People are cold
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PapaDave
Minister of Fire
Sounds like mine.
My brother also heats with wood, but doesn't like the house over mid-60's, so his wife is cold all the time.
When she comes over here, she always comments how nice and warm it is (I try to keep the house between 68-72 most of the time), while my brother is just about ready to start stripping down to his skivvies.
suprz
Member
I just love wearing a T-shirt and shorts in my house when it is 36 degrees outside, and it is 74 degrees inside and i havent had to use the furnace to do it
osagebow
Minister of Fire
Electric was about 120 last month. pushed 200 frequently and topped it a few times in really cold months in the past, but we had a 1980's era heat pump until this summer.
A friend of ours came over to watch our kids on Friday night. They don't burn. But i think they would consider it now. Not only for the cost savings, but the way it heats. She thought it warmed her thru and thru.
jharkin
Minister of Fire
tcassavaugh
Minister of Fire
my wife finally after 15 years of burning wood commented the other day how much warmer wood heat is than oil or electric.....
cass
cass
Ashful
Minister of Fire
A delivery every 2 weeks?That probably cost more than my mortgage!
Just in Jan./Feb.,really. The funny/sad thing is I've spent more on wood collecting and processing equipment than I ever could on oil, but many of those tools do get used for other things around the yard. More importantly, I'm having fun, keeping warm, and getting plenty of exercise!
ROVERT
Member
- Aug 7, 2012
- 120
We moved into our house about a month after natural gas was run past the property. The house is a 1920's 2 1/2 story of somewhere around 2300 sq ft. One of the first things we did was remove the oil boiler and install a NG boiler. The house has been in the family since the forties and consumed over a thousand gallons of oil per year for heat and hot water. That was only heating the downstairs where my grandfather lived. Natural gas costs us about $30 a month for cooking and hot water.
My grandfather lived with us from the time we moved in (Nov. 2005) until he passed away in April 2011. He occupied about half of the ground floor and heated it liberally... mid to upper seventies. We heated the rest of the house to about 59 degrees while we were home and 50 while we weren't. We have a Jotul Allagash in the living room that we used to warm things up a little more in the evenings while watching TV. This kept our winter gas bills around $200 per month. When our first child arrived in 2008 and my wife stopped teaching we upped the temp, for the baby, to 63 degrees while someone was home, which was most of the time and 59 degrees over night. This brought the gas bills up to $250 to $300 during the winter months. Last winter was our first without my grandfather. Our winter gas bills averaged about $130. The mild winter was a big part of that. I would estimate that our heating costs would be about $200/month to keep the entire house in the low sixties during a normal winter. Even with cheap NG and a mild winter we were still always on the chilly side. With one income and the economic times we are in we have to save money wherever possible.
I haven't used the gas boiler or DV Jotul stove once this year. I have about $800-$900 into installing the wood stove, ss liner, hearth, etc. The wood stove investment will come very close to paying for itself in just one winter but the really great thing is how comfortable we now are. The entire house is kept between 68 and 74 degrees. We'd never dream of doing that if we had to pay for the gas to do it.
My grandfather lived with us from the time we moved in (Nov. 2005) until he passed away in April 2011. He occupied about half of the ground floor and heated it liberally... mid to upper seventies. We heated the rest of the house to about 59 degrees while we were home and 50 while we weren't. We have a Jotul Allagash in the living room that we used to warm things up a little more in the evenings while watching TV. This kept our winter gas bills around $200 per month. When our first child arrived in 2008 and my wife stopped teaching we upped the temp, for the baby, to 63 degrees while someone was home, which was most of the time and 59 degrees over night. This brought the gas bills up to $250 to $300 during the winter months. Last winter was our first without my grandfather. Our winter gas bills averaged about $130. The mild winter was a big part of that. I would estimate that our heating costs would be about $200/month to keep the entire house in the low sixties during a normal winter. Even with cheap NG and a mild winter we were still always on the chilly side. With one income and the economic times we are in we have to save money wherever possible.
I haven't used the gas boiler or DV Jotul stove once this year. I have about $800-$900 into installing the wood stove, ss liner, hearth, etc. The wood stove investment will come very close to paying for itself in just one winter but the really great thing is how comfortable we now are. The entire house is kept between 68 and 74 degrees. We'd never dream of doing that if we had to pay for the gas to do it.
Got Wood
Minister of Fire
Before wood heat we would raise the temps to 65 when we had guests over, they all knew to bring a sweater/sweatshirt along. since we started w/wood heat they all know its gonna be warm. Actually the coldest time in our house is early fall when the temps start dropping and and I'm not quite ready to give in and start the wood heating season.
Ashful
Minister of Fire
I wonder how long you have to heat with wood before you start to enjoy these warm temperatures so many of you quote. I actually like keeping my house at 68 - 70F, and begin to get uncomfortable anywhere above maybe 72F.
ROVERT
Member
- Aug 7, 2012
- 120
68 is about my ideal. My wife likes it warmer. The room with the stove gets to around 74 degrees. That's ok for sitting there in a t shirt watching the fire, but is otherwise too warm for me.
corey21
Minister of Fire
but it sure is tough getting out of bed in the morning .
Slow1
Minister of Fire
We're into our 5th year heating with wood this season. Before wood heating we kept the house at around 63-65 peak and let it fall to 57 at night. When we really got started burning we were actually rather pleased to keep the house somewhat near that same temperature - warmer near the stove and of course it just feel warmer even if the air temp is the same. Now in year 4 (last year) we kept the house up closer to 70 and this year it looks like we'll be doing the same - odd how we are getting used to it. However the wife does have a narrow range of comfort it seems - get over 72 (which has happened quite a few times this year by accident) and she is too hot, however when it gets down to 66 she is ready to get the stove cranking again. This is also the first year that we've actually kept the house warm at night too - i.e. we don't have to put a robe on every morning on waking before getting the stove going... house at 65 in the morning was unheard of before.
So I think it does take some time to adjust to it - for me it rather started as a "gee I have this wood and I worked for it, why not splurge a bit" and now I just take it in stride to be warmer. Then again - having the PH that likes to crank out more heat doesn't hurt either!
corey21
Minister of Fire
Yeah been rainy, cloudy and in the fifties. Just used the heaters the last couple of days but got tired of the "chill" of being under seventy in here an hour ago and lit off the stove.
corey21
Minister of Fire
It is 41 outside here My kitchen is real warm were the electric baseboard's are located they are being pushed today.
BrowningBAR
Minister of Fire
corey21
Minister of Fire
I like it around 75 in the house, I can load a stove and wake up in the morning with a house around 70. I am wondering how I will load and burn when it gets cold, its 12-18-12 and I went outside Sunday and had moths flying around my motion light. I mean c-mon really moths, I remember when it was early 80's and I was six and we always had snow at Thanksgiving maybe this global warming thing is true.
jharkin
Minister of Fire
Its interesting how subjective temperature preferences are. I know some folks actually like temps in the low 60s ... Id be wearing a coat. On the other hand many here talk about having their living room at 80... I would put on shorts and open a window. I like the house between 70-74 when I'm up an about... on the warmer end if I'm just sitting inactive. High 60s when sleeping is good. My wife likes it a bit warmer but if it gets over 75 suddenly she is too hot.
You will know you are in the groove with wood heat when it takes effort to keep the house under 70 i'd say
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