Ok boys, here comes the cold again. I've been making 76 in the house at 0 to 5 outside burning a combo of dry red oak and hedge. You've got to love the volume of dense hardwoods in these parts. We are blessed. Burn that wood, stay warm and stick your thumb in the eye of the energy companies!
Looks like we get 4 or 5 single-digit lows in the next week. Load it up and stay warm!
My place will be cold enough that I will have to give the gas company some money. We have the stove up and running though so that will help. I have had a couple weeks to fine tune the burn and it heats well enough to keep the main room (40'X45' with 12' ceilings) steady at 65-67. The front HVAC unit rarely if ever kicks on and the one in the back runs about half as much so I think we'll cut the gas bill by 75%. Burning elm now but looking forward to burning some really good stuff (hickory, hedge, locust, oak) to see if I can prolong the high plateau of the burn above 550 for multiple hours.
Found a place to cut some hedge which I haven't done before. Any tips, hints or things to watch out for? Is it really that much more difficult than other species?
Also have a 2nd KC scrounge that I need to post. Might take some pictures today before it snows.