Sales of Wood Stoves Heat Up in South Bend, Ind.-Area Source: Knight Ridder/Tribune Business News Publication date: 2000-10-15

Oct. 15--It's not yet a rush but there is increased interest in wood-burning stoves and firewood as winter and higher home heating costs approach in Michiana. In other parts of the nation, including New England and Wisconsin, there have been news reports of a rush for wood stoves and firewood by people concerned about higher costs of natural gas and fuel oil this winter. "Our wood stove sales are up, compared with years in the past," said Jason Ringle, purchasing agent for Old Fort Building Supply Inc. in South Bend.

"Actually, they haven't slacked off any this year. Sales were considerably higher last year because of Y2K," he said, referring to concerns that computer problems would result in wide-spread power outages as the new millennium arrived.

"Sales were up 100 percent last year," said Ringle.

In addition to selling wood-burning stoves, Old Fort also sells stove inserts that are installed in fireplaces to make them more efficient.

Ringle said wood stove sales usually don't get hot until the weather cools.

But this year he had people shopping for wood stoves in July and August. "That is sooner than in previous years. Normally, September and October is when the wood stove season starts to happen," he said.

"There seems to be more people asking for wood stoves than there had been in the past," said Bernie Nemeth, owner of Fireplace & Patio in Mishawaka.

"But if you have to purchase gas or wood, gas is still cheaper," he said.

He sells gas logs for use in fireplaces but stopped selling wood stoves in the mid-1980s. "Sales started to decline to where it wasn't worth the effort," he said. He predicted that "if gas or oil prices return to where they were before this recent price spike, wood stove demand would decline. But there are always some people who want a wood stove," said Nemeth.

But the petroleum price spike is a reality for the heating season, which typically runs from October through April.

Northern Indiana Public Service Co., which supplies natural gas to a third of the Hoosier state, warned customers in August they should plan for heating bills this winter ranging 50 to 60 percent higher than last winter.

Jeffrey Yundt, executive vice president for NiSource Inc., NIPSCO's corporate parent, attributed the anticipated higher natural gas costs to a variety of factors. "A combination of decreased production during 1997 and 1998 due to unusually low gas prices, coupled with increasing demand by business and industry due to the strong economy, has created a supply imbalance in the market," Yundt stated. People have heeded such warnings and are preparing for it. Demand for firewood is on the rise and somewhat earlier than in previous years . "As soon as the cold weather hits, I noticed the calls started coming in," said Sharron Temple, corporate treasurer for Temple Tree Service of South Bend.

The company sells firewood in addition to performing such services as tree trimming and removal.

Temple Tree Service is selling firewood for $55 a rick unstacked and $60 stacked, the same prices as last year.

A rick contains pieces of wood 12 to 18 inches long in a stack four feet high and eight feet long. A rick equals a third of a cord of wood. A cord sells for $125 unstacked and $150 stacked.

"We are getting three to four calls a day. I guess you could say it is an increase, considering it is early October," said Temple.

"That Y2K was wonderful for us. We had an enormous increase in sales. It probably doubled during December last year, compared with the previous year," she said.

Tom Watson, owner of Watson's Tree Service, Niles, said he has not yet noticed an upsurge in firewood demand but he anticipates one will occur.

"They will probably have to see their first gas gills before they react," he said. "I'm thinking we will see a drastic increase before the winter is over."

Watson said he sells wood on a wholesale basis in the Chicago market and has noticed increased demand there. "That is a little farther ahead than usual right now," he said.

Herb Herendeen, owner of Hearth & Home Design Center Inc., South Bend, said he started his business in 1977 in reaction to an energy crisis. The shop was formerly named The Practical Solution.

"Back then it was mainly wood stoves, quilted window shades and alternative water heaters," he said.

The market has changed since then and people seem less interested in quilted window shades, which help keep out the cold, and alternative water heaters that do not store hot water but instead heat it only where and when it is needed. "We now sell more home-related products than just wood stoves," he said.

Herendeen said wood-burning stoves range in price from $600 to $2,200.

Installation costs, including vent piping, can range between $1,700 and $2,000.

Fireplace inserts costs in the range of $1,400 plus installation costs of $600 to $1,000.

He said wood burners are required to meet federal regulations on gaseous emissions. Stove makers meet these regulations by installing catalytic converters or by designing the stoves in a way that raises the internal combustion temperatures so that the emissions are cleansed by heat.

Herendeen said he has seen news reports indicating some people in New England are turning to wood heat in a reaction to rising fuel oil prices.

The Energy Information Agency of the U.S. Department of Energy is forecasting an average price of $1.37 per gallon for fuel oil this winter.

This compares with an average price of $1.18 per gallon last winter and 80 cents per gallon in the winter of 1998-99. The federal agency said it expects the average user of heating oil and propane will have to pay 25 percent more for fuel this winter, compared with last winter. It said natural gas users can expect to see their costs rise by 44 percent this winter.

"They have seen those prices and New England has had a quicker reaction. I think we will have a reaction when people start getting those heating bills," said Herendeen.

http://cnniw.yellowbrix.com/pages/cnniw/Story.nsp?story_id=14831512&ID=cnniw&scategory=Utilities

-- Martin Thompson (mthom1927@aol.com), October 15, 2000