Why I Hate Wood Heat
I’ve never liked the idea of heating with wood. But when we bought this place, we had to figure out what kind of heat we would put in it. It had an ancient oil furnace that I didn’t trust. My heat source of choice, a heat pump, was out of the budget, especially since there is no ductwork. And with oil prices far from cheap and predictable, neither of us really wanted to go that route. There was a good sturdy chimney in place, so Hubby finally talked me into going with wood heat.
His parents gave us a cast iron coal stove to use. It’s tall and narrow with a small door, but otherwise there’s little difference between it and a wood stove. He put it in shortly after Pumpkin’s birthday, and I’ve hated it worse by the day every since. Why, you ask? Let me make a list:
- When Hubby gets a fire going in it, it stays way too hot in here. He had it up to nearly 90 degrees the other night! I’d rather for it to be slightly chilly than that hot.
- It’s messy. I hate emptying out the ash pan and trying to keep all the debris up out of the floor. Way too much hassle, especially when you’re accustomed to no-maintenance heat (except for changing the filter every three months). And then there’s the pile of wood that Hubby insists on keeping in the front yard, and the sawdust created when he saws it up into smaller pieces.
- It’s a lot of work. We don’t have the money to buy fuel right now, so I shouldn’t be complaining about this, but it is. Hubby brings wood home from work or cuts down trees on his days off, and we all pitch in to get it cut up and busted into pieces small enough to work in the heater. That keeps Hubby tired all the time, and it cuts into my work sometimes.
- It stinks. I hate the smell of burning wood.
- I can’t build a fire to save my life, or even keep one going for that matter. I know the fact that the wood is not seasoned has a lot to do with it, but Hubby can get it going (even if it does take some persistence at times). I can stand in front of the thing for an hour, throwing in paper and cardboard, stirring the coals, and adding the driest wood I can find, and it refuses to burn. I don’t have time for that when I’m trying to work.
- I’m afraid I’m going to get frustrated and throw something in the heater that I shouldn’t by accident. I grabbed a box a couple of days ago and almost tossed it in whole before I realized that my digital frame was still in it.
- I worry about it. I dread the thought of having to keep a fire going at night during the winter to keep it warm enough in here. I’m not sure we’ll be able to keep one all night, either, as small as that heater is.
I could probably think of a few more reasons if I tried. But I guess we’re stuck with it, at least this winter. Maybe by next winter we’ll be able to put something else in.
