What would you do differently if you had unlimited, free hot water?
In the winter, our cold water is really cold. The screaming-pain-in-your-hands-when-you-wash-them kind of cold. For as long as I can remember, I have always peeled and washed vegetables in cold water because it seemed a waste of energy to use any warm water for that task. Furthermore, when using the wringer washer, I would always put straight cold water in the rinse tubs, making rinsing the clothes an experience in torture. I just couldn't justify using any hot water when it wasn't necessary.
Enter Marjorie the Margin Gem cookstove with her waterfront and range boiler. It has taken me a while, but I'm breaking my old habits and living more comfortably because we have a lot of VERY hot water. With the cookstove being fired constantly, we've got hot water to spare, and we're not paying anything extra for it! I really don't think that we even have any increased wood consumption. We're not using more water, but we are using more hot water, and there is no guilt attached to doing so.
As you can tell, I'm very happy about that.
This is a blog about cooking on a woodburning cookstove. Here you will find recipes, methods, other uses, and miscellaneous information about using a woodburning range. I've searched the net for any and all information about cooking on one of these amazing appliances, and I've found a lot of interesting things, but none of them have been what I've been looking for. Therefore, this is my attempt at creating what I've been in search of.
I can relate to this, cause my Mom told me that was the thing she loved the best growing up-hot water from the wood cook stoves-she had no indoor plumbing when she was growing up-so to have hot water available all the time from the stoves-she loved that
ReplyDeleteJealous. Utterly and completely jealous. This is yet another thing to add to the list of reasons why I must have one of these.
ReplyDeleteI agree, there's nothing quite as nice as a cookstove in a kitchen. All that hot water for free is marvelous.
ReplyDeleteHI! I was wondering if you have had a problem with the range boiler blowing the valve yet? since you are firing the stove for cold weather daily?
ReplyDeleteHi, Lisa! Good to hear from you again.
DeleteMuch to my surprise, none of the pressure/temperature relief valves have blown yet. An interesting thing that we have discovered, however, is that if the boiler is full of hot water and the fire has been permitted to burn out and cool down, when you start the next fire, after a while you'll hear a whoosh like a freight train in the pipes. I believe this to be the syphon re-establishing itself, but it has never blown a valve. Of course, it's probably only happened about three times, too. Other than that, everything has been silently reliable.
Thank you for your reply! I am such a chicken! I read many things about the range boilers and have yet to get over my fear of blowing up...LOL! I have been cooking on a wood cook stove for 4 years now and it never ceases to amaze me how versatile they are! Your information and the presentation of the knowledge you are accumulating is invaluable, Thank you so much!
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