Reddog35
ArboristSite Lurker
I am building a 2650 sqft house and I want to get a wood stove insert. I am not planning to have this as my prime heat source but that may change as heating prices go up. What brands and features should I look for?
For a house your size, you are going to need a big one. I have a Pacific Energy and like it. They make a model called the Summit that heats 3,000 sq feet and I would advise you to get that one. Just be sure that it will fit in your fireplace. You will pay about $2,500 plus the price of a chimney liner which is about $800. This sucker is all cast iron and fire brick-lined. It weights over 450 lbs.
If you are building a new house I would do a free standing stove with a pipe through the ceiling. I have a stove downstairs and a fireplace on the first floor. If I had it to do all over again I never wood have put in the fireplace, just another stove on a large hearth.
If you are building a new house I would do a free standing stove with a pipe through the ceiling. I have a stove downstairs and a fireplace on the first floor. If I had it to do all over again I never wood have put in the fireplace, just another stove on a large hearth.
What about the 1st floor stove don't you like?
Which model do you have now? Did you get it from a local dealer or buy it online? What are your burn times like-can you burn all night?
If you can't do a freestanding stove, get a Lopi or an Avalon. I have Avalon's Olympic (largest they make) and it is fabulous. Its a non-cat and takes a 24" log (3.2 cu ft firebox). If you want overnight burns and don't want to have to get up constantly to stoke the fire get the biggest unit you can afford. There are many other good brands out there. Just don't let anyone talk you into a catalytic stove. They cost you a pretty penny every couple of years to buy replacement catalysts (every year if you burn unseasoned wood). You can get stoves that are just as clean burning and which are also EPA phase II compliant that don't cost you a penny to burn for the life of the stove..... Best of luck in your decision.
Has any one herd of the RSF wood stove insert? Are they any good?
I have a Buck 91. 4 cubic foot firebox, heats great! You can install it as a stove with legs too. If I were starting again, I'd put the stove on some sort of stand, so I could load it without bending over. Think about how you'll handle ashes too. Again, if I were starting again, I'd have a hollow stone base with an opening to the outside. I'd cut a hole through the base of the stove, so ashes could be pushed down without any handling.
Thats kinda what my Dad did when he built his house/fireplace some 40+ years ago. The house was built with a 2 flume masonary chimney that originated in the basement. The fireplace was on the main level and was built into the flume, the lower part of the flume was used as an ash disposal area. He put a trap door in the base of the fireplace so when you needed to clean ashes you just popped up the door and pushed them into the hole. In the basement was a door on the side of the flume and you simply opened it and scooped them out for disposal. It worked really slick and you didn't have the ash mess in the living area.
I have a gut feeling my stove insert is no longer sold in the USA and that's a bummer because it's a dandy wood heater:
The Federal Airtight 288 is just about all cast iron with a side loading door, two front doors with glass inserts, shaker grates, ash pan, and high efficiency. I no longer use a catalytic cumbustor, but it's optional. It takes a 25" log and weighs in at 550 lb. Overnight burns are possible by adjusting the three air intakes, but I don't throttle it down that much.
Even without running the 2-speed blower, you get lots of convection and radiant heat. At full bore, the flue gas temperature can reach 1400 F, but I usually keep it coasting at about 1000 F.
Most of the time the doors are closed tight, but I thought I would show you that they do open for atmosphere. I even made a grill for it to cook steaks and chops, and on top I boil water for humidification and have often cooked breakfast with cast iron skillets. Why on earth they stopped making this stove and exporting it to the USA, I'll never know.
Thank you, 046, for your kind words as I approach the heating season, my 21st with this marvelous stove/insert. The Federal Airtights do not run by themselves. Their owners have to know what they are doing to make them work right. As the years went by, the stove and I became good friends. I learned what it could do, and it responded by producing fabulous heat.your federal airtight 288 is one impressive design!!!
just about the most efficient design I've ever seen. it's secondary combustion control chamber is unique. sure wish I could duplicate it's function in my insert.
Enter your email address to join: