Saturday, December 29, 2007

Ah, the luxury


This is my tiny living room, in my tiny house. Notice the happy kids, the Christmas tree, the TV with satellite and antenna connections coming through the wall, and...wait...is that a Rinnai 1004 direct vent LP heater?

Suddenly we don't have to bring in wood, and restart the fire at 3 am. Unless we want to. And we can go away for the day, or even overnight, and the house won't freeze or be inefficiently heated by a heater with no thermostat. And no exposed flame, no hot surfaces, very safe. The best part is we can move this baby into the new house, and it should be able to heat the whole place. That is, if we choose not to heat with wood. I still think wood is more renewable, more sustainable, if not a whole lot more work and mess. And nothing feels like a wood fire sometimes.

Still, nothing feels like waking up at 3 am and not having to worry about whether your spouse has been awake to stoke the stove.

Edited to add: I forgot to thank Chris Brockman, who spent his whole Saturday helping with the installation! Chris, you're wonderful!

12 comments:

Anonymous said...

I wasn't ready for the picture,Oh I'm so embarrassed!I'm looking like a vampire people!I'm trying to build a bird feeder,In the winter,I got it for Christmas.That THAT DEB!!!!!!She will regret this,She will pay!!!

Lynne at Hasty Brook said...

Uh-oh Deb...watch out for the

WRATH OF STARFLOWER!!

I'm really happy for you about the heater. Yes, wood heat is nice but to have a thermostat and regulated, even heat, that's comfort!

BTW- Art and I are heading up to Hasty Brook for the day tomorrow. I'll wave when we drive by! I want to check on the place and fill the feeders. We'll bring along a little heater so we can have some lunch. I'm also planning for us to drive the Hedbom Road north of us to check out the birds. Wish us luck!!

Deb said...

Lynne- Wishing you lots of good bird sightings tomorrow! I may head up to the Park Forest Road, about ten miles away, to see if I can see the great gray owl they saw in the Christmas bird count.

And yes, the Wrath of Starflower is nothing to mess with. It was especially wonderful when she was about ten months old.

arcolaura said...

That's proven technology, there - I remember a similar heater in our house trailer 20 plus years ago, and if I'm not mistaken, it's still in use in my parents' home today, for occasional heating of the large entrance area when they want to use it for more than just walking through. It worked surprisingly well in the long narrow house trailer with no forced air, although I often sat on top of the kitchen table with my feet on the chair because the floor was too cold. I agree about wood heat being the preferred choice, but LP is great for those times when you can't keep the stove going. Enjoy!

Anonymous said...

And by "baby" you mean the heater, correct? You don't have some other "baby" in the works, do you?

barefoot gardener said...

Yee-haw!!! No more middle of the night trips to the woodstove!

OMG! I just read Starflower's comment up there....too funny!

RuthieJ said...

....and no sweaters or long johns in sight! That must be a good heater. Good for you, Deb.
We've been running the fireplace while we're home--it's nice to have a little extra heat when the thermostat's turned down lower, but I can't imagine carrying in wood every single day to keep that fire going--not to mention all the ash clean-up afterwards.
P.S. I'd keep that camera hidden from Starflower, just to make sure she doesn't get her revenge photographically!

R.Powers said...

Don't go soft on us!
Just kidding, you deserve some effortless warmth.

Starflower made me LOL. She'll be guest blogging here next I suppose.

Deb said...

Arcolaura- What I like about this heater is that the air is expelled at floor level, which keeps the floor warm in that room.

Pablo- Good heavens, No!!!

Barefoot Gardener- She is just as outspoken in real life. Nothing gets by unless it meets her approval!

RuthieJ- Thanks for the tip...she just might be one to try that!

FC- I was bored this morning, no wood to bring in...

I think she's almost ready for a guest spot. At least her photographic skills have already been shown here.

Anonymous said...

Deb, You have a beautiful family there. They look content. Content is a good thing after what you guys have been through. Happy New Year, Deb. Be thankful they are all home and safe and warm with you.
Cindy

Anonymous said...

Is that the same Starflower we saw in recital dress a couple of weeks ago? Well it's nice to see unposed pics of the family just sitting around, on the floor where it's warm.
How is that satellite on the TV working? Fun for the kids on school vacation.
HAPPY NEW YEAR DEB AND FAMILY!
Nature Knitter's Mom [Betty K]

Deb said...

Cindy- Thank you so much for the good wishes. As I am typing this, they are getting on each other's nerves. Which means things are back to normal.

Betty K- Thanks, and happy new year to you too! Yes, it is hard to believe that is the same Starflower. When I took the photo, they were working on bird house/feeder kits they had received for Christmas. It was a great present (from my aunt and uncle) and they really cooperated and helped each other out, no fighting!

As for the satellite, I have now probably seen every episode of Sponge Bob ever made. But I do like Food Network, and TV Land is kind of fun.