Can i ask what is "Your comfort" temperature with wood vs oil/electric.

[krex1010]

Just keep in mind it is pretty much impossible to heat your house with a woodstove in the same manner as a heat pump or central furnace or radiators or whatever. A woodstove heats your home from one place, it has no vents or any way to evenly distribute heat throughout your house. So when you are saying these 75 or 80'degree temps are wasteful, those temps do not accurately represent what is going on in the whole house. My guess is that for many people, when they say they keep their home at 80 that means in the area withthe stove, the outlying areas of that home are likely much cooler. So the average temp for all the rooms in that 80'degree home is liken not much different from what people with a central heating system set their thermostats at. In my house I like to burn so that for the majority of my burn cycle my stove room is around 75 degrees maybe a bit more, that will give me about 70 degrees in the rest of my main floor and around 68 degrees in my second floor bedrooms. When heating with wood you have to account for swings in temperature and uneven temps throughout your house. Yes some home layouts allow for better heat distribution, but I believe this is accurate for the majority of homes.

 

[Danno77]

yeah, several more posts just said what I've been thinking and that's the concept that the WHOLE house isn't that hot, but that there certainly may be rooms that hot, particularly the stove room. Besides, this forum is MOSTLY (not completely) men, who tend to be boastful and aren't about to report wussy temps that may be in the closet in the furthest corner from the stove. "My stove room is 102 and it's -40 out, grunt grunt" sounds better to some than "when it gets below freezing out, my half bath on the second floor is 50 degrees even with the stove running full force"

 

[tickbitty]

Yes, that is the luxury of wood. The house is actually warm and we know exactly how much we are using. This morning when I woke the house was a warm 70, whereas with the heat pump last year it would have been a cold 67. Sounds like just a couple degrees, but even with the heatpump pushed to 70, it felt cold and drafty all the time. AND COST like $500 a month!! Now we have the house comfortable albeit unevenly heated, so parts of it are toasty and parts just OK, but it is under our control. We pay for some of our wood and we're likely to have to buy some pretty soon to keep going through the colder part of the winter. We run the stove as efficiently as we can and keep the thermostat low when we are not there and there's no fire. We couldn't really do that with the former oil furnace or last year's heat pump, because the amount it would take to get the house back to being warm again after letting it go down to 60 was astronomical. Now we can let it go down to 60 and we know we can have the house toasty again shortly after we arrive home. The space heater affect is nice too. If the rest of the house is still cool, gather around the stove!

 

[bimmerFAITH]

I'm in the process of installing an insert so I'm not anti wood, but I also dont plan on heating any different than I do with the heat pump, like your above temps.

If you have no personal experience burning wood you should not be complaining. Wait until your personal experience and see how easy it is to accidentally get your home too warm. It happens . . . you'll probably comment about it on this forum . . . people will think you are bragging when all you are doing is running a new post about your experience . . . then some other non(or future) wood burner will see your post and start ranting about irresponsible wood burning practices.

Also, don't be surprised if you want your home a few degrees warmer when you finally get the insert installed. You will, by the way, be heating MUCH differently than with the heat pump since heat pumps are only effective if you pick a temperature to maintain all day.

 

[Jags]

I'm in the process of installing an insert so I'm not anti wood, but I also dont plan on heating any different than I do with the heat pump, like your above temps.

This says quite a bit right here. While I am perfectly comfortable at 68F using propane, I am at the same comfort level at 72F with wood heat. There is a difference. You will get to experience this, first hand, shortly.

You may choose to have a target temp identical to where you set the thermo now...but I am willing to bet that your comfort temps may creep up a bit when using wood as your fuel. Just say'in - consider it a friendly wager.

I personally want to maintain a temp somewhere south of 74F in my home. I think you would find that if fuel oil, or propane or electric cost was comparable in btu costs to wood heat, most people would keep there houses warmer than we typically see. The costs are not even comparable, so in turn, the thermo gets turned down to a minimum comfort level. Using that as a base level for comfort may be the misleading factor in your question.

Bimmer - ya beat me by a minute. :lol:

 

[firefighterjake]

Well I'm not an environmentalist . . . heck I own a SUV (which I mostly use for work purposes), an ATV (which I use for work and play) and even a two-stroke snowmobile (which I must admit is just for play -- I will confess though that I would like to get a four stroker some day, but right now the price tag is too high).

That said . . . I used to burn oil and had the thermostats set at 72 degrees F or so . . . now I burn wood . . . and my ideal temp is still 72 degrees F . . . however it doesn't always work out that way since sometimes make a mistake and don't pay attention to the weather forecast . . . and end up overheating the place . . . which quite honestly is not enjoyable.

I hate wasting wood . . . which is why I burn in cycles . . . heck, I even hate burning wood in the fire ring or on campfires . . . but this is also why this wood is my crappy wood -- the punks, junks and uglies.

As I said I'm not an eco-nut . . . but when I cut on the family land I practice the same cutting practices that I learned from my father, uncle and grandfather -- I cut selectively allowing younger trees to thrive and culling out the dead and twisted trees. This practice has allowed our family to use the land for several generations.

Occasionally when I cut wood I plant trees. This past weekend I planted a bunch of acorns as I cut the wood. I know I will never cut this wood in my life time . . . but it is a good feeling knowing that I am improving the land through my actions.

I burn wood because it saves money . . . and I burn wood with an EPA stove since it saves cutting excessive amounts of wood. Again, this is not me being "green" -- this is me being lazy. The fact that the stove burns cleaner with less pollutants and uses less wood is a bonus, but for me one of the original reasons I wanted an EPA stove was it would mean less work for me if I was burning less wood.

Finally, I am not out to save the world . . . but I do know this . . . my neighbor never has to worry about my stack of wood springing a leak and contaminating his water supply . . . I never worry about the wood on the family land having a blow out and ruining the lives and livelihoods of hundreds of people . . . and I never worry about coming home one day to find that my woodstove has blown up and left a large crater where my house used to be due to a corroded "wood line."

 

[begreen]

Asked and answered twice already this month. No need for another thread in the Hearth forum. Moving to the green room for the environmental question.

I can't add anything that Hogwildz and Madrone haven't already addressed quite well.

 

[Got Wood]

Some random thoughts....

I hate seeing my wood stacks being reduced! I take alot of pride in them! LOL Actually, I work to backfill ASAP.

In year #3 burning I am still improving the efficiency of my wood burning and use. I find the shoulder seasons the trickiest time to heat with wood.... too hot, too cold... hard to get it just right. So, yea, there are times I get it too hot and feel like I wasted wood - not because I want to though.

Before wood heat I set the therm to 65. Now I have grown to like the warmer wood heat temps on a cold day. Still prefer it cold when sleeping.

85 is too hot any time ... if I hit 85 windows open

As a prior post mentioned - this post provoked good discussion... the best kind of posts.

 

[CHIMENEA]

It doesn't bother me in itself except when I start to see huge cord numbers for one winter but, I understand people can do whatever they want. It was just starting to seem like a lot of the posts I was reading were people heating in a totally different manner than they would if they were using oil, propane, electric etc. because wood is so readily available for most.

I'm in the process of installing an insert so I'm not anti wood, but I also dont plan on heating any different than I do with the heat pump, like your above temps.

Define "huge cord numbers". What this statement says to me is that you think that anyone using more wood than you think they should use is "wasting" energy. It is a rude and narrow minded statement.

And, yes, I burn differently than when I was using oil. I got tired of having the house at 50-55 degrees when I work from home and 60-65 degrees at night and still have an outrageous oil bill.

The stove rooms will kept at 75-80 degrees all winter with 70-75 in the rest of the house.

People are going to use more wood than me based on there house size. I forget what post i was reading as I was searching topics but I remember someone mentioning their neighbor/friend had already burned 7 cords or so halfway through the season and yes I think thats excessive, not narrow minded. Are people going over the same issues( upgrading windows, insulation, heat loss sources, the burning source itself ) they would using a furnace? Or not bothering because wood heat keeps on giving even if the hot air is running right out the roof. And who cares right? Wood is renewable.

 

[Badfish740]

I came to burning wood for a variety of reasons-I heat my house with wood just as much for the economic benefit of my own wallet as I do the environmental benefit of us all. That being said, I worry about doing my own part and I'm not so much worried about my neighbor's burning habits so long as he's not smoking me out with green wood, etc... I've seen the posts about getting the house up to 85 degrees, but I take them mostly as just guys bragging. I'm one of those people that's always hot, so once the house gets above 70 I start to get uncomfortable. When it comes to sleeping if the bedroom is anywhere above 68 I can't sleep-we solve this by keeping the bedroom door shut with at least one window cracked and the register to the room shut off. As for wasting wood, I agree-using enough wood to get a house to 85 degrees consistently is wasteful-but more importantly (for a scrounger like me especially) it's a hell of a lot of work! I enjoy cutting, bucking, and splitting, but part of the reason I enjoy it is because it hasn't become a part time job-if I needed 6 or 7 cords per year to burn it would be. I hope to one day own a superinsulated home with a gasifier. If I could heat the house with say 2 cords a year I could easily have a sustainable supply of fuel on a relatively small piece of land.

 

[BrowningBAR]

It doesn't bother me in itself except when I start to see huge cord numbers for one winter but, I understand people can do whatever they want. It was just starting to seem like a lot of the posts I was reading were people heating in a totally different manner than they would if they were using oil, propane, electric etc. because wood is so readily available for most.

I'm in the process of installing an insert so I'm not anti wood, but I also dont plan on heating any different than I do with the heat pump, like your above temps.

Define "huge cord numbers". What this statement says to me is that you think that anyone using more wood than you think they should use is "wasting" energy. It is a rude and narrow minded statement.

And, yes, I burn differently than when I was using oil. I got tired of having the house at 50-55 degrees when I work from home and 60-65 degrees at night and still have an outrageous oil bill.

The stove rooms will kept at 75-80 degrees all winter with 70-75 in the rest of the house.

People are going to use more wood than me based on there house size. I forget what post i was reading as I was searching topics but I remember someone mentioning their neighbor/friend had already burned 7 cords or so halfway through the season and yes I think thats excessive, not narrow minded. Are people going over the same issues( upgrading windows, insulation, heat loss sources, the burning source itself ) they would using a furnace? Or not bothering because wood heat keeps on giving even if the hot air is running right out the roof. And who cares right? Wood is renewable.

I am unsure as to why you are posting with a sarcastic tone. No one is saying "who cares" other than you. If you would read more and make less assumptions you would see that nearly everyone on this forum preaches about getting the most out of your heating. This includes; insulation, new windows, fixing leaks, and tightening up your home.

Additionally, where was this home located that already used 7 cords? How big is the home? There are places far colder than Jersey. So, the narrow mindedness comes in when you are making huge assumptions over others when you do not know their set up and you haven't even gone through one winter yet of burning wood.

 

[Danno77]

Additionally, where was this home located that already used 7 cords? How big is the home? There are places far colder than Jersey. So, the narrow mindedness comes in when you are making huge assumptions over others when you do not know their set up and you haven't even gone through one winter yet of burning wood.

BRB after a search. I swear it was in Alaska and the dude was heating multiple buildings...

 

[WOODplay]

I'm in the process of installing an insert so I'm not anti wood, but I also dont plan on heating any different than I do with the heat pump, like your above temps.

If you have no personal experience burning wood you should not be complaining. Wait until your personal experience and see how easy it is to accidentally get your home too warm. It happens . . . you'll probably comment about it on this forum . . . people will think you are bragging when all you are doing is running a new post about your experience . . . then some other non(or future) wood burner will see your post and start ranting about irresponsible wood burning practices.

Also, don't be surprised if you want your home a few degrees warmer when you finally get the insert installed. You will, by the way, be heating MUCH differently than with the heat pump since heat pumps are only effective if you pick a temperature to maintain all day.

You said that right...Nice job!

 

[krex1010]

Burning 7 cords of wood already would be extremely excessive for me, that would be enough for me for almost two years. However I live in a fairly moderate climate and my home is only about 1500 sq ft. But there are people with much larger homes than mine who also live in much colder climates. So according to you, that guy must be some sort of pyromaniac? If he had burned 500 gallons of oil would that be more palatable to you? You can't judge someone when you don't know their situation.

 

[BrowningBAR]

Burning 7 cords of wood already would be extremely excessive for me, that would be enough for me for almost two years. However I live in a fairly moderate climate and my home is only about 1500 sq ft. But there are people with much larger homes than mine who also live in much colder climates. So according to you, that guy must be some sort of pyromaniac? If he had burned 500 gallons of oil would that be more palatable to you? You can't judge someone when you don't know their situation.

And to compare, I will go through 7-8 cords this year and you and I are in the same climate. My home is 2150 sq ft. Am I being wasteful? No. Just a different house and set up.

 

[CTYank]

Why is it that if energy is chopped and not drilled/dug that its ok to waste it however we feel like? We aren't paying for it maybe? Many threads on how its an achievement to reach unreasonable temperatures during heating, yea 85 is normal. Do wood burners actually take any environmental responsibility?

Where did you hear anyone say "it's ok to waste"? Let's see your hands for calluses- my, how soft and tender!
(Fair is fair, and you should expect such when you come in firing from the lip.)
Taking "environmental responsibility" here is a matter of enlightened self-interest- using a resource with liberal doses of intelligence so it's sustainable.
My guess is that you burn those little supermarket wood bundles in your fancy firepot, which is a vain attempt to heat your town. You won't get it to 85.

I'm not covering for the OWB "smoke dragons" that are fired like a Mississippi steamboat.

 

[krex1010]

Burning 7 cords of wood already would be extremely excessive for me, that would be enough for me for almost two years. However I live in a fairly moderate climate and my home is only about 1500 sq ft. But there are people with much larger homes than mine who also live in much colder climates. So according to you, that guy must be some sort of pyromaniac? If he had burned 500 gallons of oil would that be more palatable to you? You can't judge someone when you don't know their situation.

And to compare, I will go through 7-8 cords this year and you and I are in the same climate. My home is 2150 sq ft. Am I being wasteful? No. Just a different house and set up.

Right on

 

[krex1010]

Chimenea,
I don't know what you situation is married or not. But in my experience females are more receptive to certain uh... Activities when they are not shivering. My wife shivers when it's below 72 inside. So you might want to take note of that
Just trying to helP a brother out!

 

[bimmerFAITH]

Chimenea,
I don't know what you situation is married or not. But in my experience females are more receptive to certain uh... Activities when they are not shivering. My wife shivers when it's below 72 inside. So you might want to take note of that
Just trying to helP a brother out!

Good to know I'm not the only one whose dear wife requires a little extra heat to create a little "extra heat" . . . 70-72 even sounds about right. Sometimes a few extra splits for the fire ends up being well planned means to a desirable end.

 

[midwestcoast]

Not much to add except to the line many posts back by Chimenea that wood is free & abundant or easy to come-by or something, so people waste it. Couple responses: 1. 100% of the wood I (and many others here) burn is scrounged from an urban/suburban setting. That means tha all of it was headed for the landfill if I or someone else didn't take it to heat with. In the landfill it would sit & very slowly decay in the absence of oxygen, creating methane which would either be flared of, or just vented (no landfill gas collection around here). So whatever use I pput it to is better than that no?
2. Whether you buy your wood, scrounge, or have your own woodlot I think you may soon change your mind about wood being easy to come-by. The real story is you either have to pay good money for cut, split & delivered, or go cut, haul, split, stack, move & re-stack each & every piece yourself. Then put your boots on & go out in the winter weather several times each day (morning, night, snow, rain, whatever) to get a stove-load, carry it in & load-up the stove. It doesn't seem so expendible after that.

There are much more outrageous things to gripe about IMO.

 

[PapaDave]

The very fact that I/we use wood instead of/in addition to oil, gas, or propane makes me/us environmentally responsible. There have been a few comments (very few) on here about how the poster has plenty of wood, so it doesn't matter how much gets used. I think that is probably the exception, rather than rule.
Shouldn't be assumed that everyone has the same attitude just because we also use wood. That's a pretty short sighted and narrow minded way of thinking.
Kind of interesting how you ask a somewhat innocuous question, then follow with a slap in the face.
My comfort level differs depending on the season, when 70 degrees feels different in the dead of winter than it does in the fall or spring.
To further respond, I need to, and will CONTINUE to seal up the house and insulate to keep from using too much energy, no matter the source. All that said, I turned off the non renewable using nat. gas furnace (as have others) about 3.5 years ago.
Just call me thrifty, yet green. Do I think that Al's house in Tennessee and the energy needed to run it is excessive, yes. People have differing needs, and there is an AWFUL lot of waste in the world. Just look at government. :cheese: Woodburners aren't the devil.

 

[yanksforever]

I'll run my woodstove as hot as I please thank you. This thread smacks of algore ruling class left wing attempt to dictate my lifestyle and it has angered me a bit.

I say throw it to the ash can.

And I take offense to you blaming it on left wing views. I am left wing and have a woodstove. So either answer the question or ignore it. But stop blaming
all the things you don't like on politics. Nobody dictated anything to you!

 

[BrowningBAR]

I'll run my woodstove as hot as I please thank you. This thread smacks of algore ruling class left wing attempt to dictate my lifestyle and it has angered me a bit.

I say throw it to the ash can.

And I take offense to you blaming it on left wing views. I am left wing and have a woodstove. So either answer the question or ignore it. But stop blaming
all the things you don't like on politics. Nobody dictated anything to you!

I blame all of my problems on the Yankees payroll.

 

[yanksforever]

I'll run my woodstove as hot as I please thank you. This thread smacks of algore ruling class left wing attempt to dictate my lifestyle and it has angered me a bit.

I say throw it to the ash can.

And I take offense to you blaming it on left wing views. I am left wing and have a woodstove. So either answer the question or ignore it. But stop blaming
all the things you don't like on politics. Nobody dictated anything to you!

-
I blame all of my problems on the Yankees payroll.

Good one Browning...I like that! ))

 

[krex1010]

I'll run my woodstove as hot as I please thank you. This thread smacks of algore ruling class left wing attempt to dictate my lifestyle and it has angered me a bit.

I say throw it to the ash can.

And I take offense to you blaming it on left wing views. I am left wing and have a woodstove. So either answer the question or ignore it. But stop blaming
all the things you don't like on politics. Nobody dictated anything to you!

-
I blame all of my problems on the Yankees payroll.

Good one Browning...I like that! ))

Dang Yankees, actually as a phils fan I am just jealous because they are going to sign cliff lee