How much wood?

[eba1225]

Ok guys,

I have searched low and high to the point that my eyes are bloodshot....

What is the rule of thumb related to burning wood and how much you have burned by Jan or Feb to determine if you have enough wood or the entire season?

It was similiar to: To make it through the wood burning season you should have 1/2 of you wood left on ___________.

Erik

 

[Michael6268]

Who really knows nowadays. We havent had a normal winter in years but I would say if you have used have half of your supply left by end of January you are doing good.

 

[jpl1nh]

I agree. Meteorologically the mid point of winter temperaturewise is January 21st. However, the least amount of sun is December 21st so there is greater solar gain (assuming your house benefits from that) in the second half (Jan 21st on) than the first half of winter (up to Jan 21st). If you have half your wood left at the end of January -you should be good.

 

[Rhone]

Bar none the coldest months are January and February. I place mid-winter to be around the first week of February.

 

[gpcollen1]

There is no magic formula unfortunately. If you are buying wood that is as 'seasoned' as what most of the guys are selling, get a cord more than you will need. This way you have some truly seasoned wood for next year.

 

[Corey]

Pretty good advice above, I always view Jan/Feb as the heavy burning months.

You may also want to look at the historic weather data for your location - use your weather service of choice, or:

http://www.wunderground.com/history/

You can see where the historical max/min lies for your area. If wood is your only source of heat, you may want to err on the side of caution. I usually have at least some wood cut ahead for the next season, and could always fall back on gas heat if I had to, but it's still nice to have a little pile of full seasoned wood left just in case a late season storm takes out the power.

 

[adrpga498]

For my area I believe I heard you should have 1/2 of your supply available to burn after groundhogs day. Regardless of shadow or no shadow seen.

 

[Backwoods Savage]

I agree with adrpga. I can still hear my grandfather saying that you should have half of your woodpile yet on groundhog day.

What we have found is that when we have half the pile left on groundhog day, we will have quite a bit left over. That is to start the following fall to make certain that you have plenty of dry seasoned wood to burn then. I still think it is a good rule of thumb.

 

[Sandor]

Where I live in Virginia, west side of the Bay, I would put the 1/2 gone factor by the 3rd week of January.

After the 1st frost, I will begin cutting/splitting for the tale end of the 08/09 season and getting started on the 2009/2010 season. That sounds strange!

 

[Jimbob]

Valentine's day.

 

[EatenByLimestone]

Jan and Feb are the coldest months for me. By April, the furnace barely runs.

Matt

 

[DriftWood]

The first day of spring. Two year old split wood burns great.

 

[JBinKC]

Given the weather last year I am not sure that rule applies. I can not remember a fairly long cold stretch of weather so late in the season last year. It ruined my fruit crops and where I thought I was very safe in wood inventory at the midpoint last year I ran out (Fortunately I was able to secure some dry firewood from a friend who was moving). I burned close to 3/4 of my firewood after the 3rd week in January last year.

 

[eba1225]

As expected this board and its members are full of information and opinions.

Thanks to all on this topic. As expected there are many opinions, but it seems that the general thought is first week of Feb. as the date for 1/2 gone (or 1/2 still left).

FYI - My Lopi was designed to be a secondary source, but is rapidly becoming the primary source of heat as the oil furnace is...well need I say anymore. The furnace is used once and a while as a one shot run (run for about 10-15 min) to raise the temp in areas away from the stove, i.e 2nd floor. The rooms on the floor where the stove is located are always comfortable.

Erik