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[swede]

Sub-zero daytime highs,  tonight -30 with -50 wind chill here in Northern MN.  Should put the stove to the test!   No 18 hour overnight burn tonight.

Wondering how other members owf handles this kind of cold?

[dwneast77]

I don't see temps quite that low in my area.  We are expecting a couple of nights around 10 below this week.  Will take about 1 1/2 fills of wood for 24 hr period I think. 

[Bondo]

Sub-zero daytime highs,  tonight -30 with -50 wind chill here in Northern MN.  Should put the stove to the test!   No 18 hour overnight burn tonight.

Wondering how other members owf handles this kind of cold?

Ayuh,....   Not quite that cold here, but close....

When temps are 0° or above, My homemade boiler needs fillin' at suppertime, 'n a good raking at breakfast....
Maybe throw on a few sticks to get through the day...

With the temps as Cold as the last few days, it's takin' a full loadin' both in the mornin', 'n at bedtime...

Yesterday, with the wind, it never slowed down, but burned full tilt All day,....
'course I live in a 100 year old farm house, that you can throw a cat through the wall, 'bout anywhere ya want too....
Big heat losses goin' on...

[Homerglide]

We had minus 15 this morning and have been below zero every morning in passed 5 days. The wood consumption has not changed and the water temperature remains as always (150 out, 140 return). The difference is now the propane furnace is cycling several times during the night and into mid morning. Looks like the house side isn't standing up to the test (radiant 4-100 lbs propane tanks laying in crawl space).

This old stove is using a sandbox with copper coil buried within. It has served its purpose for many years as just an indoor wood stove and two years as a sandbox water heater. This will be the last year for the old bugger as I am saving for a gasser.

[Johnv656]

Been 0 at night and low teens during the day. Still getting a 24 hour burn with my Hawken.

[fryedaddy]

I guess the correct question would be how many cubic feet of wood is required for these temperatures?

For instance my firebox is 15 cuft and I fill my stove twice per day about 3/4 full. so I use 22.5 +/- cubic feet.

My temps are in the teens and twenties lately.

I'm sure it's difficult to stay out in -25, never seen that kind of low before.

[husky 555]

0's and single digits in w. md.  I have always filled my furnace twice a day just to keep an eye on it.  Milder temps I can easily go with 18 hr. burns times.  With the colder temps I might go 16 hrs b/w fills.

[Eski]

I know, late to the game on this thread. I live in North Pole, Alaska which is located in Alaska's interior region of the state, in the outskirts of our 2nd largest city in Alaska. We regularly get the cold temps "Swede" referred to. In fact, it's Christmas eve and the current temp is -29F. Last year on this day it was -45F.
I have a 2011 Central Boiler e-Classic 3500, heat two structures totaling 4,000sq. My 3500 provides 100% heat and 100% domestic hot water. We have an oil fired furnace as back-up.
We burn white birch exclusively. When we are conservative with our heat usage we'll burn about 110 sq/ft per week and we've burned as much as 140sq/ft week. I just tell ppl we burn a cord a week when it's -30F and colder (which is about 8-10 weeks of the 28 week burn season) Usage drops way off with temps around 0F. We burn 20cord/season.
Merry Christmas and keep warm everyone!

[ITO]

 Swede, here in No. WI we have been having about the same temps as you, -22 yesterday morning. I have to load twice a day at these temps but I don't jam it completely full, 3 rounds and a few small pieces is average.
 After reading Eski's post I don't feel too bad! Wow that's working your stove!

[Ohiowood]

Wow that is impressive ! You buy all that wood or get it all your self?

[MattyNH]

 Eski post is impressive..Talk about working your wood boiler to the max..As long the fuel is there..It don't matter..I couldn't even imagine burning oil in those temps for weeks at a time.. $$$$ yikes all I would say

[Roger2561]

And, hope and pray that nothing fails on the OWB in those temps.  I can't fathom working outside in those conditions trying to troubleshoot a problem.  Brrrrr.  Roger   

[Eski]

It's -42F right now. Google North Pole, AK temp. It's supposed to break tonight and be up near 0F in 24 hours. We're just at the mercy of the jet stream.

"Ohiowood", the first burn season I managed to bring home a mix of about 6 cords of white birch and black spruce. That was a lot of work with such little time to do it. I buy truck loads of logs. I paid $170/cord for 6 cords, and $190/cord for about 18 cords.
Many ppl I know who burn heating oil exclusively report that with less sq. footage than we have, they've been shelling out upwards of $10,000 a year just in fuel costs. I feel good in spending about $5,000 a year to heat our property. Yeah, the prices are high up here but so are wages.... so costs are relative.

"Roger2561", you are exactly right! My wife and I pray regularly that nothing fails. We have 2 circuits running from the e-Classic 3200, one to each building. The circ-pump for the house is in the garage. The one for the shop/apartment is in the back side of the OWB!! Imagine having to change that! I plan to relocate into the shop this coming summer. We pray thanks for everyday things go off without a hitch too!

A week and a half ago my mom landed in the hospital in Anchorage. I drove 6 hours down to be with her and while I was gone there was a wind event which took out a major transmission line, cutting power to our area. My wife called me at 5am saying the power was out and noted that the water temperature was dropping about 20 degrees and hour. It would normally be 195 but was at 100 when I was able to get a hold of a friend who made it way to my home with a portable generator and wired into the breaker panel to supply the OWB and the circ-pumps. It was ironic because the day before I had been generator shopping in Anchorage. I ended up bringing home a Generac 10kw portable gas powered generator...hopefully we'll never feel hopeless again.

[beeman]

eski thats were i was born in anchorage but glad its no were that cold down here my homemade has not done bad considering the old house its trying to heat a co worker brags about his stove but all he is heating is a 40x60 earth contact home great for him the pic is loading  the old girl this mornning

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[beeman]

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