diff --git a/README.md b/README.md
index 75dcabb8..48dd9235 100644
--- a/README.md
+++ b/README.md
@@ -99,7 +99,6 @@ Then, run the program to be debugged as usual.
 |-----------|-------------------------------------------------|
 | `DEBUG`   | Enables/disabled specific debugging namespaces. |
 | `DEBUG_COLORS`| Whether or not to use colors in the debug output. |
-| `DEBUG_FD`| File descriptor to output debug logs to. Defaults to stderr. |
 | `DEBUG_DEPTH` | Object inspection depth. |
 | `DEBUG_SHOW_HIDDEN` | Shows hidden properties on inspected objects. |
 
@@ -110,8 +109,6 @@ Then, run the program to be debugged as usual.
   [`util.inspect()`](https://nodejs.org/api/util.html#util_util_inspect_object_options)
   for the complete list.
 
-  __Note:__ Certain IDEs (such as WebStorm) don't support colors on stderr. In these cases you must set `DEBUG_COLORS` to `1` and additionally change `DEBUG_FD` to `1`.
-
 ## Formatters
 
 
@@ -181,13 +178,10 @@ setInterval(function(){
 
   ![](https://cloud.githubusercontent.com/assets/71256/3139768/b98c5fd8-e8ef-11e3-862a-f7253b6f47c6.png)
 
-## Output streams
-
 
-### stderr vs stdout
-  By default `debug` will log to stderr, however this can be changed by setting the environment variable `DEBUG_FD` to `1` for stdout and `2` for stderr (the default value).
+## Output streams
 
-You can also set an alternative logging method per-namespace by overriding the `log` method on a per-namespace or globally:
+  By default `debug` will log to stderr, however this can be configured per-namespace by overriding the `log` method:
 
 Example _stdout.js_:
 
@@ -211,15 +205,6 @@ error('now goes to stdout via console.info');
 log('still goes to stdout, but via console.info now');
 ```
 
-### Save debug output to a file
-
-You can save all debug statements to a file by piping them.
-
-Example:
-
-```bash
-$ DEBUG_FD=3 node your-app.js 3> whatever.log
-```
 
 ## Authors
 
diff --git a/src/node.js b/src/node.js
index 15bf55af..6c33c8ef 100644
--- a/src/node.js
+++ b/src/node.js
@@ -51,18 +51,6 @@ exports.inspectOpts = Object.keys(process.env).filter(function (key) {
   return obj;
 }, {});
 
-/**
- * The file descriptor to write the `debug()` calls to.
- * Set the `DEBUG_FD` env variable to override with another value. i.e.:
- *
- *   $ DEBUG_FD=3 node script.js 3>debug.log
- */
-
-var fd = parseInt(process.env.DEBUG_FD, 10) || 2;
-var stream = 1 === fd ? process.stdout :
-             2 === fd ? process.stderr :
-             createWritableStdioStream(fd);
-
 /**
  * Is stdout a TTY? Colored output is enabled when `true`.
  */
@@ -70,7 +58,7 @@ var stream = 1 === fd ? process.stdout :
 function useColors() {
   return 'colors' in exports.inspectOpts
     ? Boolean(exports.inspectOpts.colors)
-    : tty.isatty(fd);
+    : tty.isatty(process.stderr.fd);
 }
 
 /**
@@ -115,11 +103,11 @@ function formatArgs(args) {
 }
 
 /**
- * Invokes `util.format()` with the specified arguments and writes to `stream`.
+ * Invokes `util.format()` with the specified arguments and writes to stderr.
  */
 
 function log() {
-  return stream.write(util.format.apply(util, arguments) + '\n');
+  return process.stderr.write(util.format.apply(util, arguments) + '\n');
 }
 
 /**
@@ -150,74 +138,6 @@ function load() {
   return process.env.DEBUG;
 }
 
-/**
- * Copied from `node/src/node.js`.
- *
- * XXX: It's lame that node doesn't expose this API out-of-the-box. It also
- * relies on the undocumented `tty_wrap.guessHandleType()` which is also lame.
- */
-
-function createWritableStdioStream (fd) {
-  var stream;
-  var tty_wrap = process.binding('tty_wrap');
-
-  // Note stream._type is used for test-module-load-list.js
-
-  switch (tty_wrap.guessHandleType(fd)) {
-    case 'TTY':
-      stream = new tty.WriteStream(fd);
-      stream._type = 'tty';
-
-      // Hack to have stream not keep the event loop alive.
-      // See https://github.com/joyent/node/issues/1726
-      if (stream._handle && stream._handle.unref) {
-        stream._handle.unref();
-      }
-      break;
-
-    case 'FILE':
-      var fs = require('fs');
-      stream = new fs.SyncWriteStream(fd, { autoClose: false });
-      stream._type = 'fs';
-      break;
-
-    case 'PIPE':
-    case 'TCP':
-      var net = require('net');
-      stream = new net.Socket({
-        fd: fd,
-        readable: false,
-        writable: true
-      });
-
-      // FIXME Should probably have an option in net.Socket to create a
-      // stream from an existing fd which is writable only. But for now
-      // we'll just add this hack and set the `readable` member to false.
-      // Test: ./node test/fixtures/echo.js < /etc/passwd
-      stream.readable = false;
-      stream.read = null;
-      stream._type = 'pipe';
-
-      // FIXME Hack to have stream not keep the event loop alive.
-      // See https://github.com/joyent/node/issues/1726
-      if (stream._handle && stream._handle.unref) {
-        stream._handle.unref();
-      }
-      break;
-
-    default:
-      // Probably an error on in uv_guess_handle()
-      throw new Error('Implement me. Unknown stream file type!');
-  }
-
-  // For supporting legacy API we put the FD here.
-  stream.fd = fd;
-
-  stream._isStdio = true;
-
-  return stream;
-}
-
 /**
  * Init logic for `debug` instances.
  *