# Deep south woodburners...how much do you burn?



## Intheswamp (Dec 22, 2010)

I've read several threads where folks have stated there wood usages, but (naturally) the predominate folks responding are northern burners.  I'm hoping that the title will prompt more of the folks in the deep south to respond.  

I'll be burning my little F3CB and I'm not going to try to burn 24/7 (this year  ), I'm guesstimating I'll burn 1 to 1-1/2 cord of a mix of oaks and maybe some pecan.

So...how much, how often, what kind, etc.,...

Thanks!
Ed
*
Responses in a nutshell:*

*North Florida*:  1.5 to 2 cords (pecan/oak), Morso 7110.
*North Central North Carolina*:  4 cords, 1600sqft fair insulation (weak roofing insulation), 100% wood heat.
*Greenville, South Carolina*:  3.5 cords, well insulated house but with 20' ceilings.
*Middle of South Carolina*:  4 cords, 2800sqft, has heat pumps but only using wood.
*40 miles south of Atlanta, GA*:  2 cords, ~1600sqft, insulated, nice and warm, Woodstock Fireview.
*North Carolina/South Carolina line @ I95*: ~3.5 cords semi-green, 2000sqft, drafty single-paned windows, 90% wood heat.
*South Central South Carolina/Piedmont*: 2.5-3 cords, 2100sqft, 12' ceilings, Expected 4 cords due to unseasoned wood (10/11 season) but hit in around 2.5-3 cords including some low btu stuff with some good oak and hickory.
*Austin & Houston, Tx*: 1.5 to 2 cords, VC Vigilant 1977, 4000sqft, last 2 years 100% wood heat.
*West of Atlanta, Ga on Alabama line*: 2.5-3.0 cords, hardwood mostly with a little softwood (pine/cedar), well insulated 2400sqft, old Black Bart II.
*Middle Tennessee*: Guesstimate 4-5 cords, 3000+sqft, inefficient Hardy OWB but just switched to Jotul Oslo.
*Ozark Mountains of North Arkansas*:  4-5 cords,  1400sqft, stove in basement (not a furnace), backup propane heat (kicks in 2-3 times a day), oak and hickory, good attic insulation but some leaky windows and doors.
*Ft. Worth, TX*: 2 cords oak/mulberry/hackberry, circa 1958 2000sqft, Lopi Freedom Bay insert, went from burning 1200 gallons of LP to 600 gallons.
*Jackson, Mississippi*:  A little over 1 cord, spray foam insulated 2 yr old home heating 1800sf, Woodstock Keystone, mostly wood heat.
*Decatur, Alabama*:  3/4 to 1 cord (oak), 850sqft, PE Vista Classic.
*Northeast (Tupelo) Mississippi*:  3/4+ cord, oak/pecan/hickory, 1600sqft very well spray insulated w/pella windows, Morso 2110.
*Greenville, SC*: ~1/2 cord, 1600sqft well insulated, part time wood burner, Dutch West â€œMediumâ€.
*Fayetteville, NC*: Guesstimate 2.5-3.5 cords for 11/12 season, drafty 1200sqft with no insulation in walls, Drolet Sahara.
*Asheville, NC*: 1 cord a month in cold months, 2185sqft un-insulated walls, Jotul F3CB.
*Atlanta, GA 40 miles north*:  2 1/3 cords, 1700 sqft downstairs, mixed hardwood, well insulated 4 year old house, Woodstock Fireview.


----------



## ChillyGator (Dec 22, 2010)

Ditto....unless the weather pattern holds then we'll add another 1/2 cord  :coolsmile:


----------



## Intheswamp (Dec 23, 2010)

Hmm, looks like I might need to up my guesstimate a bit...so maybe 2 cords per year to be safe....

Thanks!
Ed


----------



## mtcates (Dec 23, 2010)

I live in the south but not the deep south.  North central North Carolina.  I use on average 4 cords heating 1600 square feet.  I have no furnace so wood is my only heat. My house has good windows and is tight and well insulated except for the roof.  The roof is 1800 square feet of surface and only R7 insulation. I need about 75 million BTU's per winter to heat my house. If my roof was up to todays code of R38, I would only need 55 million BTU's.  Its cheaper and easier to burn another cord every year then drop the 10+ grand to upgrade my roof insulation.  I have a timber framed roof with decking on the rafters and to insulate it better I would have to remove the shingles, build up the roof thicker and install new shingles or a new metal roof.  For now I'll burn another cord.


----------



## ChillyGator (Dec 23, 2010)

The FEW....the PROUD.....the WARM!    :lol:


----------



## Bspring (Dec 23, 2010)

I am in Greenville SC and have already gone through a cord. I am using half junk wood and half good wood. The house is 2 years old and well insulated but it has 20' ceilings so I think it is more of a volume issue than square footage issue. I have not had to use my heat pump at all. This is a big change from last year, I was using poorly seasoned wood and smaler splits. It is so nice to wake up to a warm house. I have learned a few other things that have helped. Last year I used to jump out of the bed and go to work without bothering to start a fire. When I got home the house was too cold for my wood furnance to catch up before I went to bed so it ran full force and burned out. This season I have been keeping the house between 70 and 75 all the time and the wife is very happy. My guess is that I will use 3.5 cord.


----------



## rr12 (Dec 23, 2010)

I burn about 4 cords heating 2800 sq ft. I have heat pumps but only use my harman, and it keeps the house around 75. I live in the middle of SC


----------



## citationdriver (Dec 25, 2010)

Live about 40 miles south of atl. Based on this year thus far at the same rate or a little more ( feb is always colder) 2 cords this year. I am burning sweet gum thus far, a softer hardwood, move to oak later on but really doesn't change that much. I have a fireview and end up with 2 fires a day early morning (house is about 65) and later eve (8-9) house is about 68. If cloudy Mabel fire will be reloaded in the day, or like last week down to 30's and teens at night will get a re-load. Mostly put 4 splits into the box each time stovetop gets to about 420-450. ( second floor of a hangar double insulated about 1600 sq ft) 

This stove is amazing at holding that temp. Like today 45 for the high put 4 splits in at 6am and the house sits right now at 73 topping out earlier at 76, (really want a fire but don't want to heat us out) heater has not come on at all this year yet! 

I love this wood burning stuff Hope this helps.


----------



## Intheswamp (Dec 25, 2010)

Thanks everybody for responding!  Any other southern burners out there feel free to post your wood use!

I've started condensing the reports and appending them to the first message in the thread...kind of a summary page.

Merry Christmas!
Ed


----------



## wccountryboy (Dec 25, 2010)

Im in NC, right off I95 almost at the SC line.  Winters are fairly mild, tough ist been unseasonably cold this month.  This is only my second season, and my wood is not really well seasoned.  The house is an antebellum farmhouse, fairly drafty.  The doors leak, and about half of the windows are old, single paned glazed windows.  Im heating about 2k sf, 90% wood heat; propane to take the edge off.  The celling and floors are well insulated, the walls have balled paper for insulation.
  I used 3.5 cord my first year, and am on track for about the same usage this year. I've got 4 cord of hickory that should be properly seasoned for next year, and hope to use a bit less.  Red/white oak is seasoning for the '12-'13 season.  Im guessing that with good, seasoned wood i may be able to get away with 2.5/ season.


----------



## jlove1974 (Dec 25, 2010)

I live in South Central NC (the Piedmont) and I have been burning about 2.5-3 cords of mixed Oak, sweetgum, walnut and ash.

I'm heating 2100 sf w/ 12 ft ceilings downstairs so quite a bit of volume but the 'smoke ridge' insert does an admiral job IMO.

However, this year I fully expect to burn 4 or more cords and it won't all be seasoned unfortunately. I got lazy over the spring and summer and didn't split rounds that I had sitting since last winter until early fall this year. Some were oak about 30% mc and I know they would have been more ready had I been proactive.


----------



## Kenster (Dec 26, 2010)

Texas, between Houston and Austin.  Halfway between Cat Spring and Raccoon Bend.    Almost 4000 square feet heated with a VC Vigilant 1977.  Haven't turned on our two heat pumps in a few years.
Wood use varies.  Last year was a long wet, cold winter.  I ran out of 'good' wood and my neighbor gave me a half cord of very well season hickory and oak.  I burned almost two cords last year.
Maybe we'll hit a cord and a half this year with, so far, a milder winter.


----------



## Intheswamp (Dec 27, 2010)

Wow, looks like most of the woodburners are up in the Carolinas.  Gotta be some more down further south...Mississippi?...some more from Georgia?...Florida?....even maybe Alabama????


----------



## bigtall (Dec 28, 2010)

I am due west of ATL on the bama line. I would usually burn 2.5 to 3.5 cords of year, in the old Black Bart II, heating a very well insulated 2400 square foot house built in 1870. However, I am having issues with smoke filling in the house, so 1.5 cords into the winter and my burning is put on hold. I am digging into the issue further tomorrow and will be posting some pics on here asking for help. Wood wise, I cut and split a lot of water oak, cherry, white oak, maple, and a little pine, cedar, hickory, and pin oak.


----------



## Coach B (Dec 29, 2010)

I'm guessing at least four or five cords.  In the past I've burned up wood so fast there was no way to get ahead, much less try to figure how much we've burned.  I've got a Hardy OWB that I fire up sometime in October and it runs thru most of April.  Trying to heat 3000+ square feet plus hot water.  Those things absolutely eat up the wood and smoke like crazy, however, they will put out the heat and are very popular in parts of the mid-south.  I counted six of them smoking away the other day in not much over a mile of country road.  Because of the smoke and excessive wood usuage I just got a Jotul Oslo.


----------



## Ozark Woodburner (Dec 29, 2010)

I burn 4 to 5 cord/year in the Ozark Mountains of North Arkansas.  Heating about 1400 sq. ft. with a stove in the basement, not a furnace.  I have backup propane furnace that kicks on two or three times a day usually if below 40 degrees or so.  Very little usage out of it.  I do run a oil filled 1500 watt electric heater on the end of the house farthest from the stove when it gets around 20-25 degrees and colder.  And several large, very inefficient doors and windows (soon to be replaced) but exceptional attic insulation.

All wood is various oak and hickory.


----------



## billjustbill (Dec 29, 2010)

Intheswamp said:
			
		

> I've read several threads where folks have stated there wood usages, but (naturally) the predominate folks responding are northern burners.  I'm hoping that the title will prompt more of the folks in the deep south to respond.
> 
> I'll be burning my little F3CB and I'm not going to try to burn 24/7 (this year  ), I'm guesstimating I'll burn 1 to 1-1/2 cord of a mix of oaks and maybe some pecan.
> 
> ...


*

Here in the Ft.Worth area, last year I used 2 cords of Oak, Mulberry, and Hackberry in a Lopi Freedom Bay insert during the harsh winter we had.  Hot water and heating a 2,000 sq. ft. home built in 1958 in the past years before the new insert, I would normally go through 3 four hundred gallon fillups of Propane...  Last year I only filled up twice and both were around 300 gallons.  This year I'm guessing the same amount of wood will be used, just scattered out over a longer period,  as the long range forecast says our Winter will come later this year and last late into the Spring.

But there's no comparison to the full warmth of burning wood and the Trane Propane furnace's "drafty feeling" heat.*


----------



## Intheswamp (Dec 30, 2010)

billjustbill said:
			
		

> Intheswamp said:
> 
> 
> 
> ...


*

I guess what I'm looking for is that "full warmth" that you speak of.  With our geothermal system it keeps us "warmth" but in that drafty kind of way.  With no concentrated heat source there's no central place to go to warm up at...I'm looking forward to warming in front of the stove after coming in from outside.

Ed*


----------



## billjustbill (Dec 30, 2010)

Intheswamp said:
			
		

> billjustbill said:
> 
> 
> 
> ...


*

Ed,

What I've learned as more time has been spent with the Lopi, is that there is a temperature zone that the insert begins not to put out enough heat for my home.  Around here, it seems to start about 20 degrees or lower and when there's a lot of sleet, snow, or ice lasting several days.  So, what I do now is keep the furnace thermostat "on" and set to a temp of 68 degrees.  That way the insert provides all except 2 to 4 degrees of added temp to keep the house from being drafty.

Also, I've learned to keep the blower speed lower at night after bedtime.  Slow air over a hot surface takes with it more heat than with high speed air over the fire box as it begins to die down.  Plus, since the Lopi's blower is heat activated, the slow speed doesn't cool the thermostat and lets it keep pulling heat out and into the room.

You are right, there's nothing like a full warmth in the room and when feeling cold but standing in from of a woodburning fire to get warm... even if it in the high forties when it's been raining...just like last night.... a dry warmth was just what the Doctor ordered....

   More cold is heading here Friday night with 20 degree weather, but the real mess is comining in Jan. and Feb....

Stay warm,
Bill*


----------



## ChillyGator (Jan 2, 2011)

ChillyGator said:
			
		

> Ditto....unless the weather pattern holds then we'll add another 1/2 cord  :coolsmile:



As if the snowflakes that fluttered from the sky last Sunday werenâ€™t enough of a sign, Tallahassee shivered through one cold month of December.
In fact, December 2010 was the coldest December â€” and the third-coldest overall month â€” Tallahassee has ever recorded, according to the National Weather Servoice.
Based on preliminary data, the average temperature recorded in December at Tallahassee Regional Airport was 44.6 degrees. That beat December 1963, which averaged 45.2 degrees, as Tallahasseeâ€™s coldest December. The airport is where official temperatures and precipitation levels are measured.
Jeff Fournier, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Tallahassee, said itâ€™s tough to explain why such biting cold snaps happen.
â€œSometimes in the short term â€” in this case the whole month â€” the patterns line up where you just get cold front after cold front,â€ he said. â€œWhat was unusual here was we got those cold masses lined up and never got a chance to warm up.
â€œWhy that happened,â€ he added, â€œI just donâ€™t know.â€
Tallahassee wasnâ€™t alone in recording record-low temperatures. A report from the National Weather Serviceâ€™s Miami office said the main climate sites in South Florida, including Miami, Fort Lauderdale, Naples and West Palm Beach, recorded their coldest Decembers as well.
Other parts of the country got cold, AccuWeather meteorologist Michael Sager said, but highest concentration of record-low temperatures came in Florida.
â€œIt was cold around the northern and eastern parts of the country, but the most extreme departure was Florida,â€ Sager said. â€œI think that some parts in the Carolinas came very close. There were some spotty records farther north. As you get to cities in the northeast like Washington D.C., the temperatures were below normal but not even close to the record.
â€œIt was like you had the cold air just aimed at Florida,â€ Sager added. â€œIt was coming so fast, shot after shot of it. It was amazing.â€
The only recorded months colder than December 2010 in Tallahassee are January 1981 (44.3 degrees) and January 1977 (43.9 degrees). The observational period of record is April 1885 to the present. The December 2010 data is considered preliminary until certified by the National Climatic Data Center.


----------



## bertrn (Jan 3, 2011)

I live just south of Jackson, Mississippi and last year with a wife at home the stove was our primary heat source in a spray foam insulated 2 yr old home heating 1800sf downstairs and burned just a little over 1 cord. Most of that was oak with some plans for oak and a little pine next year. Geothermal unit rarely came on in Jan-Feb and was off Nov and Dec.


----------



## ihookem (Jan 3, 2011)

Bertrn, you burn the least. Your house is insulated the most.


----------



## Nic36 (Jan 3, 2011)

Ed,

Nic here up in Decatur. I never really measured how much wood I've burned over the last 2 seasons. (I've only been heating with wood for 2 whole seasons-this will be the third). My home is small, about 850 square feet. If I had to guess, I would say that I've never burned a whole cord in one season. Probably about 3/4 a cord maybe. Last year was colder and I may have burned close to a cord, not sure. A cord is a considerable amount of wood. I heat only with wood now, so I burn full time. If you are going to burn intermittently, I would guess that you will not go through a cord in a season. I'm burning all oak, so that factors in too. 

I will know exactly how much wood I will have burned after this season. All the wood I am using now is coming from well organized stacks. The last two years, I was not as organized, so I can only guess as to how much I burned then.


----------



## Coach B (Jan 3, 2011)

billjustbill said:
			
		

> More cold is heading here Friday night with 20 degree weather, but the real mess is comining in Jan. and Feb....
> 
> Stay warm,
> Bill



Dixie boys, it looks like we are in line for some more Yankee type winter temps developing in the next couple of weeks.  The long range models are showing the Arctic Polar Vortex to dump some more real cold down our way.  This may not be a good winter to figure average wood usuage...as least as compared to the last couple of warm decades.  Who knows if or how the weather will all unfold, but I'm reading comparisons to Jan 1985 and winter 1977 as examples.  We may be heading into a longer term colder weather cycle.  These real cold winters are why I love woodburning.


----------



## Bspring (Jan 3, 2011)

Coach B said:
			
		

> billjustbill said:
> 
> 
> 
> ...



Bring it on! I am several years ahead (at least I think I am).


----------



## Nic36 (Jan 3, 2011)

Bspring said:
			
		

> Coach B said:
> 
> 
> 
> ...



Dang it Bspring, you beat me to it. That's what I was going to say. I have several years' worth saved up as well.


----------



## Intheswamp (Jan 5, 2011)

Aw man.  Ya'll are talking about the "big freeze" coming and I'm sitting down here with a cute little ol' Jotul F3CB sitting in the box with a box full of ss flue and "fixin's" and suddenly the mason that "knows his stuff...been doing it for years...etc" and came highly recommended has suddenly vanished....I guess I need to call Fox Mulder and let him investigate an alien abduction. ;-(

Ah well, I went into it this season as a planning/preparation time.  I've still got a hearth board to construct, masonry work to be done, and some heat shields to fabricate.  In the meantime I'm trying to start a woodpile.  Currently I'm figuring on buying 2-3 cords of oak to get a start (I think I may have found a good, fair-priced source...probably water oak).  I've also got plenty of beetle-kill pine that I can cut for quicker use and I've got some feelers out for scroungable wood.

I'm disappointed in the first wood guy that delivered...$75 and a little of 1/4 cord with some forks and crotches that I won't be able to use...he was supposed to bring me some more wood to make a face cord (16" length) but haven't seen him...???   Interestingly, after the delivery I talked with the guy (his sons delivered) and he thought he had told me $65 and had told his son to collect $65.  Well, when I gave the money to his oldest son he didn't say anything about me giving him too much.  I guess he figured I was tipping him $10 for stacking less than a face cord!  ...or he figured he was getting over on me. :-(  Anyhow, I'm hoping this new guy will be better...he seemed to know a little more of the basics (like what a cord measures...duh) than the first guy.

Anyhow, ya'll have given me a good idea of what to shoot for in regards to how much to get stacked and drying for a few years ahead.  I figure if I start out with 2.5-3 cords that would put a me at least a couple of years ahead and allow me to add to it with my own sweat equity.

Thanks,
Ed


----------



## jackofalltrades (Jan 5, 2011)

This is my first year of burning wood with the Morso 2110. It is a brand new home of 1600 sq ft. It is tightly insulated with spray foam insulation and the best Pella Windows. I am in Northeast MS close to Tupelo. It looks like I will be burning about 2.5 cords this year. That is face cords about 16" wood. Although; I will say it is an abnormally cold winter those far. I burn oak of all kinds, pecan, and some hickory. I expect, after a year or so of practice and more normal conditions to get by with no more than 2 cords and think 1.5 will get it a lot of the time. I  burn wood fulltime. I do have a central unit heat pump, but it has never been on with it set at 64 degrees.


----------



## pyper (Jan 5, 2011)

I'm near Greenville, SC.

I have 1600 sf. It's pretty well insulated and reasonably tight.

We put the stove in last year in December, and probably burnt 1/3 a cord.

This year we have burnt about 1/4 a cord so far, but at maybe half of that has been rounds under 2". I figure we'll probably burn 1/2 cord by the time we're done. We did keep a fire going most of the cold snap a few weeks ago. Mostly I light a fire of sticks in the morning and let it go out, and then build a real fire in the evening. Half of the house stays pretty cool, no matter how warm the room with the stove gets.


----------



## Intheswamp (Jan 7, 2011)

jackofalltrades said:
			
		

> This is my first year of burning wood with the Morso 2110. It is a brand new home of 1600 sq ft. It is tightly insulated with spray foam insulation and the best Pella Windows. I am in Northeast MS close to Tupelo. It looks like I will be burning about 2.5 cords this year. That is face cords about 16" wood. Although; I will say it is an abnormally cold winter those far. I burn oak of all kinds, pecan, and some hickory. I expect, after a year or so of practice and more normal conditions to get by with no more than 2 cords and think 1.5 will get it a lot of the time. I  burn wood fulltime. I do have a central unit heat pump, but it has never been on with it set at 64 degrees.


That's sounding pretty good!!  Less than a full cord of wood and burning fulltime  That well insulated house is paying off

Ed


----------



## Intheswamp (Jan 7, 2011)

pyper said:
			
		

> I'm near Greenville, SC.
> 
> I have 1600 sf. It's pretty well insulated and reasonably tight.
> 
> ...


Have you tried pointing a fan at the stove to move the air to other parts of the house?

Ed


----------



## jackofalltrades (Jan 7, 2011)

Intheswamp, what formula were you using to come up with the figure of 3/4 cord from the information that I had in my post? I know there are some around but I was wondering what you were using.


----------



## Intheswamp (Jan 7, 2011)

jackofalltrades said:
			
		

> Intheswamp, what formula were you using to come up with the figure of 3/4 cord from the information that I had in my post? I know there are some around but I was wondering what you were using.



I based your usage on the 2.5 (face) cord statement.  There are 3 face cords (splits 16" long) to a full cord.  Divide 2.5 by 3.0 and you get .8333...a little more than .75 or 3/4. 

I guess I tend to be simple minded with my thinking...that's what my wife tells me. %-P

Ed


----------



## Intheswamp (Jan 13, 2011)

Hmmm, I think this winter might be going to raise the wood burning amounts a bit for the deep south burners.

Here in south Alabama the prediction is the upper teens Thursday and Friday mornings, low twenties for Saturday morning and still below freezing on Sunday morning....then the usual warm up and rain.

Stay warm.
Ed


----------



## Nic36 (Jan 13, 2011)

It's turning out to be a cold one. All the predictions were a mild winter. The lows here for the next couple of nights will be around 11 and 12 degrees. The extended forecast is not much better with most of the lows in the 20s. I will be very curious to see how much I have burned by Spring. I still don't think it will be a cord. I've got plenty, so I'm not worried about it.


----------



## scottandlorig (Jan 13, 2011)

Most of my family are from Alabama and I have spent a lot of time down there and I don't know anyone that has a wood burning stove. Some with gas witch is plenty enough to heat most homes down there. That doesn't mean people down there don't have them I am just saying personally I don't know of any, and I know a lot of good old boys in the deep south. 

Roll Tide!!


----------



## Nic36 (Jan 13, 2011)

You're right, most people don't heat with wood down here anymore. The mild winters over the last several years has something to do with it I'm sure. Plus, people don't want to deal with the hassle and mess of burning with wood. I prefer it that way. It is much easier on those that do heat with wood here. Usually, wood is free for the taking. I have asked about storm-downed trees in my area when I was scrounging for wood like Ed. Everyone I asked said I could have it, because no one wants it, and I'm doing them a favor by cleaning it up. With weather like we have been having lately, I'm loving every minute of it. $50.00 a month power bills are great too.

Who knows though, if the winters start having bite again and the economy doesn't pick up, there may be a resurgence of wood burning here again.


----------



## Coach B (Jan 13, 2011)

WooDpSycho said:
			
		

> Most of my family are from Alabama and I have spent a lot of time down there and I don't know anyone that has a wood burning stove. Some with gas witch is plenty enough to heat most homes down there. That doesn't mean people down there don't have them I am just saying personally I don't know of any, and I know a lot of good old boys in the deep south.
> 
> Roll Tide!!



I guess it varies a little from area to area because there are a lot of wood burners around me here in southern middle Tennessee. I would guess nearly half the folks in my immediate rural spot are regular burners.  Obviously, not many at all in town, but out in the countryside its a different story. 
War Eagle and Go Big Orange!  Sorry, couldn't resist.


----------



## Intheswamp (Jan 14, 2011)

<chuckle>...and the rivalry continues!   Congrats to Auburn...now if Troy can pull off a BCS title....  :bug: 

I was coming back south from Montgomery last night, about a 60 mile drive for me, when I started the temp was 32F...when I got home it was 27F....a pretty good drop for an hour.  Troy right (our local NOAA reporting station) is reporting 17F @ 7:04am.  Pretty cool for south Alabama.

I know there are a few wood burners in the area but haven't really talked at length to any of them.  So for I only know of one that has a stock of (presumably) seasoned wood.  I'm going to stop one day and talk with him/her a bit.  The local "wood guy" around here knows how to run a chain saw, run a splitter, and load a truck....I don't think he knows much about what moisture content means nor how to measure wood.  He burned me once...won't have the chance again.  There are a good many firewood ads in the local trader/sales papers and on CL...luckily I hit on a good one the first time I risked CL(not the "local guy").  What I do have new this year is a local cabinet shop that is on the way to work installed an OWB.  The 24" logs lay beside it and they simply saw off a round and split it when they need to add wood....it's *really* the mother of all smoke dragons...I know some of the neighbors have had to complain by now...it's BAD.  There are a few house chimneys that I see that are emitting smoke (C/S last week?) and there very well could be some clean burning going on that I haven't detected.  Seems most of the burning is indeed in the more rural areas.

I think you may be right, Nic.  The economy may nudge/force more people to start burning wood.  The problem is that if it's a financial constraint that makes them start burning then they probably not be using an EPA stove and who knows about their chimneys.  Kind of scary in a safety kind of way.

Yesterday driving  into Montgomery I naturally was scanning for firewood...looks like somebody's keeping the road edges, etc., pretty clean.  ??

Ed


----------



## pyper (Jan 14, 2011)

Intheswamp said:
			
		

> I think you may be right, Nic.  The economy may nudge/force more people to start burning wood.  The problem is that if it's a financial constraint that makes them start burning then they probably not be using an EPA stove and who knows about their chimneys.  Kind of scary in a safety kind of way.



My neighbors have been burning wood in their fireplace this year. In the past they only did that when the power was out, but now they seem to be doing it regularly. So just one anecdote, but it seems to support your line of thinking. We were snowed in the first half of this week and I ran the stove 24/7. Worked out better than I expected (our house isn't a good layout for heating with a stove).


----------



## Intheswamp (Jan 16, 2011)

pyper said:
			
		

> Intheswamp said:
> 
> 
> 
> ...



The economy probably is what is prompting them to burn more this year.  Also, with this lengthy cold spell I think it's got a lot of folks thinking of other heat sources.  I know our last power bill was high and this next one will be even higher...and this is with a geothermal system (no heat strips, pure geo).  I'm sitting here with a stove in the crate waiting on a mason...and the temps are dipping into the freezing zone each night (not recommended for masonry work, I think).  Anyhow, for now I'm working on the 11/12 and 12/13 season...figuring right now on 1.5 cords per year.  Once I get this in then, I'm going to start scrounging pecan and oak as I find it.  I've also got a friend of my that might bring me some logs.  :cheese: 

Ed


----------



## Nic36 (Jan 16, 2011)

My advice is not to become too over eager on buying wood. You should be able to find all you will ever need for free. I've picked up a lot along the street and asked if I could have the wood from fallen trees on peoples' property. Everyone I asked was delighted for me take it. Before installing my stove, I was worried that I would not have enough of a supply. I realize now that wood here is terribly easy to find for free. You just have to be patient and keep your eyes open. Tell your friends to keep an eye out too.


----------



## Intheswamp (Jan 16, 2011)

Nic36 said:
			
		

> My advice is not to become too over eager on buying wood. You should be able to find all you will ever need for free. I've picked up a lot along the street and asked if I could have the wood from fallen trees on peoples' property. Everyone I asked was delighted for me take it. Before installing my stove, I was worried that I would not have enough of a supply. I realize now that wood here is terribly easy to find for free. You just have to be patient and keep your eyes open. Tell your friends to keep an eye out too.



Good advice, too!  Right now, there's a lot happening that's keeping me from doing much scrounging.  Hopefully that will change pretty soon.   I got the last wood delivered today, this will put me ahead a good bit and I can scrounge as able without the pressure of *having* to get wood.   I'm beginning to put some bugs in people's ears that I'm looking for down trees/limbs.   I've been looking around  a lot lately.  Seems everywhere I go I'm looking at trees...both standing and fallen.  I would love to get 5-6 years ahead.  

South Alabama used to have great expanses of hardwood/long-leaf pine forests...sadly the paper companies pretty well have strip-mined miles and miles of forest land....when we were teenagers me and a friend came up with the notion that our kids would probably think that pine trees naturally grow in rows. ;(  

Anyhow, I'm working on getting the word out that I'm looking for wood! 

Ed


----------



## Intheswamp (Feb 2, 2011)

Checking in to see if any more southern wood burners have got or are getting an idea on their wood usage.  Looks like this year's burning will be on the high side for most people...worst case scenarios are good to plan for.   

I've been figuring on one cord per year (oak) forecast but think I'm going to up that to at least 1.25 cord.  With the standing dead pine I have that could be used as a buffer should usage go past my forecast.  I'm planning on getting some pine anyhow for possibly shoulder season and for burning down oak coals so it'll be available if needed.

I'm curious...how well does pine store over a period of time?  Most of my storage will be uncovered (maybe some scrap tin on top) but off of the ground.  These dead pines are in the 8"-14" DBH range and will be split in quarters...smaller tips will be kept as rounds.  

Ed


----------



## jlove1974 (Feb 2, 2011)

this winter has knocked my seasoned wood supplies down considerably. I am now dipping into my 'campfire' stash, which is old oak limbs and rounds.
I have also begun to break up pallets to augment my burning, since I have a decent source of oak pallets at my job.

Sure will be nice to have that ash that I put up last month all seasoned and ready to go at the start of next winter.

Hopefully the divination by the varmint this morning will ring true and we'll get an early spring. It can't come soon enough for me


----------



## pyper (Feb 2, 2011)

Intheswamp said:
			
		

> I'm curious...how well does pine store over a period of time?



Termites & carpenter ants. If you can keep them out, it stores just fine if you use something to keep the rain out.

10 years ago, long before I had a stove, we had a 12" pine cut down. I kept two rounds on the porch for a while to use as end tables, but 5 years or so ago my wife got tired of them and dumped them in the woods. Well, this fall I ran across one, and it was pretty well eaten and rotted, but I split it and dried it and it kept us warm one night. 

The ants seem to prefer hardwoods over pine.


----------



## ChillyGator (Feb 3, 2011)

I'll be cutting 2 cords minimum this year.....for 12/13.....hoping for a warm February  :coolsmirk: 
Had a few dry pieces of Pecan that I burned last week, caught easily, no popping, burned down to fluffy ashes with few coals, most of my stack is still 24% + moisture after 6-7 months.


----------



## DonNC (Feb 3, 2011)

I have to guesstimate based on very short usage and wacky weather. Last Jan and Feb we barely got out of the 20's.... Today it was 70

Based on less than ideal wood this year, and this drafty house with no wall insulation I expect to use 2.5-3.5 cords of wood next year. The house is 1200 sq feet and the stove is the primary.


----------



## Intheswamp (Feb 3, 2011)

jlove1974 said:
			
		

> this winter has knocked my seasoned wood supplies down considerably. I am now dipping into my 'campfire' stash, which is old oak limbs and rounds.
> I have also begun to break up pallets to augment my burning, since I have a decent source of oak pallets at my job.
> 
> Sure will be nice to have that ash that I put up last month all seasoned and ready to go at the start of next winter.
> ...


Ditto on the hog...I think everybody could use an early spring.  If it is going to be an early spring then this winter is ending with a ROAR!  From what I hear the ash should be fine by next season.


----------



## Intheswamp (Feb 3, 2011)

pyper said:
			
		

> Intheswamp said:
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Ants are something I've got to deal with here in south Alabama...more precisely FIRE ANTS.  I've got the stacks up off the ground on 2x4's over cement blocks...1/2 cord to the stack.  I know those blasted fire ants will want to bed up against some of those blocks...just gotta be sure and leave some feed out for them and maybe they want be a problem.  Between them and the wild blackberry bushes I'm going to have fun.<groan>

What you said about the pine is pretty much what I had figured from just dealing with limbs and downed trees through the years.  We were raised up around here with the "pine is not firewood" mentality so we never really burned any of it.  There's been some good firewood gone to waste down here...lot's of pine plantations that get thinned or either clearcut have *lots* of logs left laying around...easy pickin's.  It doesn't take long for it to start rotting once it lays on the ground a while and the ants do indeed love to bed up in it.  It always seemed to me, though, that the ants liked the pine better than the hardwoods but it makes sense that they wouldn't like the pine as much since it has the sticky sap/turpentine in it.  I've got a log cabin I've been working on that has a 4' homemade Rumford fireplace in it that would be a good candidate for some long splits and logs of pine.  We'll definitely be finding out how it does.  Looks like I might need to be planning a shed for the future.

Thanks for the info, very helpful,
Ed


----------



## Intheswamp (Feb 3, 2011)

DonNC said:
			
		

> I have to guesstimate based on very short usage and wacky weather. Last Jan and Feb we barely got out of the 20's.... Today it was 70
> 
> Based on less than ideal wood this year, and this drafty house with no wall insulation I expect to use 2.5-3.5 cords of wood next year. The house is 1200 sq feet and the stove is the primary.


Thanks for your info, Don.

Ed


----------



## Intheswamp (Feb 3, 2011)

ChillyGator said:
			
		

> I'll be cutting 2 cords minimum this year.....for 12/13.....hoping for a warm February  :coolsmirk:
> Had a few dry pieces of Pecan that I burned last week, caught easily, no popping, burned down to fluffy ashes with few coals, most of my stack is still 24% + moisture after 6-7 months.


Thanks for the update on the pecan, I've been curious about how it would work for you.  Sounds like it burned nicely.  Might be a good wood to use to burn down oak coals with, too.  I think I'll see if I can round some up.  A friend of mine has several *old* GIANT pecan trees in her yard along with a small orchard of smaller trees...she lives across the road from the church that I attend so I'm keeping an eye on them.   I've got a few around the house here, too, so should be able to come up with at least some to burn.

With your "2 cords minimum" statement, does this mean that you're moving from your 1.5 to 2 cords to a solid 2 cords?

Ed


----------



## asheville (Feb 7, 2011)

Here in Asheville, NC with 2185 square ft (no wall insulation in my 1927 arts and crafts) I burn 1 cord a month in the cold months thru my Jotul F3CB.

  My first post BTW.I have been using wood for 5 years now.


----------



## pyper (Feb 7, 2011)

Intheswamp said:
			
		

> up in it.  It always seemed to me, though, that the ants liked the pine better than the hardwoods but it makes sense that they wouldn't like the pine as much since it has the sticky sap/turpentine in it.  I've got a log cabin I've been working on that has a 4' homemade Rumford fireplace in it that would be a good candidate for some long splits and logs of pine.  We'll definitely be finding out how it does.  Looks like I might need to be planning a shed for the future.



Two different kinds of ants. 

The fire ants do seem to like pine. They'll build mounds on stumps and through down limbs. They don't seem to actually "consume" the wood though. They may just like to be near it to eat the termites it attracts (fire ants eat meat). 

But the big black carpenter ants seem to like hardwood. They are about 1/2 inch long each, and never make mounds in the earth, as far as I can see, but only live in dead wood. They go through it quick and make a mess, too. I've been trying to burn off as many pieces of wood that they've gotten into as I can. The thing is, I can't tell if they've moved on, died out, or are just hiding. There doesn't seem to be any activity, and when I split pieces open I can't find any.


----------



## Jbird560 (Feb 8, 2011)

I wonder if you could cure the problem with ants getting in your wood stacks by using landscape timbers to set the wood on and before stacking spray the timbers and the ground beneath the stack with boric acid?  Ants and other insects do not like boric acid and borax at all.  We cured a problem with ants coming in our house in Vermont by leaving little dishes of borax and sugar mixed around the foundation of the house and the ants died/vanished in short order.  We have also discovered that we can keep mice and red wasps/yellow jackets out of our storage shed by
setting a couple of dishes of mothballs high and low  in the shed.  The vapors drive everything off and is not so strong to keep you out.  A friend told us he keeps wasps from building nests under his roof overhangs by hanging a handful of mothballs in a section of panty hose in a few locations around his house.
Jbird


----------



## Intheswamp (Feb 11, 2011)

asheville said:
			
		

> Here in Asheville, NC with 2185 square ft (no wall insulation in my 1927 arts and crafts) I burn 1 cord a month in the cold months thru my Jotul F3CB.
> 
> My first post BTW.I have been using wood for 5 years now.


Welcome to the forum, asheville  Sorry to be so late in welcoming you aboard.  Have you been burning the F3CB for all of those five years???  Got any tips or recommendations on using the F3CB?...I'm all ears  What type of wood do you normally burn?  Thanks for your report, too

Ed


----------



## Intheswamp (Feb 11, 2011)

pyper, I gotcha on the two different types of ants.  My major concern (at the moment) is with fire ants.  Seems the further south you get the more intense the invasion is.<sigh>  I can remember as a kid in the pastures in pine forests there would be hills as tall as I was at the time(3-4 feet tall!)  DDT is/was bad stuff, but I really think that is what stopped a strain of ants that were very bad being as I haven't seen hills that big/tall around here since then (1960's)...but what we have are still bad.  The wood ants I see sporadically "here and there"...I guess with harvesting, processing, and storing firewood I'll get to know them better.  Does it seem that they go for the more punky wood or good, solid wood, or...both?

Jbird560, I'm not sure about boric acid, though I've used it for sugar ants and cockroaches.  I don't know how the outside climate would affect it.  I guess I'll probably just treat the area around the stacks with a residential fireant treatment and then spot treat any beds that pop up.  I used some dursban (I'm not sure you can still buy that) several years ago in an area and the fireants would build hills right up to the edge of the treated area but would not enter the area.  On a cabin that I've been working on for years we treated a lot of the wood with "40 Mule Team Borax"...seems to have worked, though powder post beetles are still somewhat of a problem even after using a commercial "BoraCare" product...logs were 150 year old logs from two old log cabins.  I may just get some 40 Mule Team and treat the area with it and see if it works.

Ed


----------



## pyper (Feb 11, 2011)

Intheswamp said:
			
		

> I can remember as a kid in the pastures in pine forests there would be hills as tall as I was at the time(3-4 feet tall!)  DDT is/was bad stuff, but I really think that is what stopped a strain of ants that were very bad being as I haven't seen hills that big/tall around here since then (1960's)...



They probably lost the war with the fire ants. Fire ants go for total domination of an area.

Bayer makes a product rated for wood piles. It's in a blue bottle. You dilute it and spray the ground before you stack the wood. I started using it, but only _after _ the carpenter ants showed up. Sigh.

Anyway, they seemed to come out of no where and took over a pile of freshly cut pecan. There were no ants in the wood when the tree was cut (on a city lot), so they must have come out of the woods.

For the fire ants, nothing seems to eliminate them, but I found a great way to get them to move out of the garden. Run through the mound with a tiller. Wait an hour and do it again. My MIL used to say that pouring pots of boiling water would get them to move on, too, but that hasn't worked so well. Mostly I leave them alone when they're not too close to the house.

For those who don't know about fire ants, here's a good reference -- just scroll down and look at the pictures:

http://www.desertmuseum.org/invaders/invaders_fireant.php


----------



## Intheswamp (Feb 12, 2011)

Nah, I think they were fire ants to begin with...maybe a different strain of fire ants, though.  I know we have a few different fire ants...some are darker in color than the brilliant reds.  The darker ones seem to have smaller more "stealth" nests and seem to be more agressive (is that possible?) than the brilliant reds.   

Interesting that you mention the domination factor.  I was walking to the woodpile the other day and glanced down at a small mound with lots of dead dark ants on top of it.  I've never caught one of the epic battles happening.  Of course there are other, more mundane causes for piles of dead ants, too, but "ant wars" are definitely much more interesting.  The bad thing is that (as in the situation with the Africanized honey bee) is that the more aggressive strain usually wins.<sigh>

I've tried the boiling water laced with HOT peppers poured on the mounds.  It does killed them, but not all of them.  After pouring the water on I've found LARGE piles of dead ants piled up on top/to the side of the mounds....something had to pile'em up there, eh?  
What is interesting is that on occasion I would pour the water on the mound.  The water did not run off of the mound but rather down into the mound.  After emptying a 3-4 gallon pot I was standing there and probably 30 seconds later I'd hear what sounded like a tub or sink drain emptying...that water went DEEP!  

Yes, if you keep disturbing the mounds they will move.  Problem in a garden environment is that you don't want to till up your tomatoes or broccoli to get rid of the ants.  Fire ants are simply a nightmare to deal with.

The only problem with leaving the mounds alone that are at the perimeter of an area is that eventually they'll produce other colonies...but,...you can't treat all of then or we'd be working ourselves back to South America. <groan>

For you folks up north that have never had to contend with fire ants...consider yourselves very blessed.

Ed


----------



## Intheswamp (Apr 11, 2011)

Ok, any of you deep south wood burners want to give a final tally on your wood usage?

Ed


----------



## Bspring (Apr 11, 2011)

Between 3 and 4 cords. That was more than I expected. I am heating a big house with half oak and half junk wood.


----------



## Nic36 (Apr 11, 2011)

Ed, I've been meaning to take a measurement of the stacks of wood that are now missing. I might have burned much less that I thought I would. There were two rows left that I was hoping to use up, and I never did.

As a matter of fact, I think I am going to mosey out to the barn before to see if I can make some sort of assessment.


----------



## Intheswamp (Apr 11, 2011)

Bspring said:
			
		

> Between 3 and 4 cords. That was more than I expected. I am heating a big house with half oak and half junk wood.



Pretty good estimating there!  Back on December 22 you estimated you'd burn about 3.5 cords!  I think the extra cold we had probably caught a lot of people off guard!  

Ed


----------



## Nic36 (Apr 11, 2011)

I guesstimated pretty good. If my measurements were right, I burned just over a cord this season......140 square feet of wood. My house is about half the size of an average home. It's an open floor plan too. 99% of my fuel was very well seasoned white oak and red oak. I did have some misc. stuff, like some cottonwood that I tried to burn towards the end.


----------



## Intheswamp (Apr 12, 2011)

Nic36 said:
			
		

> I guesstimated pretty good. If my measurements were right, I burned just over a cord this season......140 square feet of wood. My house is about half the size of an average home. It's an open floor plan too. 99% of my fuel was very well seasoned white oak and red oak. I did have some misc. stuff, like some cottonwood that I tried to burn towards the end.


Yelp, you about nailed it... roughly 1.09 cords!

Ed


----------



## jlove1974 (Apr 20, 2011)

Intheswamp said:
			
		

> Ok, any of you deep south wood burners want to give a final tally on your wood usage?
> 
> Ed



I didn't burn every night but every night below 35 degrees for sure. I burned about 2.5-3 cord, and I have about 3 cord left over. Not all of what
I burnt was totally seasoned, but we burned alot of standing dead hickory and ash, and about a cord of 2-year seasoned oak. The rest was
a combination of sweetgum(!), sycamore, and yellow pine.

Next year it's going to be nothing but ash and oak


----------



## Intheswamp (Apr 20, 2011)

jlove, it looks like you hit right in there with your estimated amount, even burning the non-prime woods.  How'd that yellow pine do?  I'm thinking of cutting some down our way to have something dried before this coming season.

Ed


----------



## jlove1974 (Apr 20, 2011)

I tried to always mix some oak in there with the other wood. The pine is excellent as far as quick heat. I usually used it after I cleaned the ash/coals out of the fireplace
to get the metal heated up so I could throw some hardwood in there. It seasons pretty fast too. I lucked up and got some 'lighter-pine' with this batch so I was stoked


----------



## Randy S (Apr 20, 2011)

2 1/3 cords,  mixed hardwood in a Woodstock Fireview;  house  is 4 yearsold,  well insulated.
Heating  1700 sf d/tairs.

40 miles N. of Atlanta.

Thanks,
SG


----------



## Intheswamp (Apr 20, 2011)

jlove1974 said:
			
		

> I tried to always mix some oak in there with the other wood. The pine is excellent as far as quick heat. I usually used it after I cleaned the ash/coals out of the fireplace
> to get the metal heated up so I could throw some hardwood in there. It seasons pretty fast too. I lucked up and got some 'lighter-pine' with this batch so I was stoked


Thanks for the feedback on the pine.  I'd like to find some ash around here but where I've been cutting is a clear-cut and figuring out what most of the stuff there is tough for me...if it isn't oak.  I'm planning on cruising a little property of mine and see what's on it, but really not keen about cutting on it right now as long as I've scrounging grounds elsewhere.   I have some dead standing bug pines that I can cut, but younger trees about 20 years old.  I missed some bigger, older short-leafs a few years ago when I wasn't burning...bug feed, rotting in the woods now.<sigh>  I'll come up with something to go with the little bit of well seasoned oak that I have.

Ed


----------



## Intheswamp (Apr 20, 2011)

Southern Gent said:
			
		

> 2 1/3 cords,  mixed hardwood in a Woodstock Fireview;  house  is 4 yearsold,  well insulated.
> Heating  1700 sf d/tairs.
> 
> 40 miles N. of Atlanta.
> ...


Thanks for the report, SG.  That's a nice stove you've got there, excellent reviews.  Looks like it took care of you this past winter with a little over two cords...not bad for 1700sqft!

Ed

PS  That's some pretty country up your way, used to go up I75 all along to check on my SIL.  Me and the wife rented a cabin up around Blue Ridge several years ago...we arrived the night that Chattanooga got hit by numerous tornadoes...lots of them down in your area, too, that night.  I had a 2-meter HT with me and we listened to reports and warnings all night long...what a start to a vacation


----------



## Randy S (Apr 21, 2011)

Hi Ed, 
You're welcome.     The little  town is Ball Ground,  abt. 18 miles east of  I-75 from   Hwy. 20 exit.   It is beautiful ,   born and raised in N GA in   BG 4 years now.
Got my start with the Fireview from reading/researching this site,  great folks.
No LP purchase for 2 years now but will have to buy this summer  as  I use that for  backup.

SG


----------

