With this new energy crisis, will the value of used wood stoves skyrocket?

[rwh63]

was recently wondering, with $7/gal heating oil and expensive LP and LNG, will there be a surge in demand from new users rushing in to install wood stoves (legally or illegally)? wood seems to be the same price so far. don't know if there is a supply chain issue with new stoves, but there are a lot of used stoves out there. my guess if the demand would be for the older, simpler pre-EPAS stoves like Vermont Castings. will prices surge for quality older wood stoves before this winter?

 

[bholler]

was recently wondering, with $7/gal heating oil and expensive LP and LNG, will there be a surge in demand from new users rushing in to install wood stoves (legally or illegally)? wood seems to be the same price so far. don't know if there is a supply chain issue with new stoves, but there are a lot of used stoves out there. my guess if the demand would be for the older, simpler pre-EPAS stoves like Vermont Castings. will prices surge for quality older wood stoves before this winter?

They absolutely are not the same price. And yes there absolutely is an increase in demand in stoves across the board

 

[peakbagger]

Yup lots of newbys going to rush into wood burning. Lots of green wood going to get sold. The local firewood dealer has been running his processor 7 days a week. No doubt it will get sold as partially seasoned in few months.

 

[Ctwoodtick]

…..and the 2yrs old stack of hardwood will become even more valuable, haha.

 

[Caw]

I love being 3 years ahead...money in the bank!

 

[begreen]

Woodstove prices already shot up this last season in part due to steel costs and Covid supply chain issues. Some Drolet's went up 25%.

 

[brenndatomu]

Some Drolet's went up 25%.

The new Heat Commander wood furnace was $2699 when it came out in 2020...is $3999 now...may have been some introductory pricing factoring in their too, dunno. (this is pricing from their MFP site)
I tend to watch what's for sale locally as far as used wood burners...seems like things are not lingering for months like they usually do in the off season...and yes, anything that is not totally junk, or antique, seems to be priced higher on average.

 

[begreen]

It's been happening for a while though the increases last year were staggering. Stoves are getting priced out of the reach of many people now. FWIW, I got our 2004 F3CB and later the 2006 F400 before price increases and ended up selling them for more than I paid.

 

[marty319]

Osburn 3300 went up 800 bucks last year.

 

[rwh63]

I love being 3 years ahead...money in the bank!

View attachment 295525

three years? how much wood is that?

 

[ABMax24]

I've been wondering the same, driving around town this winter I've seen smoke from more chimneys than I've seen in a long time. From houses that I've never seen the woodstoves used in before.

Even using my woodstove my NG bills this winter are the highest they've ever been, including the couple years before we had a wood stove. For me the issue is compounded, natural gas prices are double what I'm used to paying, and right now I'm paying an additional 35% on top of that for carbon tax.

Wood as a fuel is carbon tax exempt in Canada. The carbon tax will double in 4 years, and triple in 8, I see a large uptake of wood heat in the coming years between increased fuel costs and higher carbon tax. For reference the carbon tax will cost us $9/GJ in 2030, or about $0.90/therm. Which unfortunately is going to lead to air quality issues with a bunch of new burners burning green wood.

 

[EatenByLimestone]

And as soon as oil and propane goes back down they’ll stop using them. Wood heat is a lifestyle. Most will not want to move firewood 3x a day. Most will not want to store a couple years of firewood.

 

[brenndatomu]

And as soon as oil and propane goes back down they’ll stop using them. Wood heat is a lifestyle. Most will not want to move firewood 3x a day. Most will not want to store a couple years of firewood.

That's true...at some point in the future there will be a glut of cheap used stoves.

 

[xman23]

In the 70's crude doubled in 12 months. My brother tried heating with the fireplace with glass doors. Problem was the glass would shatter every few months. I remember back then wood stove stores where everywhere.

 

[MacEntyre]

There is a supply issue as well. The local BlazeKing dealer said he won't receive any more stoves until 2023. He's telling people who already have one that if they want to uninstall it, he knows people who will pay almost new prices. It's just like with automobiles.

 

[Caw]

three years? how much wood is that?

12 cords. I burn 4 cords a year +/- 0.5 a season on average. Currently I'd estimate its 60% red oak, 30% red maple, and 10% cherry/ash. Ill share some more pics:

Each full rack is two cords, 2 x 1 cord racks with an air gap and attached with branches for stability. I have 4 of those. Then I have two pallet islands of overflow behind these racks, on the side of the house, some ugly/fire pit bins, and a bit of wood left to split. I'm normally done by now but I've been injured so I'm just chipping away at it.

 

[marty319]

You gotta get that big galoute to help

 

[Caw]

You gotta get that big galoute to help

His skill set is more focused on relaxation lol

 

[D. Hermit]

Short answer. Yes.

 

[D. Hermit]

Other thing Im seeing is much more business than normal this time of the year as far as private restorations coming into the shop. I normally during busy season only have 2-3 in shop at one time.

I have 5 client stoves in shop now to fully rebuild, and people are still calling and emailing. Normally Im slow during late spring and just work on my cutting and processing my own firewood.

A couple of these stoves would have ended up on the used market, but the people said they decided to keep it and get it restored back to new and keep it. Some were planning on stopping to burn wood completely.

Same with the gasket side of the business, kit sales have slowed, but far from stopped. Lots of vintage stove kits. My guess is lots of people who normally only burn on occasion, are planning on burning more to offset the oil costs.

Even other solid fuel costs are up, like coal and pellets. But around these parts, we have an abundance of hardwood. My heating bill for almost 10 years is still ‘practically’ zero dollars.

All this to say, yes prices are going up, and the market will be pretty dry for anything decent. And if you wait until fall, your going to be paying premium.

 

[defiant3]

It seems that it's sort of a " perfect storm" of high fuel costs, new stoves being quite pricey and of course availability of new product has been a problem too. I've noticed the used stove market has accelerated to be sure, and I too am having one of my busiest Mays in 30 years! I have people dropping stoves off, a backlog of service calls, and like a million inquiries! May is often a sleepy month and many years it takes until July for folx to remember that winter is coming!

 

[begreen]

This is reminiscent of the 1970s during the Arab oil embargo.
Ironically, after last summer's heat bomb here, air conditioning is doing the same thing. People in western WA and OR started buying available ACs in April.