Mounded 8' pickup bed is 1/2 cord, most houses if heated by wood will go through 3 cords or more a year. Thats one reason why people push a modern insert or wood stove so much, it cuts down on the amount of wood needed (and thus labor).
I guess the width and length of the pile was never addressed.
I was thinking of taking an old full or queen size bed frame and welding 7-10 ft tall uprights at each corner, then using another bed frame at the top... Basically make a rectangular cage frame and stacking wood inside it.
Good to know what a "cord" is and how many cords I'll need. I think I can stash several cords of wood on my property.
I figured I'd need a pickup truck full of wood per day.
Strategic stacking. Or only get wood that drys at the same rate as all the other wood. If wood is your primary source of heat you will go through a decent amount of wood so you will likely have more then one 7' tall stack.
If your existing furnace there keeps the house warm enough then it is quite likely that a well placed stove can handle almost all of your yearly heating load.
That boiler is abandoned. I have no clue if it ever kept this house warm or not.
It was replaced with a 4.5 Ton Heat Pump, which absolutely blows... And not in the good way.
Also, placement is not an option. I can't move the existing masonry fireplace... It's on the opposite side of the house from the bedrooms. Hence the idea of hooking it to my abandoned hydronic system.
Is a free standing stove or an insert even an option for you? Even an old smoke monster is light-years ahead of your open fireplace as far as heating goes.
Free Standing is only an option if I can use my existing chimney.
I suppose I could fill the fireplace with concrete and put the free standing stove in front of it, then drill into the area above the fireplace where a mantel would go.
You can't do this. I only responded to your thread because you mentioned an insert in your OP.
Do you understand how a blast furnace works? It is not an exaggeration that you will burn your house down.
No fireplace is designed or constructed to withstand the heat of an artificial blast!. The clearances to wood are far insufficient, nevermind the mortor strength,
to say nothing of the integrity of the bricks themselves. Even firebrick are sold in different temperature ratings.
You must forget you ever had this thought.
Duly noted. No forced feeding of the fire.
I was taking ideas from oil burners I've seen...
And my ability to melt beer bottles almost instantly in a campfire...