The following post comes from one of our members in Israel! To add more historical context, he gets his free firewood from the orchard of Ariel Sharon, the former Prime minister and defense minister! It's a small world.....
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I posted on the forum, gee, I don't know, maybe 2 years ago asking if there were a wood stove that would keep me warm on one firing for 24 hours. My problem was that as a traditionally observant Jew, I don't fool with fire on Shabbat (The Sabbath). You mentioned that it was an interesting problem, and that this was the first time the issue had been broached on the forum.
In the meanwhile, I settled on building a masonry stove, figuring that would be the only real solution for my problem. Living pretty much in the middle of nowhere, I figured that this would be my do-it-yourself project for as long as it would take me to finish it. Overall, I could say that I was too damned stupid and too damned stubborn to give in, and my wife, well, at least after I sawed a hole in our living room, was behind me all the way.
I won't bore you with all the details, but I learned a lot about thinking, and thinking, and thinking again before doing. I learned how to mix and pour concrete, bend steel, cut bricks, cut brinks, cut bricks, mix mortar, cut bricks...on and on. I integrated local stone, ancient pottery, and interesting rocks my kids picked up on hikes. I even brought back an old brick from the old Jewish quarter of Krakow (don't know the security dudes thought of that, but they let it pass) and put that in there as well. I have purchased a chain saw, learned to to use it safely, and have cut enough wood for two or three winters ahead, so it can dry out properly. I re-installed my chimney after seeing what a botched job the company that was supposed to be professional did, and recut a hole in a 12" concrete roof. I think I've become a more skilled and self-sufficient person through all this, and earned the respect of my family and neighbors for seeing this through.
But more, I have benefited from the unselfish and sympathetic help of a group of experts and professionals who were never condescending or impatient, who took my thoughts seriously, who were always there for me. They have been the best of friends and masters of their trade.
And now I have the smiling pleasure of seeing this roaring fire in the middle of my house, seeing the work of my hands warming my family and my home, and yes, it does the job of keeping the house warm for a good 24 hours.
http://hearth.com/images/uploads/ismasrony.jpg
You maybe can tell, or not, but the facing brick is old hand-made european clay brick, imported by some company in Israel not far from where I work, and not horribly expensive - I ended up sawing them in two for $$$ reasons, and adding a sheath of 4 cm solid concrete block for added mass. The door and hardware were imported from Pisla Oy in Finland, and the plan, of course, was from the MHA portfolio.
I figure our our forefathers had those massive Russian stoves that they slept on in the winter (my neighbors tell me stories of their Bubbes and Zaydes who talked about how their Bubbes and Zaydes slept on the stove) - the best place in the house, and when i see my kids and wife battle over the heated bench, it makes me feel like this is probably a take out of a scene from 150 years ago. But those stoves might have retained enough useful heat for most of Shabbat - or it might be as you say, with a non-Jewish neighbor coming by.;Stove_with_24_hour_burn_for_Sabbath
