Does Anyone Here Just Heat with Wood?

[Highbeam]

Yes, 100% with wood. A backup is just that, a backup and doesn't account for any part of the percentage unless you regularly use it and then it is not a backup it is a second source. My backup heat has not come on at all and is set for 60, the source is individual electric wall heaters. Each room has one and each heater has a stand alone thermostat. The kids' rooms are set for 60 and the stove room too but haven't fallen below 65 yet this year.

The heritage has gone through about a cord of softwood and our winter has been mild. The house loses 5-10 degrees overnight and reheats in about 2 hours. With modern construction or good insulation, is not difficult to deal with with wood heat.

 

[Malatesta]

Weve been heating with wood for 12 years now. The oil furnace is used to knock off early morning chills then the stove is crancked back up all dayy till bed time. I think the furnace might come on once and the n in the morning.


Iam in the process of putting a Mid-sized cast iron stove in the basement and a new cast iron on the second floor to replace our existing stove. Iam going to intstall vents in areas of the house so the radiant heat will transfer thru the vents to the 2 nd floor of the sleeping area. Next year i hope to heat with all wood and no oil burner furnace. We have Gas that heats our hot water.


I have an unlimated supply to wood so iam going for it !So to answer the question id say were heating about 60-70 % with the wood.

 

[RedRanger]

I did check off the 100% with minor backup, but you will have to decide if my answer was correct?

Up to 125 US gallons of oil for the old boiler.

Up to 100 US gallons of propane for the upstairs insert.

Last year 6 cords of softwood. Looks like 4.5 cords this year with the new insert. Unless we start getting some of that "back east weather".. then perhaps 6 cords again?

Anyway, total heating costs are less than 2k per year, so I am happy with that.

Next time you do a survey like this--lets see that 75% option ;-)

 

[ac900tc]

Yes, I heat with 100% wood! 2000 sq. ft. ranch home, large airtight stove w/blower. I had the propane company pick up my 500 gal. tank last year. (got tired of paying the yearly tank rent) I used an electric space heater in late Oct. for the cool nights. Been burnin' round the clock since. My stove will burn 12hrs. on a full load. I keep the house 70-80 degrees. I have heated in the winter solely with wood for 10+ years now.

 

[downeast]

I did check off the 100% with minor backup, but you will have to decide if my answer was correct?

Up to 125 US gallons of oil for the old boiler.

Up to 100 US gallons of propane for the upstairs insert.

Last year 6 cords of softwood. Looks like 4.5 cords this year with the new insert. Unless we start getting some of that "back east weather".. then perhaps 6 cords again?

Anyway, total heating costs are less than 2k per year, so I am happy with that.

Next time you do a survey like this--lets see that 75% option ;-)

You count as 100% Sonny.....always. Why quibble ?

 

[NHFarmer]

I would have responded earlier but I was out cutting wood.seems like that is all I do these days.I have always burned wood but this is the first year 100% with no backup.It is vary rewarding when I can type this in my tee shirt.

 

[snowtime]

24/7 100%. Been heating 100% since 1970. I do have backup it's a wood furnace. We do not heat the basement as that is where our preps are. The main floor has got the T6 and we keep it around 70 to 75. Upstairs bedrooms are usually 60 as we have the main ceiling very tight and thick to keep the heat down. So the T6 has to heat 1200' to 75 and 1200' to 60. It has taken 2 log homes to get it just the way we like it.

 

[labrador]

I'm probably heating 90 percent with wood. The oil burner keeps domestic hot water going otherwise we run 24/7 with upstairs insert (550 Rockland) and downstairs with VC l978 Vigilant. House is ranch 2500 sq. ft. The Rockland 550 keeps the upstairs warm. We set the thermostat for 62 and it rarely goes on unless we are away. This is the first year I'm trying to burn wood 24/7 since wife and I are both retired. I have been burning wood on a part time basis since 1973 and I lived in an 11 room house built befoe 1900. I made the mistake, before we bought the insert this last summer, of pre buying oil and signing a contract. I bought expecting the price of oil to be very high this winter. ANYONE HAVE ANY IDEAS OF HOW TO BREAK A CONTRACT AND GET MONEY BACK? Contract of course is written in the dealers favor. Nothing like heating with wood.

 

[gyrfalcon]

I'm probably heating 90 percent with wood. The oil burner keeps domestic hot water going otherwise we run 24/7 with upstairs insert (550 Rockland) and downstairs with VC l978 Vigilant. House is ranch 2500 sq. ft. The Rockland 550 keeps the upstairs warm. We set the thermostat for 62 and it rarely goes on unless we are away. This is the first year I'm trying to burn wood 24/7 since wife and I are both retired. I have been burning wood on a part time basis since 1973 and I lived in an 11 room house built befoe 1900. I made the mistake, before we bought the insert this last summer, of pre buying oil and signing a contract. I bought expecting the price of oil to be very high this winter. ANYONE HAVE ANY IDEAS OF HOW TO BREAK A CONTRACT AND GET MONEY BACK? Contract of course is written in the dealers favor. Nothing like heating with wood.

Labrador, your local oil guy isn't at fault for this. Most people don't realize that, unlike gasoline, these guys have to buy their heating oil supply in advance, so they paid those outrageous prices themselves for the oil on the assurance that you and the other folks who signed the pre-buy would actually buy it from them at that price. I read somewhere recently that the average small heating oil delivery company had to pony up something like $10 million to reserve their oil for their customers this summer.

That said, I do know some folks who've been able to get the price reduced despite signing the pre-buy, but it depends on how the dealer handled his early buy and how much of it he's already sold, etc. Give yours a call and see if they can do anything, but unless you've got a real bad one, they're in just as much of a financial bind over this as you are.

 

[bfunk13]

Or basement has a small gas heater just to keep the pipes thawed out.
Other than that, yeah 100% wood heat.
Gotta love it!

Brad

 

[bsa0021]

Or basement has a small gas heater just to keep the pipes thawed out.
Other than that, yeah 100% wood heat.
Gotta love it!

Brad

Hmm, I don't have any heat in my basement and I've never had frozen pipes. It stays about 55 - 60 all winter.

 

[caber]

100%. When we bought the house, it had no central heat, just the wood stove. We have a space heater we turn on if we're going to be gone 12+ hours. We're building an addition and are considering a heat pump for AC and a heat backup. I'd feel better if we had an option to be away overnite int he winter.

 

[precaud]

100% wood and passive solar. Last year I lit the central steam boiler's pilot and set the thermostat for 62F, it came on maybe 7-8 times predawn on the very coldest nights. This year I intend not to even light it, but we shall see; the coldest weather is still ahead. The passive solar heater installed this year is making a huge difference. I have yet to make or need a fire between 8am and 6pm. Unless you are lucky enough to have an intentionally-designed zero-energy home, passive solar + wood is the way to go. And they're both practically free once you get the systems installed.

 

[Todd]

I try to heat 100% with wood but if I take a trip this winter or sweep the chimney I'll use the NG furnace. So far the house hasn't dipped below 70 yet.

 

[beau5278]

I just found this sight and it looks like I can make myself right at home here.I've been burning wood for all but about 3 or 4 of the past 30 years.I've been in this place for 8 years now,2 wood burners going 24/7 the past 4 years.We do have oil that we would use,if we go away for a few days,we set the thermostat down to 45,we haven't put any oil in the tank in the past 3 years.

 

[gyrfalcon]

I just found this sight and it looks like I can make myself right at home here.I've been burning wood for all but about 3 or 4 of the past 30 years.I've been in this place for 8 years now,2 wood burners going 24/7 the past 4 years.We do have oil that we would use,if we go away for a few days,we set the thermostat down to 45,we haven't put any oil in the tank in the past 3 years.

Cool! Welcome,and plunge right in. I'm sure you have insights after 30 years we can all learn from.

 

[EatenByLimestone]

I heat as much as I can with wood. The stove isn't in the most ideal place.

My main savings comes from focusing the family's activities in the area heated by the stove. The family room and the kitchen. This lets me keep the rest of the house much cooler than I would normally be able to. My wife is from Houston. She's addicted to BTUs.

Matt

 

[chad3]

I do heat 100% but have the furnace for back up and for hot water. I did pre-buy oil this year, but paid the extra 75 bucks to have the lower cost if it went that way (that is a great deal this year). I think the furnace came on twice last year for actual heat and it didn't need to, first thing in the morning and stove was getting going again.

 

[bfunk13]

Or basement has a small gas heater just to keep the pipes thawed out.
Other than that, yeah 100% wood heat.
Gotta love it!

Brad

Hmm, I don't have any heat in my basement and I've never had frozen pipes. It stays about 55 - 60 all winter.

How cold does it get where you are from?
I dont think i could get away with no heat in the basement.

 

[pistonslap]

After 3 seasons and a few modifications, I finally got my old (70's) non cat wood furnace producing the kind of heat that makes it possible to burn 24/7. Only problem is that I had a hip replacement in June so I didn't get all my wood in this season. The fire usually goes out around 3 a.m. and doesn't get re-lit until 8 a.m. I'm trying to conserve wood to get me through the season. Next season I'll have my usual 6-7 cords in and I'll burn 24/7.

 

[crazy_dan]

There is not a back up in my house NO furnace at all. The only heat is the wood stove.
I had to go with the only 100% option

 

[njkev]

I have been heating my home 24/7 with my Heatilator Constiitution in Northwestern NJ. Only let it die out every 8-10 days to clean out the ash.
Kev

 

[CowboyAndy]

I heat 24/7 right now, and after our forst bitterly cold night (-8*) I have am at a crossroads right now: Get up at 1:30am to stoke/add wood, or let the oil furnace kick on around 4am.

hmm...

looks like I will be getting up!

 

[EatenByLimestone]

It only got down to 5 degrees here last night. Since this is the first bout of "stupid cold" this year I think I'll start the wife's car to make sure it starts before I leave for work.

Matt and not looking forward to a cold drive to work.

 

[ControlFreak]

Napoleon 1401 heating a 2900 sq ft home with 6" exterior walls, well insulated. We will go through about 100-200 gallons of oil a winter, and about 4 cords of wood. The furnace is set to kick on at 68 on the opposite end of the house from the stove.