I spent my pre-teen and teen years in a house heated only by woodstoves, with no hot water heater (we kept metal buckets on the stoves for baths).
Wood can be burned any time, but green wood burns colder due to water in it. It also junks up your chimney with creosote much faster, not a plus. If you live in an area with lots of older wooden houses near each other, you should absolutely install a real or makeshift spark arrestor in the chimney, ie a metal mesh that has a decent chance of stopping sparks from flying up. Or get a catalytic converter box between the stove n the chimney, which will also burn off any spare creosote in the stove exhaust.
If you have the option of doing something unusual, there are plans on the net for nifty tile-type stoves that are designed to burn a small load of wood very hot, and store the heat in the mass of the stove. They can be built with inexpensive materials. The only catch is that they are heavy. If you could conceivably have a waterbed where you want the stove, you are fine though.
Re: wood
I spent my pre-teen and teen years in a house heated only by woodstoves, with no hot water heater (we kept metal buckets on the stoves for baths).
Wood can be burned any time, but green wood burns colder due to water in it. It also junks up your chimney with creosote much faster, not a plus. If you live in an area with lots of older wooden houses near each other, you should absolutely install a real or makeshift spark arrestor in the chimney, ie a metal mesh that has a decent chance of stopping sparks from flying up. Or get a catalytic converter box between the stove n the chimney, which will also burn off any spare creosote in the stove exhaust.
If you have the option of doing something unusual, there are plans on the net for nifty tile-type stoves that are designed to burn a small load of wood very hot, and store the heat in the mass of the stove. They can be built with inexpensive materials. The only catch is that they are heavy. If you could conceivably have a waterbed where you want the stove, you are fine though.