“I used to go through about 7 cords a winter...”
How much is that? Do you know how much it is in trees?
And was that your only heat source?
Depends in the size of a tree. Near 2 foot in diameter and 60 foot tall red oak will give you a cord of the best firewood there is. 6 inch white pin or post oak, a few nights worth of wood.
One thing they’re probably not thinking of but will figure out is house design. We heat with nothing but wood but we have a small place with an open design. If you have bedrooms that are down the hall and maybe around a corner, the heat from that centrally located wood stove won’t reach the bedroom at all. For modern houses designed for more privacy and with central HVAC in mind and ducts going to each room, you really need a wood furnace that connects to that duct work. They sit outdoors or sometimes in a basement or garage. I don’t think they make a pellet wood furnace and Germany doesn’t have enough trees.
People are going to have to bunk up in the living room where the stove is. Then of course with the whole house not being heated, here come the frozen pipes. Germany is in for an education this winter.
A cord is a stack of wood: 4ftX4ftX8ft. I used to go thru 8 cords a winter in northern VA