Stuck outside wood burning heaven, what can be done now ?

[HarvestMan]

So here I am 2 seasoning years away from oak burning heaven and it is getting really cold and windy. What can be done to get the most heat possible out of the wood supply you have now?

My oak is 20-24% MC but I have elm at 15%; would I be better off trying to reduce my burn cycles by burning only smaller elm? Should I make smaller splits out of what I have in hopes of faster burns and just pumping more BTUs through the stove and accept the more frequent loading.

In general, what options have others tried and found useful.

Just a week ago, I was in excess heat mode and now with low single digits and 20-30 mph winds I'm finding the once easily attained temps are not so easy.

 

[wahoowad]

I don't get it - if you have Elm ready to burn then burn it. Oak at 20/25% can burn OK when placed on top of a hot bed of coals.

 

[Paulywalnut]

I agree if you get a good fire going with elm by all means put some 20% oak on there. It will burn good. It's better than burning oil or electric. 20% is probably what most are shooting for anyway. I'm way ahead but I would burn that oak if I were you.

 

[Hogwildz]

Get some large plastic tote bins at walmart, put them in the stove room, load them full starting with loading them in the bins on end, then top off with splits laying across the tops. Even in several days to a week or two, you will notice a difference. Mix them up in loads and you may find better results.
Photos of totes I had full in the living room. I was laid up from a hernia op, and everything was hard & hurt, so kept the wood as close as I could.

 

[Mag Craft]

Get some large plastic tote bins at walmart, put them in the stove room, load them full starting with loading them in the bins on end, then top off with splits laying across the tops. Even in several days to a week or two, you will notice a difference. Mix them up in loads and you may find better results.
Photos of totes I had full in the living room. I was laid up from a hernia op, and everything was hard & hurt, so kept the wood as close as I could.

Man you were not kiddin. Nothing like seeing the pics.

 

[Hogwildz]

I kid a lot, but not this time...
Anyone that has ever had a hernia operation knows, you're pretty much laid up for a while.
Lifting a small split was like lifting Miley Cyrus while she was on the wrecking ball.
I literally had to walk with a cane for at least 3 weeks.
Having the wood so close, was a nut saver, literally.

That wood, was not as dry as it looks. Not the worst, but far from ready. It dried beautifully inside, plus the bonus free humidification from it. Surprisingly enough, the insects were a minimum.

 

[HarvestMan]

My original post only hinted at the real issue; last night's extreme weather exposed the limits of my stove given my current wood supply.

Truth is, I'm not really sure if 3 year seasoned oak/locust would have been enough to help me maintain the house temps I have come to enjoy up until last night. I guess everyone eventually finds the limits of their appliance and for me, last night's extreme wind showed me a few things. Without the wind, I am able to maintain the temps I want all the way down to 0 F, but once the high winds came yesterday I started losing the battle to maintain the temps I like. Around 9:30 last night it was obvious the battle was lost, so I decided to take a break and let the furnace kick in and carry the load.

I was a bit discouraged by this last night, but given a good nights sleep, I'm pretty pleased how the heating season has gone so far. Learned a lot in the process and have really enjoyed hearing all the ideas from everyone on this site.

Thanks.

 

[maple1]

A stove is a space heater, and they are only so capable if trying to heat a whole house. Depending on the house/climate situation, some do good & others just aren't up to the task.

Good luck!

 

[Typ0]

I don't understand how the plastic bins help the wood to dry???

 

[maple1]

I don't understand how the plastic bins help the wood to dry???

I think it was more about getting as much wood as you can in the stove room.

 

[Utilitrack]

Dry heat from the stove burning accelerates the drying of the wood stacked in the stove room, with added benefit of helping increase humidity levels in the home from drying action of that wood.

 

[Typ0]

So I am OK with just stacking it in the house to help it dry then PHEW I thought there might be some special plastic bin trick going on here. I have a rotation going. The wood goes onto the porch. Then it comes into the house. Then i stand it on end and rotate it around the stove on the hearth. Finally, the wood is stacked on top of the stove for a day before it goes into the firebox.

 

[Typ0]

Oh I did try all those things....but settled on the fact that it helps little LOL

 

[sportbikerider78]

Stacking wood in a living space? You must not have small kids. Mine toddler would be at the top of that pile in 5 seconds flat.

 

[tsquini]

My oak is 20-24% MC but I have elm at 15%.

Make sure when testing MC you split the wood in half first. That way you are testing the MC of the inside of the split not the outside. The outside will always be drier because it is exposed to wind.

If the internal MC of the Oak in 20 -24% go ahead and burn it. Actually, You are in a good situation. The Elm at 15% MC is low and will burn hot. Mix in the one Elm split with 2 Oak Splits and you should be good.

 

[Applesister]

Stacking wood in a living space? You must not have small kids. Mine toddler would be at the top of that pile in 5 seconds flat.

The trick to safe stacking in your house is to just use your head.

 

[Applesister]

The OP sounds disappointed in wood heat. I'm not sure if I would work as hard at it if the natural resource wasn't abundant and free. But probably.
Its messy and dirty and heavy and time consuming and did I say messy?
But I just love it. The added bonus is that it helps me save money on fuel oil costs.

 

[Mag Craft]

The OP sounds disappointed in wood heat. I'm not sure if I would work as hard at it if the natural resource wasn't abundant and free. But probably.
Its messy and dirty and heavy and time consuming and did I say messy?
But I just love it. The added bonus is that it helps me save money on fuel oil costs.

Yes the wife does complain some about all the little wood chips that get tracked around the house. I use my wood stove shovel and broom to help keep it clean, but you just cannot carry wood into the house in your arms with out a little bit of it falling on the floor.

Maybe a container of some kind would help, but still think my shoes would track some in. Oh well it is just part of wood burning and will be the last thing I lose sleep over.

 

[Typ0]

I am making a big mess but working on some strategies to help with that. I think the biggest thing is getting a garden cart with nice gentle inflated tires and using that to haul the wood around. The chips will fall into the bottom of the cart not on the floor.

 

[Typ0]

The trick to safe stacking in your house is to just use your head.

I recall using the word 'stack' but don't recall it meaning the wood had to be stacked to the roof.

 

[HarvestMan]

The OP sounds disappointed in wood heat. I'm not sure if I would work as hard at it if the natural resource wasn't abundant and free. But probably.
Its messy and dirty and heavy and time consuming and did I say messy?
But I just love it. The added bonus is that it helps me save money on fuel oil costs.

Nope, not at all disappointed with wood heat. Can't see where my post indicated that, but we all see things a bit differently.

I have been heating with wood for 23 winters with this current stove, however up until the end of last winter it was always just something we did in the evenings. When propane spiked last winter, turned to wood heat exclusively in March/April. Did some upgrades to the stove (new cat, cat probe, gaskets, fixed leaks, etc.) as I wanted to try heating with wood exclusively this winter. Finding out that burning 24/7 has its challenges that were not evident when I was just burning in the evenings.

I don't mind the time or the mess. I found that using totes for holding the wood and a good bag for bringing it in helps a lot (plus sweep/vacuum frequently). Here are some pics I just posted in another thread that show the totes and bag I use .

 

[Bigg_Redd]

So here I am 2 seasoning years away from oak burning heaven and it is getting really cold and windy. What can be done to get the most heat possible out of the wood supply you have now?

My oak is 20-24% MC but I have elm at 15%; would I be better off trying to reduce my burn cycles by burning only smaller elm? Should I make smaller splits out of what I have in hopes of faster burns and just pumping more BTUs through the stove and accept the more frequent loading.

In general, what options have others tried and found useful.

Just a week ago, I was in excess heat mode and now with low single digits and 20-30 mph winds I'm finding the once easily attained temps are not so easy.

I badly misjudged my wood situation last year which caused me to have to burn wood that was no where near ready. I went through more wood than I should have. I had to brush my chimney twice mid season (I usually do it once in the summer). But that was the wood I had so that was the wood I burned.

 

[Hogwildz]

I think it was more about getting as much wood as you can in the stove room.

Bingo

 

[Hogwildz]

Do

So I am OK with just stacking it in the house to help it dry then PHEW I thought there might be some special plastic bin trick going on here. I have a rotation going. The wood goes onto the porch. Then it comes into the house. Then i stand it on end and rotate it around the stove on the hearth. Finally, the wood is stacked on top of the stove for a day before it goes into the firebox.

yourself a favor, don't stack the wood on the stove, or anywhere within say a couple feet of it. That is just inviting a potential serious issue.

 

[Hogwildz]

My original post only hinted at the real issue; last night's extreme weather exposed the limits of my stove given my current wood supply.

Truth is, I'm not really sure if 3 year seasoned oak/locust would have been enough to help me maintain the house temps I have come to enjoy up until last night. I guess everyone eventually finds the limits of their appliance and for me, last night's extreme wind showed me a few things. Without the wind, I am able to maintain the temps I want all the way down to 0 F, but once the high winds came yesterday I started losing the battle to maintain the temps I like. Around 9:30 last night it was obvious the battle was lost, so I decided to take a break and let the furnace kick in and carry the load.

I was a bit discouraged by this last night, but given a good nights sleep, I'm pretty pleased how the heating season has gone so far. Learned a lot in the process and have really enjoyed hearing all the ideas from everyone on this site.

Thanks.

Look at it this way. How often do you have to run the furnace? How much dough do you save burning wood?
It is not a cardinal sin to run the furnace once in a while, or whenever the need strikes. ON top of that, you are maintaining the furnace because like anything else, things not used, tend to go to shat for just that reason. You're also making sure your furnace is still operational should the need arise that you need it.
I am not ashamed to use my furnace if the I want to. It is just in a back up role to the wood. Saving a ton of cash, and when I go away for long periods of time, or have a 2 degree night like the other night, and want to get the house up a few degrees, I feel no problems doing so. It is not a race, or competition to see if you can go without the furnace. Yes it does feel nice not to use or need it, but also feels nice when it is needed and used, and knowing it still works when the need arises. The battle may have been lost if you want to see it that way, but you have already won the war. Stay warm, and enjoy. It is sure nice to have a furnace for back up, if/when needed. And, you know it still works. You got a test run and heat all at once. All is good.