is to direct the smoke produced by the stove out of your home and into the atmosphere.
There are two main types of chimneys: outside and through the roof. Many of the early settlers of Brown County opted for the outside type. These were attached to an outside wall and could be fabricated from mud and sticks or mud and stones. When constructed properly the chimney would stick up three or four feet higher than the roof and would have a noticeable lean to it.
The pioneer chimney’ s lean was intentional. It was a well-conceived safety feature. The chimney leaned slightly away from the cabin and usually had a prop of some sort to keep it upright. If a chimney fire was detected, the fact that it was leaning made it easier to knock it down away from the cabin.
The through-the-roof kind of chimney gets a little trickier. While the smoke from the stove will exit the cabin efficiently there is a very good probability rain will enter your cabin just as efficiently if you don’ t get the chimney flashed real well. Of course today you can purchase triple wall stove pipe. Many folks have also had fairly good luck caulking leaks with some tar and duct tape.
Now that your stove is safely and properly installed, it’ s time to fire that puppy up. And so we turn our attention to fuel.
The main fuel for a wood stove is wood; however, I have had some success using junk mail, bills, and the occasional court summons. Wood is the recommended fuel and Brown County is uniquely blessed with a healthy and renewable supply. The tricky part is harvesting your winter’ s supply.
Depending on how well insulated your cabin is, you will probably need between six and eighty-six ricks of wood. There are several means of gathering this supply. You can go out to your own woodlot and employ an axe, cross-cut saw, or chain saw and spend several frosty afternoons of intense physical labor cutting and bucking logs. Or— my current favorite— you can call somebody to deliver.
The old saying is that heating with wood warms you twice, once when you’ re bucking and splitting it, and again when you burn it. But now that I’ m old, my saying is that heating with wood warms you twice but it might kill you once.
You folks stay warm now and I will see you in the spring. •
• Rooms with balcony views • Enclosed pool
• Restaurant • Lounge
• Conference facility for up to 600 people
560 State Road 46 East, Nashville, IN 812-988-2284 • SeasonsLodge. com
Historic Nashville House Serving the traveler since 1859 with old-fashioned hospitality
Corner of Main and Van Buren Streets in Nashville, Indiana
812-988-4554
Jan./ Feb. 2016 • Our Brown County 45