[Moorf]

Thought it might be interesting to see how much we're all spending on solid fuel for our homes as this is about the time when coal and wood are being delivered (or in our case a month ago!). Also would be interesting (for this anorak anyway!) to see how fast you get through it all...

Here's ours to date:

9 cubic metres of old man pine - $450 split and delivered (not stacked) (for open fire only) - remember you can often request "stackers" who cost about $10 - $15 / hr - well worth it, believe me!

1 ton slow burn coal - $300 (delivered bagged and poured into bins - very had to get under 2 tons delivered unbagged) Coal runs Juno coal burner which we keep going 24/7 and which also heats our water and runs a small rad in the back of the house - one ton filled up 3 coal bins, and in the month since it was delivered we've almost used a bin - so we'll probably be buying in another ton to last to the end of the winter

So our total for solid fuels for the winter will be around $1000.

Our leccy bill is currently bouncing around between $130 / $170 and that's with someone at home all day and obsessive (and probably unhealthy!) use of leccy blankets! :D

So what's heating your house and how much does it cost you? Would be really interested to hear from pellet fire users too - I've heard they are really cheap to run but haven't had any real-life feedback!!

[katandbob]

Brrrrrrrrrr Definately buying THERMALS this afternoon.............. :laugh :laugh

but I still am looking forward to the 31st :nice1 roll on winter NZ style!

Kat

[Moorf]

Wait until you get here Kat - then you can go and raid Pete and Veronica's ski and snowboard shop in Chch :nice1

[katandbob]

Wait until you get here Kat - then you can go and raid Pete and Veronica's ski and snowboard shop in Chch


He he cant wait ............ new shopping partner http://jbrunod.free.fr/toshop/smileys/TJ37_T.gif(rob is groaning) but he wants to have a go at snowboarding....so get ready to sort out two novices!..... :clap ...........http://jbrunod.free.fr/toshop/smileys/SP07_T.gif

[Smiler]

Still using free wood left when we took over the rental woohoo! :clap Chain sawed another load today.

Leccy bill, can't quite get a handle on it yet. Started off at $100 in Nov, ok summer and all that. It's climbed steadily and is now at $200. We have me home all day, pcs running, dishwasher, washer/dryer although dryer used rarely and the spa pool on BOIL! No leccy blanket just free heat from OH. ;)

Have seen a trailer load of wood advertised for $350, the measurement meant nothing to me though, sorry. :o It looked big.

[StevieD]

Debs, that wasn't spare wood that was the sleepout!! LOL

[Smiler]

Debs, that wasn't spare wood that was the sleepout!! LOL

:laugh:laugh

Although I am worried when he is down there chainsawing away, he is going to go through the house supports. :eek:

On a more serious note, I've tried to get him those 'special' ;) chain saw trousers here, but I can't remember what the technical name for them is? Anyone help please? Sorry Moorf I am guilty of hijacking.

[jubjub]

Are they not called chaps? or is that just cowboys!

We have not bought anything yet either, except a circular saw for $50 to chop up all the wood that got left behind by the last owners

[Carol]

We've just been away for the weekend in a cottage with a woodburner...

If that's anything to go by - I would hate to be paying for wood at the rate we've used it in the last two days!

It just seemed we'd got the basket filled up when we had to go outside to the garage to get some more!

I think I'll stick with my gas...although I must admit - it was very cosy!

[Moorf]

Yes Carol, it's easy to rip through a pile of wood if you don't a) have the right wood and b) have the ability to stop it down or regulate the air vent thingy-ma-jig...

[StevieD]

Oh the joys of firebuilding - as a member of the wannabee pyromaniacs society can't wait to get to grips with those NZ fires!!

[katandbob]

Oh the joys of firebuilding - as a member of the wannabee pyromaniacs society can't wait to get to grips with those NZ fires!!

Cool Title Steve......I am definately a member :nice1

Kat

[sizzlingbadger]

My husband is definitely a pyromaniac with the open fire :nice1

Our electricity bill isn't too bad, $80 was the lowest in summer and winter it's always around $200 mark. We do now though have a dehumidifier going most of the time to keep the damp down, keeps my asthma at bay, so that may bunk it up slightly. Most of the kiwis I know hit the $250 - $300 mark in Winter and can't understand how we get ours so cheap, neither can I most of the time :o

We have just had a pellet burner installed and 50 bags was around $350 but we got these free as we got them on a special offer when we installed. But that's going to be quite expensive for us next year.

Then we've got the open fire just keep my husband happy and knowing him we'll probably get through $200-$300 worth of wood.

So I suppose for the 3 months we'll use all these that's around $800-$900 this year, woah seems scary when you add it all up :(

[wilson182]

Ok, we had 6 cubic metres of old man pine delivered in April and I think from memory it cost around $270. The guy we bought it from recommended that we buy 12 cubic metres and my boss always gets 11 cubic metres, but HE says that that is a lot of wood. So far we have not really made a dent in our supplies... We have only been in the house for a couple of months and the leccy bills are at the $100 mark.. In our old place I think the highest it went to in winter was $190ish per month, but we are all out of the house during the day during week (!)

[Moorf]

Oh the joys of firebuilding - as a member of the wannabee pyromaniacs society can't wait to get to grips with those NZ fires!!


So true, it doesn't matter which male is in the house at the time - hubby, friend, neighbour, WINDOW CLEANER (!) they all gravitate towards the fire and just HAVE to give it a poke!! :roll

Wouldn't be without one tho - although the person who did the interior design for this house just HAD to be male - who else would have beige carpets throughout when there's a coal fire around?? :wah

[adamsat]

On a more serious note, I've tried to get him those 'special' chain saw trousers here, but I can't remember what the technical name for them is? Anyone help please?

They are called chainsaw chaps. I looked for a long time to find mine and ended up paying $160 for them at PGG.

[Park City Partner]

Our last Contact bill was for just under $90 but I was only here for half the month. My partner was here but not home much during the day. I am a "soft American" trying to be a good kiwi but finding it hard. I moved from a VERY dry environment and have gone from usins a humidifier to running 2 DE-humidifiers.

Yesterday was particulary bad as I was cold all day, couldn't get the fire going because we had a lack of dry kindling, so no shower as it was too cold. Plus our shower pressure is awful and at 8 months pregnant the water pressure doesn't seem to get my whole body at once! Then the power went off again in the middle of cooking dinner...about the 6th time (at least) in 3 weeks! ARgh. Had a bit of a melt down last night..in the dark.

But back to the original question. We got 4 meters of mixed wood delivered (not stacked) for $350. We were told an average family uses about 5 in a winter. I suspect our electricity bill will go up as the dehunidifiers are running heaps and with the baby arriving in the middle of winter we will probably get some of those fin heater things to warm the part of the house the fire doesn't really get to. Plus I don't want to be cold...I'm trying but some 40 year old habits are hard to break!

[Smiler]

They are called chainsaw chaps. I looked for a long time to find mine and ended up paying $160 for them at PGG.

Andy

Thanks, are yours the kevlar (or is it teflon) ones that look like overtrousers or the leather ones cowboys wore. The ones I'm thinking of catch the chain and stop it rotating before it gets to the limb you're aiming for.

(Am thinking of OG looking like a village person here and singing YMCA).

[Nienke]

Hugs for Park City Partner {{{}}}}, hope you feel a bit better today!

[Park City Partner]

Thanks for the hugs! Doing better today...but then again it is sunny! Which means I better get to some laundry today so it may actually dry on the line...see I am trying to break my American ways of only drying clothes in the dryer. :clap

[Moorf]

Just for info - here's what 9 cubic metres of firewood looks like dumped on your drive :D The "peak" of the pile is at my shoulder height. Cost was $450 (old mans pine) delivered and split. Then about $400 for the chiropractor visits afterwards......

http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c389/Moorf/IMG_1559.jpg

[marcia]

I rmember someone (Diny I think??) mentioning that they made 'bricks' for the fire out of all the junk mail that comes.
Never having had or used an open fire before so forgive my dumb questions, but how much heat and for how long would a junk mail 'brick' give off/burn for??? (I like the idea of FREE fuel!!!!)

[willsken]

Just for info - here's what 9 cubic metres of firewood looks like dumped on your drive :D The "peak" of the pile is at my shoulder height. Cost was $450 (old mans pine) delivered and split. Then about $400 for the chiropractor visits afterwards......



I can't believe you don't split it yourself :laugh

Just out of interest, do you store all that in a shed or is it left outside?

[Moorf]

Junk mail bricks?! :laugh I get about 3 or 4 food flyers a week here so we'd be freezing if I relied on junk mail - I guess if they're compact enough they'd be good for kindling. You'd be better off watching the roadsides for piles of broken pallets - put there for passersby to take for kindling for free - there's a couple round here.

Most of the wood will be stacked against the house near a door, there's a gravel bed further round where the remainder gets stacked - it doesn't matter too much if it gets rained on, it's just you can't use "wet wood", wet on a cellular level, not a "rained on" level but as long as it's been felled for a year, or kiln dried, etc then it's better for burning.