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  • marko12

    Senior Member
    Sep 28, 2009
    6,281
    Maryland, on the Chesapeake Bay
    I volunteered and helped an older couple downsize their house, getting rid of years of junk and stuff they would never use or need.They rewarded me with this:


    P1010976.jpg

    P1010979.jpg

    This dates back to the early 1900 I believe, way too old to use without extensive restoration. Look familiar to anyone ?
     

    sbbieshelt

    Active Member
    Jun 26, 2009
    794
    Simple Pleasures Farm
    I have been using a Alaska coal stove for 10 years. my local coal guy moved back to PA and a couple years ago I found Ellison Trucking (http://www.elligsontrucking.com/). They delivered a truck load of bagged rice coal. I think it was 17 tons might have been 15, They delivered it with a flatbed and fork lift and put in the barn for me. I still have 5 or 6 years of coal in the barn. It's great not thinking about where the coal will come from.
     

    Makanik

    Active Member
    Oct 11, 2014
    421
    Cecil Co. Maryland
    Nice parlor stove Marko. I got prices from Mr. Mulch in Middletown De. $317.00 a ton bagged. Also previously mentioned about Tractor Supply the local one to me does not have any in stock but they do sell it for $237.50 a ton bagged of Kimmels.
     

    Seagrave1963

    Still learnin'
    MDS Supporter
    Feb 6, 2011
    10,003
    Eastern Shore
    Nice parlor stove Marko. I got prices from Mr. Mulch in Middletown De. $317.00 a ton bagged. Also previously mentioned about Tractor Supply the local one to me does not have any in stock but they do sell it for $237.50 a ton bagged of Kimmels.

    Ask for a rain-check - I got 2 tons that way in Dover
     

    Makanik

    Active Member
    Oct 11, 2014
    421
    Cecil Co. Maryland
    Ask for a rain-check - I got 2 tons that way in Dover

    I am going to wait about a month because I am up to my ears at work and holiday stuff already. TSC told me with the rain check it is normally 2 to 3 weeks and I have enough stock piled for now. Thank you for the info Seagraves on TSC. I think I am going to switch to them for sure.
     

    Makanik

    Active Member
    Oct 11, 2014
    421
    Cecil Co. Maryland
    Easiest way to start the coal is to use about a dozen match lite brickettes. Stack them on the grate and surround with coal. Light it off and you're done. Once the coal gets going, go ahead and load the hopper.

    I tried this method tonight for lighting the Hitzer. Accidently bought the brickettes you have to add lighter fluid too. I built a small kindling fire and put about 15 brickettes on top of that instead of the lighter fluid. Ended up being a little slower due to the way I had to do it, but it was still very effective. I liked it better then using about 5 to 6 logs to get the coal lit.
     

    Minuteman

    Member
    BANNED!!!
    Great thread and welcome new guy Makanik!

    I didn't know coal was popular in Maryland, some of my family had coal stoves back in Virginia, I never thought much of it growing up.

    I have a traditional wood fireplace here in the suburbs, I've never used it or had it inspected. I occasionally notice a few of my neighbors do use theirs, and it's clear mine was used long before I moved in, so I assume after I get it inspected it would likely work. As a contingency I've purchased and store a dozen or so of those artificial wood boxes; hoping it could get me through a few days in a power outage.

    My house has natural gas heating (hvac), and for hot water; I've considered replacing the electric stove with a natural gas stove.

    Not trying to derail this excellent thread, but let me ask: what should I do with my fireplace? These are my options as I see them:

    - leave it be, never use.
    - have inspected, use only in an emergency.
    - have inspected, use now as needed.
    - convert to pellet stove.
    - convert to coal stove.
    - convert to gas stove.

    Any advice appreciated. This may be a common enough dilemma I might need to start a new thread in the "water cooler" subforum.
     

    PJDiesel

    Banned
    BANNED!!!
    Dec 18, 2011
    17,603
    Not sure if I shared this earlier, but, one other HUGE advantage of coal is..........


    I've never TOUCHED mine as far as lighting this season. Not one single match, newspaper wad, piece of wood, nothing. Lit her up in October and it's still going, honest to God.
     

    PJDiesel

    Banned
    BANNED!!!
    Dec 18, 2011
    17,603
    - leave it be, never use.
    - have inspected, use only in an emergency.
    - have inspected, use now as needed.
    - convert to pellet stove.
    - convert to coal stove.
    - convert to gas stove.

    If we are talking strictly for emergency use, I'd recommend buying a half pallet of manufactured fuel blocks from Tractor supply. For about $120 bucks you can have a few weeks worth of heat, easy to store, easy to use.

    I burnt a ton (not a lot, just literally a full ton) a few years back. They come wrapped in packages of 3, are about the size of an old school lunch box and are essentially a HUGE wood pellet (compressed dust and small wood pieces).

    Very convenient, very easy to store. Now, if you are looking to actually save on heating costs, that is probably a whole other thread as dealing with an insert (what would go inside your existing fireplace) is quite different than just plumbing up a stove into a chimney thimble.
     

    Makanik

    Active Member
    Oct 11, 2014
    421
    Cecil Co. Maryland
    Great thread and welcome new guy Makanik!

    I didn't know coal was popular in Maryland, some of my family had coal stoves back in Virginia, I never thought much of it growing up.

    My house has natural gas heating (hvac), and for hot water; I've considered replacing the electric stove with a natural gas stove.

    Not trying to derail this excellent thread, but let me ask: what should I do with my fireplace? These are my options as I see them:

    - leave it be, never use.
    - have inspected, use only in an emergency.
    - have inspected, use now as needed.
    - convert to pellet stove.
    - convert to coal stove.
    - convert to gas stove.

    Any advice appreciated. This may be a common enough dilemma I might need to start a new thread in the "water cooler" subforum.

    Minuteman that is a tough call. I do not use the heaters in my house just the coal stove upstairs in a Hitzer coal insert in the fireplace. I also have a Osburn woodstove in our down stairs. My wife and I work such long hours during the week that we normally only go downstairs on the weekend, so it (woodstove) only gets started then. Like PJ diesel says once the coal is started it just keeeeeeppppsss going. It just needs to be regulated with the amount of coal, air, and damper for the heat output. This Sunday with it being 65 degrees we had about 10 windows cracked so it didn't get unbarable in the house. I am still in a little bit of a learning curve with regulating.
     

    Makanik

    Active Member
    Oct 11, 2014
    421
    Cecil Co. Maryland
    If we are talking strictly for emergency use, I'd recommend buying a half pallet of manufactured fuel blocks from Tractor supply. For about $120 bucks you can have a few weeks worth of heat, easy to store, easy to use.

    I burnt a ton (not a lot, just literally a full ton) a few years back. They come wrapped in packages of 3, are about the size of an old school lunch box and are essentially a HUGE wood pellet (compressed dust and small wood pieces).

    Very convenient, very easy to store. Now, if you are looking to actually save on heating costs, that is probably a whole other thread as dealing with an insert (what would go inside your existing fireplace) is quite different than just plumbing up a stove into a chimney thimble.



    Nice call PJ. That is a very good source of fuel for someone looking to use their fireplace for an emergency situation. Very easy to store too!
     

    PJDiesel

    Banned
    BANNED!!!
    Dec 18, 2011
    17,603
    My goodness, 77°?

    I'm at 71, 29 degrees outside. I'm estimating that we've burnt under 2 ton so far, I have 4 tons remaining. Should be plenty. My shovel is still going strong, yours?
     

    Seagrave1963

    Still learnin'
    MDS Supporter
    Feb 6, 2011
    10,003
    Eastern Shore
    My goodness, 77°?

    I'm at 71, 29 degrees outside. I'm estimating that we've burnt under 2 ton so far, I have 4 tons remaining. Should be plenty. My shovel is still going strong, yours?

    We are burning just under 40 lbs. a day to heat the whole house (~2200 sq ft Cape built in '96). We started with 4 tons and have used 280 lbs so far.
     

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