For New Englanders wondering why firewood costs so much this year, one word: fracking
Clever stacking of
firewood on the front porch of Terri and Bob Tomchak's cozy home in Bridgton, Maine, allows them to enjoy the view from their living room window, Friday, Oct. 23, 2015. The couple burns about four cords of firewood each winter. Some consumers who may have switched over to wood over the past several years as heating oil prices ratcheted up are feeling a little buyer's remorse but continue to keep the woodpiles stocked even as prices push over $400 a cord. (AP Photo/Robert F. Bukaty)
CONCORD, N.H. (AP) — Northeasterners who are digging deeper into their pockets to pay for firewood this season can add a new scapegoat to the roster of usual market forces: fracking.
Yep, a timber industry representative in New Hampshire said those hydraulic fracturing well sites in Pennsylvania's Marcellus Shale formation to suck natural gas out of the ground are using construction "mats" made of hardwood logs — think of the corduroy roads seen in sepia-toned photographs from the 1800s — to get heavy equipment over mucky ground, wetlands or soft soils.
That increased demand has crept down the chimney into fireplaces. Prices in parts of New England are averaging $325 a cord and can even push past $400 for a seasoned, delivered load. That's anywhere from $50 to $75 more a cord than last year — or an increase of 18 to 23 percent.
Jasen Stock, executive director of the New Hampshire Timberland Owners Association, said it's not just fracking sites that are hogging the logs. Pipelines and transmission wires — really any large-scale construction project — have in the past three years ramped up the appetite for the perfect mat log: a hardwood trunk, 16 to 20 feet long and 8 to 10 inches in diameter.
As a result, the cost of cordwood on the stump (that is, live trees) went from $10 in 2012 in northern New Hampshire to $15 this year, Stock said.
"If you're putting in a power line or gas line over wetlands or soft soil, they use thousands and thousands of these mats, and they're made of hardwood logs," Stock said. "If you're in the firewood business, that's your sweet spot. That's the log you want."
About 2.5 million households in the U.S. burned wood to keep warm in 2013, just 2.1 percent of total households but up from the 1.7 percent that stoked stoves in 2005, according to the U.S. census. The percentages get significantly higher in more heavily forested New England states like Vermont (16.3 percent), Maine (12.7) and New Hampshire (7.7), as well as the Pacific Northwest, including Idaho (7.8) and Oregon (7.1).
While New England shivered and shoveled through the winter whomping of 2014-15, the Pacific Northwest stayed mild, meaning more supply and steadier prices this year.
If the National Weather Service's forecast of a warmer-than-average winter in New England holds up, that could mean fewer logs burned this winter, more robust stockpiles of seasoned wood come springtime and potentially lower prices next year. But it won't help consumers who've already locked in their supplies this fall.
Other uses — pulp and paper mills still value hardwood and pellet producers and biomass plants also nibble on stockpiles — have also given loggers more markets.
"There's only so much wood around," said Jonathan Clark, owner of Treehugger Farms in Westmoreland, New Hampshire. The price for his kiln-dried cord went up $10 this season, to $360. Demand, he said, has stayed the same.
"Our calls started early this year and have continued steady," he said. "Even now, we're getting people who are having trouble getting their wood in."
When oil prices started to bubble up, more people in the forest states saw wood as a desirable, locally sourced, cleaner and cheaper alternative. But even as heating oil prices tanked this year, wood got more expensive.
In Maine, where seasoned firewood is selling for about $300 a cord or more, many customers are buying less firewood because of heating oil prices around $2 a gallon. A few are even ditching firewood altogether.
"In a year where oil spikes, we just can't crank the firewood out fast enough. But this just isn't one of those years," said Jeff Lemon from Four Seasons Firewood in Searsmont, Maine.
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The Principle of Least Interest: He who cares least about a relationship, controls it.
For most people, there is no reason to burn wood for heat. It's not efficient. It's messy. It's not cheaper if you are buying it. The only way it makes sense is if you have a source you can get it and cut it yourself.
ETA: i mean for your entire heat source, not just throwing a few logs in a fireplace occasionally.
-- Edited by huskerbb on Wednesday 28th of October 2015 01:16:51 PM
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I'm not arguing, I'm just explaining why I'm right.
Well, I could agree with you--but then we'd both be wrong.
For most people, there is no reason to burn wood for heat. It's not efficient. It's messy. It's not cheaper if you are buying it. The only way it makes sense is if you have a source you can get it and cut it yourself.
ETA: i mean for your entire heat source, not just throwing a few logs in a fireplace occasionally.
-- Edited by huskerbb on Wednesday 28th of October 2015 01:16:51 PM
I would be surprised that anyone nowadays would be burning wood for their entire heat source. I can't use my fireplace right now and I have a couple of ricks of wood. Hmmm...maybe I could make some money off of it...
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America guarantees equal opportunity, not equal outcome...
But it heated to whole house. It was cheap. It was warm.
That's all we used growing up.
Spent most Saturdays cutting and hauling wood for us, my grandparents and great grandparents.
Gas and time were the only costs.
Of course the stories we have are priceless.
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A flock of flirting flamingos is pure, passionate, pink pandemonium-a frenetic flamingle-mangle-a discordant discotheque of delirious dancing, flamboyant feathers, and flamingo lingo.
I agree, propane or electricity is more convenient.
But nothing is as warm as wood.
Unless you had the room on the far end of the house.
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A flock of flirting flamingos is pure, passionate, pink pandemonium-a frenetic flamingle-mangle-a discordant discotheque of delirious dancing, flamboyant feathers, and flamingo lingo.
we heat with wood, we have a two story 5,500 sf house with a wood burning stove downstairs. it heats our whole house up and down nicely. We rarely use the propane heater.
and there is nothing better than a warm house from wood.
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~~Four Wheels Move the Body~~ ~~ Two Wheels Move the Soul~~
we heat with wood, we have a two story 5,500 sf house with a wood burning stove downstairs. it heats our whole house up and down nicely. We rarely use the propane heater. and there is nothing better than a warm house from wood.
That is a big house Riding.
I don't have a fireplace in this house
I have natural gas heat & it is far cheaper to heat than it is to cool with electric A/C.
A flock of flirting flamingos is pure, passionate, pink pandemonium-a frenetic flamingle-mangle-a discordant discotheque of delirious dancing, flamboyant feathers, and flamingo lingo.
So what exactly does fracking have to do with wood heat?
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A flock of flirting flamingos is pure, passionate, pink pandemonium-a frenetic flamingle-mangle-a discordant discotheque of delirious dancing, flamboyant feathers, and flamingo lingo.
There are electric baseboard heaters, which are just electric heaters shaped wide and low.
There are baseboard radiators that use circulating hot water from a furnace, the furnace can use oil or natural gas or propane.
Any of these systems will make the house as hot as you want, since they use a thermostat, which you set.
Electric heat generally costs about 8 times as much per BTU of heat as natural gas. Oil usually is about 20% more than gas, propane depends on the market and the deals you can get, but it's always more than natural gas.
The big cost of coal or wood is the labor involved.
One summer I sold oil furnaces to people who didn't have access to natural gas. Most had coal furnaces.
Every person with a coal furnace bought an oil furnace and hot water heater. ALL of them.
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The Principle of Least Interest: He who cares least about a relationship, controls it.
If you want cheap heat, nothing is better than a heat pump, but it's not a "warm" heat if that makes any sense.
One of the first places I rented had a heat pump. It was never warm. I hated it so much I made sure never to live in another house with a heat pump.
If you're in the South, where the heating season is short and mild, a heat pump can make sense, since they can (usually) be reversed to be cooling (air conditioning) systems.
North of the Mason Dixon Line, they may not be very effective.
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The Principle of Least Interest: He who cares least about a relationship, controls it.
we go to my FIL's ranch and other ranchers we know and cut down cottonwood and pine and sometimes Aspen, we load with our skid steer onto our gooseneck trailers and haul home and DH and DS cut into lengths and use log splitter to split. When all kids were home we all did it, now DS lives on acre next to ours so he helps split, but all kids enjoy getting the wood.
I know we are out of your perception on it , we would not but, but others can do as we do, it is up to them if they choose to buy then cocmplain
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~~Four Wheels Move the Body~~ ~~ Two Wheels Move the Soul~~
we heat with wood, we have a two story 5,500 sf house with a wood burning stove downstairs. it heats our whole house up and down nicely. We rarely use the propane heater. and there is nothing better than a warm house from wood.
That is a big house Riding.
I don't have a fireplace in this house
I have natural gas heat & it is far cheaper to heat than it is to cool with electric A/C.
we live in the country and have propane and lots of ceiling fans moves the heat and cool around really well
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~~Four Wheels Move the Body~~ ~~ Two Wheels Move the Soul~~
If you want cheap heat, nothing is better than a heat pump, but it's not a "warm" heat if that makes any sense.
One of the first places I rented had a heat pump. It was never warm. I hated it so much I made sure never to live in another house with a heat pump.
If you're in the South, where the heating season is short and mild, a heat pump can make sense, since they can (usually) be reversed to be cooling (air conditioning) systems.
North of the Mason Dixon Line, they may not be very effective.
No, they work great. I've had two houses with them. Total electric bill was about $140/month. They have back up furnaces, but are more efficient if you don't turn those on.
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I'm not arguing, I'm just explaining why I'm right.
Well, I could agree with you--but then we'd both be wrong.
When we were on the farm, we used a wood stove. There is no other heat source as warm as wood.
Yes, we cut our own wood. Heating was really cheap for us. I still miss the wood heat.
I miss it too.
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A flock of flirting flamingos is pure, passionate, pink pandemonium-a frenetic flamingle-mangle-a discordant discotheque of delirious dancing, flamboyant feathers, and flamingo lingo.
LOL, wood is expensive because the power companies cannot burn coal, thanks O! So they are buying the wood and have been for three years.
All we have to do is find a smaller wood person who doesn't sell to the power company because they don't have the amount of inventory needed to be a supplier to the power company. I paid $300 for a cord of seasoned wood. I keep my house at 64 all winter and burn wood sometimes at night during the week and mostly on w/es. It keeps my house warm and that cord will last all season. My heating bill coupled with the wood I bought will cost only $1K this year. That is cheaper than anyone with electric, propane, or Natural gas in my area.
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Sometimes you're the windshield, and sometimes you're the bug.
One of the best ways to increase your heat efficiency is with your ceiling fans. Reverse the spin and it pushes the warm air back down and circulates it.
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LawyerLady
I can explain it to you, but I can't understand it for you.
One of the best ways to increase your heat efficiency is with your ceiling fans. Reverse the spin and it pushes the warm air back down and circulates it.
I didn't know that, LL. We only have 1 ceiling fan, in the living room.
One of the best ways to increase your heat efficiency is with your ceiling fans. Reverse the spin and it pushes the warm air back down and circulates it.
I didn't know that, LL. We only have 1 ceiling fan, in the living room.
flan
Check it for a switch that reverses the blade spin.
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LawyerLady
I can explain it to you, but I can't understand it for you.
If you want cheap heat, nothing is better than a heat pump, but it's not a "warm" heat if that makes any sense.
One of the first places I rented had a heat pump. It was never warm. I hated it so much I made sure never to live in another house with a heat pump.
If you're in the South, where the heating season is short and mild, a heat pump can make sense, since they can (usually) be reversed to be cooling (air conditioning) systems.
North of the Mason Dixon Line, they may not be very effective.
No, they work great. I've had two houses with them. Total electric bill was about $140/month. They have back up furnaces, but are more efficient if you don't turn those on.
That's the thing. The air never felt warm unless I used the auxiliary heat & then it really jacked the bill. My natural gas is much warmer & very cheap.
No way would I pay $300 for a cord. Wood is free. Go cut it.
Well you have the advantage of ability.
Some just dont.
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A flock of flirting flamingos is pure, passionate, pink pandemonium-a frenetic flamingle-mangle-a discordant discotheque of delirious dancing, flamboyant feathers, and flamingo lingo.
I remember that heat. It would burn so hot you couldn't stand being in the house.
They kept the door open. Even in the winter.
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A flock of flirting flamingos is pure, passionate, pink pandemonium-a frenetic flamingle-mangle-a discordant discotheque of delirious dancing, flamboyant feathers, and flamingo lingo.
I remember that heat. It would burn so hot you couldn't stand being in the house.
They kept the door open. Even in the winter.
My grandparents house was originally heated with coal. Not in my lifetime but they still had the coal room in the basement where the coal used to be delivered. We were fascinated by it as kids.
When I was little, my mother's parents lived on a farm with two houses, the Big house and the Little house.
They lived in the Big house, and when their 6 children moved out, they rented rooms to people.
The Big house had a coal furnace.
It took a lot of work, keeping it fueled and burning, and then breaking up and pulling out the "clunkers" that formed as residue from the burned coal.
Then they moved to the Little house. It had a wood stove, and a water pump in the kitchen ( water came from the well, and was hand-pumped).
Every morning Papa would get up, load the wood stove in the kitchen, and get the fire burning. In an hour the house was warm ... especially the kitchen.
That was a lot of work too.
My house doesn't have the temperature swings either of those houses had, and the gas furnace requires virtually NO work or attention.
On the other hand, chopping wood regularly is pretty good exercise.
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The Principle of Least Interest: He who cares least about a relationship, controls it.
No way would I pay $300 for a cord. Wood is free. Go cut it.
Well you have the advantage of ability.
Some just dont.
Then....natural gas, or propane.
For the $300, you can buy MAYBE 20,000,000 BTU's if the majority if the wood is good, seasoned hardwood.
for the same $300, this year you can buy (at today's price) about 27,000,000 BTU's Of propane.
keep in mind, however, that a new, high efficiency propane furnace is 90% efficient, whereas even a good wood stove is probably only 50%. Fireplaces are even less.
-- Edited by huskerbb on Thursday 29th of October 2015 03:52:58 PM
-- Edited by huskerbb on Thursday 29th of October 2015 03:53:28 PM
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I'm not arguing, I'm just explaining why I'm right.
Well, I could agree with you--but then we'd both be wrong.
Any heater that burns any fuel sends a large volume of gas up the chimney.
A big part of that is room air that you might be paying to heat.
For example, if your sole heat source is a fireplace, it will heat the things in front of the fireplace, but outside air is pulled into the house, so the rest of the house could get really cold.
That's one reason furnaces are generally in the basement, or in an unheated attic. Those areas can have a vent to let in outside air, so the furnace doesn't pull in outside air into the rest of the house.
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The Principle of Least Interest: He who cares least about a relationship, controls it.
Propane is the most expensive fuel right now, has been for a few years. Oil is the cheapest in my area, even cheaper than Natural gas. So many people converted from oil to gas over the past decade that the demand for natural gas is very high. In NH we just don't have the pipeline to move the gas to meet demand.
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Sometimes you're the windshield, and sometimes you're the bug.
What I like about fireplaces or wood stoves is if you have to, you can burn pretty much anything in them.
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A flock of flirting flamingos is pure, passionate, pink pandemonium-a frenetic flamingle-mangle-a discordant discotheque of delirious dancing, flamboyant feathers, and flamingo lingo.
In Europe they had the steam radiators everywhere. Those were the best! They really only work well in large buildings like apartments though. I guess that's why we don't have them here.
Not that we need them in Texas.
I just remember everyone hanging their coats and mittens on the radiators after recess in winter in Germany.
The advantage over circulating hot water is, they only need one pipe going to the radiators ... when the radiators cool, the steam condenses into water and drains back to the boiler.
There are some drawbacks, starting with, they put out a lot of heat, briefly. So there are likely to be temperature swings. Also, water draining back can block steam coming up.
That also causes clanking noises.
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The Principle of Least Interest: He who cares least about a relationship, controls it.
What I like about fireplaces or wood stoves is if you have to, you can burn pretty much anything in them.
Bodies included!
How'd you..... I mean, what? No. I never said that.
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A flock of flirting flamingos is pure, passionate, pink pandemonium-a frenetic flamingle-mangle-a discordant discotheque of delirious dancing, flamboyant feathers, and flamingo lingo.
The advantage over circulating hot water is, they only need one pipe going to the radiators ... when the radiators cool, the steam condenses into water and drains back to the boiler.
There are some drawbacks, starting with, they put out a lot of heat, briefly. So there are likely to be temperature swings. Also, water draining back can block steam coming up.
That also causes clanking noises.
And you have to "burp" them.
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A flock of flirting flamingos is pure, passionate, pink pandemonium-a frenetic flamingle-mangle-a discordant discotheque of delirious dancing, flamboyant feathers, and flamingo lingo.
About 30 years ago, we bought an insert for our fireplace. It was 5 3" open pipes, bent into parallel "C" shapes, with the top of the C being 6-8" longer than the bottom, sticking out into the room. We built our fire on the pipes, and natural convection would bring the cooler air from the floor up through the pipes, get heated, move into the LR and heat the rest of the house. LR & DR would get 15 degrees warmer; kitchen 10-12; back BR 8-10. Upstairs, all the rooms got 15-20 degrees warmer. That insert saved us lots and lots of money.
