FTA Wood Burning

[stardust3]

-40 I just can't imagine how cold that really is, don't believe I want to find out either. My hat is off to you, stay warm & don't let that fire go out.

 

[osu1991]

Willow? Isn't that resinous?

Of course, after a willow tree victory over our sewer line, my father would prefer ALL willows to be burned!

I have a stack of willow from previous years cuttings and I have 5 limbs down off my willow now. Hopefully I don't have to cut the whole tree down. It looks pretty bad right now with all the ice. It should melt tomorrow afternoon if temps finally get above freezing like the weather gurus are forecasting and I can see how much it is really damaged. I use the willow in the fire pit in the fall and spring. My wood stove has been in storage for 5yrs now since I bought this house. It has a gas fireplace that never gets used. I may retrofit for a wood stove insert if I don't turn this house into a rental in the coming year

 

[Larobpra]

I used to stack a few pieces of wood on top of the add-on wood furnace in my first house. It had an outer jacket around the firebox so it didn't get too hot on top. Just replaced the old Olsen wood oil combination furnace with a Newmac combo. After getting the old one out discovered it had a split weld seam where the oil chamber attached to the wood side. It's a wonder we weren't getting smoke up through the registers.

 

[Cham]

Willow? Isn't that resinous?

No they burn just like any other tree as long as it's cured. It has more heat value than poplar, or spruce/pine per unit of weight. I would guess they are much like elm. I have a 1/4 section of woodlot with just about every species there is (except for palm of course ), along with a bunch of river bank that has a lot of oak and ash. We likely cut our heating bill by more than 50% with the wood burning appliances, and can keep the house from freezing up when the power goes out.
One thing I hate about it is the increased insurance cost for having a wood burning furnace in the house... Likely costs us $300 more per year. I would rather pay that than have to fix all the water pipes, floors, walls, and what ever else is damaged when the power goes out; which it does here often. We likely save $300/yr by not having to pay the extra deductible for having gone through the latter had we not been set up for supplemental heat. Really they should give us that much of a discount!

 

[stanleyjohn]

Speaking of wood stoves, I remember efficiency/pollution requirements came out, and stoves started having catalyst modules to "re-burn" the exhaust gases, producing more heat and less pollution. Are those still around? Or have the "secondary burning chamber" (or whatever the proper name is) replaced them?

They use both! and others with tubes on top the re-burn the gasses.Its law these days!All new stoves today must be EPA approved.My stove is a downdraft stove that uses the secondary afterburner chamber.Is really not a good idea to burn wood that isn't seasoned!Wet wood doesn't burn well and creates a lot of creosote that could cause a chimney fire if not cleaned out.