Well its been cold and damp here in Pa and I heard the oil heater kick in a few times today.The family and I were out for a while and when we got back in the wife asked if we could fire it up. So for the first time I started the fire from the top down.HOW COOL IS THAT. The Insert came up to temp a lot quicker the fan came on with in fifteen min.
Well any way the Dampness is gone and the kids are warm.GOT TO LOVE THAT

Well Burd, I just finished starting another fire in our stove. It is chilly and damp. Put 3 pieces in and will probably just let that burn down. Hope the heating season ends pretty soon.

had fires here last 3 nights or so other day was 30 degress when i got up.

argus66 - 11 May 2008 09:29 AM

had fires here last 3 nights or so other day was 30 degress when i got up.

The stove’s been cold for awhile, but fired it up this morning.  Frost two nights ago and cold drizzle this morning.
It’s Mother’s Day, and the kids’ mom wants it warm. Glad to do my part. 

I tried the top down fires for these short burns to take the chill off. I too found they started easily with less smoke and burned well. Lazy and letting the furnace run a little these cold evenings and mornings. We work so our temps are set low after we leave and by the time we get home the house is warm enough from the days warming. At night our furnace gets set low again and it doesn’t run much. I have had a few evening fires just to refresh my memory as to how nice wood heat is.

I think that since sometime last October or so, I can only remember two mornings that we haven’t started a fire in our stove in the house first thing in the morning...and then I light the workshop stove a bit later.  The shop’s on the first floor north end of a building with a second story in the middle, so it gets basically no sun exposure and stays cooler.  The house has some good south-facing windows which really capture a lot of afternoon solar heat when the sky’s clear.  Temps still trending down below freezing overnight here.  We’re not burning all day and into the night anymore, but I’ve yet to shut down the stoves for cleaning/maintenance.  Soon, I hope.  Rick

I started to burn again also.
Yesterday it got down into the 20’s with snow.
Nothing measurable, but still snow.