Estimating wood needed for the season?

[hoverwheel]

This will be my second winter with the 30NC, so you might think I'd have an idea how much it uses. You'd be wrong.

The stove did not go into service until the week between Christmas and New Years, and the wood supply was way short of what it needed to be. I had on the order of a cord of natural wood, maybe a little more. Added to this was around a ton of horrible blocks bought from Lowe's and two ton of very good "Envi-Blocks".

Going on the theory that a ton of blocks is roughly equivalent to a cord, then I used around four cords over a span of four months, likely heaviest during a bitterly cold Jan/Feb.

I should have around 6 cords of natural wood, although my stacks are a little misshapen and thus hard to measure. I'm also expecting to pick up a ton of EnviBlocks as a safety blanket. I'm expecting the stove to be needed from mid November to mid April, possibly a couple weeks more before and after. I'm in eastern Mass, so it get's cold, but not Canada cold.

Should I be worried, or confident?

 

[begreen]

6 full (not face) cords sounds like a lot but it depends on how well the wood has seasoned. If splits are damp in the core they will put out a lot less heat than if dry.

 

[hoverwheel]

Well, as with many new burners, not as seasoned as it should be... however, it's drier than what I had last winter. During a cold, drizzly spell recently, it burned without much aggravation or hissing.

 

[begreen]

4 + or - cords should be sufficient to heat an average house in eastern MA. Sounds like you have enough reserves to make it a much nicer experience this winter.

 

[BrotherBart]

Running those two stoves I would figure on five cord. Three and a half here in the Tropics of Virginia. But had to dip into another 1/2 cord last winter.

 

[xman23]

You'll get a handle on normal wood consumption in a few more years. When the wood gets seasoned, when your running the stove so the house temps are maintained as well as a thermostat. Even then you get a winter like last winter. We all burned more.

 

[Starstuff]

Running those two stoves I would figure on five cord. Three and a half here in the Tropics of Virginia. But had to dip into another 1/2 cord last winter.

I was curious what other 24/7 burners in the DC area use. I probably went through about 4 cords last season as well, but a lot of it was punky wood, and a half cord was pine. Still, my home is a 1600 sq ft split level, so I feel like I'm using a lot. Although, we did keep the place incredibly toasty and probably could have done with feeding the stove less often.

 

[BrotherBart]

2,500 sq. ft. center hall colonial here but two upstairs bedrooms are closed off in the winter unless the guest bedroom is occupied.

Burn what ya need to burn to keep warm.