so far this year...

[fire_man]

I'm at 2.5 cords, been burning on low since mid October, a few warm snaps here made it easy for cleanouts. NO OIL CONSUMED THIS YEAR

With oil down near $2.50/Gallon those paying for delivered wood must be thinking about turning on the furnace! Wood around here is pushing $300/cord.

 

[rideau]

One stove, three floors and full basement (no entrance to home, bilko entrances only, but never gets much different from 50 degrees year round, don't heat it), first two floor 1428 sq ft, many windows, cold climate, exposed site; third floor somewhat less than 1428 square feet.

Have electric baseboard available but never use it. The breakers are not on. Have a profoundly handicapped brother I care for, so nights keep a small electric heater in his bedroom, since I need to keep the door closed at night. Otherwise, wood is my sole heat source. Do not keep the entire house at 70. Keep the first floor warm, push colder air by fan down the stairwell. Keep the bedroom floors progressively cooler, 2nd to 3rd floors. Each floor 5 to 7 degrees cooler than the one below at this time of year. Our nighttime outdoor temps can range from about 5F to -25F at night, plus wind. I don't push my stove at all. If I needed to keep the upper floors warmer I easily could, but would use more wood.

Start fires in September (shoulder season) and sometimes light them into June. But use branches, twigs, stuff I need to get rid of from windfall and tops of trees, some uglies until sometime in November, when I start needing to heat 24/7 and begin using my stacks, so don't actually know how much wood I use.

Have to burn seriously, high heat production, 24/7 from sometime in November to sometime in March or April, depending on the year. This year has been bitterly cold. I burned about 3/5 of one stack, until I got to some wood I want to keep for next winter, then moved to the next stack. Have about a face cord left of that stack. So, between the two cords I have started, I guess I have about just over 2/3 cords left, so I have burned 1 1/3 cords from my stacks plus the shoulder season stuff. Probably equivalent of over two cords total, but hard to know and have not reduced my stacks by that much.

Despite the bitterly cold temps we are experiencing, we are getting enough added sunlight with the longer days, and some sunny ones for a change, to get significant solar gain during the days, which goes a long way to reducing heating load from here out.

 

[rideau]

Yes, Tony, wood here goes for anywhere from $100 to $125 per face cord, which is how it is usually priced. Most often the higher figure. If you can buy by the cord, it's usually $350/cord. And very unusual to find any wood that has been split earlier than a few months prior to sale.

 

[NextEndeavor]

Iowa winter, 1,300 sq ft ranch, burning-cruising 24/7, house averages 74 degrees and have used somewhere in the 2 to 2.5 cord range, mostly 3 years seasoned black locust which is gooooooood fuel. I've cut my cordwood requirement by close to a third compared to my first year of marginal wood. Natural gas furnace has ran twice due to no one being home for over 24 hours a couple times. Lov'n it!

 

[cookin2night]

Iowa winter, 1,300 sq ft ranch, burning-cruising 24/7, house averages 74 degrees and have used somewhere in the 2 to 2.5 cord range, mostly 3 years seasoned black locust which is gooooooood fuel. I've cut my cordwood requirement by close to a third compared to my first year of marginal wood. Natural gas furnace has ran twice due to no one being home for over 24 hours a couple times. Lov'n it!

How many wood burners do you have? I have about double the square footage and two burners I have used about the same proportional amount of wood. But I'm only getting into the 70s if I'm really on top of it. And what are the temps outside? Is only been above freezing maybe for a weeks worth of time since the winter started.

 

[Jan Pijpelink]

So far 3.5 cords divided over 2 stoves. Gas furnace 1 hr in the morning and 1 hr in the evening.

 

[NextEndeavor]

How many wood burners do you have? I have about double the square footage and two burners I have used about the same proportional amount of wood. But I'm only getting into the 70s if I'm really on top of it. And what are the temps outside? Is only been above freezing maybe for a weeks worth of time since the winter started.

We are at 12 degrees outside right now, center of house is ......... 77 (wife obviously at the controls this weekend). Stove is at one end of house in living room (where I'm nearly falling asleep and fighting heat exhaustion) Farthest bedroom is 72. I'll load the 3 cu ft stove about 3/4 full at 10 pm and wake up with a 70 degree hallway at 5 am. You can check average weather statistics for Des Moines Iowa compared to New Jersey.

 

[Isaac Carlson]

We just cracked into cord #3 this week. We have 3 left. Much better than last year at 8+ cord. The house is not as well insulated this year due to the carpet being ripped out and some walls and ceiling open. averaging about 80° in the house this winter.
Our new stove may not be epa certified, but it sure heats good.

 

[tcassavaugh]

probably about 3 so far. only about 1400 sq ft upstairs. a lot less when only one stove going but with it being so cold, and having to burn two i run through it pretty quick. gotta check the snow blower and put the box blade on the little john deere. we're supposed to get some snow tonight. we don't normally get much more than a dusting but tonight they're calling for at least 5-8 for the d.c. area.....we'll be crippled tomorrow....lol

 

[rkshed]

~2.5 and about 1 gallon of oil. 1000 sf ranch and my faithful but ugly old Garrison. -4 outside and 70 in right now!

 

[mark cline]

...we'll be crippled tomorrow....lol.................................................
Washington has been crippled for the last 7 years....LOL

 

[laynes69]

We are around 3.5 cord, heating 2500 sqft with our woodfurnace. It was -9°F temperature without windchill last night, brrr. Went to bed it was -6°F and 73°F inside.

 

[Jags]

Please save the politics for youwontbelievewhattheydidthistime.com.

 

[DPurvis]

Have used about 2.25 cord so far and about 80-100 gallons of propane. Heating 1004 sq ft with not-so-well-seasoned hardwoods(gathered in spring, split during summer, piled on ground not stacked and left uncovered until Oct then tarped the top) I figure we are losing about 1/2 our BTU's to dry out the wood before it really burns well. Lots of sizzling and popping. (Yes I am doing extra chimney cleans to make up for poorly seasoned wood) We have burned 24/7 except for about 2 weeks when we were away from home.

 

[samfatboy]

It must be a lot colder where I am, or I just like it a lot warmer in the house.

2.5 tons of pellets, and 1.67 tons of bio bricks so far.

Here in Connecticut, we have had two days above freezing in February so far, and have one more coming this Sunday. Not to mention the snow. I shovelled 3 feet of white insulation off of my roof last Saturday, and the forecast is snow about every other day or so.

With a wood burner in the family room, and a pellet stove in the living room -- life is GOOD!

 

[bryankloos]

I'm at about 3.5 cord and maybe 175 gallons of oil to heat my 3400 sq ft house. February had been COLD, and continues to forecast COLD!
Wood is marginal and I'm about 1 week away from the decision to start burning 1 year oak or finish off the season with oil... I may be able to scrounge together another weeks worth of wood but a new cord will cost me $250 delivered.... Trying to decide my best option...

 

[YellowGold]

New member here. I have been following the site for a few years now and its been a great source of information. I am in my second year of burning full time and I have went through about 2.5 cords so far this year.

 

[Rock Crusher]

2 cords down and starting my 3rd, also burned approx. 1 ton of pellets, 2,100sf.

 

[Bones]

So far...1 1/2 chords. Looks like close to 1 chord less than last year around this time....

 

[Seanm]

Jeesh you guys. Its -3 c here right now and Im in full shoulder season burning right and can barely justify an overnight burn. Almost all the snow is gone in the valley bottoms in this part of the rockies and ice fishing is going to get dangerous soon. I was volunteering for my sons class ski day on friday and the school cancelled it. If we dont get winter coming back soon we can be in for one heck of a drought season. I was saying to my 14 year old daughter recently that this may be the first year of her life that she has seen a snowless valley bottom this early in the year. Normally we are winter from November 1 to April 1 at least! My 10 year old son wanted his bike out this weekend. We should be under many feet of rocky mountain snow into mid late april. Norms here are highs of -1 c and lows of -11 c for this day of the year. Hope March has a sting in its tail so the forest is good and healthy in snow pack this summer. To answer the ops question,,,, 30% down from last year so far.

 

[Knots]

1.5 cords since November. About 14 days on propane. 1400 sq ft from the basement.

 

[pike_mazter]

Michigan's thumb started in early November, 2.5 cord and a few eco bricks. Have run our oil furnace for just 3 days while out of town but just enough to keep the pipes warm.

 

[Digital-kid]

I've burned through 2 cords and now I'm basically out. Bought some Fuel Bricks from Lowes. They seem to work pretty good. But I miss the wood fire. Well, it was my first year and I learned alot. So next year I'll be prepared. But it's back to mostly propane for the remainder of the season darn it. I tried to get some more wood, but it's crap at this time of year. So I'll just chalk it up to a learning experience. But next year. I'll be ready! Nothing like wood heat!