We broke down several weeks ago and turned on the heat in our house. There were a couple of nights that got below 40 degrees, taking our house down to about 60.
Our home is heated with propane gas. We have a 500 gallon tank in the back that we have to fill twice a year. I am always thinking of new ways to reserve of resources (and save money!) We have a fireplace in our Family Room. I love wood fireplaces; however, Todd is completely convinced that they are not efficient. He states that most of the heat goes straight up the chimney and out of the house. So…to try something different, we bought a pot-bellied stove. Todd installed it in the fireplace. We found out that the bricks in the fireplace soaked up too much of the heat and left the room chilled.
We went to Lancaster County, PA (Amish Country) and stayed in a Menonite Cottage a year or so after having the failed pot-bellied stove. The cottage had a propane fireplace that we used almost every night and just adored. It looked so much like a real fireplace with wood burning! Todd went online to take a look to see how much they cost. He was always under the impression that they were $500+. He found out that Home Depot had them available for less than $250! We ordered one right away. Since then, we have been in warm bliss.
Todd installed the propane logs in the fireplace and put a heat-deflecting shield in the flew (spelling? It sounds like “flu) of the fireplace. This keeps the heat in the Family Room, which is our most-used room in the house. Todd also installed a ceiling fan that we turn on as soon as the propane logs are turned on to circulate the warm air. Within minutes of turning on the propane logs, the room is heated up to a comfortable temperature!
In the past, we tried to have our house heated with the furnace solely. We went through 500 gallons of propane in ONE MONTH (Mind you, each fill up is over $600!) I am so glad we have come up with another source to heat our home more efficiently, and mainly in the room we use the most.
Our house was built as a small home. Well, the previous owners put on several additions, and our home is an “L-shaped” home. To heat up the one “wing” of the house, we use the propane logs. The other side of the house, we use a pot-bellied stove that we stoke with wood in the Winter-time in the Living Room. This keeps both sides of the house nice and toasty. Our bedroom is located behind the Living Room. Because the Living Room has vaulted ceilings, we didn’t get much heat into our bedroom. This year, Todd rigged up a fan in the wall as well as a vent that will blow the hot air into our bedroom!
I call hubby “Super-Todd” because he can do pretty much anything. I am so blessed to have a man that cooks, cleans, mends clothing (yes ladies, he is the one that sews in our house), decorates, works on the house, cuts wood and works on the car…just to name a few! Our home would not be livable if it weren’t for his many talents. And it wouldn’t look nearly as nice as it does today. I am one lucky gal.
It's hard and expensive to heat large homes! We burn wood/coal with an old furnace that was given to us for free! Rob hooked it up so it's forced hot air...heats the whole house like a dream! Even the floors stay warm! We spend about $700 on coal a year...usually barter for wood. We fill our propane tank yearly as we cook with that and use it for those times in the spring and fall when it's not cold enough for a fire, but to take the chill off in the morning for the kids.
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