Too Much Wood?!?

[MANIAC]

So my wife says "If we're only buring wood on weekends" (It's a second home) "Why do you have so much wood?" I keep cutting and spliting wood I cut on our property and friends property and she's starting to think I have a problem. So I ask you..............CAN YOU EVER HAVE TOO MUCH WOOD?

 

[North of 60]

NEVER & welcome to wood cutters & burners denial club.

 

[Chettt]

What you have is a woodstove shortage. You can't have too much wood.

 

[northwinds]

No such thing as too much wood. Until our house is built, I've been selling wood for more wood cutting tools. And I've been trading wood for sheets of metal to cover wood. And I've been giving wood away to friends who've been good to me. Wood is more fun than money. Okay, maybe I've got a problem...

 

[wahoowad]

Not to thread jack but I just don't see how folks can keep up two houses! It's all I can do to stay on top of the maintenance and enhancements of one home! If I had a fun weekend getaway I know I would neglect my primary residence. So, what's your secret? Boundless energy?!?!!?!?

 

[jpl1nh]

When the next ice age comes, your gonna be glad you got all that wood and wish you more!

 

[MANIAC]

Not to thread jack but I just don’t see how folks can keep up two houses! It’s all I can do to stay on top of the maintenance and enhancements of one home! If I had a fun weekend getaway I know I would neglect my primary residence. So, what’s your secret? Boundless energy?!?!!?!?


We are very fortunate to be able to have two homes. It's funny though on weekends at our house in Maine it doesn't seem like work yet (just finished house in March). Should be nice an cozy though.

 

[BrotherBart]

That place is beautiful. If I had the your second house right now the my first house would have a Century 21 sign out front.

 

[MANIAC]

That place is beautiful. If I had the your second house right now the my first house would have a Century 21 sign out front.

Thanks! It's been 5 years of researching and planning. Then 7 months of construction but it was all worth it. Just need to hunt down my mason this spring to get my hearth and chimney stone work done.

 

[wahoowad]

Yes, beautiful!

 

[Hogwildz]

Why would you elect for a chimney needing a couple 90 degree elbows from stove instead of running straight up, if built from scratch?
Just curious.

 

[MANIAC]

Why would you elect for a chimney needing a couple 90 degree elbows from stove instead of running straight up, if built from scratch?
Just curious.

I am a newbie so I am not sure I follow. I wanted a stone covered masonary chimney as it will be the focal point of the room. Am I missing what your asking?

 

[KeithO]

I'm not telepathic, but what Hog might have been thinking was to incorporate 45 degree bends instead of 90's or even build an oversize fireplace at the bottom to house the stove (it would cost a little more) in which case the chimney could go straight up with no bends. Easier to maintain for sure and will draft better. Perhaps you don't need more draft though, you have the chimney in the midle of the heated zone, so that is good basic design right there.

For folks who buy into an existing masonry fireplace / chimney, one generally has to work with what you've got. When starting from scratch one has a clean slate to work with.

I agree with the other comenters, looks like a fabulous place. I lusted after the Oakwood myself, but the clearances were too large to fit in the space I had.

Why would you elect for a chimney needing a couple 90 degree elbows from stove instead of running straight up, if built from scratch?
Just curious.

I am a newbie so I am not sure I follow. I wanted a stone covered masonary chimney as it will be the focal point of the room. Am I missing what your asking?

 

[MrGriz]

Looks like a beautiful place! As to having too much wood, no. You can never have too much wood. As long as you store it properly it's money in the bank.

 

[WILDSOURDOUGH]

Nice place to retire to...
You can never have too much wood- unless you have over a ten year supply.
Hey- think, you might not want to cut and split one year- always nice to have a ready supply.

 

[titan]

A sharp-looking place indeed Maniac!What's your experience been like with the Oakwood?

 

[MANIAC]

I'm not telepathic, but what Hog might have been thinking was to incorporate 45 degree bends instead of 90's or even build an oversize fireplace at the bottom to house the stove (it would cost a little more) in which case the chimney could go straight up with no bends. Easier to maintain for sure and will draft better. Perhaps you don't need more draft though, you have the chimney in the midle of the heated zone, so that is good basic design right there.

For folks who buy into an existing masonry fireplace / chimney, one generally has to work with what you've got. When starting from scratch one has a clean slate to work with.

I agree with the other comenters, looks like a fabulous place. I lusted after the Oakwood myself, but the clearances were too large to fit in the space I had.

Why would you elect for a chimney needing a couple 90 degree elbows from stove instead of running straight up, if built from scratch?
Just curious.

I am a newbie so I am not sure I follow. I wanted a stone covered masonary chimney as it will be the focal point of the room. Am I missing what your asking?

I figured that's what he meant after I posted my reply. Actually we decided from the start that we did not want a fireplace, don't know why just didn't want one. We also knew that we would have to do a permenant hearth and stone face the chimney at a later date. This current setup allows me some flexability in hearth height when the time comes.

As far as the Oakwood goes, I love the stove more and more every time I look at it. It's nicely detailed, seems very well made and I love the way in looks against all the pine woodwork we have in the house.

 

[titan]

Agreed,that is a good-lookin' stove,what are your burn times like?Does the afterburn system work well?

 

[MANIAC]

A sharp-looking place indeed Maniac!What's your experience been like with the Oakwood?

Titan, still getting to know the stove. Not cold enough here to run it for any length of time but I really love it so far. It amazes me what little is left in the stove after the fire burns down. It's just dust. What really caught my eye first was the door on this stove feels like the door on a blast furnace. It is very heavy and smooth. I do think that the ash pan could be a little larger.

As I said I am a newbie to burning. The last stove we had was a Shenandoah R77 in my parents house 25 +/- years ago. That thing was a beast! It's amazing how far the technology has come.

 

[titan]

Thanks....glad you like it.I've been interested in Harman woodstoves since I first saw them online, but nobody sells 'em locally.

 

[MANIAC]

Thanks....glad you like it.I've been interested in Harman woodstoves since I first saw them online, but nobody sells 'em locally.

Titan,

Just tried to send you a PM.

 

[DiscoInferno]

The answer is no. I keep accumulating wood even though I don't need it anytime soon and don't have anywhere convenient to stack it. I've got 20+ years worth at my summer place at current consumption levels, which should get me into early retirement. But next summer I'm still going to put up another cord or two.

Not to thread jack but I just don't see how folks can keep up two houses! It's all I can do to stay on top of the maintenance and enhancements of one home! If I had a fun weekend getaway I know I would neglect my primary residence. So, what's your secret? Boundless energy?!?!!?!?

What I found was that whereas I did most of the maintenance on our primary home (MD), I tend to hire out more stuff on the vacation/future retirement home (MI). In MI we also chose low maintenance materials whenever possible - wood-textured vinyl siding vs. real wood and Trex for all decking. Since the two houses are 1000 miles apart, we have very few "weekend getaways" and thus the vacation house is the more "neglected" of the two in terms of time. But it's still fairly new, so it doesn't need much care yet. Whereas my primary res is 25 years old (doesn't sound very old, but it was built cheap and fast), and needs a lot of work that I've been putting off...

 

[tradergordo]

The answer is no. I keep accumulating wood even though I don't need it anytime soon and don't have anywhere convenient to stack it. I've got 20+ years worth

Hope the wood will last that long... even if covered and off the ground I don't think I could keep the organisms from punking it over a 20 year period in my part of the country (unless it's black locust, maybe oak).

 

[DiscoInferno]

The answer is no. I keep accumulating wood even though I don't need it anytime soon and don't have anywhere convenient to stack it. I've got 20+ years worth

Hope the wood will last that long... even if covered and off the ground I don't think I could keep the organisms from punking it over a 20 year period in my part of the country (unless it's black locust, maybe oak).

It's sugar maple, beech, and yellow birch. And I'm not at all sure it will make it that long; because of the heavy snowfall it's hard to keep the ends of the wood dry. This year I tried wrapping some already-seasoned stacks with plastic down to the pallets, but that may just trap moisture inside. I keep about a cord in the garage, and I try to cycle the worst-looking stuff in there each summer. If it seems like the bulk of it is starting to turn bad I'll probably just sell it (although a cord there only fetches about $165) or work something out with someone local. Only thing I'm sure of is that it will rot more slowly split and stacked than lying on the ground, which is where it all came from. Unfortunately, several more trees are slowly dying from residual construction damage to roots and bark (I had a terrible builder).

Alternatively, I need to figure out how to disappear from my job for a couple of UP winters so I can go live up there and burn it myself. Maybe in 13 years when my daughter (presumably) goes off to college.

 

[begreen]

Not to thread jack but I just don’t see how folks can keep up two houses! It’s all I can do to stay on top of the maintenance and enhancements of one home! If I had a fun weekend getaway I know I would neglect my primary residence. So, what’s your secret? Boundless energy?!?!!?!?


We are very fortunate to be able to have two homes. It's funny though on weekends at our house in Maine it doesn't seem like work yet (just finished house in March). Should be nice an cozy though.

Woohoo, an Oakwood and she's burning! Nice setup and house, thanks for posting.