Stove choice for small house

[Haywire Haywood]

Is there a stove out there that is small enough for 900-1000 sq ft but at the same time offer overnight burns?

 

[Streblerm]

I would get the biggest stove that fits the space. You can always build smaller fires. It’s not like a gas furnace that only has one or two output settings. Fires are the original variable output heating device.

 

[Ryan'smilling]

Is there a stove out there that is small enough for 900-1000 sq ft but at the same time offer overnight burns?

We had a morso 1410 in our small cabin. It was a great little stove. Jotul makes a very small one also. We would still have coals in the morning, but not great heat at that point.

I would say that a small stove is good, but don't buy something that won't take 16" wood. If you ever get in a jam and want to buy a cord, it's not real likely that anyone will have 12" wood available.

 

[Wood Hound]

The tiny stoves are a joke-you need to be with it all the time,because ya just can`t get any wood into them..

 

[Haywire Haywood]

My concern about small fires in a bigger stove is a cool stove and flue. A clean stove system really needs to be run hot. Small fires aren't going to be over nighters either.

 

[Streblerm]

There’s no reason a small fire can’t be a hot fire, it just won’t be a long fire. I burn small fires in my stove all the time, no problems with a dirty chimney at all. As long as the wood is dry it isn’t a problem. A bigger stove will provide more residual heat after the fire goes out and gives the option of longer, hotter fires.

I still say get the largest stove that makes sense for the space available. When the temps aren’t too cold a couple small fires every day is enough to keep my house comfortable. There’s no reason to keep the fire burning 24/7. When it gets really cold I like having the option to be able to load 5 or 6 good sized pieces.

 

[homemade]

My concern about small fires in a bigger stove is a cool stove and flue. A clean stove system really needs to be run hot. Small fires aren't going to be over nighters either.

Actually a smaller fire that is raging away will produce higher flue gas temps then a stove that is stuffed full and choked way back and is just smoldering. I was told long ago that having a fire at full roar with soft wood once in a while is a good way to get rid of the creosote. Obviously this method is highly dangerous.

 

[Haywire Haywood]

I had a Jotul Oslo in my old house (1800 sq ft, story and a half) and remember that I had to leave it running at about half throttle when I went to bed unless I wanted a cold morning, so that required 2:30 am sleepy walks to the stove to reload. I wonder how it would have done with 850sq ft less and on a single level. Probably overkill. I'm waiting for Jotul's product page to load to familiarize myself with them again. It's been a day or two.

edit... reworded something to clarify.

 

[Streblerm]

I don’t think there are any small stoves that really offer the kind of burn times you’re looking for. From my experience the only way to get extended burns is with lots of wood, bigger pieces, and little air. Lots of wood could be variable depending on your space. Little air means an airtight stove with good draft control. At a minimum I would say you need room for three or four splits 4x6x16” to achieve overnight burns.

I’d be curious to see the results of a poll where the question was: “Do you ever wish you installed a smaller wood burning appliance?” I suspect you wouldn’t get too many yes answers.

 

[Haywire Haywood]

I like the looks of the Jotul F45 Greenville. 1500sq ft claimed capacity which probably means that 900-1000 would be right in the middle of it's practical range without being overkill. I like that it's designed to load north/south with an 18" firebox front to back.

 

[Wood Hound]

My small house is only 740 sq/ft i just installed a f3100 Regency stove...

This stove is 2.9 cu/ft

 

[Haywire Haywood]

That's a huge stove for 740. It puts out 10K more BTUs than the Jotul that I had in 1800sq ft. Got much time on it yet?

 

[Wood Hound]

All winter long-i have an air infiltration problem so this stove works ok..

 

[Haywire Haywood]

Ah, you have some extra heat loss to make up. I'm thinking about what I want to do down the road when I can quit this waking up to an alarm clock every morning. My little retirement house sketch is right at 800sq ft (I thought I remembered 940, will have to take some time to look at it again). It's 10 years in the future though, so I have plenty of time to think about it.

 

[moresnow]

750 sq ft home in Iowa. I have a little Blaze King Sirocco 20. No attic insulation. Zero! I insulated one half of the stud walls on the main floor a year or two ago. The other half is awaiting my efforts I did put 1/2" insulation board on the entire exterior of the house before installing new siding and windows. The stove gets reloaded on 12 hour cycles 90 percent of the time. In shoulder season it goes 12-15-18 hours easily. If it's blowing hard at zero F. or there abouts I may have to go to 8-10 hour reloads to keep up while running it at a higher output setting.
1.8 cubic foot fire box. This is a cat equipped stove. These stoves meter out at a gentle controlled rate compared to there secondary burn counterparts. Once started they burn full batches 24/7 to utilize them efficiently. They can be run soooo low its incredible. Or crank em up!
Let nobody scare you away from this type of stove with old school concerns from early Cat designs that were poorly engineered. These flat out perform today. Woodstock offers the only other Cat stoves that have a similar reputation. Both brands are industry leader's with many happy users. Easy to research either brand for confirmation. Maintenance has been a mute topic in 3 years. As it has for the others I've helped install.

No offense to the tube stove guys. They make great heat. I just prefer the complete control and long even output offered by the Cat stove.

I started out with a non-cat EPA approved secondary burn type stove. It was a 1.5 cubic foot unit. Made great heat but I beat a path back and forth to it keeping it tended. Hard to leave the house! The heating cycle would cook/bake my place for a hour or two then quickly lose ground in the battle to keep the place warm. Never slept through the night in 2 years. Now you know why I have a nice Cat stove. Yes they cost money up front. Well spent. And they burn less wood in my experience. Any questions fire away. Glad to fill you in. As you can tell

 

[Haywire Haywood]

I was looking at their princess a few years ago, not for this but a regular sized house. I liked their claimed burn time. Never came to pass. At the time, there were no dealers on the east end of the country either.

 

[Wood Hound]

Hey, moresnow, your Blaze King is the only Cat stove to own.....period.

 

[moresnow]

I was looking at their princess a few years ago, not for this but a regular sized house. I liked their claimed burn time. Never came to pass. At the time, there were no dealers on the east end of the country either.

I don't know how extensive there dealer network is today. If you are curious PM your location. I know the dealer locator on there official website didn't recognize some dealers last time I looked. I can find out easy enough if you want to know. Or giving them a buzz would likely get the same answer.
A alternative built in the east is the Woodstock Absolute Steel or Fireview. Possibly even there new Survival stove model. I believe those 3 are there smaller offerings. Guessing you have looked these up but if not!

 

[moresnow]

Hey, moresnow, your Blaze King is the only Cat stove to own.....period.

Shhhhh. We are not here to stir the pot

Just kidding. I am obviously biased. Admittedly. I am so sold on BK I bought/stole a extra this fall. With zero reason to have it! I sure would like to try the Woodstock offerings out of curiosity!

 

[Wood Hound]

Have a friend in the stove business and the BK is the only cat stove that he will offer...

http://holysmokesfc.com/