A bit of history and explanation for the stove. We are originally from Michigan, we moved to Ohio in 2003. We moved from our duplex to our current house in December 2004. A week later the enormous ice storm hit NE Ohio, I am sure you remember it. Power was out for the better part of a week. Keep in mind the house is almost completely run on electricity, heat, hot water, stove, etc. For a week we had just about nothing. The fire place had not been used in the house for a long time. I did have it inspected before we moved in and it got a clean bill of health. We went to the local Lowes and got a screen for it, paid the long dollar for a load of wood, and huddled around the fire just about the whole time. All of us in one room for five days.

After that I wanted to ensure our warmth and reduce the heating bills. Unlike many of the corn/pellet stoves the Hitzer does not need electricity. Sure it has a fan, but it will keep us warm without the fan.

The Coal Chronicles – Book III is done getting written and is in draft, needs some touch ups. The Coal Chronicles – Book IV is half done. I was writing Book III and had some thoughts for Book IV so I put them down. Just a hint, Book IV tells about some of the challenges that are faced with the stove. There are a few. Hope you can read it.

Again, thanks to all of you who have commented so far.

Toward the end of the weekend (January 27,2008) I am finding that my original estimates of 60-80 lbs of coal in a 24 hour period are a bit high (sorry about that). I started on Friday at 5:00, measured the bucket of coal and loaded the stove after cleaning out the ash. My son and I started a spreadsheet of coal usage, basement temperature, house temperature and outside temperature. We came up with this chart. I will continue to update this till Monday when I get home.

day	coal	basement temp	house temp	outside temp
Fri 5pm	27lbs	80°	68°	27°
Sat 7am	21Lbs	84°	68°	18°
Sat 4pm	15Lbs	80°	68°	30°
Sat 9pm	12Lbs	80°	67°	25°
Sun 11am	18Lbs	86°	67°	30°

Turns out it is around 40Lbs a day not 60-80Lbs. I have not been measuring the coal usage as closely this year because the coal I have is stored in large barrels not in the bags. Turns out the bucket I have been using to fill the stove will hold between 12 and 18 Lbs of coal.

Information like coal (by weight), temperatures (inside/outside) would be useful.

My options for heating are limited, the house is all electric (heating, water heater, stove, etc.). I looked into putting in a forced air system, some type of boiler, etc. Turns out the cost would probably not be recouped.

You are right the ambiance is nice, the same rational is used to run our fireplace!

I have a pretty good start on Book III.

That must have been some experience in the Ukraine, I have been as far east as Eastern Germany, not quite that far.

I mentioned the stories that I heard about the coal burning furnace in the basement of my Grandparents farmhouse in Book I. My Uncle told me those stories and they caused some negative feelings about the idea of a coal burning stove in my house.

The “hard” or “anthracite” coal is definitely still coal, just greatly improved in my humble opinion. This stove stays hot, it is a steady heat, very comfortable bordering on a bit too hot in the basement but not uncomfortable.

Regarding the “memorable scent” of the coal, I am a very avid lover of old agricultural iron. I am absolutely fascinated by steam traction engines. I actually enjoy the smell of the coal burning in those machines, this coal does not have quite that smell. I would characterize the smell as slightly less appealing but not objectionable.

I have seen photos of the monstrosity that graced the basement of my Grandparents home, I can tell you the Hitzer takes up considerably less space and is much easier on the eye! .

In Book III I plan to detail the way I am circulating heat in the house. It should prove to be a fairly interesting post. I am hoping to finish it over the weekend and possibly post it by mid next week, but don’t hold me to it, I am working on a video too.

It’s hard to imagine the many improvements which have apparently reduced the space and labor demands of wood and coal heating systems, but even though “hard” coal has significantly replaced the “soft” coal we grew up with, at its heart coal is still coal. But I have to wonder — does it still spice the air with that memorable scent?

I look forward to “Book III” with anticipation. From the photos it appears the Hitzer is an especially decorative stove; I’ll be interested to see if it’s as effective as you hope for whole-house heating, and to learn what adaptations, such as registers or ducts, you might find useful in adapting your home to this venerable and reliable source of heat.

This is something I was thinking could be covered in the next post (The Coal Chronicles – Book III. The answer is not as simple as I would like it to be. Obviously on warmer days we use less coal and more on colder days. The current rate of consumption (it has been darn cold around North East Ohio) is estimated to be about 60-80 lbs a day or 1.5 to 2 – 40lb bags. Depending on where you live, what you are using as your primary heating source, and the cost of that heating source, this turns out to be a bargain. Another factor is how warm you need (or more specifically in most cases, your wife needs) the house. We typically like the house at about 68°. I will dive more into this topic when I post Book III.