RE: Pros/Cons of "alternative" heat

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firefighterjake

firefighterjake

Minister of Fire
Jul 22, 2008
19,588
Unity/Bangor, Maine
Long story, short . . . I'm putting together a presentation for a Winter Heating and Safety Expo and I'm compiling a short list of pros/cons of some of the more popular alternative heating sources for folks this winter.

Here's what I've got so far . . . feel free to add your own thoughts.

Woodstoves

Pros:
+ Cheapest heat (for fuel)
+ Will continue to work in power outage
+ Few moving parts to fail/replace

Cons:
- Requires diligent maintenance (i.e. clean out ashes, check/clean chimney)
- Time and work required to cut, split, stack wood
- Not as "clean" as some alternative heat sources (i.e. bark fallilng on floor, ashes, etc.)
- Cost of chimney/Floor protection added cost to the cost of appliance


Pellet Stoves

Pros:
+ Simpler and more inexpensive installation compared to conventional woodstoves
+ Ability to better regulate temp with a thermostat
+ Ease of use (i.e. storage of pellets, ordering pellets vs. stacking, long burn times)

Cons:
- Availability of some of the more popular models due to high demand
- May not work with power outage (some models have battery back-up)
- Maintenance (i.e. more moving parts compared to woodstoves, space heaters, etc.)


Space Heaters (Electric, Kerosene, Propane)

Pros:
+ Portable heat for small spaces
+ Most inexpensive alternative heat source (up-front, appliance costs)
+ Nearly maintenance free

Cons:
- Less heat than many other alternative heat sources
- May not heat an entire area sufficiently



-------------

Since this Expo is geared at helping folks get through this winter I have steered away from alternative tech that is rather new for folks here in Maine (i.e. heat pumps, solar heat) and more expensive heating sources that may be too prohibitive for many (i.e. wood boilers).

Any other pros and cons . . . or any other heating tech that I should consider?
 
Not too much to give you here, but would turn some of the cons into pros on wood heat. For instance:


- Requires diligent maintenance (i.e. clean out ashes, check/clean chimney)

Yes, you need to clean out ashes 1 or perhaps 2 times per week. However, those ashes can be used to your advantage! The number one use naturally is "poor man's lime" for use in gardens. There are also many other uses.

Cleaning the chimney can also be used to your advantage. For example, house plants love creosote!

The best part of the two things listed above is that they do not necessarily cost dollars. It is something a homeowner can do for himself.


- Time and work required to cut, split, stack wood

Ah, time and work! First, wood is best cut during the winter months when people usually have more free time than they do in the summer. That's because when people have free time in the summer, there is so many activities that are doable in the warmer weather, vacations, etc. However, during the winter months there are not so many of these things begging for people's time. So, cut wood during the winter months.

One very big advantage of cutting wood in winter months is that it gets people off the couch and out getting much needed exercise. One gets exercise by cutting wood and saves dollars at the same time. Or would it be better to pay a monthly or weekly fee and then drive to a gym somewhere to get this exercise?



Something else I would add to heating with wood is that you are using a very quick renewable energy. Not only that, but many can grow that renewable energy right on their own lands...very cheaply.


If something else comes to mind, I'll post that later.
 
Wood or Pellet not portable, space heater only. Rick
 
Pellet stoves in and by themselves are more expensive (for the most part) than wood stoves.

Pellets are a manufactured product vs wood that is a natural product. You can't just go out onto the back 40 and cut down pellets for heat.
 
I think Tfin raises an excellent point--and one that made me shy away from pellet stoves. Pellet consumers are reliant on the pellet manufacturers. Don't get me wrong; it's great that folks consume wood waste that might otherwise go into landfills and are using a carbon neutral heat source.
 
Con for a pellet stove would be availability of pellets. I hear about shortages all the time. Plus there is manufacturing costs involved in making pellets. As the price of oil, gas and electricity rise, so will the cost of making pellets. Therefore, higher pellet prices.
 
I would add an additional bullet to the pros list for both wood stoves and pellet stoves--mainly, they both use renewable energy resources. I totally agree that exercise in moving/processing your fuel source should be a pro, not con. Our society has gotten lazy and far too many of us consume way too many calories than we expend each day, hence the growing waistline. (I'll stop--I've become obsessive, but I've lost 129 pounds through diet and exercise over the past 22 months and I haven't felt this good since college. I track daily calories consumed and daily calories burned through use a spreadsheet and wish more people would actually track the calorie content of everything they put in their mouths and how many calories they burn daily. Most, I think, would be in shock to find out just how many calories they're consuming and how few they're burning.)
 
The number one pro of burning wood:

I am in control of my fuel. If gasoline & electricity disappear tomorrow I could still chop down a tree with an ax and saw it up by hand. It would also be free. =-)
 
You could add natural gas fireplaces (stoves & inserts) to the list.

Pros:
- very easy to use
- very clean (efficient burner & clean in the sense of no mess)
- you can put it on a thermostat
- virtually no maintenance
- does not require electricity to operate
- excellent as a zone heater
- venting is easier than wood, i.e. DV straight out option.

Cons:
- more expensive than wood but still cheaper than oil
- need to have natural gas near by
 
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