The Fireplace Delusion

Really? They are debateably the most efficient way to heat a home up here. Not only is chopping wood great stress reduction, the cracking fire soothes the soul during long winter months. I suppose your view of practicality is different. It regularly drops to -30F here, I love my roaring fires.

I grew up in a house heated by wood-burning, so I have zero romantic illusions about fire. Dust everywhere, bronchitis, wild swings in temperature depending on whether the stove was lit. Go to sleep soaked in sweat and wake up with frost on the inside of your windows. And that's when you're doing it right, more-or-less: seasoned wood, clean chimney, adequate draft, good equipment. Many recreational wood-burners don't have the first idea what they're doing. You can tell walking down my street who's burning wet logs in the fireplace. The absolute worst is commercial campsites, though. Pack a thousand people into five acres and then sell them wet, round, un-split logs that look like they were harvested this morning. Campers then proceed to soak it in lighter fluid and make thick, white, choking smoke that blankets the whole place.

I'm sure electric baseboard heating can be effective... Unfortunately, anyplace I've ever encountered it has suffered from other deficiencies - inadequate or non-existant insulation, single-pane windows, inadequately pitched roofs, and other features eminently unsuitable for a cold-weather climate - that electric heat has become a red flag.