A guide to the warm world of wood-burning devices

Because of my staggering heating bills I started hunting for an alternative to using my electric forced-air furnace and baseboard heaters. But first I spent three miserable weeks trying to convert our vastly inefficient fireplace into a space heater. Huge sucking forces drew all the heat up the chimney and we dang near got chilblains.

"Fireplaces have a net efficiency of about 10%" says Al Thompson, owner of Hearth and Leisure in Primrose, Ontario. "They're purely visual. You can't beat the romance and aesthetics of a wood fire, but don't expect to heat your home with a fireplace. If you want to augment or replace your current heating system, you need a fireplace insert or a high-efficiency woodstove."

I was starting to relax. Al knew a whole lot about the technology that could save me serious cash. Inside his store, Al showed me low-emission inserts that sit inside the firebox of conventional masonry fireplaces, creating an advanced combustion heating system. Inserts can be cast iron or steel, and many feature electric blowers to distribute warmth through the room. A stainless steel liner must be installed in your existing chimney to carry off exhaust. Fully installed by a qualified technician, a certified low-emission insert runs about $2500.

In contrast to the set-in-place insert, a freestanding woodstove can be located almost anywhere in your home, adding charm and character. Available in sleek or traditional styles, woodstoves are available to heat spaces ranging from 500 - 2500 square feet. An experienced woodstove retailer can help you choose the correct size of woodstove. This is critical! Many people buy models that produce far more heat than they need. These babies really throw the BTU's. For example, Al's store is about 1000 square feet, and with a couple of wood stoves fired up for display, some of his staff have to wear shorts all winter long. Fortunately they have great legs.

When you heat with wood you enjoy these benefits:

1. The lulling comfort of relaxing in front of a flickering fire
2. Never having to tune your TV to that Christmas close-up of a flickering fire
3. The satisfaction of knowing you're not depleting the planet's resources or contributing to global warming
4. No more writing fat cheques to utility companies
5. A reliable heat source in the event of a power outage
6. Rock-hard abs from splitting wood with a six-pound splitting maul
7. By using the FAN ONLY setting on your furnace, you can distribute heat throughout the house, or leave it off to heat the living area only
8. Entertaining is easier because people cluster around the fire getting philosophical instead of crowding into the kitchen getting drunk
9. If you live outside of a city, wood is the cheapest heating fuel available
10. Splitting, stacking and hauling wood burns off 100 times more calories than simply turning up the thermostat, plus you'll look better with pink cheeks.

I was on the brink of deciding between a fireplace insert and a sweet little woodstove when Al interrupted my consumer reverie. "Now, there are a couple of things people need to know about heating with wood," said Al "and sometimes there's a downside."

This sounded bad. I pulled my head out of the display model I'd been inspecting.

"First, some insurance companies react negatively to hearing you're thinking of installing a wood-burning device. There's a lack of education on the insurer's part. Some will ask for a reasonable premium increase, some will ask for a totally unacceptable premium, and others won't touch you at all if you have a woodstove or insert. So it's crucial to make sure the insurance company is okay, or get ready to shop for a different insurance company."

I relaxed. I'd already talked to my insurance guy and he was fine with wood heat; our annual premium would only increase by $50 (resoundingly absorbed by what I'd be saving on my electric bill).

"There's another thing." Al continued. "There are legitimate health concerns for people whose asthma or other breathing problems may be aggravated by fungal spores and mould from the bark of wood stored indoors. I just want to mention that, because people need to make good decisions about their heating system."

I could see that Al was willing to sacrifice potential business rather than compromise his integrity, so I asked him what he liked most about his job.

"I like to see people who get satisfaction out of fire. I love the feeling of fire - it soothes your soul and warms your body. People are looking for that. A lot of people who have a wood-burning lifestyle are less pretentious, more down-to-earth, more laid back. I like those types of people."

Wanting Al to think I was unpretentious, I ordered a high-efficiency catalytic woodstove to sit on the hearth in front of our big granite fireplace. Then I went home and reflected on the words of the English poet, Eugene Field:

THE fire upon the hearth is low,
And there is stillness everywhere,
And, like wing'd spirits, here and there,
The firelight shadows fluttering go.

TIP: If you have breathing problems, or you're not up to splitting, or you don't have storage space for wood, or you live downtown and can't find a cheap wood supply, or you can't bear the maintenance of owning a woodstove, I have an even MORE efficient, even LESS polluting, ultra low maintenance, miraculous heating option to tell you about.

Links and info:

• A Guide to Residential Wood Heating - a really informative, fast read about modern wood heat options, produced by CMHC and the Natural Resources team
• Burn it Smart! - 1-866-838-5661 - a Natural Resources program that challenges Canadians to upgrade their woodburning habits
• Hearth and Leisure - stoves, fireplaces, inserts, and accessories - (519)925-5551
• Ontario Lung Association's "Clean Air Now" Movement - C.A.N. DO - 1-800-972-2636 for questions about breathing problems
• woodheat.org - an entertaining and informative site about the joys of heating with wood