With the type of fuel he uses, all it costs him is some elbow grease, gas for his pickup and a little chainsaw oil. For the past five years, the rural Carson resident has heated his house entirely with wood, using a wood stove on each of his home's two levels. He and his wife cut their firewood by culling dead trees around the area. That's not the only way his wood stoves are paying off. North Dakota is part of a 12-state voluntary program in which Midwestern wood stove dealers and manufacturers are providing discounts for trading in old wood stoves.
Rebates are also available for buying fireplace inserts.
The program is sponsored by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency in an effort to reduce emissions of possible cancer-causing pollutants from older wood stoves. Operating an efficient burning wood stove or fireplace is easier on your lungs as well as your wallet, says a local retailer. The new ones are about 70 percent efficient. So you're going to spend about 50 percent less on fuel. And you'll have less buildup of creosote in your chimney and haul less ash.