Tag Archives: wood stoves

Fireplace Inserts

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by Woodsbum

I lucked out the other day and ended up getting a fireplace insert for $50. Of course it was used, but the fan worked and the overall structure seemed to be without any visible flaws. Yesterday I stopped by the local wood stove shop and picked up the insulation I needed to install the insert and get it ready for use this winter.

We have regularly used our fireplace, but have found that it doesn’t work as well as we really would have liked. There always seems to be more of a draft and less heat produced than what we need to truly heat the house. My father has fireplace inserts in his home, both upstairs and downstairs, and they heat his entire house quite efficiently. Getting this insert should really help us out, especially on those cold nights where anything but wood heat just seems to leave you chilled to the bone.

Here is a picture of the monster we picked up.

Fireplace Insert

Fireplace Insert

I know that I have some work to do with regard to the surface rust. At this point I have not decided if I want to use Rustoleum type grill paint on it or if I should treat it like a cast iron skillet and just season it. Either way I know that the house is going to get a bit stinky and the wife will have to be elsewhere when I do the work. I also know that I will need to get a fire resistant carpet in front of the doors to ensure I don’t burn my carpet. If that were to happen my wife’s dog, which is the butt you see in the picture, would not be happy. That spot she is sleeping in is really her “spot.”

For those that don’t have the money or desire to mess around with wood burning stoves, I highly suggest fireplace inserts. They are easy to work with and do the same job without all the installation hassles. The insert also keeps all the cold air and drafts from fighting with your electric heat if you have that. Either way it is definitely a win/win situation if you can get one at a reasonable price.

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Helping the Family

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by Woodsbum

Normally, I try to post about 3 times a week. Unfortunately, I was unable to post much this last week because I was out of town helping my father. He uses wood as a primary source of heat in his home. Due to health conditions, he had lost almost two months this summer and was unable to finish cutting/splitting/stacking the log truck of wood he had delivered in spring. Between three of us we processed almost 4 1/2 cords of wood and helped him get several other household projects completed. There is still about a cord left to split and stack, but my son is going to keep picking at it until it is finished.

The way that we completed this monumental task was quite dependent upon machinery. The logs were picked up by his excavator so that we could cut them to length. We then used a hydraulic splitter to split it up and then we moved it over to his shed with the bucket of his front end loader. Even though there could definitely have been some time savings by just strong arming much of it this method allowed us to keep working without physical strain or exhaustion.

Even though I have used log splitters in the past, I am amazed at how much time and effort they save. Large, knotty sections were no match for the splitter and it saved so much wear and tear on my back. Eventually, I am going to have to get myself one just for the sake of having a way to to split up wood if and when I need it. Depending upon a maul really is a horrible way to go when you are talking about filling an entire woodshed. My hat is off to those do it that way. I surely don’t want to.

What I do love about working outside on projects like this is ability to test my gear. Although I didn’t take too many pictures while I was working, I will take a few to assist me in telling you how it all worked out in the posts to come.

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