Woodburner install Pics

[LD1]

Just some pics of the brunco 120 wood-stove I installed. Had to take the pics for the insurance company so I figured I'd post them also.

Probably only burn it for a year then it will be back-up only once I get geo-thermal installed.

Basebard heat is $$$$. My daily KwH usage was 115-120. Or about 3500/month. In my area, that equates to $420/month electric bill.

Using this for the past 3 days had dropped the usage to 50/day. Or about 1500/month. and at $0.12/kwh, thats $180/month.

So baseboard heat was costing me ~$240/month for the past month, with an average temp probably in the mid 30's. And Jan-Feb probably average low 20's. So it was only gonna get worse.

We will see just how much wood it takes to get through a month to see how much it will take me for that savings.

 

[LD1]

Forgot to add the pics

 

[MossRoad]

I had about $3500 into our woodburning stove.
$1500 for stove.
$1500 for stove pipe.
$500 for installation by certified installer (required by my home-owner's insurance co.).

It paid for itself in a bit over 4 years. Now my heat is free, if I don't put a value on my time! :laughing:

 

[LD1]

I had about $3500 into our woodburning stove.
$1500 for stove.
$1500 for stove pipe.
$500 for installation by certified installer (required by my home-owner's insurance co.).

It paid for itself in a bit over 4 years. Now my heat is free, if I don't put a value on my time! :laughing:

The stove was free Was the old one in my parents old house before they built a new house w/heat pump.

Chimney was already there and in good shape. Stove pipe cost ~$40

I can figure out how much it saves me on my electric bill. Now just gotta wait and see how much wood I use in a months time to know how much it is costing me to operate. I enjoy cutting wood when time allows. Normally I just sell it, and average $150/cord.

So if I burn a cord a month (which I think is a high estimate based on burning for the last 4 days now), looks like I will save $90/month in the long haul. But probably a little more since my base line for electric heat was nov-dec when we werent into the dead of winter just yet.

 

[LD1]

Electric company has a nice tool to moniter my usage.

Green bars us usage, Black line is temps.

Can anyone tell what day I moved in? And what day I started the wood stove?

 

[Country Geek]

Electric company has a nice tool to moniter my usage.

Green bars us usage, Black line is temps.

Can anyone tell what day I moved in? And what day I started the wood stove?

View attachment 402896

That's awesome. I wish my power company did that. We just get a low-res bar graph printed on the bill, and it only goes back one year.

 

[LD1]

Yea, its pretty cool to be able to break it down by day.

I can go back multiple months or multiple years too, but since I have only owned the place since the first week of november....I cannot go back any further.

 

[MossRoad]

Well, had you installed it back in November, you'd notice a bigger savings. This month has been very warm.

A couple things about trying to find out how much you save... of course, we all know about weather. Cold is cold and warm is warm. But then there's factors such as how much the utility costs, have your rates gone up or down, how often you are home, other people in the house that may or may not turn the heat up or down, sunny days, weeks where you don't do laundry or cooking, etc... lots of variables. Ours are fairly consistent in winter. Gas heat, water heater, dryer and stove. Same human schedules week-to-week. Wood burner has been going non-stop since Nov. 1st. November was cold. November gas bill was $60.00. Almost half of that was "delivery charges" and taxes. Our actual gas usage annually has gone down over 60% over pre-wood burner days. I wanted to cut our gas usage in half and we did better than that, so I'm happy. Our summers are the ones that are unpredictable. We have a pool, but the filter has to run weather we use it or not, so that's a constant. But our electric can skyrocket with electric air conditioning costs.

Anyhow, glad you are seeing immediate results with your installation. Looks good, too! :thumbsup:

 

[ultrarunner]

Basebard heat is $$$$. My daily KwH usage was 115-120. Or about 3500/month. In my area, that equates to $420/month electric bill.

Using this for the past 3 days had dropped the usage to 50/day. Or about 1500/month. and at $0.12/kwh, thats $180/month.

I use about 1/10th the kW that you use (350 kW per month) and the price here is not quite triple at 32 cents.

Still wish we had an option for wood heat... enough fallen oak on the property to never run out...

 

[LD1]

You must be all gas for cooking, hot water, and dryer? No 240v appliances?

 

[Country Geek]

Well, had you installed it back in November, you'd notice a bigger savings. This month has been very warm.

A couple things about trying to find out how much you save... of course, we all know about weather. Cold is cold and warm is warm.

weatherunderground.com is a great source for historical weather data. You can find a station near you and it will give you the number of heating and/or cooling degree days over any historical period that station was reporting. I used it to figure out my propane costs and plan to use it to compare the costs to my new heat pump.

 

[ultrarunner]

weatherunderground.com is a great source for historical weather data. You can find a station near you and it will give you the number of heating and/or cooling degree days over any historical period that station was reporting. I used it to figure out my propane costs and plan to use it to compare the costs to my new heat pump.

When I saw weatherunderground I immediately thought of this...

Weather Underground - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

 

[LD1]

When I saw weatherunderground I immediately thought of this...

Weather Underground - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

So...you never explained how your usage is so low.

No 240v stuff and all gas?

With having an electric range, electric dryer, and electric water heater with a house of 4, I dont see and possible way to get mine any lower without alternative energy supplement. Which, without net metering, is still an impracticalcost of payback.

Once I get the shop built too, and am out there tinkering, I am sure it will go up a bunch. As will it once I get a geothermal installed.

Last two days showed 33 and 35 kwh usage. And that was with pretty much no one home all day. Only me sleeping. And the wife gone shopping one night and visiting her parents the other, So no cooking to speak of last two days.

Still triple your usage though.

 

[ultrarunner]

^^^ I guess the number one factor is the very mild Bay Area climate...

A few years ago Parade Magazine did a story on metro areas judged by the number of heating and cooling days... Oakland California won by a large percentage for the continental USA... fewest heating or cooling days anywhere.

Growing up we never heated unless we had company during the holidays...

Still hang clothes out to dry... very rare to use the Kenmore Dryer.

As for lighting... Last year I converted just about every light fixture to CREE LED bulbs... noticed a big drop right there.

Gas bill is generally between 8 and 10 for hot water...

Home is 2300 square feet built in 1958 with original aluminum single pane windows... 20 years ago I did blow in attic and wall insulation...

 

[westcliffe01]

Fuel Comparison Calculator for Home Heating

The above fuel cost calculator will quickly show you the cheapest way to heat for your area. Electric is almost invariably the most expensive way. Even if you go geothermal, it is still electric based. The only advantage with geothermal is that it provides a heating and cooling solution. If you have NG, it is at least 2.37x cheaper than electric for heat. Next down is wood pellets and wood pellet stoves do not fall under burn bans since there is never any visible smoke.

 

[ultrarunner]

Fuel Comparison Calculator for Home Heating

The above fuel cost calculator will quickly show you the cheapest way to heat for your area. Electric is almost invariably the most expensive way. Even if you go geothermal, it is still electric based. The only advantage with geothermal is that it provides a heating and cooling solution. If you have NG, it is at least 2.37x cheaper than electric for heat. Next down is wood pellets and wood pellet stoves do not fall under burn bans since there is never any visible smoke.

Unfortunately here pellet stoves still fall under the ban... really s**ks

 

[LD1]

With electric water heater I can never get down to 350. The water heater is probably more than that by itself.

My house is all led now too. Crees and a few Phillips. Except for a few 4' T-8 fixtures in the garage and basement.

And yes, geo is still electric, but lots more efficient. If NG is only 2-3x's less than electric, then geo is still cheaper. Cause COP's are pushing 5. Meaning it is 5x's cheaper per btu than electric.

And no nat gas in my area anyway.

 

[ultrarunner]

Just opened the bill today... 12 kWh per day for 30 days... went up a little and 12 therms of gas!

I imagine getting rid of the big circa 1967 Freezer in the garage and the 1980 Amana Fridge in the Kitchen might help get my kWh down... baseline here is 8.5 kWh per day...

Mom has been over and likes it warmer... plus... all the no burn days mean I can't burn any of my split oak stockpile.

I'm really impressed by the CREE bulbs so far... if they last as long as they say they really have a great product...

Visited a friend the other day and noticed his bulbs were not anywhere near as far a light quality... he did not buy CREE.

 

[LD1]

I bought mostly the cree. But thought I'd give a few of them goofy looking flat Phillips a try. Side by side comparison I didn't notice a difference. And these were daylight version as I prefer them over the yellower color.

I could never dream of 10kwh/day.

Not sure what a stove and coffee pot burn, but imagine the coffee is 1000w, and probably average 4 hours a day. Stove + cooktop probably another 6kwh. So I am at 10 there.

Waterheater is probably another 15kwh. I think the yellow sticker is something like 4800kwh/year.

Add another 10 for computers, TVs, laundry, etc. I think 30's is lowest I'll ever see.

But with gas for stove and water heater, I can see how it is easy to get to 10

 

[MoKelly]

It paid for itself in a bit over 4 years. Now my heat is free, if I don't put a value on my time! :laughing:

My kids haven't put a value on my time since they were born!

MoKelly