| The stored energy in wood has been used for | | | | wood burning stoves in response. Soaring electricity |
| centuries to heat homes and cook foods. Wood | | | | and natural gas prices combined with recent |
| burning heat was the purpose of the huge fireplaces | | | | environmental concerns today are again focusing |
| seen in historical homes and estates where fireplaces | | | | consumer interest on clean burning, efficient wood |
| taller and wider than a man spewed heat (and often | | | | burning heat alternatives. |
| sparks) into rooms. Large kettles for cooking and | | | | When consumers demand - manufacturers supply. |
| heating water hung on hooks that could be rotated | | | | The efficiency of wood burning heat begins with the |
| near the fire or directly over the flames. | | | | stove itself. Newer, more efficient wood burning |
| Burning wood for heat was not limited to fireplaces in | | | | stoves provide a much higher margin of safety than |
| homes and businesses. Indian teepees featured heat | | | | was possible only a few years ago. The exhaust of a |
| generated by a fire in the center of the structure | | | | wood stove is critical as the fumes must be directed |
| with smoke released through a hole in the top. | | | | outdoors correctly. An improperly vented wood |
| Campfires create heat for outdoor enthusiasts and | | | | stove presents a health hazard from carcinogens and |
| blazing bonfires on the edge of a frozen pond warm | | | | gases created by the burning process. |
| ice skaters. In many areas of the globe, wood is the | | | | The wood used is another consideration. The wood |
| main source of heat today. | | | | fuel may be split logs or might be wood chips, pellets, |
| Over time, man has devised ways to better control | | | | or charcoal. Much of the firewood used today is the |
| and disperse the heat from burning wood. The wood | | | | by-product of natural forests, logging, and lumber |
| stove is the prime example. While a fireplace must be | | | | mills. Wood must be "seasoned" by allowing it to dry |
| located on a wall of the room, the wood stove | | | | after being cut. Green wood must be seasoned a |
| allowed that heat to be moved into the room more | | | | minimum of six months before use but standing dead |
| efficiently. Though designs referred to as "pot bellied | | | | timber is ideal as it is partially seasoned when cut. |
| stoves" were quite popular for a time, they were not | | | | Wood burning heat is highly dependent on the type |
| further developed as coal became widely available for | | | | of wood used. Hardwoods are preferable with |
| burning. The advent of electricity resulted in loss of | | | | hickory and oak ideal but sometimes more expensive. |
| consumer interest in old-fashioned wood burning heat | | | | Most wood is split and allowed to air dry for |
| stoves. | | | | seasoning but kilns can also be used to speed the |
| In the energy crisis of the 1970's there was a fear | | | | process. A good hardwood, properly seasons, |
| that fossil fuels would soon become too expensive | | | | provides the long burning, heat-producing flames we |
| for all but the wealthy to afford. Homeowners in | | | | expect for our roaring fire. |
| colder climates began seeking safe and efficient | | | | |