how much wood?

[goldfishcastle]

I realize that there are a ton of variables that determine how much wood one uses in the winter. Here's the math that I did, does it make sense? I've been reading on the forums about people having 7+ cords stacked up and its kinda worrying me.

Annual dkt of natural gas = 40 dkt (averaged over last 4 years) this is just to heat the house
convert dkt to btu = 40 x 1,000,000 = 40,000,000 btu
ponderosa/doug fir approx 20,000,000 btu/ cord

2 cords to heat all winter

does this make sense?

thanks

ETA: We have a small house and therefore purchased a small stove so an overnight burn will not be realistic, and the gas bill won't go to 0.

 

[LLigetfa]

ponderosa/doug fir approx 20,000,000 btu/ cord

What table did you use to get that number and what percentage of efficiency are you factoring for? Some tables list only 14M BTU and IMHO that is not net BTUs. Some heat is lost up the flue.

I was trying to do the reverse calculation to determine what my gas bill would be if I stopped heating with wood. Based on the BTU tables but not factoring efficiency, the calculations were not plausible.

 

[goldfishcastle]

What table did you use to get that number and what percentage of efficiency are you factoring for? Some tables list only 14M BTU and IMHO that is not net BTUs. Some heat is lost up the flue.

One of the sites was this one, although I found the statistic elsewhere too:
(broken link removed to http://www.farminfo.org/property/logging.htm)
Thanks for mentioning that the heat loss through the flue, that was not in the calculation.

I was trying to do the reverse calculation to determine what my gas bill would be if I stopped heating with wood. Based on the BTU tables but not factoring efficiency, the calculations were not plausible.

Why weren't the calculations plausible?

Thanks.

 

[wendell]

If your stove is 70% efficient and your furnace is 90%, your calculations are off around 20% at least. It is much more likely you are going to need closer to 3 cords.

What stove and what size house?

 

[goldfishcastle]

old furnace from '64, so i don't think its very efficient.

800 sqft, Jotul Nordic

 

[Todd]

I don't think you can just compare gas usage to get an accurate comparison, to many variables. My guess would be about 3 cords, but if you have room, have 6 cords on hand that way you will have more than enough and a head start on the following years supply. It's really nice to be 2 or 3 years ahead.

 

[onesojourner]

I am wondering the same thing but our winters are much milder.

 

[goldfishcastle]

I am wondering the same thing but our winters are much milder.

our winters aren't bad here, nestled on the east side of the continental divide. definately don't have room for 3+ cords, i guess we'll just see how it goes. thanks.

 

[LLigetfa]

Why weren't the calculations plausible?

I used the following table and did not factor for stove efficiency. Your Recoverable BTU's per Cord is in the order of 10M before stove efficiency is factored.

https://www.hearth.com/econtent/index.php/articles/heating_value_wood

I would double your estimate and then add another cord JIC. That would put it around 5 cord but I think you would probably burn 3 depending on how well it is seasoned.

 

[madrone]

This is nothing but a guess, but at 800 sq ft, with that stove, I'd guess that anything between 2 - 3 cords would put a serious dent in the gas bill. You may run out if you're having fun running the stove a lot, but if you only burn when you're home, and don't try too hard for overnights, you should be able to get away with under 3. I think. I've been using 2-3 cords to heat 1200 sq ft burning all day, most days, few overnights, in a mild winter climate. I let the furnace pick up the slack.

here's a good chart for western wood btu's"

http://firewoodresource.com/firewood-btu-ratings/

 

[savageactor7]

goldfishcastle heating with a stove is a primitive art and doesn't always hold up well to calculations. Then best thing for you to do is to consult with the wood burning neighbors on how much they've burned a season then plan on that...or a little more.

 

[Backwoods Savage]

I am wondering the same thing but our winters are much milder.

our winters aren't bad here, nestled on the east side of the continental divide. definately don't have room for 3+ cords, i guess we'll just see how it goes. thanks.

Not having room for 3+ cords is definitely not good. The wood you get this year should be used next year, meaning you need a 2 year supply on hand at the beginning of the heating season.

People who do not do this are the people who have all sorts of problems, such as:

1. Having problems getting the fire going.
2. Having big problems with creosote and therefore fire danger.
3. Not getting much heat from the stove (see #4).
4. Burning a lot of extra wood because the draft has to be open more, therefore pushing more heat up the chimney rather than inside the home.


So having properly seasoned wood is a must for anyone attempting to heat with wood. You will burn less wood and get more heat from properly seasoned wood and you won't have to worry so much about creosote.

I also agree to figuring a minimum of 3 cords per winter.

Good luck.

 

[Todd]

I am wondering the same thing but our winters are much milder.

our winters aren't bad here, nestled on the east side of the continental divide. definately don't have room for 3+ cords, i guess we'll just see how it goes. thanks.

May be a good option for you to build a Holtz Hausen, lots of wood in a small area.

(broken link removed to http://www.woodheat.org/firewood/holtzhausen.htm)

https://www.hearth.com/talk/threads/1726/

 

[Backwoods Savage]

Todd, with all due respect, I fail to see how you would stack more wood in the same area using the holtz hausen method vs. regular stacking. Seems impossible to me.

 

[Todd]

Todd, with all due respect, I fail to see how you would stack more wood in the same area using the holtz hausen method vs. regular stacking. Seems impossible to me.

Looks can be deceiving, I built a couple 8' diameter by 8' tall and they both held about 3 cords.

 

[BrotherBart]

If you can shove more than three cords through the little F100 Nordic in a season you have been doing some work. In fact you have been sitting right in front of it feeding it all winter.

 

[wendell]

If you can shove more than three cords through the little F100 Nordic in a season you have been doing some work. In fact you have been sitting right in front of it feeding it all winter.

Yes, now that I know you have that small a stove, you are more likely to use around 2+ cords.

 

[Wet1]

Todd, with all due respect, I fail to see how you would stack more wood in the same area using the holtz hausen method vs. regular stacking. Seems impossible to me.

I think it has more to do with the size of the footprint rather than the total area. With a HH you can stack the wood higher which means you can consume less sq footage of valuable real estate.

 

[madrone]

Not having room for 3+ cords is definitely not good. The wood you get this year should be used next year, meaning you need a 2 year supply on hand at the beginning of the heating season.

Although I wholeheartedly agree that seasoning is of vital importance, douglas fir and ponderosa pine aren't going to require as long a seasoning time as hardwoods. 6 to 9 months. Get that stuff split and stacked as early in the spring as you can, and you'll be fine. If you're buying wood, buy it in the spring. I can only hold so much wood in my yard, so I'm never going to be 2 years ahead. I start scrounging seriously in late winter.

 

[Todd]

If you can shove more than three cords through the little F100 Nordic in a season you have been doing some work. In fact you have been sitting right in front of it feeding it all winter.

Even if he's burning Pine? I still say 3 cords if you are burning your stove for primary heat, it gets pretty cold in Montana. Yes, you will be feeding it often.

 

[Bigg_Redd]

I realize that there are a ton of variables that determine how much wood one uses in the winter. Here's the math that I did, does it make sense? I've been reading on the forums about people having 7+ cords stacked up and its kinda worrying me.

Annual dkt of natural gas = 40 dkt (averaged over last 4 years) this is just to heat the house
convert dkt to btu = 40 x 1,000,000 = 40,000,000 btu
ponderosa/doug fir approx 20,000,000 btu/ cord

2 cords to heat all winter

does this make sense?

thanks

ETA: We have a small house and therefore purchased a small stove so an overnight burn will not be realistic, and the gas bill won't go to 0.

It all depends. If you want to burn as little gas as possible I'd double that. If you're just looking to burn less gas then 2 cord will certainly accomplish that.

 

[Bigg_Redd]

I am wondering the same thing but our winters are much milder.

our winters aren't bad here, nestled on the east side of the continental divide. definately don't have room for 3+ cords, i guess we'll just see how it goes. thanks.

Not having room for 3+ cords is definitely not good. The wood you get this year should be used next year, meaning you need a 2 year supply on hand at the beginning of the heating season.

People who do not do this are the people who have all sorts of problems, such as:

1. Having problems getting the fire going.
2. Having big problems with creosote and therefore fire danger.
3. Not getting much heat from the stove (see #4).
4. Burning a lot of extra wood because the draft has to be open more, therefore pushing more heat up the chimney rather than inside the home.


So having properly seasoned wood is a must for anyone attempting to heat with wood. You will burn less wood and get more heat from properly seasoned wood and you won't have to worry so much about creosote.

I also agree to figuring a minimum of 3 cords per winter.

Good luck.

Actually, pine and fir cut in the spring are ready to go in the fall/winter.

 

[wendell]

Yeah, I kind of forgot where the OP lives and what he will be burning so I'm back to my original 3 cord estimate. (Is there a wishy-washy smiley?)

 

[BrotherBart]

If you can shove more than three cords through the little F100 Nordic in a season you have been doing some work. In fact you have been sitting right in front of it feeding it all winter.

Even if he's burning Pine? I still say 3 cords if you are burning your stove for primary heat, it gets pretty cold in Montana. Yes, you will be feeding it often.

Even if he is burning rolled up newspapers. I heated the basement office 17 -18 hours a day for two years with an F100 burning pine. Two cords of it a year. You can only pack so many peanuts at a time in a two dollar bag. :lol:

The firebox is about the size of the shoebox for a pair of size 13 basketball shoes. I love the little stove for heating a small space while you are awake. But pack it full, three small splits, and go to bed and it is kaput in three or four hours max. How cold it is outside, or inside for that matter, doesn't make any difference.

 

[goldfishcastle]

Even if he is burning rolled up newspapers. I heated the basement office 17 -18 hours a day for two years with an F100 burning pine. Two cords of it a year. You can only pack so many peanuts at a time in a two dollar bag. :lol:

The firebox is about the size of the shoebox for a pair of size 13 basketball shoes. I love the little stove for heating a small space while you are awake. But pack it full, three small splits, and go to bed and it is kaput in three or four hours max. How cold it is outside, or inside for that matter, doesn't make any difference.

Good to know that you used 2 cords heating that many hours a day. We had a crappy stove in college but just scrounged for scrap (pallet making company not far away) so I have no idea how much wood we went through, that was an old leaky trailer vs. our snug house.

A little extra heat while awake is all we want. The furnace hardly kicks on at night since we set it back to 58, cool temps help us sleep better - wouldn't want all the effort of a stove to ruin a good night's sleep Our climate isn't too bad since we're on the east side of the divide, all the really bad stuff gets unloaded before coming over the mountains so storms sail right by (usually).