Archive for May 2012
Burning Money
A fire in an open hearth is only 10 percent efficient at best, which means that 90 percent of the heat energy you’ve paid for goes up in smoke. Heated room air is drafted up the chimney as well, so your main heating system actually works harder to keep the house warm. Glass fireplace doors raise the efficiency somewhat but only to about 20 percent.
With heating oil at $4.00 a gallon many homeowners are considering to, at least partially, heat their homes with good ole Maine firewood at a fraction of the heating costs. The pay back time for investing in an EPA clean burning wood burning fireplace insert is usually less than two years. Here is how to get started.
When it comes to wood stoves, new is definitely better. An approved stove that meets or preferably exceeds EPA standards is a must.
A wood-burning appliance for space and/or water heating and/or cooking.
A wood
By KATE GALBRAITHMAY 1, 2012
AUSTIN, TEXAS — A century ago, rural homes in the United States and Europe commonly relied on wood for heating. Now wood is making a comeback, thanks largely to pellet technology.