As the cold winter weather approached last week, it was time to prepare the house for using the wood stove. One of the things we do each season is clean the ceiling fans and reverse the direction of airflow, we do this twice a year. They blow down in the summer, helping to keep us cool, and up in the winter, circulating the warmer air down from the ceiling. That was a quick, easy chore.
Next, checking out the stove pipe to make sure it was clear of debris. Upon inspection, we found it needed to be cleaned. A few weeks back, Patrice Lewis from Rural Revolution, did a post about how they clean their chimney. Instead of climbing up on the roof, they did the cleaning from inside the house, and kept it clean at the same time. For me, this was one of those light bulb moments. Great idea!
To clean our chimney, we first removed the two pieces of stove pipe between the stove and ceiling section. We took these outside and used the chimney brush to clean them there. In the process of cleaning this stove pipe and the place they connect to the stove, we discovered a coupling piece that needed to be replaced. In fact, Frank found some of it still stuck in the stove and the rest of it stuck in the stove pipe.
The replacement piece would have to wait a day for a trip into town, 25 miles away. In the meantime we finished cleaning the stove pipe using the same technique Patrice and Don Lewis used.
We made a small hole in the side of a heavy duty trash bag, placed the bristle in the stove pipe and the handle through the hole in the bag. I held the trash bag up against the ceiling stove pipe, to catch the soot while Frank did the scrub-a-dub-dub routine.
The next day we replaced the needed coupling piece. But there was no coupling piece, so a similar piece was bought, and with the trusty battery powered grinder, Frank made the needed modifications. Then we fired up the stove. It is a beautiful, comforting addition to our home.
Using a wood stove for heat teaches us a lot about how much effort and attention it takes to provide safe, adequate heating for our home. Sure, it is pretty to look at, but it is also a chore that needs to be tended on a regular basis. Is it easier to push a button on the wall and have the electric heat come on? Absolutely! But what if it didn't? This is another chore that we choose to perform in the interest of self-education. There are days that we choose not to burn a fire because of other demands on our time, or we might be leaving the house for the day, or because of our aches and pains, or because we just don't want to mess with it. But the time will come when it will be a daily chore in the winter, like it or not. At least that is what we expect, we just don't see any way around it. And until that time, we choose to learn. Everyday.
Until next time - Fern
We are getting ready to use our stove tonight. We live in Texas below I-10 and it says 29. My husband cleaned the stove today and we are ready to enjoy the nice warmth resulting from our hard work to cut and split wood. We love to read your blog and Frank and my husband, Jim could be brothers. Jim and Donna in Texas
ReplyDeleteDonna, you gave me a good laugh. Jim and Frank brothers? That would be interesting, and maybe a little scary! (-: Stay warm and enjoy the beautiful fire and the work that went into it. I'm glad you enjoy your time here. Thank you for sharing.
DeleteFern
Living here in Virginia with Ralph I have days when I really miss wood heat. I remember winter power failures when my brother brought his kids down to my place to keep warm and wait for power to come on. He had a natural gas furnace that of course does not work without power! We read books by lamplight and toasted marshmallows over the stove...cozy and warm in the cold of a winter power failure. Chimney cleaning is a must as a chimney fire is a terrifying thing!
ReplyDeleteDo you plan to use wood heat in your new house when you get there, Fiona? We have been very fortunate, and have never had a chimney fire. Frank is pretty careful, and sometimes I think Safety is his middle name. His attitude towards safety sure has paid off numerous times over the years. Thank you for sharing.
DeleteFern
Hi folks! I'm experimenting this (my 2nd winter) year with wood heat only - or as far as I can take it. Last winter this old house that I'd made 'liveable' blew thru 800 gallons of propane like it was NOTHING. That was almost $4K at winter prices! This spring I put in 2 small wood stoves, $1000 worth of ceiling insulation (turns out there wasn't much up there) and made covers for the vents to the crawlspace. So, this year alone I will save $1k in heating and next year, much more. However, it IS nearly a part time job over the year to cut, split, stack and move the wood into the house as needed. My wood is free, fall downs and trimmings from my property, all oak and I'm working a year ahead on the wood so it will season properly. I dread having to clean the pipes myself, although thanks to Patrice's posts, I know how but plan to use a service as long as services are available! Jan in NWGA
ReplyDeleteIt sounds like you have, and continue to do a lot of work on your place, Jan. Insulation sure makes a difference, and we would like to add more to our attic. It is on a long list of things to do. Thank you for sharing the techniques you have used to increase your self-sufficiency.
DeleteFern
You know, there is nothing like the dry heat of a wood fire. My DH is our chimney sweep, too. I will show him your post about cleaning the chimney from the inside, but it is hard to teach old dogs new tricks. (grin). When I was single, I used to climb up on the steep roof of a 100 year old house and do the dirty deed myself. It had a stovepipe that had two 90 degree bends in it, among other things that are not allowed anymore. It was a real chore. It was either that or freeze as that old woodstove was the only source of heat.
ReplyDeleteWe have never been very fond of heights, Tewshooz, neither one of us. So, the technique we learned from Patrice and Don was great. Thank you for sharing.
DeleteFern
We only use wood to heat our house. The stove we have worked good for our smaller house, but with our bigger one that isn't insulated real good yet, it doesn't work that well. One day it will. As soon as we get more insulation put in the walls. It's on the list. We also have an outdoor wood furnace that we have to hook up to the house. THAT one will heat the house. Plus it holds a fire so much better than the indoor one, we won't have to put wood in it but maybe once or twice a day. That will be nice. That, and the wood mess will stay outside. :0)
ReplyDeleteYour outdoor wood furnace sounds very interesting, SFG. I would be interested in hearing more details. Maybe you can post something over at your blog.....just an idea. (-: Thank you for sharing.
DeleteFern
Thanks for your posts you both challenge and encourage us! I laughed when I saw the pics on this post, the garbage bag thing is the same way my husband cleans our chimney. They are both resourceful men!
ReplyDeleteThank you for reading, and thank you for the comment. As you know from the post, we borrowed the idea from Patrice Lewis at Rural Revolution. But either way, it worked.
DeleteFrank
This is a good way to clean the chimney and we 'stole' it from Patrice and Don last year! Our fixer upper has only a wood stove and we love it. I am very glad this week that I hurried and got the quilted curtains done for this storm, they seem to make a real difference. Stay warm and keep the good advice coming! (please!)
ReplyDeleteThank you, Kathy. I found this technique for cleaning the stove to be very easy. I look for things to make my life a little easier. We could probably use some quilted curtains. Good idea, something to look into.
DeleteFrank