The Log Book: Getting the Best From Your Wood-Burning Stove, 2nd Edition

Other reviewers haven't liked that it's UK oriented. That didn't bother me nearly as much - there's a lot of great information that makes the book useful to me - science behind burning, things to watch out for. For example, if I'd bought the book before buying my fireplace I would likely have looked for a model with separate settings for primary and secondary air.Possible improvements:- Information on own-drying wood that is wet. For example, I bought a bunch of wood from a supplier and it's not great. I'm testing out drying the wood in my solar cooker (I live in a sunny country).- Top-down vs. bottom-up lighting. Many seem to think the former is the better method.- Indicate on the cover that the book is UK oriented. Many seem put off by that, so get fewer bad ratings by reducing the surprise of the purchaser.

It was more of how to start a fire book. I was looking more for the history of wood which would burns hotter the science behind it.

TY

Knew most of the things in this book already. Found it to not be that much more informative

I was disappointed with this product. It was the only book of this type I could find. It was written more for a British or UK resident. It didn't seem to have enough info and was hard to understand.

Information is outdated and most of the book is opinion not fact

The Log Book really is written for a UK audience. You wouldn't think it would matter but it does. The author sees a typical user running a stove just 3 hours a day, as supplemental heat for a single room; not as the primary heat for the whole house. All the units are British so the information about sizing stoves and fuel consumption has to be converted to be useful. The part about actually operating a stove is pretty good and would be helpful for someone new to heating with wood.

Not very good Poor

Having just read the more comprehensive 'Norwegian Wood' this book seemed a little "light". However ... if I'd read this one first I'd have been more than happy as it covers all the required concepts. Maybe needs a little more on actually starting a fire (I use the top-down burn technique) and at what temperature to keep it going BUT that's nit-picking. A great little book to get people started! And it has more UK focussed URLs and info like HETAS, Woodsure etc.

I bought this book because I am thinking of purchasing a log burner. As I know nothing about this fire and I am finding it interesting to read.

I moved into a new home last year that has two multi fuel stoves. Although I used the stoves last winter I really was not getting the best use of the fuel that I bought. This blog has now given me a far better understanding on what to do for next winter.

This is a small book, but it is also very inexpensive, so I can't complain. Certainly it contains lots of useful information, although due to the size I was able to read the whole book in a single evening. I do wish it talked more about briquettes (which are dismissed in the book as overpriced - although prices have tumbled in recent years).

A informative enough read albeit a little obvious / possibly banal in places, where I felt the author was looking for something to say in order to tick off a sub chapter heading. For my money "Norwegian Wood" (Lars Mytting) covers the same ground with significantly more passion, insight and interest (no personal connection.)