Heating Oil Shock

Bird · Dec 9, 2007

I saw at least part of a TV news story a week or so ago that mentioned the high cost of heating this year. I don' know where they got their numbers, but I think they said that folks using heating oil would have a cost increase this year of about 28%. Natural gas user would have the smallest increase; about 5%. And I think us total electric folks could expect about 10%. But I could be off a few points on the numbers I remember seeing.

WayneB · Dec 9, 2007

heehaw said:
how much do you have to pay for your wood? about $50 for what they call a "rick": which i think would be $100 a cord: if the "rick" was 2x4x8: but the wood i usually only about 14-16 inches long; we have some folks that have tried for a couple years now to run a pellet manufacturing co: but they can't seem to stay in business long enough. they start off with 2 shifts working and then end up with one, part time...
heehaw

Hello Rick, well in southern New Hampshire a cord of seasoned firewood will sell for anywhere from $225 to $265 a cord delivered and dumped. That is 128 cu ft. I cut all of my wood off from our land so it is just the cost of labor, hauling chainsaw, splitter, log skidder so I guess I am at about $500 a cord, just joking.

We use about 4 to 6 cord a year, depending upon the temperatures and wind chill factors. Usually start burning wood in October and stop around the end April.

charlz · Dec 9, 2007

heehaw said:
how much do you have to pay for your wood? about $50 for what they call a "rick": which i think would be $100 a cord: if the "rick" was 2x4x8: but the wood i usually only about 14-16 inches long; we have some folks that have tried for a couple years now to run a pellet manufacturing co: but they can't seem to stay in business long enough. they start off with 2 shifts working and then end up with one, part time...
heehaw

I would imagine pellet manufacturing is tough... sell like crazy in the fall, pretty well through the winter and then nothing at all spring and summer. If you don't have the capital to produce pellets all summer and stockpile them for the 'fall rush' it would be real tough.

If I had a good place to store them I would look at buying a truckload of pellets in the summer. Figure you could probably negotiate the price pretty well and then have a few years supply on hand.

Charles

shvl73 · Dec 9, 2007

There's a pellet company in Jaffrey, NH but, I never see the brand locally. Now last week, up in Hancock, ME, I see a store stocking the NH brand. Funny though, there is a pellet company in Corinth, ME. I would think selling closer to the plant would give them an advantage on lower transportation costs.

heehaw · Dec 9, 2007

to get a true cord of wood here, you would have to buy 3 of what folks call a "rick"...so around $150 is about what its going for: now thats haul it yourself price. i don't know if the local pellet manuf co is doing hardwood pellets or not?? but it has to be a really seasonal business..i looked on ebay, and there are some pretty good prices for pellet/corn stoves there..compared to what they sell for locally anyway.
heehaw

Ductape · Dec 9, 2007

I looked into a pellet stove a few years ago when i was looking at woodstoves. One of the largest wood/pellet/fireplace stores in the state stopped selling pellet stoves to customers because they could NOT get pellets to sell...... at any price !!!! That helped me to decide on a woodstove...... well, that and i get my wood for free !! I drive down to WayneB's house when he's not home and fill my pickup !! He has so much wood stacked up, he doesn't even know he's heating my house too !!! In all seriousness..... between my BIL working on a road crew, and getting me wood when they cut back along the sides of the road, and me scrounging anywhere i can......... i have yet to pay for any firewood. But i sure do work for it. As far as buying it by the "rick", or "face cord"...... that is illegal in NH. Cordwood can only be sold by the cord, or fraction thereof. Sort of seems like a scam to me....... what exactly IS a rick, anyway????

shvl73 · Dec 9, 2007

Ductape said:
i get my wood for free !! I drive down to WayneB's house when he's not home and fill my pickup !! He has so much wood stacked up, he doesn't even know he's heating my house too !!!

Scott, You gotta lay off! With both of us taking it, he's gonna notice!

sandman2234 · Dec 9, 2007

Last time I checked, which has been a while, a rick was 4' tall, 8' long, and 2' lenths of wood. Or basically, half a cord. Another name would be a "face cord" as it is the same size on the face of a cord of wood, but not 4' lengths of wood.
David from jax
I haven't cut any firewood in seven years, so things might have changed, or my memory may be going...
David

heehaw · Dec 9, 2007

thats the size most people consider a "rick" of wood: but as mentioned, its illegal to sell wood that way here too. i haven't seen wood cut 2 ft long in probably 20 years, maybe longer..
i like the idea of a pellet stove, but i like the idea of a waste oil stove/heater more.
heehaw