Completed Wood Shed

Brrrrr!!! May I just say it one more time? Brrrr!!!! With the windchill it is -45 Celsius (- 49 Fahrenheit) this morning, so it is not the kind of day you want to be outside for more that a few minutes at a time. A wind chill below -29 C (-20 F) will freeze exposed skin in a minute or less. It is on mornings like this when I really appreciate my nice snug home and crackling wood fire. Wood heat has always been comforting to me and I love sitting with my morning tea and listening to the pop of the fire, knowing that even with the frigid temperatures outside I will stay warm and cosy.

That wonderful wood heat does take some work but the costs are very negligible. A few gallons of gas, a few liters of oil and we have all the wood we need for a winter. Cost to heat our home for a year? Probably in the range of  $30 to $40 since we have to use the truck to haul it to the house. A bit more if any repairs are needed on our Stihl chain saw.

For the last few years we haven't had a woodshed and have stored the wood stacked neatly under tarps. This was not ideal as sometimes the wind would push the tarps aside and the snow would get in at the wood. Wet wood does not make a good fire! It was also a huge hassle having to knock the snow off each piece of wood before bringing it into the house. Other times the tarps would stay in place but due to changes in temperature the wood would become wet due to condensation forming. It was a bit frustrating and Mountain Man was determined he would have a woodshed this winter.  He completed it last week just in time for the cold weather to set in.

For a woodshed it is rather large I suppose (12 x 16), but when you rely solely on wood heat you always want to make sure you have a good supply of wood on hand. He estimates that it will hold enough wood for 2 1/2 years at a time, 2 years if they are cold ones.  It takes him about 2 days to cut enough wood for one winter and then about another day or so to chop it all into smaller pieces. Not bad. Not bad at all. I also love knowing I never have to think about paying a heat bill. Here's hoping everyone out there stays warm today!