Monolithic Cabin as an ERE housing solution?

All the different ways of solving the shelter problem. To be static or mobile? Roots, legs, or wheels?
M
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Post by M »

@Johnny - I've actually considered putting a wood stove in my house on several occasions, partially because of the free exercise of chopping wood. I'm just not sure where/if I would be able to get enough free wood to feed the stove.
Where did you usually get the wood from?


JohnnyH
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Location: Rockies

Post by JohnnyH »

@M: I live in the Rockies, so there is forested public land everywhere... Tons of overgrowth and dead trees as well.
Looks like SE Ohio has the Wayne National Forest. $20 for 2.5 cord of wood... Which should be adequate if you're not a huge house and/or well insulated and/or can supplement with another source. If you can get your hands on some hard woods, you'll have it made... About 5 times the energy of the trees I burn out here.
Also, being flatter in Ohio might help your efforts. Due to slopes it's hard to pull a trailer here. But if you can you could setup lumber camp for a weekend and maybe take care of a whole winter's worth.


M
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Post by M »

@Johnny - That's a lot cheaper than I thought. I keep thinking of the small bundles that you see at campgrounds that sell for $5 dollars a bundle. I guess when you're buying it by the cord it suddenly gets very very cheap.
I have a small house in southwest Ohio, which is pretty well insulated. But the only heat I have is electrical resistance heating - which is more expensive than any other kind of heating.
I wonder if there is such a thing as a small wood stove that would vent out of a window? Or perhaps a small propane heater?


JohnnyH
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Post by JohnnyH »

@M: I've seen it done, but I think it could be fairly dangerous. Pipes can get very, very hot, especially if they're restricting the smoke.
I have used self contained propane heaters indoors before... Makes me a little nervous, but there was no odor, and I'm still alive.
It is nice to have several systems so you can pick and choose according to current market conditions.


George the original one
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Post by George the original one »

Wouldn't the RV propane heaters be appropriate? There are also the external automatic wood-burning steam boilers.


M
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Post by M »

@George - The external automatic wood boilers seem like an ideal solution for me, with the added benefit that if I ever move, I can take the boiler with me. :)


George the original one
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Post by George the original one »


mikeBOS
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Post by mikeBOS »

When thinking about a wood stove people seem to forget that, as with any other fuel, you can BUY wood too. Don't rule it out simply because you don't have a supply of wood available to cut yourself. Look into what purchasing the wood would cost in your area and compare that to the alternatives.
I know if I'm going to be paying for fuel anyway I'd feel better paying a local guy $1,000/winter for the wood he personally cut rather than send $1,000 off to the middle east for oil heat.
When thinking about getting a wood stove for my house I told my friend, who uses wood heat exclusively, that I wouldn't know where to find wood. He said, "Don't worry about it. The wood finds you."
He said that because people know he burns wood for heat, so whenever someone has a limb down in the yard, or a tree they want cleared off their lawn, he gets a phone call. By mid-summer he has no room left and has to turn people down on their offers of free wood.


dragoncar
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Post by dragoncar »

What do you guys think about this: http://sparetheair.org/Stay-Informed/Pa ... Smoke.aspx
Is the problem significantly mitigated by using a "modern" stove? In the Bay Area, you won't freeze to death on "Spare the Air" days, but you might get mighty cold.


George the original one
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Post by George the original one »

Oregon is gradually eliminating older woodstoves through the new "Heat Smart" law that went into effect Aug 1, 2010. We've required DEQ-certified woodstoves since the '80s for new installs, but eliminating the older stoves has not been a priority.
Modern stoves are 10 times cleaner than old stoves, they are more efficient, and improve indoor air quality.
Burning carbon-based fuels, though, is not really the best answer, but I think a modern woodstove is better than a coal-fired power plant that is putting mercury into the atmosphere (Oregon's single coal-fired plant is responsible for something like 90+% of current mercury emissions in Oregon!).


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