Greetings...

[Shadow&Flame]

Let me begin with the normal tutorial on how great a website you have here. The amount of knowledge and experience that is so freely given is astounding in comparison to the plethora of negativity and downright malice to be found on a lot of forums. Kudos...


Now a bit of info on my wood burning credentials... Wood burning in the south has it own nuances and differs from up north, but it still gets plenty cold down here...just not for as long.
With massive heat and bugs that will eat you and your wood, its hard to keep too far ahead.
Our low temp tonight will be around 81...O if I could just bottle a bit of this up.


I have been a wood burner since I was old enough to carry my Grandfathers axe. I was always chastised(for the non southerner out there, that means a beating...ha) for playing in the fire and it didnt help a bit.... My family are all fireplace burners so I have never been around a stove or insert and wanted to give it a try. After many talks with installers and my chimney sweep, it seems I will be staying with the fireplace for now. Lets just say the limitations of the house and my budget have conspired to put it on hold.


I will still be an avid reader of all things Hearth and hope to someday become a stove owner. Really liked the idea of having an Englander insert in the fireplace by winter...Oh well.


Keep up the good work people...


S&F

 

[fossil]

Welcome to the forums. A woodburning insert, as you quite obviously know, will be a big improvement in heating efficiency when you can manage to get it installed. Meanwhile, keep reading and posting. Info about the home you're heating and the fireplace/chimney configuration...maybe with some pics...might inspire some of the members here to offer up some suggestions or lessons learned. Again, welcome, and thanks for introducing yourself to us. Stick around, it's a nice place! Rick

 

[Jags]

Welcome aboard. This is a great place to research, with a whole boat load of ideas and info, and people to bounce it off of. As Rick stated, an insert is a whole 'nuther beast when compared to an open fire.

 

[begreen]

Greetings S&F. You could probably pull it off for about $1500 and some sweat equity. This insert can be purchased from overstockstoves for around $1k. Liner estimate at $500, but that will vary depending on the setup and chimney height. Got dry wood already stacked?

 

[fireview2788]

Welcome! Love the screen name, wish I was that creative!


fv

 

[raybonz]

Welcome to the forum! I am sure you'll get plenty of ideas here and lots of good advice as well..

Ray

 

[shawneyboy]

Welcome to the forum. Hang out, participate, ask questions, even without a stove or insert now, the knowledge that you will gain here will serve you in the near future when you do get one.

Shawn

 

[Backwoods Savage]

Welcome to the forum S&F.

You are certainly right about this forum compared with so many negative forums. There are a great bunch of guys here with good knowledge and willing to help others. We saw just how much people are willing to help when people turned out to help after tornadoes, another member just a short time ago got some help with his wood supply and one has been helped numerous times after a terrible, terrible accident. There are others for sure but this just gives a little idea of what kind of folks we have here.

Be sure to check out not only the Hearth Room but also the Wood Shed, Gear, Pictures, etc. One can put in a lot of time here and it isn't even the busy season although things aren't that far away from picking up again. And be sure to get up to date on what you really should have for fuel and how long to let it dry before burning it although you probably are well versed in this. Above all, give all of us a hint of some of your vast knowledge.

As for heating in the South, we have many members who live even further south than you so you are not alone down there.

 

[greythorn3]

hey there, you will find lotsa help here. these are good guys.

SKip

 

[Shadow&Flame]

Thank you very much for the warm welcome everybody. I have been lurking here for the past year and a half, so I know quite a bit more about burning in a stove. I will indeed continue to keep in touch and keep learning. I have got quite a bit of wood put away and I do like to scrounge...thou with a bad back I cant get all I would like to have. I dont need to stockpile wood that much due to a short winter here...three months tops. Days tend to warm up pretty quickly as well.

As I said before its a great bunch of people you got here....

My house was built it seems to keep a stove from working very well. The fireplace is in a small room at the far end of the house. There is no real draft from that room to any other so I will have to put in a forced air system. This house was built by my Uncle, who only knows how to build one way....his. Will just have to work out how to get it done over time and put a plan in motion.

Thanks for all the advice...

S&F

 

[jimbom]

I live in the Ozarks probably not that far north of you. There are a number of good stove deals on the internet. Using the information gleaned from the folks on this forum, I have learned about these new stoves and how to examine the used-for-sale category. We made some wonderful buys on used stoves and chimney systems. You have to be willing to wait for the right stove at the right price. The ones I have found have not been used very much. We got one yesterday that I have been waiting for two years. Finally one came up at the right price in the right condition.

Arkansas has a first rate forestry school southeast of Little Rock. There must be a lot of good local knowledge regarding wood and stoves.

 

[Beetle-Kill]

S&f, your avatar- "Balrog"- best ever!
BTW, welcome, you're in good company here.

 

[dafattkidd]

Shadow and Flame - I'm almost positive as also noted in your avitar, that your name is a great reference to the Belrok from Lord of the Rings. Wood is all they use to heat Middle Earth, so you're in good company here.

Have you considered a stand alone stove in a different more central room? Stand alone stoves tend to run less expensive and tend to be easier to find used. Good luck. And please beware of the uruk-hai.

 

[Shadow&Flame]

I thought Durin's Bane was a good avatar for this site...when watching EPA Stoves you see Shadow and flame. I am indeed a fan of all things Tolkien...as you have guessed. I would be very happy living in Bag End...ha

I will have to research the best way in which to have a stove in my home. I have looked into getting a free standing stove, but again my homes layout is not the best for having one.

Thanks for the input...

A

 

[firefighterjake]

Welcome to the forum . . . and yes . . . this is kind of a special place. Over the years I've only seen a few folks that seemed determine to prove that they were idiots.

 

[Fsappo]

dark fire shall not avail you ...you shall not pass!

 

[Todd]

Welcome aboard. If your fireplace is located in a small room on a far end of the house maybe consider a stove more centrally located if possible and leave the fireplace as is? Another thing to consider is tearing down walls that are non load bearing to open up the floor plan.

 

[Backwoods Savage]

My house was built it seems to keep a stove from working very well. The fireplace is in a small room at the far end of the house. There is no real draft from that room to any other so I will have to put in a forced air system. This house was built by my Uncle, who only knows how to build one way....his. Will just have to work out how to get it done over time and put a plan in motion.

Thanks for all the advice...

S&F

S & F, I hope you have read on this forum about moving the warm air. For many, too many moons, I thought that blowing the warm air to where it was needed was the right way but now I know, thanks to this forum, that moving the cool air is the right way to go. That is, blowing the cooler air into the stove room will move that warm air out much faster. It is amazing still to me because it still seems backwards, but it works.

 

[Fsappo]

Phear the sting of Glamdring!

 

[Shadow&Flame]

Backwoods, There are a great many things that I have learned from this website. I do use a fan to blow cool air into the room if the fireplace is lit...not really a big help with a fireplace, but it does move a little heat. The fireplace is mainly used for emergency or ambiance.


Todd, The kitchen is the next room and there is no way to open up anything there. I think the only way to achieve my goal of having a stove is either have an insert or build an addition onto the back of the house...


Have a good one...

S&F

 

[Backwoods Savage]

I agree S&F. I was looking more at when you are heating with a better unit than a fireplace.

 

[Shadow&Flame]

Therein lies my conundrum...I joined this site in anticipation of having a stove very soon. Enter my chimney sweep and a stove installer to tell me all about why this and that wouldn't work or would be cost prohibitive. I had very little to contribute or discuss, so I just thought I would say hello and give you fine folks a pat on the back for the good work you do...

I have all the toys and keep my wood stacked and dry...so I got that covered.

At some point I hope to have questions about a stove. It will just take a bit more planning and money than I had anticipated, as if that were any different to everything else in life... :smirk:

Keep up the good work and be safe out there.

S&F

 

[begreen]

Pictures might help a lot here so that we can see what you and the sweeps are seeing.

 

[dafattkidd]

I thought Durin's Bane was a good avatar for this site...when watching EPA Stoves you see Shadow and flame. I am indeed a fan of all things Tolkien...as you have guessed. I would be very happy living in Bag End...ha

I will have to research the best way in which to have a stove in my home. I have looked into getting a free standing stove, but again my homes layout is not the best for having one.

Thanks for the input...

A

I found this video of my insert in action that I don't remember recording titled Blerok. I uploaded it to youtube and thought you'd enjoy it.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=veBzMilezxE&feature=player_embedded

BTW have you made a decision as to what you're going to do?

 

[BrowningBAR]

Therein lies my conundrum...I joined this site in anticipation of having a stove very soon. Enter my chimney sweep and a stove installer to tell me all about why this and that wouldn't work or would be cost prohibitive. I had very little to contribute or discuss, so I just thought I would say hello and give you fine folks a pat on the back for the good work you do...

I have all the toys and keep my wood stacked and dry...so I got that covered.

At some point I hope to have questions about a stove. It will just take a bit more planning and money than I had anticipated, as if that were any different to everything else in life... :smirk:

Keep up the good work and be safe out there.

S&F

I find this hard to believe. I have an old house with old chimneys. Throw a liner in a chimney and 9 times out of 10, you are ready to burn. Like BeGreen said, post some pics so we know what the issues are.