There's no question this has been a tough winter, not only for people in the south with a few storms, but definitely for people above the Mason-Dixon line.
A few things we've been fortunate to have:
After the ice/ snow storm that hit us a few weeks ago, we had trees down all over the place, resulting in closed roads and lots of downed power lines.
Ultimately, this storm had us without power for 4 days, no small matter in the very low temperatures we had. While I rarely use it, we fired up the Fisher Grandma Bear in the basement.
Not only does it take huge chunks of wood, it produces immense amounts of heat and burns for a loooong time. With no way to move the air in our house other than the heat rising, we still managed to keep the main floor of our house at about 65f, and the basement stayed a balmy 85f+.
Here's a full firebox for the night.
We also have a much smaller Intrepid II upstairs that was great for cooking, and having a warm cup of coffee to start the day is always pleasant. So is a warm breakfast to follow.
Last but not least, with the snowfall we got this year, shoveling would have been a killer. Having a little tractor with a FEL was fantastic, and it really made the chore go by much quicker and easier than doing it old-school.
We've survived the winter so far, and I am fortunate and thankful that we have the capability to stay sane and warm during "emergencies" that so many others do not.
A few things we've been fortunate to have:
After the ice/ snow storm that hit us a few weeks ago, we had trees down all over the place, resulting in closed roads and lots of downed power lines.
Ultimately, this storm had us without power for 4 days, no small matter in the very low temperatures we had. While I rarely use it, we fired up the Fisher Grandma Bear in the basement.
Not only does it take huge chunks of wood, it produces immense amounts of heat and burns for a loooong time. With no way to move the air in our house other than the heat rising, we still managed to keep the main floor of our house at about 65f, and the basement stayed a balmy 85f+.
Here's a full firebox for the night.
We also have a much smaller Intrepid II upstairs that was great for cooking, and having a warm cup of coffee to start the day is always pleasant. So is a warm breakfast to follow.
Last but not least, with the snowfall we got this year, shoveling would have been a killer. Having a little tractor with a FEL was fantastic, and it really made the chore go by much quicker and easier than doing it old-school.
We've survived the winter so far, and I am fortunate and thankful that we have the capability to stay sane and warm during "emergencies" that so many others do not.
