Despite the ice inside the house, we stayed very comfortable thanks to adding wood a couple times throughout the night. In case you're curious, very comfortable to us is mid 70's in the stove (living) room (in the middle of the night) with all the other rooms being cooler. With plenty of attention, I've been able to keep the living room around 80 today (rest of the house cooler, of course) - a treat compared to what our oil heat would have been able to do for our old house if we were still using it.
For any of you on the fence about wood heat...you'll love it. We certainly do.
All of you who live way north are amazing and much braver than I. How cold was it where you live last night? Pin It
Hahaha.....this makes me laugh..... I am one of your 'Northern' readers..... southern Alberta, Canada. I had to convert your figure to see what that means for me as a celcius reader. I believe here in the night it was close to -30. Last month we had a good cold snap and during which our gas valve (outside the house) actually froze and then our heater didn't work for 1/2 a day until it got fixed. That night it was -40, This is one of the reasons my husband would like to have a wood heater set up as a back up.......
ReplyDeleteWhen our gas regulater froze at a sub zero temp., I poured hot water from the microwave on it and all was well. I just use gas for the stove. We heat with wood.
DeleteWe have gas heat that I think is quite warm. The downstairs is much cooler though. I am interested in finding a way to heat the downstairs better. We've discussed a kerosene heater but I'm concerned about the smell. Maybe they don't smell so bad anymore? I don't know where we'd put a wood stove but you are right, they put out some heat. My sister in law has one and it is pretty amazing.
ReplyDeleteIt was -12 last night here in the Mitten; glad I have a down comforter!! We have ice (and a draft!) on and around our kitchen windows. I was wondering why they were so much colder than the other, when the clue phone rang and I realized that they don't have storms! We live in an old bungalow (built in 1924) that has the large, old wavy glass windows. Storms and heavy curtains help quite a bit, considering we likely have less insulation than we should. Those windows were on 2014's fix it list, but they've definitely been bumped further up the list toward the top after this cold spell!
ReplyDeleteOh my goodness. 80? In my dreams. I am one of those 'up north" readers and today is -35 with wind chill. We have wood heat in our basement (which is a crummy, nasty basement so we don't get to hang out there, The house is about 60ish on the first level and low 50's in the second story. So yeah- brrr.
ReplyDeleteA balmy 41*F currently here in McMinnville, Or.
ReplyDeleteHow are your honey bees doing & what if anything did you do to winterize the hives?
The coldest here was 7*F and mine came out to "use the loo" yesterday when it warmed up to 46*F. They never cease to amaze me.
We set up two large round hay bales to act as a wind barrier and tied down the roofs. We're so curious as to what is going on inside but wouldn't dare go in there for fear of disturbing their own heating system!
DeleteI put my ear to the top & gave it a gentle tap a couple of times. They made a quiet short buzz which at least told me they were still alive. I lifted the lid and gave them some powdered sugar when there was a warmer day because the hive is very light. I would never lift the inner lid. We heat with wood 24-7. I think we had too many down drafts from our chimney from a long inversion, and they ate too much honey when they got some of the smoke. Have you ever heard of that happening?
DeleteI haven't but we're nowhere near experienced bee keepers yet:-). Glad your bees are still buzzing.
DeleteMonday morning we were at -16F with wind chill at about -45. One of our windows shattered to the touch that morning. Grateful they are double paned and it was only the inside glass that shattered. The window had lost it seal and there was a big circle of ice in the center. We would love to heat with wood but don't really have a good source of wood to make it economical to change from natural gas at this time. But we are staying warm enough
ReplyDeleteOh my goodness! Thank goodness for those double panes:-).
DeleteIt got down to about 3 degrees last night which is very cold for where I live. We very rarely see anything below freezing. I have wanted a wood stove for a long time now, but my house is so small (about 1,000 sq ft) that we currently can't figure out where we could put one without sacrificing much needed space for seating, etc. We have been talking about building a new kitchen onto the house which would provide a little more room, so maybe one day we can get one. For now, we are keeping the house at about 65.
ReplyDeleteToday is warmer, it was up to -8 F after 2 days around -20 with wind chills of -35 to -48. We have gas heat and are now in a ranch (one level). We have a wood burning stove in the living room area...the middle of the house is rather open...kitchen/dining/living/4 season room. That is where we spend most of the time, so we like it warm. The bedrooms are on both sides and they can be cooler. The furnace is on 65 most of the time, but the supplemental heat from the wood burner (it's a smaller one, room for one cook plate on top) keeps us in the low to mid 70's.
ReplyDeleteHere in Wi it has been ~20 the last few nights, with wind chills to ~50. Schools have been closed for three days because of the severe chill. We have an outdoor woodburner, which we have had for over 20 years. It has been a Godsend. It works just like the gas furnace, centrally, so no hot or cold spots and no dirt in the house.
ReplyDeleteHi Sticher, we must be neighbors!
ReplyDeleteWow! 80 during the day? That is toasty! I pay the electric bill for our heat so we keep it at 68 and wear layers! lol I would love to have a wood burning stove but would you believe we're not ALLOWED to burn wood in some areas of California? Too much pollution they say. It's infuriating...
ReplyDeleteJust getting to read some blogs today... I too am a "northern" reader I think - in Central WI. During the worst of it, night temps were around -25, wind chills around -50. We too burn wood - a simple fireplace (closed system) in our living room. I am amazed at how it handled it. Our bedroom, the furthest from the heat, was a bit chilly, but we just added another blanket. Last night, with temps at 0, I was hot. :) We put the wood in when we added on about 10 years ago, and it's the best thing we ever did!
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