avc; youre right: it is like a hobby and continuing education. around here, some folks have outdoor shed boilers---i'm the only one i know using and indoor add-on. the outdoor boiler mentality locally is to stuff it full of wood once in the morning and once at night and let the boiler controls do the rest. after my fire chim. fire last year, i learned quickly that was not the right approach. at least not for my application. i'm up for the challenge---and anything that cuts my oil consumption in half (short-term goal for this year)