting in the 50's pretty easy and I have a good sun angle for radiant gain during the day. 
+1 on the equipment, years back I bought a sub-compact tractor, then upgraded to a 40hp compact tractor, for wood stuff I bought a bigger light materials bucket and thats now my log lift when splitting, also use it to bring in 1/2 of a face cord at a time to my stacking spots / woodshed, its been a big help around the house and has made wood stuff more enjoyable, what ever you have make sure its lubed and greased accordingly, I had a few clogged zerks on my backhoe, I picked up a hammer buster at tractor supply, fill the cylinder with penetrating oil, place fitting over zerk, hit the backside with a hammer, the oil will force itself into and through the bushing cleaning everything out, its fairly effortless.


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## BIGChrisNH (Apr 2, 2022)

I'm all the way through my pile for sure. First year with a woodshed and I didn't stuff it completely full. Could have probably gotten another 3/4 of a cord into it but didn't. Borrowing from next winter's wood for now. But it's no big deal, now I know better for next year.


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## velvetfoot (Apr 4, 2022)

2.6 cords burned so far this season, which is not over.  1.12 cords remaining.  I'm surprised the amount used was so low-it was the first time I actually measured.


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## Riff (Apr 5, 2022)

Second winter of burning here. Looks like I average about 1 2/3 cords per winter so going to try to aim to have 2 to 2 1/2 cords for each winter just in case of a really bad one. With the current cost of oil it easily saves us money and the family enjoys the process. My oldest is now getting old enough that she likes to come help stack wood and likes to try to use a small sledge learning to wedge the harder pieces.


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## Ashful (Apr 5, 2022)

Riff said:


> My oldest is now getting old enough that she likes to come help stack wood and likes to try to use a small sledge learning to wedge the harder pieces.


Nice!  That brings back memories.  That's how I used to split with my dad, he even made a short-handled sledge for me using an old 6'ish lb. head, when I was probably 4 - 6 years old.  I'm not sure I was much help, but I thought I was.


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## JRHAWK9 (Apr 5, 2022)

stoveliker said:


> The funny thing in that thread is that if he uses 2 cords of wood which would amount to a gas bill of less than 750, his efficiency in wood burning is very low and he does not realize that...





Ashful said:


> Excellent  point.  Of course, that didn't stop him from arguing on behalf of his vast experience on the subject.



yeah, people like that are not worth arguing with.  They have their own sets of "facts" not based on reality/science.


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## DonTee (Apr 5, 2022)

zmender said:


> I came across this website for calculating $/BTU:
> 
> 
> 
> ...



Using that calculator and inputting my wood consumption  (4 cords) it looks like this. 
If I had to pay for firewood, and I was somewhere where natural gas was available it does look like that’s a cheaper option 

I used all the default prices, including 338$ per cord of wood. Maybe it could be gotten for less if you bought green wood and seasoned it yourself. They just took the average price where this website is. NH I think. 

And it’s fairly easy to get free firewood. As long as you have the time to CSS it.


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## Ashful (Apr 5, 2022)

DonTee said:


> 338$ per cord of wood


I'll admit I haven't ever bought firewood, but I always hear locals who do quote $225 per cord of mixed hardwoods, split and delivered.  Are you sure $338 is a good average for upstate NY, and that you're using the correct BTU value?


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## ericm979 (Apr 5, 2022)

Taking the efficiencies of my propane furnace and wood stove and current propane price into account, I estimate that a cord of hardwood is worth about $775 of propane. The wood is all off my land so it's free.  It costs me time and some fuel and equipment to retrieve and process it.  But since its all deadfall or dead trees that need removal, I'd have to do some of that anyhow, then find a way to get rid of it.


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## JRHAWK9 (Apr 5, 2022)

ericm979 said:


> I estimate that a cord of hardwood is worth about $775 of propane



At what price/gal of LP?


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## kennyp2339 (Apr 5, 2022)

Dry cord wood here will be between 350-450 this year.


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## DonTee (Apr 5, 2022)

Ashful said:


> I'll admit I haven't ever bought firewood, but I always hear locals who do quote $225 per cord of mixed hardwoods, split and delivered.  Are you sure $338 is a good average for upstate NY, and that you're using the correct BTU value?


I just went to the link posted above and punched in how many cords I use. It gave me the approx value for the other forms of heating like propane, kero, pellets, etc. That’s just using the values that are default for the site, which I think is for New Hampshire. 

I’m not sure about that info for my area, because I don’t buy wood or any other form of fuel. On the site there is the option to change the price for your area, as well as the heating appliance efficiency. If you wanted a real comparison for your area. 

It was just something fun to do. I don’t plan on switching from burning wood any time soon. I enjoy burning wood. Burning propane or something else is boring


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## DonTee (Apr 5, 2022)

Ok so I googled the current prices in my area for propane and heating oil. They’re very high right now it looks like. It’s 3.84$ for LP and 5.21$ for heating oil.

I checked on Craigslist and FBM for firewood. People around here don’t really sell full cords, but face cords average 75$ for seasoned wood. So 225$ for a full cord assuming you don’t get a bulk discount.

I also want to mention it’s hard with the sliders to select and exact amount. So my cord wood price was 224.50$ instead of 225$. But you get the idea. Just wanted to explain why it said 898$ on the chart and not 900$

Oh and I punched in 3.85$ per 40 lbs bag of pellets.

Here is what the chart looks like now. I crossed out natural gas and wood chips. I don’t have natural gas as an option, and googling I couldn’t find wood chips for sale by me.

Look better?


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## Ashful (Apr 5, 2022)

DonTee said:


> Look better?


Definitely better.

It'd be interesting to look at the cost of wood for those cutting and hauling our own.

Direct costs:
Truck fuel
Tractor fuel
Chainsaw fuel
Splitter fuel

Indirect costs:
Trailer depreciation
Tractor depreciation
Chainsaw depreciation
Splitter deprecitation

I left out truck depreciation, unless you bought it specifically and only for hauling wood.  If you were going to own a truck anyway, the depreciation specifically due to wood hauling is negligible.  Similarly, tractor, trailer, and chainsaw depreciation might be only partially attributed to wood heating activities.

If I make 200 cords of wood over 20 years, and all this equipment costs me $5k in depreciation (when figuring fractional on tractor I'd need for other things anyway), I'm looking at $25/cord indirect.  Add to that maybe $10/cord in fuel for all that equipment, and I'm spending maybe $35 per cord?

Just a guess, and I'm not sure I care about the accuracy.  Saving money is more a nice side benefit to burning wood, than my true reason for doing it.


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## Tar12 (Apr 6, 2022)

Just shy of 3 cords here and 150 gallon of propane..I only run the propane on very mild days and on the weekends I go to see the grandsons....depending upon what March brings I expect to burn 3.5 cord total  and maybe another 50 gallon in propane..


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## stoveliker (Apr 6, 2022)

March is already done bringing stuff - at least around here ;-)


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## SpaceBus (Apr 6, 2022)

mynx said:


> $100/yr is impressive.  When i count fuel and oil for the chainsaws, utv and tractor, depreciation, repairs, etc, its a lot more than $100.  While it’s not directly analogous, my cost of operation for my 100 hp tractor  is about $40/hr


Just fuel for tractor stuff, chainsaws, milling, splitting, etc. definitely comes out to over $100/yr for me too, and I don't even burn that much.


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## kennyp2339 (Apr 6, 2022)

I just glanced at the calculator and entered 3.5 cords of wood for my house, the oil portion seems pretty spot on for myself, I have a 225gal tank and I remember before burning wood at this house I would fill the tank twice during the heating season, the calculator indicated that I would need 517gal #2 oil just for heating.


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## Riff (Apr 17, 2022)

Ashful said:


> Nice!  That brings back memories.  That's how I used to split with my dad, he even made a short-handled sledge for me using an old 6'ish lb. head, when I was probably 4 - 6 years old.  I'm not sure I was much help, but I thought I was.



It gives a breather so I'll take it, plus makes you feel better watching the next generation's eyes light up at helping. 

Earliest splitting attempts I remember were my dad letting me try out the axe when I was working towards my Totin chip in the scouts. I always picked out a hollow log thinking they were easier to split and he'd sit back to watch the show. Was not amused when I realized solid pieces were easier to split...


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