Temp outside

[Ohiowood]

How cold does it get for you to turn on your boiler? Been warm here 60 to low 50 during the day and 40 to 50 at night.

[firechief]

Supposed to get down to 28 here in northern Indiana tonight.  After the weekend of low 50's coming up it's not supposed to get past the 40's for the next 10 days.  That's my sign to start up the CB 2300.

[upsnake]

I started mine on Oct 15th.
When the house wasn't holding above 60 with out help.
I ran the propane first for a half hour here and there before the 15th.

[doctorb]

I tend not to go by the calendar, because each year is different.  It's been really nice here for the last week or so, so I have not started mine for the season.  I started my initial burning season in the second week in December, becasue that's when I got it up and running.  Last year I started around November 15, which was too soon.  I try not to start it until I need to run it daily, so my estimate is December 1.  Daytime temps aboe 60 degrees do not let my house get too cool.  If we need a little heat, I will use my indoor wood stove to take the chill off nicely prior to firing up the big guy.

[buckgrunt]

It been unseasonably warm here in Central NH as well, especially this past week.  Too warm !!!  Last year, I first started my boiler in mid-Sept, which was way too early.  This year I started it in Mid-October as we had a few nights that were in the mid to upper 20s.   We also had a very early snow storm 2 weeks ago, but all that snow is now gone. The weatherman predicts mid 40 degree days and 30 degree nights starting this weekend.  I know my 2300 operates more efficiently during the cold weather.   

[stumper]

It has been unseasonably warm here in central Maine also.  I started mine in September with the first frost and the need to turn on the heat in the house.  Been quite warm since.  Been around 30 at night and 40 to 50's during the day lately.  Only been down in the teens a couple of times.  I have not used much wood in the two month of use but the work to run it is almost the same as it is in the winter.

[Al_Smith]

I don't know about an outside burner but I don't fool with the stove until it gets in the 20's .

[chevytaHOE5674]

I started my OWB on October 13th this year. I start it whenever the furnace starts having to run more than a little bit each day. I hate having to use the propane as its pricey and I only have about 100 gallons in the tank, and hope to not fill it for another year or two  :D.

Since lighting it we have had some days in the 60's so I just don't add any wood when its warm like that. But we have also had our share of nights in the 20's and daytime highs around 30. And now its 25 degrees, with 30mph winds so the boiler is going full blast.

[AdamG]

I fired mine up Oct 30th.. I got my install done just enough to fire it off so that's what i did. Been really warm and haven't really needed it lately but i let it heat my hot water and just add a few pieces daily just enough to keep it going.
I too have about 300gal of propane, and if everything goes as planned, only going to be using it to heat the hot water in the summer (hopefully going 3-4 years before propane fill needed)  so when the house won't stay above low 60's on it's own is when i plan on it in the future.

[island]

Waiting till temps stay in the 30s.Between the electric use and work involved,doesn't seem worth while to start any earlier.

[hockeyguy]

When temps. are consistently in the 50's for highs and 30's for lows seems to make it worth it for me. Though we've had some wild swings this fall between 65 degree temps. and 17" of snow, mid. October seems to be about right to fire up.
I don't mind burning a little oil and giving the oil burner some exercise before that.

[Al_Smith]

It's starting to dip down a bit here in the great corn field .It won't be long sooo it might not be a bad plan to fill up the wood box and rack in the garage .Probabley about a week or so .It's right above freezing as I type .

Maple , cherry etc. first .Then the ash and when the frost is really on the pumpkin come mid Jan out comes the oak and hickory .

[Corley5]

I fired mine up the 1st part of Sept and let it go out during our couple weeks of Indian Summer in October.  It's been burning ever since.  I'll fire it up in July for a night if needed  ;D

[Al_Smith]

Well now usually once I fire that thing up it burns untill it gets too warm out .There are exceptions to the norm though .

[Dean186]

We fire our OWB up before the indoor boiler is needed to heat our house.  Sometimes the house is on the cold side (60 degrees), but we try out best to never use the indoor boiler to heat our house.  The indoor boiler is used only to heat our domestic hot water for the 5 months between May 15 and October 15.

It sounds like here, at elevation in the mountains of Colorado, our winter is a little longer than some.  We burn our outdoor stove for 7 months of the year.  We have already burnt a 1/2 cord.  Started the stove October 15th.

I started a thread last year asking those interested to post the temperature of their OWB water before they started a fire.  The water jacket temperature would closely represent the average outdoor temperature.  The title and link to the post is below. There is a summary at the end of the post.

What is your OWF water jacket temperature at beginning of heating season?

https://forestryforum.com/board/index.php/topic,46722.0.html

[chevytaHOE5674]

I generally burn wood from October through May. I've been known to light a fire in June or July on occasion when we have a cold snap. 

[Al_Smith]

I've been in those Colorado hills deer hunting which used to be around the end of October .Seldom did we not get any snow and it got cold enough at night to freeze the business off a brass monkey .

Up in the hills though odd as it might seem ,in the teens then by 10 AM or so you could be down to your tee shirt .I might add also once the sun sinks it gets darker than the inside of a gum boot up yonder  hills .Lawdy you can't see a tree two front in front of you until you thump your nose on it .I'm surprised if an owl could fly let alone an Al walk .With a bumped nose too boot .

[mrwood]

I started my OWB the third week of OCT. this is my first season so I may be proved wrong but I figured might as well take advantage of the free hot water. And then there is heat when I need it for thosechilly days. It has averaged 50's since with alot of 60's even a 70 or two. But I just let it stay on I figured I couldn't hurt if people heat their hot water tanks with em all summer

[Ohiowood]

Could not take it yesterday low 40s down to 22 at night, fired it up. Filled up the fire box about 7pm went to work about 5am and it needed wood? Is it the cold night or maybe not the best wood?

[Jack72]

Thats only 10 hrs I hope its the wood your burning thats not even that cold yet   I hope mine does better than that since mine is coming today? ???           Jack

[Corley5]

It takes more wood on a cold start to get the stove to operating temp than maintaining that temp once the stove is running 

[trapper]

I am using quite a bit of wood now but am using cottonwood.  Still getting 16 hrs on a fill.  I will start using my good wood as it gets colder.  Down to upper 20s some nights.  Wind is worse than cold to keep my house warm.

[stumper]

temps
14 at 7:00 AM expected high 30's.

[Al_Smith]

Cotton wood burns okay it just takes more of it per voluum is all .What they hey ,a btu is a btu .

On the temp ,it still isn'tcold enough yet to fire ye olde stove .I somehow get the feeling that once it gets that way it will dip colder than a well drillers behind  in short order .This fall reminds of 1963 when they baled about the 5 th cutting of alfalfa the week before thanksgiving .Then a week or two later it hit 30 below .

[boilerman101]

Ohio Wood, if that was your initial startup remember you just brought all that water up from 40 degrees up to 180+ degrees and burned hard to do so, that took a lot of btu's and wood. My guess is that your wood consumption will go down for now.