Wanted: Suggestions for Indoor Wood Storage

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Parallax

Parallax

Minister of Fire
Dec 2, 2013
883
Bellingham, WA
Having recently purchased a wood stove which resides on a hearth pad constructed to my wife's exacting standards, I'm wondering how to bring wood indoors without drawing her annoyance or disdain. Our home is contemporary with a Craftsman feel. Floors are Brazilian rosewood. Extensive moldings and doors are wood stained with an almost orange hue. The stove itself is brown enamel with a redish tone. Our tile work is slate with lots of blues and reds and purples. So far, it all works. A big pile of wood next to the stove -- not so much.

I'm thinking we need some kind of large box stained something from cherry to mahogany or maybe a really nice black iron rack of some sort. Any suggestions on what I might buy or perhaps create for myself? Insight from those with knowledge and/or creativity is very much appreciated.
 
A copper boiler is a nice addition to any hearth. Doesn't hold a lot of wood but is visually appealing. A large copper apple butter kettle looks nice, but no lid.
 
I use 5 gallon pails and stage them ahead of time in my mud room, or along the wall in the garage.
They catch all the sniblets, feature a convenient carry handle, give a reference for split length, and sport an aerodynamic design that nests together when empty.
The price is right too; you can afford several to keep in rotation for upcoming loads or if your wife is handling stove duties because you're gone, you can get things laid out and ready to load.
Once the stack of empty buckets outside the door gets tall enough, carry it out to your stacks and refill...

I generally don't display them, but functionality/convenience is excellent. The floor around my hearth is hardwood, so I have a rug I set them on while reloading.
I do understand your desire for a nice antique holder though. I just got sick of refilling a single bin all the time.
 
Build a nice box out of the left over flooring scraps and culls that hopefully got left in a closet or basement somewhere when they were done installing the floor?
 
Parallax said:
Does this look about right, price wise?

http://www.problemsolvers.com/heart...htm?aff=5512&gclid=CJmE4JuWtr8CFUpqfgodoy4A5Q

It's just copper plated and might not hold up well. Perhaps I should look for a real antique boiler.

Not sure my wife would like something kind of beat up like this:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/like/321446048985?lpid=82

The large copper apple butter kettles are really expensive, at least online. Maybe I'll do better at an antique store.
Click to expand...

Auctions are the way to go to get copper boilers and kettles. Auctionzip.com works well for me.
 
Warm_in_NH said:
Build a nice box out of the left over flooring scraps and culls that hopefully got left in a closet or basement somewhere when they were done installing the floor?
Click to expand...

this is on my list before fall. i usually stage 18gal bins outside under the eaves, they're very deep. If a storm is looming, I move some bins just inside the patio. My wife hates the ugly plastic bins, so I'm going to make a rolling box out of 3/4 walnut ply and walnut hardwood to put the bin into. I roll the box up to the patio entrance, place the full bin in and roll over to stoves. When not in use I can park it anywhere and it matches our furniture and hearth accent wood.
 
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Anything nice looking is not going to hold a lot of wood, I keep a few weeks in my garage, I also use the 5 gallon bucket method as I have several and it is easy to use, keep the wood out of sight of the lady, big rectangle bins with lids can be bought at Walmart, target etc...
Last year was a B keeping wood dry for use with all that snow and rain, I suggest you come up with a plan to continuously have a supply of dry wood on hand. I had a rack under a big awning, I thought I was good to go with it till it started snowing sideways in the direction of the stack. I really didn't want to bring wood indoors, but I had no choice.....
 
Given the rain around here and the steps up to my deck, probably makes sense to get something to wheel wood around on and use it to bring it around into the garage (no steps that way), and store it near the door to the house. That way there are no bugs and there's nothing to look at which has to please the wife.

She's actually very nice about this stuff. I've sometimes joked about her whims but if I felt really strongly about the flu probe or some big ugly box near the stove, she'd go along with it. I want her to be happy with the stove and our decision to burn wood so I'm trying to do everything in a way that doesn't offend her (or our decorator, who pretty much tells my wife what's acceptable and what's not).
 
Fishinpol and Stax have some particularly nice wood boxes.

Here's mine . . . built with scrap 2 x 4s and some pine tongue and groove. Plastic tote inside to contain the mess.
 

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That's really nice. Does one have to build such a box and, if so, how difficult is it for someone not used to this kind of project. I have a nice compound chop saw so I assume it wouldn't be difficult, but feel free to reassure me. :)
 
firefighterjake said:
Fishinpol and Stax have some particularly nice wood boxes.

Here's mine . . . built with scrap 2 x 4s and some pine tongue and groove. Plastic tote inside to contain the mess.
Click to expand...

Looks like a darn cat house Jake. ;lol
 
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firefighterjake said:
Fishinpol and Stax have some particularly nice wood boxes.

Here's mine . . . built with scrap 2 x 4s and some pine tongue and groove. Plastic tote inside to contain the mess.
Click to expand...
That's a nice box and a bunch of kitty's, got any more?.....
 
Those are two really nice ideas. The temptation to take on this project is growing overwhelming. I guess that's just another way of saying all this talk of wood is having a sort of hypno-pornographic effect on my stove-addled mind.
 
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mass_burner said:
this is on my list before fall. i usually stage 18gal bins outside under the eaves, they're very deep. If a storm is looming, I move some bins just inside the patio. My wife hates the ugly plastic bins, so I'm going to make a rolling box out of 3/4 walnut ply and walnut hardwood to put the bin into. I roll the box up to the patio entrance, place the full bin in and roll over to stoves. When not in use I can park it anywhere and it matches our furniture and hearth accent wood.
Click to expand...

I could also use engineered hardwood walnut flooring over a base structure. That will be cheaper than walnut ply. Besides, i only need ~15 sq ft to clad the box. My stoves are about 6 ft from the slider to the patio. An 18gal bin can hold a good serving of wood.
 
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