Days like this make wood heating a blessing

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begreen

begreen

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Staff member
Nov 18, 2005
104,680
South Puget Sound, WA
Yesterday the polar express started spilling into western WA. It made it past the Rockies and the Cascades and dropped temps like a rock. The huge pressure differential has created strong steady winds of 20-30mph with stronger gusts in areas exposed to mtn passes. Overnight there we a lot trees and limbs down and a lot of power outages. We lost it for a couple hours right at dinner time last night. There are several local communities still without power. (Highbeam, do you have power?) Winds are still blowing and temp is just above freezing. The roads are covered with evergreen branches. Our banana plants look like they went through a shredder.

Through all of this the T6 purred along and kept us cozy. It was a rude shock to step outdoors from the warm comfort of wood heat. There really is nothing like it. Our cat heartily agrees.
 
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Yeah, nice post. We had the same conversation yesterday. We've had three power outages in two days totaling about 9 or 10 hours. Going through a lot of wood but thankful that we have it. Along with the little Honda one-pull-start (usually) generator for the fridges and lights (and a propane range), we're good and cozy.

I'm a little afraid what I'm going to see on the roof tomorrow, though. I see a couple of shingle tabs on the ground.
 
10°F outside this morning here. Daytime high around 27°F. Tonight's forecast is "Sleet, snow & freezing rain". Clouding over nicely to make that happen.
 
begreen said:
Yesterday the polar express started spilling into western WA. It made it past the Rockies and the Cascades and dropped temps like a rock. The huge pressure differential has created strong steady winds of 20-30mph with stronger gusts in areas exposed to mtn passes. Overnight there we a lot trees and limbs down and a lot of power outages. We lost it for a couple hours right at dinner time last night. There are several local communities still without power. (Highbeam, do you have power?) Winds are still blowing and temp is just above freezing. The roads are covered with evergreen branches. Our banana plants look like they went through a shredder.

Through all of this the T6 purred along and kept us cozy. It was a rude shock to step outdoors from the warm comfort of wood heat. There really is nothing like it. Our cat heartily agrees.
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Unrelated but aren't you supposed to cut banana plants down in the fall? If there the same thing I'm thinking of, I just came across them this year. I'm going to plant some next spring.
 
tarzan said:
Unrelated but aren't you supposed to cut banana plants down in the fall? If there the same thing I'm thinking of, I just came across them this year. I'm going to plant some next spring.
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Yes, I'll be doing this now that the winds have died down. The trunks on some are 4-5" thick so it takes a saw to do the job.
 
Sprinter said:
When I was a kid, that would have been a great forecast!
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Sleet and freezing rain is one of my least favorite now. It almost certainly means lots of tree damage, long power outages and accidents.
 
Sprinter said:
When I was a kid, that would have been a great forecast!
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When I was a kid (San Francisco Bay Area), I never ever heard such a forecast, and wouldn't have understood it if I did. Now I'm much older and wiser, having lived in lots of different places & climates...and I've grown to hate it. :mad:
 
I'm ready for whatever winter has to throw at us. Except for a 50 ft tall ice covered silver maple crashing through the roof, I'm not ready for that.
 
bsruther said:
I'm ready for whatever winter has to throw at us. Except for a 50 ft tall ice covered silver maple crashing through the roof, I'm not ready for that.
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I've heard silver maple makes pretty good firewood...
 
begreen said:
Yesterday the polar express started spilling into western WA. It made it past the Rockies and the Cascades and dropped temps like a rock. The huge pressure differential has created strong steady winds of 20-30mph with stronger gusts in areas exposed to mtn passes. Overnight there we a lot trees and limbs down and a lot of power outages. We lost it for a couple hours right at dinner time last night. There are several local communities still without power. (Highbeam, do you have power?) Winds are still blowing and temp is just above freezing. The roads are covered with evergreen branches. Our banana plants look like they went through a shredder.

Through all of this the T6 purred along and kept us cozy. It was a rude shock to step outdoors from the warm comfort of wood heat. There really is nothing like it. Our cat heartily agrees.
Click to expand...

We were out of power from 8am until about 4pm and then off and on through the night. I live near one of those gaps in the cascade foothills and we had, still have, steady howling east winds. Remarkable wind levels.

The champion genset purred like a kitten all day. Both stoves were cranking along too.

It was a good storm. On a holiday, daylight hours, no rain, not too cold. A good check of preparedness.
 
Sprinter said:
I've heard silver maple makes pretty good firewood...
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And I have heard it is the least desired of all Maples to burn but heck..... I've burned Poplar and Basswood since it was down and dead on the lot but now I leave them to rot. The winter storm up here was not a good one. Ba Humbug!! :mad:
 
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We're supposed to get a taste of that cold with temps in the 40's during the day, and 20's and 30's at night, we've been burning off and on for a week now, looks like it may be a little more steady for a while......as far as storms and outages, I need the wood for my supply, so bring it on.....outages I don't need, no genny here, although the local towns have asked the power company if they would sell generators to their customers, and add the cost to the monthly bill.....they could use their buying power to get them cheap, and it would help during power outages.....they said "no!"
 
The cold snap did come on pretty quickly here, and for us it was the first time to really put the Jotul F3 to the test. The stove heats the house so nicely. I'll have to say that it's pretty awesome to see inside temps at 76 while outside it's 27 without using a lick of electricity. We haven't lost power yet, but there are a bunch of branches down. I love it!
 
Beer Belly said:
although the local towns have asked the power company if they would sell generators to their customers, and add the cost to the monthly bill.....they could use their buying power to get them cheap, and it would help during power outages.....they said "no!"
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OT: Do not want to cut into their 32% price increase and additional fee now. They are on hard times you know.
 
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Huh - sunny and warm with a slight breeze, here.

Okay - I lied. Its currently 22F with a dusting of snow.:mad: Looks like the whole next week is gonna suck too. The stove is happily doing its job.
 
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I just broke out the good maple. Cut to 13" so I can stuff my insert N-S.
 
begreen said:
Yesterday the polar express started spilling into western WA. It made it past the Rockies and the Cascades and dropped temps like a rock. The huge pressure differential has created strong steady winds of 20-30mph with stronger gusts in areas exposed to mtn passes. Overnight there we a lot trees and limbs down and a lot of power outages. We lost it for a couple hours right at dinner time last night. There are several local communities still without power. (Highbeam, do you have power?) Winds are still blowing and temp is just above freezing. The roads are covered with evergreen branches. Our banana plants look like they went through a shredder.

Through all of this the T6 purred along and kept us cozy. It was a rude shock to step outdoors from the warm comfort of wood heat. There really is nothing like it. Our cat heartily agrees.
Click to expand...
Read in the news about the horrid weather in the States and am glad to be warm in Southern Greece. As yet we have had no need to light our stove, although I have laid it in readiness. 20141110_115753.jpg Just to cheer you here is a picture of a banana tree growing in a garden near me.
 
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hamsey said:
OT: Do not want to cut into their 32% price increase and additional fee now. They are on hard times you know.
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Yeah, Wife opened the bill and just about hit the roof.
 
23 degrees outside this morning....about 70 inside with the woodstove burning! I SOOOOO love having a woodstove :cool:!
 
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27 out this morning in Tacoma, WA. The fire had gone out that was burning the night before, but the stove was up and rolling with full secondaries in no time. It was 72 before I left at 3:30AM. How can you not love that?
 
Good morning Begreen! What a cold snap this week in colorado. Negative temps.. snow... phone ringing off the hook..
 
Hey Jags! its me :)

Hopefully I will have the opportunity to spend a bit more time on here. I took a new job that should allow me a bit more freedom with Hearthnet!
 
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