Does anyone heat with coal anymore?

Question

I found this page and ran some numbers:

The cost savings is unbelievable.
I know coal is dirty, but with such incredible savings, I'm surprised more people don't heat with it.

Know of anyone still using it?
What was it like in the old days when homes were heated with coal furnaces?
What's the deal?

Answer 1

When I bought my home, built in1900, I planned on replacing the coal furnace the following spring. But after one winter with it I decided that it was staying until it needed replacing. That was 15 years ago. I live in Pennsylvania where coal is cheap. I spend half as much to heat this house as my previous home that had oil heat. It is dirtier and does involve some work but I love it. But I understand that it is not for everyone. I have noticed a trend in my area of people installing small coal stoves to supplement their heating system, so i don't think you can totally write off coal yet.

Answer 2

Where I used to live in the backwoods of Oregon, there were several people who still heated their homes with coal. It gives more BTU of heat per pound than wood, and produces less ash. However, because it burns hotter, the furnace needs more regular rebuilding and rebricking.
The reason coal lost popularity many years ago was because it is dirty and cumbersome to handle, and most setups required stoking the furnace by hand. Small automatic stokers were unreliable. Oil and gas won out because they are clean, easy to handle, and the amount of heat can be closely regulated much easier than with a coal furnace.