When we bought our home, the goal was to be as efficient as possible so we could save money. The lower our bills, the less we had to work. We re-insulated the entire house and installed double paned windows. The building inspector made us install baseboard electric heaters, but our goal was to heat with only a wood stove and never turn the baseboards on. This is how we do it. Items mentioned: Fiskars Hatchet (our favorite!) http://goo.gl/43O8xo, Fire Poker http://goo.gl/bJwnSM, Ash Broom http://goo.gl/5ZhsZU, Ash or Kindling Bucket http://goo.gl/yUz0uV. Check out our How To Make A Fire Starter Video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G7gncpe8-u0 and watch the original Wood Stove Insert Install Video too https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LXQTUfCnMCk We live in a rural area so we do cut some of our wood from surrounding forests. Always easy to find a dead or fallen tree. But I don't like to fool too much maintaining chainsaws and dragging lumber out of the woods. It's even easier for us to find free hardwood on Craigslist (avoid pine trees!). Most people who cut down a tree in their yard don't want this wood. They're thrilled when we take it all away, and we love it because they've already done the work of cutting it into manageable chunks for splitting. It's great exercise too. Remember that the time to scavenge for wood is in the spring/summer when everyone is complaining about the hot weather. As soon as Fall/Winter comes, this free wood becomes a hot commodity. Much of it is scavenged by the guys who sell the wood to people with fireplaces.