Why #FREEHEAT? Why Now?

I want to let you in on a little something...

You’ve probably seen me throw around the hashtag #FREEHEAT on social media.

Sometimes it’s under a video of my outdoor wood boiler puffing away on a crisp Wisconsin morning, or a snapshot of a fresh stack of firewood, or maybe a late-night reel of my firebox roaring like a jet engine.

It tends to get a rise out of folks.

Some guys get mad, real mad thinking I’m out here pretending that heating with wood is free, that all you need is an axe, a beard, and a flannel shirt and suddenly you're off the grid.

They let their emotions get the better of them and can’t see past the dollar signs.

They think I’m trolling.

And, well… maybe I am poking the bear a little (or a lot).

But here’s the truth I want to share with you because if you’re part of this community, you already get it on some level.

When I say #FREEHEAT, I don’t mean it’s free like “zero dollars and zero cents.”

I mean it’s free like freedom.

Free like independence.

Free like you don’t have to ask anyone's permission to keep your house warm and your family safe.

That kind of freedom? You can’t buy it at a big-box store.

You can’t plug it into the wall and hope it works when the wind knocks the lines down.

You can’t call customer service when the propane truck doesn’t show up and it’s twenty below.

Heating with wood is a mindset as much as a method.

It’s about taking control, it's about radical responsibility.

My heat doesn’t come from a utility provider.

It comes from my own two hands.

From felling, bucking, and splitting.

From swinging an axe until sweat soaks through my back and my breath steams in the cold air.

From prepping all summer and stacking all fall so that when winter comes, and it always comes, I’m not worried - I’m ready.

This isn’t just about nostalgia, being old-school, or becoming social media famous.

This is about resilience and self-reliance.

I control my heat - not the gas company, not global markets, not whatever administration happens to be in charge, and not even Mother Nature when she decides to throw a hissy fit and knock out the grid.

(Which happened down the road from us a year or two ago - negative 20 degrees, huge blizzard/ice storm, power lines got dragged down by the ice and the wind and folks were without power for 3 days!? 3 days!)

When the power goes out, my house stays warm.

When fuel prices spike, I stay steady.

When the world's systems break down, my systems kick in.

And it goes beyond just warmth.

That fire I use to heat my home?

I can cook over it.

I can boil water to drink.

In a bad enough situation, that flame becomes the center of survival - not just comfort.

But here’s the kicker… it’s not easy.

I don’t rely a hydraulic splitter. I use axes. I use pickaroons.

I rely on tools that don’t need gasoline or diesel or a complex repair manual.

I put my trust in a good edge, a solid handle, and a strong back.

It’s slower, sure. It’s harder, absolutely.

But if worse comes to worst I can fix my axe. I can replace the handle with one from my own shop. I don’t need a mechanic, a fuel can, or a pressure gauge.

And yeah, If I wanted to make things cheaper and easier I could go out and take windfall wood off public land if I needed to.

But even that option - if we’re being honest, could disappear with the swipe of some politician’s pen. 

What I dream of is my own woodlot. My own stand of trees. A sustainable source of heat that no one can take away.

Call me crazy, but I think a lot of folks in this community dream of that too.

Not just surviving - but thriving, on your own terms.

That’s what #FREEHEAT really means.

It’s not about cheap heat. It’s about independent heat. It’s about never having to hope someone else will show up to save you when the time comes.

And now, right now, is the time to get serious about it.

Because every year the costs go up. The systems get shakier. The rules get stricter. And the fewer people there are who know how to swing an axe and start a fire without flipping a switch.

But the good news?

You’re here. Which means you’re ahead of the curve.

You’re part of this tribe of folks who still give a damn.

Who aren’t afraid to work for it. Who find pride in being the one their family counts on when the weather turns mean.

So if you’ve been on the fence about getting into wood heat, about learning to swing an axe, about building your own small system that puts you back in control - let me just say: do it now.

Not next year. Not someday. Start now.

Start with a tool. Start with a firewood rack. Start with a YouTube video.

Start by saying no to dependency and yes to self-reliance wherever you can.

Because the world isn’t getting simpler. But you can get more prepared.

And the best part?

You’ll feel it every time you open that firebox and see that flame that you made.

Heat that you earned.

Security that you built.

That’s #FREEHEAT.

Thanks for being part of this movement with me.

Stay sharp, stay weird, and keep being awesome.