If you have a wood-burning furnace in Milford, it’s time to get rid of it. As of August 31, not only are the heating units banned in Milford, but anyone who already has one has three months to remove it.
“It’s causing such a problem, and if you grandfather (the existing furnaces) in, you’re not taking care of any problems,” Milford City Council member Garrett Grier said.
And he’s heard a lot about those problems. The ban happened after “dozens” of people sought Grier and fellow councilman Steven Johnson out to complain about the smoke and smell from a wood-burning furnace that heats the home of David and Brenda Carron Southeast 2nd Street, in one of the first-ward neighborhoods they represent.
The Carrs’ furnace is one of two in the city. It burns enough wood to heat a multi-story home, and pumps the smoke from the burning wood into the nearby air.
“When this furnace is running, I have smoke and I live a block and a half away,” neighbor Martha Paligia said. “The smoke invades the neighboring homes, and it causes a health risk.”
Neighbors said they can either keep their doors and windows tightly closed while the furnace is running or deal with the smell of smoke all winter.
“The smell of the smoke sticks to anything that can absorb odors,” Michael Ward said. “It infests even the tightest houses.”
Although the furnace has been running for years, Grier said complaints only started rolling in after the winter of 2011.
“I didn’t even know what wood-burning furnaces were two months ago, until we got into this,” he said. “Everybody’s been calling or stopping by the car wash and talking to me, and it’s my personal feeling that it needs to be taken care of and it needs to go.”
David and Brenda Carr, who own the furnace on 2nd Street, argued unsuccessfully against the ban.
“I live right next to the wood stove — it’s on my property,” Brenda said. “It’s closer to me than anyone. I don’t smell the smoke. My house is not reeking of smoke. I’ve opened my home to a lot of relatives, and they don’t smell the smoke.”
The council’s vote gives anyone who owns one of the furnaces until the end of October to dismantle and remove it. Once winter hits, they’ll have to find a new way to heat their homes — and fast. But the Carrs said they might have to take another route entirely.
“We went to the city before we spent $30,000 to install this,” Brenda said. “We didn’t want to be standing here. That’s why we went to the city first. We cannot afford to put another system in…we can’t afford to keep the house.”
What they’re planning instead might raise a few eyebrows too.
“This ain’t far from over,” David said. “We’re going to knock our house down and build some duplexes…see how my neighbors like it now.”
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