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Post by **Suddenlyquinn** » Tue. Dec. 27, 2022 9:58 am

Hi all and thank you for welcoming me into the group!
I’m a homeowner who loves his “non traditional” heat sources.

SE Massachusetts,
Currently heating for 3+ seasons with wood in a Vogelzang Defender, but here’s where my issue lies.
I love heating with wood, it’s relatively cost effective, heats my 1100 sqft house decently.
But; I have my cons as well.

Chief complaint? Burn time. My stove is rather small, and albeit, while running, it keeps my house toasty and warm. Like a fun night out at the bar, it ends too quickly. Both my fiancé and I work daytime hours. So when we get home from work, the house is somewhere around 55+\- in the winter. I do also have an oil furnace (see old and currently waiting on replacement parts); but it takes seemingly forever to get the house comfortable again.
And then when I get up early in the morning, it’s adding logs and the process begins again. It’s almost a too much of a chore sometimes.

So I stumble across this great forum.
And the research begins.

For those who have made the switch from wood to coal, do you have any regrets? Or things you wish you knew?

What is your average burn time in a full stove before needing to add?

How much coal do you go through in a heating season?

Thank you for peaking my interest in the world of coal!

Post by **Lightning** » Tue. Dec. 27, 2022 11:47 am

I love yer cat, he seems to like the stove too! Does that stove have shaker grates in it? Or just a stationary grate that the wood fire sits on.

Post by **Lightning** » Tue. Dec. 27, 2022 11:54 am

Coal usage varies greatly from home to home. Would it be a primary heat source or just a supplemental? Some people only burn a couple tons, some burn 12 tons. I use about 6 tons.

Burn time wise, the normal is at least 12 hours but can be up to 48 hours during mild weather.

Post by **waytomany?s** » Tue. Dec. 27, 2022 12:15 pm

Biggest downfall I see in switching is stovepipes don't last as long.

Post by **davidmcbeth3** » Tue. Dec. 27, 2022 12:30 pm

Suddenlyquinn wrote: ↑Tue. Dec. 27, 2022 9:58 am <SNIP>
What is your average burn time in a full stove before needing to add?

How much coal do you go through in a heating season?

My avg. time to service the stove is 12 hrs. Can be 24 hrs from OCT-NOV and MAR-MAY. 12 hrs for 25F temps from DEC-APR. If cold, like it was negative Fs recently, every 8 hrs.

Coal usage for me, not an overly insulated 2 story, 2400 sq ft house to maintain 73-70F throughout, ranges from 4 tons (mild winter) to 7 tons (v. cold winter)...normally 4 1/2 tons of last 4 seasons.

I put in a SS liner in my chimney 12 yrs ago (no problems - its still in use), went with coal straight out...only advantage with wood is if you get "free" wood then that's a serious consideration.

Welcome to the forum.

Post by **Suddenlyquinn** » Tue. Dec. 27, 2022 4:40 pm

Lightning wrote: ↑Tue. Dec. 27, 2022 11:47 am I love yer cat, he seems to like the stove too! Does that stove have shaker grates in it? Or just a stationary grate that the wood fire sits on.

It’s an all firebrick stove unfortunately

Post by **Rob R.** » Tue. Dec. 27, 2022 5:28 pm

A properly sized hand-fired coal stove should be able to go on a 12 hour tending cycle most of the winter. If it is exceptionally cold you might have to tend the stove 3x per day.

The answer to "How much will I burn?" is....it depends. It depends on the heat load of the house (this also varies due to how warm you like it), the efficiency of the appliance/system.

A very rough guide is that for every full cord of good seasoned hardwood you are burning, you would burn about .9 tons of anthracite coal. That assumes you are doing the same job with the coal stove as the wood stove. In your case your wood stove is falling way short of heating the house to a normal temperature, so right off the bat the coal stove has a gap to fill.

I know you are using a small wood stove, but I would expect an 1100 sq. ft house to be very easy to heat, unless it has some serious air leaks/poor insulation. Before you go out and buy the biggest stove you can find I would spend some time and see what affordable improvements you can make to the house.

Post by **Dave 1234** » Tue. Dec. 27, 2022 7:45 pm

We burned wood for 30 years . When my son moved out, the house would be cold lots of days , I worked to much to keep a steady fire .

I put in a stoker coal boiler, ordered a tt load of rice coal and started learning to burn in a whole new way . Hope I never have to go back .

Post by **davidmcbeth3** » Thu. Dec. 29, 2022 5:06 pm

Dave 1234 wrote: ↑Tue. Dec. 27, 2022 7:45 pm We burned wood for 30 years . When my son moved out, the house would be cold lots of days , I worked to much to keep a steady fire .

I put in a stoker coal boiler, ordered a tt load of rice coal and started learning to burn in a whole new way . Hope I never have to go back .

Have more kids !

Post by **waytomany?s** » Thu. Dec. 29, 2022 5:20 pm

davidmcbeth3 wrote: ↑Thu. Dec. 29, 2022 5:06 pm Have more kids !

Yeah, but that's a huge investment. You have to feed and clothe them. Guatemalans are way cheaper. And they don't come back once you send them home.

Post by **davidmcbeth3** » Thu. Dec. 29, 2022 5:29 pm

waytomany?s wrote: ↑Thu. Dec. 29, 2022 5:20 pm Yeah, but that's a huge investment. You have to feed and clothe them. Guatemalans are way cheaper. And they don't come back once you send them home.

Sire midgets

Post by **waytomany?s** » Thu. Dec. 29, 2022 5:32 pm

davidmcbeth3 wrote: ↑Thu. Dec. 29, 2022 5:29 pm Sire midgets

I did, they're not any cheaper.

Post by **minneapolisdude** » Mon. Jan. 16, 2023 3:43 am

Hey guys sorry but I would need some help. I’m in Minnesota, one of the coldest states in the Union and for the life of me I cannot find anyone that sells a Hitzer coal fireplace insert and can install it. I have been able to find a reliable coal supplier but so far I have asked and nobody sells inserts that can burn coal. I fell in love with the warmth of coal after moving to our house and finding an old Victorian coal grate in a yard sale and using it to burn coal instead of wood in our fireplace. But I’m ready to take the next step and I just cannot seem to find anyone up here that is willing/able to do this project for me. I was hoping you guys could help provide some advice to a dude that is just now getting started in his coal journey. Thank you!

Post by **davidmcbeth3** » Mon. Jan. 16, 2023 4:20 pm

minneapolisdude wrote: ↑Mon. Jan. 16, 2023 3:43 am Hey guys sorry but I would need some help. I’m in Minnesota, one of the coldest states in the Union and for the life of me I cannot find anyone that sells a Hitzer coal fireplace insert and can install it. I have been able to find a reliable coal supplier but so far I have asked and nobody sells inserts that can burn coal. I fell in love with the warmth of coal after moving to our house and finding an old Victorian coal grate in a yard sale and using it to burn coal instead of wood in our fireplace. But I’m ready to take the next step and I just cannot seem to find anyone up here that is willing/able to do this project for me. I was hoping you guys could help provide some advice to a dude that is just now getting started in his coal journey. Thank you!

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