How cold outside to justify a burn?

[seabert]

I am curious as to what others determine is the highest outdoor temperature before they run their stove or FP.

For me my house is really efficient with new windows siding and insulation. As such I am finding that it only makes sense to burn when outside temperature is a high of about 35 degrees. If it is really windy and rainy I might run when it is up to 40 outside. Any higher than that I get concerned about running too small a fire at too low of a temperature. I have a VC Montpelier and it likes to run nice and hot. Is it safe to run a small hot fire without the secondaries active as long as there is no smoke?

What do other members use as a guideline to start burning?

Thoughts suggestions comments anyone?

 

[chris5150]

I light mine off when it gets cold in the house!

 

[rdust]

I go by house temp, if I'm cold I light the stove.

 

[Woody Stover]

Gotta make it to 70 for a daytime high....mid-60s day and into the 40s at night, and I'll need to fire up. As I get more weatherization done, I should be able to hold out to lower temps.

 

[STIHLY DAN]

I go by how I feel in the house. If it's 73 inside and I feel cold I lite a fire. That's why we work so hard to get wood.

 

[begreen]

We stop burning above 45-50. The heat pump is loafing at those temps.

 

[jatoxico]

Ideally for a small fire on a warmish day I split down some wood to not much bigger than kindling size and make a nice airy stack.

Burns hot and brisk but not for long so no chance of smoldering.

 

[Highbeam]

Who cares what the outside temp is? You're not trying to heat the outdoors and you dont live there. When indoor temps drop below 70 during the burn season we burn for heat.

 

[Bigg_Redd]

I light mine off when it gets cold in the house!

This.


I don't give two Denver Broncos how cold it is outside

 

[tarzan]

We try not to let the fire go out this time of year. Even if it gets a little warm during the day we almost always need a fire through the night so we will toss a couple splits in just to have some coals left for the evening.

That being said, if it gets over 75'F in here I'm opening windows.

 

[razerface]

over 40 or so,, the geo is cheaper and easier.

 

[KB007]

I just watch the furnace thermostat - when it gets close to 67 (what we have it set to), I light a fire. Don't want the dam furnace to come on and start using up expensive propane now, do we??

 

[jotul8e2]

At 50 deg. outside I have to go out on the porch and watch the fire through the window - it just gets too hot indoors. Somewhere around 45 deg. I can just get a fire going in the evening and renew it first thing in the morning.

Low and slow is a good way to increase the income of chimney sweeps.

 

[Bluezx636]

My outdoor cut off temp is around 40* unless it is below 64* inside.

 

[MofoG23]

We stop burning above 45-50. .

Same here.

 

[firefighterjake]

As others have said . . . if you're cold in the house, light 'er up. Who cares what the outdoor temps are . . . one year I actually had a small fire going on July 2nd or 3rd I think it was . . . very cold summer that year.

 

[SteveKG]

In almost exactly 40 yr. of heating with wood stoves, this is a question I've never pondered. If it's cool inside, cool enough for me to want heat, the stove is lit. Outdoor temp. has zero to do with it.

 

[begreen]

The main difference here is whether or not one is heating exclusively with wood or not. A secondary issue could be whether the user's flue performs well with milder temps or not.

 

[DougA]

Add to that whether you are buying wood or if it's free. Mine is free and I have no problem opening windows if it's too hot inside. If I was paying market price, I would not have a stove to begin with.

 

[parthy]

We had an old Franklin fireplace at our childhood cottage in the Kenora/Lake of the Woods area. We burned that thing when we were damp and a tad chilly no matter the date. I will be testing it out here, it is very damp. We will see if the flu cooperates. I can't stand a chilly damp.

If the flu doesn't like it, I have a kero-sun for those fake wood stove moments.

 

[rideau]

It was 24 here today and sunny. A beautiful day. I put four 3 inch branches in the stove at 6 AM, let them burn down to ash, let the stove cool off. Then I cleaned the cat and emptied the ashes. The house didn't lose any heat during the day, so I just relit when the sun set and I closed the curtains.

I light a fire when I get too chilly without one. Last two months, that has been pretty much 24/7, with extreme cold temps (highs over 20degrees and lows closer to 30 degrees lower than normal) and strong winds, little sun. Now that we are just slightly colder than seasonal averages, it seems balmy out. The home is having no trouble maintaining temps with very little firewood. Not so up to this point.

 

[Backwoods Savage]

For sure, if we get cold, we light a fire. The only time I pay much attention to the outside temperature is to know what the overnight low will be. Then we can gauge what and how much to put in the stove before we sack out. But for sure when the outside temperature is in the 30's, not much heat is needed.

 

[EatenByLimestone]

Over 40 and the house gets too warm.

Matt

 

[Flamestead]

I get more pleasure from a woodstove fire when it is low 60's, wet, and raw outside than I do when it is down around zero - feels more like a luxury than a necessity.

 

[Seasoned Oak]

Anything above 50 outside and the house stays above 70 anyways so no need for a fire. Inside is usually 15 top 20 degree above outside with no fire.