Firewood Questions

[trailbuilder]

Jnelson,
Have you found that pointing the fresh cut end up when you split makes it easier? I have heard the old timers here make bets in the bars who can split the biggest wood. When they point the old cut end up for the big (drunk) guy the little (sober) guy wins with the fresh cut end up.

 

[grnspot110]

Look at the "checks" in the end of the block, it will tell you where to split it! ~~ grnspot

 

[jnelson]

Masonry stoves are fired with a very hot, quick burning fire

Ah, another person interested in masonry or 'Russian' stoves. I have done a lot of Internet research on the subject and they are quite interesting. They are extremely efficient with the heat they produce vs the amount of fuel that they consume. Unfortunately the nature of their design and construction makes it near impossible to retro install one in an existing home. My dream is to build a home around one built into the side of a hill on the back of our property some day. Spend a couple of hours Googling masonry store, russian stove, and thermal mass furnaces - they are interesting. You will learn that most of us (myself included) that heat with wood use very inefficient and wasteful techniques. We burn wood using 'throttled' fires damped to keep it going all day and heating through convection. The thermal mass stoves burn wood very fast and clean storing the heat in mass such as stone, sand, etc and radiated evenly throughout the the day.

I agree that it is always easiest to split a long from the fresh cut end unless there is a knot or some other circumstance making it an exception to the general rule. I too enjoy cutting wood in the late fall, winter, and spring. The cooler weather is great for staying reasonably comfortable and I often work in shirt sleeves in below freezing weather - just keep your coat ready as you will cool down very fast when you take a break. I also like that there are no insects and especially like that there are no weeks and far less undergrowth to deal with - especially poison ivy.

JN

 

[EE_Bota]

Ah, another person interested in masonry or 'Russian' stoves. I have done a lot of Internet research on the subject and they are quite interesting. They are extremely efficient with the heat they produce vs the amount of fuel that they consume. Unfortunately the nature of their design and construction makes it near impossible to retro install one in an existing home. My dream is to build a home around one built into the side of a hill on the back of our property some day. Spend a couple of hours Googling masonry store, russian stove, and thermal mass furnaces - they are interesting. You will learn that most of us (myself included) that heat with wood use very inefficient and wasteful techniques. We burn wood using 'throttled' fires damped to keep it going all day and heating through convection. The thermal mass stoves burn wood very fast and clean storing the heat in mass such as stone, sand, etc and radiated evenly throughout the the day.

I agree that it is always easiest to split a long from the fresh cut end unless there is a knot or some other circumstance making it an exception to the general rule. I too enjoy cutting wood in the late fall, winter, and spring. The cooler weather is great for staying reasonably comfortable and I often work in shirt sleeves in below freezing weather - just keep your coat ready as you will cool down very fast when you take a break. I also like that there are no insects and especially like that there are no weeks and far less undergrowth to deal with - especially poison ivy.

JN

Maybe you can come very close to such a stove with a soapstone stove. I have one. It does perform differently that most I have seen.

 

[DAY]

Maybe you can come very close to such a stove with a soapstone stove. I have one. It does perform differently that most I have seen.

The "hot, quick fire/large thermal mass" concept is readily available in the USA. It is called an oil fired furnace, with water filled radiators.

Number Two oil (AKA diesel fuel, without the tax!) is atomized, and blown into the firebox, where it heats the water. The main difference between the two systems, is that many of us own a woodlot, but not an oil well/refinery.:laughing:

 

[ultrarunner]

Ah, another person interested in masonry or 'Russian' stoves. I have done a lot of Internet research on the subject and they are quite interesting. They are extremely efficient with the heat they produce vs the amount of fuel that they consume. Unfortunately the nature of their design and construction makes it near impossible to retro install one in an existing home. My dream is to build a home around one built into the side of a hill on the back of our property some day. Spend a couple of hours Googling masonry store, russian stove, and thermal mass furnaces - they are interesting. You will learn that most of us (myself included) that heat with wood use very inefficient and wasteful techniques. We burn wood using 'throttled' fires damped to keep it going all day and heating through convection. The thermal mass stoves burn wood very fast and clean storing the heat in mass such as stone, sand, etc and radiated evenly throughout the the day.

I agree that it is always easiest to split a long from the fresh cut end unless there is a knot or some other circumstance making it an exception to the general rule. I too enjoy cutting wood in the late fall, winter, and spring. The cooler weather is great for staying reasonably comfortable and I often work in shirt sleeves in below freezing weather - just keep your coat ready as you will cool down very fast when you take a break. I also like that there are no insects and especially like that there are no weeks and far less undergrowth to deal with - especially poison ivy.

JN

I helped a master stove maker build one at the cabin back around 1984.

It is the primary heat and works very well.

A few pieces of split wood will keep it warm to the touch for 24 hours... if it is really cold, add a few more pieces and fire once every 12 hours... nothing left but ash.

The favorite place in the cabin is the bench in front of the Kachelofen with the warmth heating your back...

Basically, there is a firebox with a smoke path the winds it way around the oven 5, 6, 7 or more courses before it hits the chimney...

The first fire of the season requires extra care because the entire thermal mass is cold resulting in poor draw till a big puff of smoke belches out and then now more smoke typically.

 

[jnelson]

Ultrarunner,

Very interesting. Do you have any pictures, plans, or drawings to share?

I have wondered about the feasibility of building a large outdoor mound system filled with sand or rocks covered with insulation and soil with a wood fired 'rocket' stove running through the core. Of course I'd be back to convection heat transfer with either air or water circulating through the mound, but I could still gain the advantage of rapid efficient combustion and the smooth release of heat. But would the advantages offset the work and cost to to build?

JN

 

[clemsonfor]

I helped a master stove maker build one at the cabin back around 1984.

It is the primary heat and works very well.

A few pieces of split wood will keep it warm to the touch for 24 hours... if it is really cold, add a few more pieces and fire once every 12 hours... nothing left but ash.

The favorite place in the cabin is the bench in front of the Kachelofen with the warmth heating your back...

Basically, there is a firebox with a smoke path the winds it way around the oven 5, 6, 7 or more courses before it hits the chimney...

The first fire of the season requires extra care because the entire thermal mass is cold resulting in poor draw till a big puff of smoke belches out and then now more smoke typically.

Wont that thing choke up in creosote if it winds that much cooling off as it goes?

 

[trailmaker]

The "hot, quick fire/large thermal mass" concept is readily available in the USA. It is called an oil fired furnace, with water filled radiators.

Number Two oil (AKA diesel fuel, without the tax!) is atomized, and blown into the firebox, where it heats the water. The main difference between the two systems, is that many of us own a woodlot, but not an oil well/refinery.:laughing:

Another difference is complexity. Masonry heaters have very few moving parts, and thus much less maintenance. As I understand it even ash clean out is pretty infrequent because of the very high combustion temps.

 

[trailmaker]

Wont that thing choke up in creosote if it winds that much cooling off as it goes?

I believe that creosote gets burned in a masonry heater, because of the high temps.