Idiots like this hurt us all...

[trafick]

Went home at lunch today to put more wood on the fire. When I pulled up to the house I saw a bunch of water on the street about four houses down and wondered if there may be a water leak when my next door neighbor called me over.

He told me that the guy three doors down had a fire and that the fire department had to come and put it out. They pulled a burning log out of the wood stove.

I know the guy has a wood stove into a masonary fireplace in his living room and I also know he likes to put big chunks of wood in his stove and let it smolder. Of course he has to mix it with some "green" to make it burn longer.

Now I know that this is the 4th fire that this guy has had in the last ten years. The fire department has been called to three of them and they are ALWAYS due to the wood stove. I don't think the guy has a clue on how to burn correctly. He's from Syracuse, NY (no offense to people from Syracuse, NY) and he'll be damned if wimpy Virginians are going to tell him how to burn wood!

I've tried to talk to him but to no avail. Shall I just let the herd be thinned?

 

[billb3]

Petition for town wide seasonal burning permits (inddorr and outdoor).
(some town officials welcome revenue gimmicks these days)

with a capability for fire department permit revocation capabilities.



Problem with thinning the herd is they often thin the rest of the herd.

 

[Jay H]

Maybe make sure there's a good firebreak between the house-burning neighbor and your other neighbors?

Jay

 

[M1sterM]

Well, if it's the 4th time, not much you could do, I'd say.
How's the saying go? Fool me once, shame on me, fool me twice shame on you...except in this case it's "Burn the house down once, shame on me. Burn the house down twice, well...shame on me! Burn me house down thrice...let it burn, baby, burn!"

 

[Cowboy Billy]

Well as my Grandpa used to say "common sense isn't so common!"

 

[pen]

It doesn't sound like you need to do much. I looks like he is going to thin the heard himself.

Long live Darwin!

pen

 

[karri0n]

It doesn't sound like you need to do much. I looks like he is going to thin the heard himself.

Long live Darwin!

pen

Charles Darwin has already passed...

 

[kenny chaos]

"When in Rome, do like the Romans."
Sounds like Virginia's rubbed off on him. Nothing against anyone from Virginia.

 

[pen]

It doesn't sound like you need to do much. I looks like he is going to thin the heard himself.

Long live Darwin!

pen

Charles Darwin has already passed...

Correction: Darwinism

 

[kenny chaos]

Went home at lunch today to put more wood on the fire. When I pulled up to the house I saw a bunch of water on the street about four houses down and wondered if there may be a water leak when my next door neighbor called me over.

He told me that the guy three doors down had a fire and that the fire department had to come and put it out. They pulled a burning log out of the wood stove.

I know the guy has a wood stove into a masonary fireplace in his living room and I also know he likes to put big chunks of wood in his stove and let it smolder. Of course he has to mix it with some "green" to make it burn longer.

Now I know that this is the 4th fire that this guy has had in the last ten years. The fire department has been called to three of them and they are ALWAYS due to the wood stove. I don't think the guy has a clue on how to burn correctly. He's from Syracuse, NY (no offense to people from Syracuse, NY) and he'll be damned if wimpy Virginians are going to tell him how to burn wood!

I've tried to talk to him but to no avail. Shall I just let the herd be thinned?

maybe he's cashing in on his fire insurance, ,,,...;;[][

He's trying but the neighbors won't keep their nose out of his business.

 

[NEDLAX]

As comedian ron white says "cant fix stupid "

 

[cannonballcobb]

[/quote]maybe he's cashing in on his fire insurance, ,,,...;;[][[/quote]

He must be behind on his mortgage.

 

[njtomatoguy]

local idiot newscaster said last night during his "analysis of the coming weather event",

" and expect to see some house fires, because of people using their woodstoves."

I was shocked.
He actually said woodstoves also. Not fireplace, etc. Specifically woodstove.

 

[Shari]

The assumption here is "Operator Error" and from what you say this is most probably true, however, it could be "Inspection Error" where the inspector who approved the stove installation did not adhere to manufacturers specs therefore causing "Operator Error" - nice loophole for the insurance company.

Shari

 

[arae]

Ok, I have only owned a wood stove for a few months so forgive my ignorance, but what did the neighbor do wrong to cause the fire?

 

[myzamboni]

Ok, I have only owned a wood stove for a few months so forgive my ignorance, but what did the neighbor do wrong to cause the fire?

He burned unseasoned wood dampered down in an attempt to achieve a long burn. He gets a long burn that doesn't put out a lot of heat, but creates a ton of creosote that eventually ignites in a chimney fire.

 

[LLigetfa]

Ok, I have only owned a wood stove for a few months so forgive my ignorance, but what did the neighbor do wrong to cause the fire?

I'd say the following would be a big contributor:

I also know he likes to put big chunks of wood in his stove and let it smolder. Of course he has to mix it with some “green” to make it burn longer.

 

[Cluttermagnet]

Petition for town wide seasonal burning permits (inddorr and outdoor).
(some town officials welcome revenue gimmicks these days)

with a capability for fire department permit revocation capabilities..

Are you nuts? That's the last thing we want. You let government get their foot in the door, and... How would you feel if they came and told you to stop burning? Claiming you're putting out too much particulate and could emit less by burning oil. Yikes! More government is not the answer. I hope you're kidding.

But yes, the guy is an idiot making a bad name for sane wood burners.

No offense, but more regulation is a very bad idea.

 

[Shari]

Petition for town wide seasonal burning permits (inddorr and outdoor).
(some town officials welcome revenue gimmicks these days)

with a capability for fire department permit revocation capabilities.

We already have seasonal outdoor burning permits and revocation capability for outdoor burning in our city...... :-S Let us hope they don't consider this same thing for indoor burning.

Shari

 

[EatenByLimestone]

I would think his insurance company would put a stop to his burning. I'm sure there is smoke damage to the house each fire...

If they keep raising his premium and he decides it still saves him money to burn... Let him go.

Matt

 

[WILDSOURDOUGH]

Bring him some more 'seasoned' (2 day cut) wood- lot and lots of big pieces !

Just joking- sounds like he will do it himself.

 

[pen]

Petition for town wide seasonal burning permits (inddorr and outdoor).
(some town officials welcome revenue gimmicks these days)

with a capability for fire department permit revocation capabilities..

Are you nuts? That's the last thing we want. You let government get their foot in the door, and... How would you feel if they came and told you to stop burning? Claiming you're putting out too much particulate and could emit less by burning oil. Yikes! More government is not the answer. I hope you're kidding.

But yes, the guy is an idiot making a bad name for sane wood burners.

No offense, but more regulation is a very bad idea.

Well said.

 

[SlyFerret]

As comedian ron white says "cant fix stupid "

Along those lines...

I work in IT, and used to have a coworker who was famous for saying:

"I can't patch stupid."

-SF

 

[karri0n]

Similar to a pretty famous one;

"There's no patch for human stupidity"

 

[trafick]

Hey All,

You are not going to believe this. As I came out the door to go to work this morning I look over at his house and there is SMOKE belching from his chimney! Some poeple are too stupid to learn.

Then there was a different guy on the morning news whose house caught on fire yesterday while no one was home. Officials blamed it on a space heater. The guy said "This is the second house I've lived in that's caught on fire". Gee, I wonder why?!?!