Firewood by cable and use of a wood-burning stove that can be inserted in the fireplace

Many older homes have one or more fireplaces that may look nostalgic, but act as a tremendous heat drain for the home. An easy solution is to block the chimney and prevent the heat from disappearing into the atmosphere, but a better solution is to install a new or used wood stove. A good cast iron or steel stove will do a great job of heating your home.

Now you can get high-efficiency gas inserts, solid wood, or wood pellets to provide clean, safe heat for your home. All of these have advantages as well as disadvantages. Assuming you’re comparing a wood stove to a pellet stove, it’s a good idea to look at how much wood will be used.

A freestanding wood stove or insert will require about 5 cords of wood for a typical Vermont winter. Obviously, this will vary widely, depending on where you live and the type of wood you burn. In some areas, hardwood is in short supply and therefore not economically feasible. Other areas have an abundance of wood that is simply rotting in the forest because no one cuts it.

If you cut your own wood, you need to have some basic accessories. A good gas chainsaw, chains, sharpening tools, hearing protection, a splitting mallet, a firewood shed, and hopefully a pickup truck are some of the essentials. It is entirely possible to purchase all of your firewood, but this requires careful planning to make it affordable.

Let’s say the rope of firewood costs $150 green, delivered to your house. This equates to $750 for a year, which is considerably less than gasoline or oil. Probably less than half the cost. If you buy seasoned firewood, you’ll pay up to twice that amount.

If you add the cost of a shed and a few other accessories, the cost goes up, but not too much, especially when it pays for itself over a period of years. There is also a lot of manual labor involved, but this is usually not added as an expense.

A gas chainsaw can easily cost you $300. An extra chain, sharpening file, ear protection, and splitting mallet will add another $80. If you have to buy a van just to transport firewood, it is not economically feasible. However, you can make many different arrangements to bring your firewood home.

A pellet stove is much simpler. You install the fireplace pellet stove, or an independent one, buy some pellets and that’s it. However, you really should invest in a gas powered generator in the likely event that you run out of power. A pellet stove requires electricity to run, and you won’t be able to use it if the power goes out.

A pellet stove costs more than a typical cast iron wood stove. However, you can easily pay off this investment over time. It is important to invest in the long term by acquiring a high quality stove.

The pellets can be delivered to your home and are very easy to store. You can also get volume discounts and save even more money.