PLATTSBURGH -- High fuel prices have North Country residents scrambling for alternative heat sources for the upcoming winter.

Adirondack Hardware in Keeseville carries outdoor wood furnaces, pellet stoves and direct vent monitor heaters. Adirondack Hardware President Roger Long said the U.S. Department of Energy is predicting petroleum-based heating costs to increase by 45 percent this winter.

The company has been in the energy business for about 12 years. It even has its own energy expo each year.

Long said the company has carried Central Boiler outdoor wood furnaces for 4 years.

They're selling so fast," he said. "We get them in, and they're gone."

Several municipalities in the region have enacted measures limiting or banning the use of the devices. Long said he agrees they don't belong inside a village, but should be allowed in rural areas as long as the user follows the manufacturer's guidelines and local regulations.

That includes things like proper location and height of smokestacks and use of appropriate fuels.

All of the Central Boiler models offered at Adirondack Hardware meet U.S. Environmental Protection Agency guidelines.

One model, the E-Classic, meets tougher standards that take effect in 2010. It has an extra chamber that burns the excess gas and smoke, so only a heat wave is emitted.

Long said wood is carbon neutral, giving off the same quantity of carbon dioxide whether it is decaying in the woods or burned for heat. It is also a renewable resource, unlike petroleum products.

His son, Adirondack Hardware Purchaser Robert T. Long, said many politicians are talking about the need to reduce the dependence on foreign oil.

"This is a way to do it," he said.

He displayed a Model 6048, which can replace use of up to 500 gallons of fuel oil a month, enough to heat two homes, depending on size. The smaller Model 5036 can replace up to 250 gallons of fuel oil a month, Long said.

"It's suited for most homes in the North Country," he said.

The outdoor wood furnaces can work with forced-air systems, water baseboard systems and even radiant heat systems.