Woodstove Words of Wisdom

“To poke a wood fire is more solid enjoyment than almost anything else in the world.” -Charles Dudley Warner

Although we’ve been enjoying unseasonably warm daytime temperatures here, it’s still cool at night and woodstove season is not far off. I love having a fire in the woodstove in our family room downstairs, and the dogs want to lie in front of it non-stop all winter long.  If you fully or partially heat your house with wood, you are aware of two things already - wood fires are messy and they dry the air.  Here are my tips about woodstoves:

Ashes - in winter, ashes can be used to melt ice. Just be careful about dumping any live coals and about tracking the mess back into the house on your feet.  You can also add ashes to your compost pile, or mulch them directly around plants that like alkaline soil, such as clematis, delphiniums, lilacs, oregano and many more.

Glass viewing windows – glass stove windows can be a real pain to clean.  The best method I’ve tried so far is to put white vinegar in a spray bottle with several drops of essential oil (any scent will do, but citrus scents have extra cleaning power).  Make a paste with baking soda and vinegar and scrub the glass with this, using additional vinegar to rinse.  This works better than any store-bought product I’ve found.

Dry air – woodstoves dry out the air in your home very quickly.  To moisturize the air and prevent dry skin and breathing problems, keep a full teakettle of water on the stovetop at all times.  Never let it burn dry; you may be surprised at how quickly it evaporates.  To scent the air as well as moisturizing it, make a simple simmering potpourri. Add the following to the kettle – an orange peel, a couple of cinnamon sticks, and a spoonful of whole cloves. Exact measurements are not necessary – the amount of scent you want will be a matter of personal taste.  You can also experiment with adding essential oils or dried herbs to the water in your kettle.