I've been doing some thinking and here are some of my thoughts in no particular order.
For many of us burning wood is not a chore . . . but if and when it becomes a chore there is nothing wrong in taking a break from burning. After all, it's your stove, your wood and your life . . . burning wood is not a competition to see if you can burn less wood than another member, use less oil or burn more efficiently . . . it's about keeping warm. Plain and simple.
Some people start burning with wood and find that they don't like it . . . it can be a lot of work and it can be messy. For folks using older stoves or unseasoned wood the experience can be even worse as they burn through so much more wood and/or spend a lot of time coping with woodstoves with smoke that spills out into their home, smokey fires that splutter along and produce little heat and they have the constant fear of a chimney fire. I feel for these folks since burning wood for me is truly enjoyable . . . it's work . . . but I like every aspect of this work . . . cutting, splitting, stacking, starting the fire, etc. . . . in fact, and my wife will tell anyone the same thing, I find working with wood to be a real stress reliever . . . rather than something that stresses me out . . . if and when burning with wood becomes a cause of stress then I'll call it quits.
Many folks start burning wood to save money . . . and you can save money vs. burning fossil fuels. However, if you start burning wood and opt to stay burning wood solely because you're saving money I don't know if you truly would look at woodstoves in the same way as a person who enjoys the sense of independence, the smell of wood smoke in the air outdoors, the beauty of the dancing flames . . . when burning wood becomes a way of life, a life-style, rather than simply a way to save money, then you'll know you're a true woodburner.
Routine . . . Establishing a routine makes things so much easier as things then become a normal part of life . . . and they seem to get done faster when you're not having to think. For example, each morning I start off by reloading the stove or restarting it if necessary . . . and I bring in the day's wood to the woodbox and do a quick sweep and mop of the hearth. Once to twice a week I'll dump out the ash pan and clean the haze off the glass. Every Sunday I reload the week's worth of wood on the porch and on the first weekend of the month (weather permitting) I'll check and clean the chimney . . . all part and parcel of burning wood.
Restarting the fire: This can perhaps be one of the most frustrating aspects of wood burning . . . especially if you don't have the right materials or have a technique down pat. I have to use kindling . . . it's what works for me. Others are big advocates of fatwood or Super Cedars . . . based on what I'm hearing I would encourage you to try one of the Super Cedars -- in the past one of our members here has sent out free samples just for the asking . . . take him up on the offer. Truth be told . . . confession time here . . . at the start of each burning season it takes me a week or so to "remember" how to build my fires from scratch . . . those first fires sometimes fizzle out . . . or just ponder along until they finally get going after 30 minutes . . . or an hour. However, like anything else, you do it enough times and after awhile you will get better and better so by mid-winter you can get a fire up and going in minutes without even having to think about it.
Adding wood: It's been said, but I'll reiterate. It may seem to make sense to add 1-2 splits to a fire during the day . . . but in fact this leads to more coals and is more work . . . it is usually far, far better to do a full reload . . . less reloading, fewer coals, etc.
Don't be a slave to your stove: This is my mantra . . . I bought the stove to serve my needs and wants -- not the other way around. And so if I don't want to wake up to do a reload in middle of the night, I'm OK with the oil boiler kicking on . . . and if I go away for a week's vacation I'm OK with the oil boiler heating the house while I'm gone . . . and if you want to take a break I say go ahead . . . after all the priority should be you and your wife . . . not making sure the woodstove is happy and fully loaded with stove chow.
