I bought a house back in October with a Harman P68 and been told it's a pretty good stove.
The house is a Cape - little under 1,300 sq ft. with good thermal windows and decent insulation (although I have a feeling I'm going to need some in the future as the snow on the roof melts off in spots)
A few questions -
1) Pellet consumption - I've used both hardwood and softwood and although softwood seems to throw off more heat, both seem to burn just as quickly.
I've experimented with stove temp (at 4 and feeder at 4) and room temperature - at a little below 70 and feeder at 3-4). One bag seems to be consumed in about 10 hours if temperatures around in the high teens or low 20's. I've been thinking of keeping a log for more accurate stats.
I've heard people say they burn a bag a day. I often wonder if they mean a full 24 hours. I easily burn at least 2 bags if burning 24 hours at the above settings. Stove is located in my basement. I keep one side of the basement closed off.
2) Oil Heat as a supplement - when I go to work, I usually turn the stove off and keep the oil heat (hot water baseboard heat) way down to like 60. Then when i get home, I just use pellets. Not sure if this is a good approach. One reason I got into this habit is that I've heard stories (and the previous homeowner of my place) froze pipes just burning pellets. Is that Thermal Guard thing the only option to prevent this?
3) Air intake - On the P68 there isn't a damper. On the outside of the house, there is an exhaust pipe come straight out of the house. Inside the pipes runs vertical (inside) about 7 feet and then goes horizontal outside the house. How to I check the air intake? I hear the air ratio is important, so I want to make sure there is nothing I'm missing.
Thank you,
Brian
The house is a Cape - little under 1,300 sq ft. with good thermal windows and decent insulation (although I have a feeling I'm going to need some in the future as the snow on the roof melts off in spots)
A few questions -
1) Pellet consumption - I've used both hardwood and softwood and although softwood seems to throw off more heat, both seem to burn just as quickly.
I've experimented with stove temp (at 4 and feeder at 4) and room temperature - at a little below 70 and feeder at 3-4). One bag seems to be consumed in about 10 hours if temperatures around in the high teens or low 20's. I've been thinking of keeping a log for more accurate stats.
I've heard people say they burn a bag a day. I often wonder if they mean a full 24 hours. I easily burn at least 2 bags if burning 24 hours at the above settings. Stove is located in my basement. I keep one side of the basement closed off.
2) Oil Heat as a supplement - when I go to work, I usually turn the stove off and keep the oil heat (hot water baseboard heat) way down to like 60. Then when i get home, I just use pellets. Not sure if this is a good approach. One reason I got into this habit is that I've heard stories (and the previous homeowner of my place) froze pipes just burning pellets. Is that Thermal Guard thing the only option to prevent this?
3) Air intake - On the P68 there isn't a damper. On the outside of the house, there is an exhaust pipe come straight out of the house. Inside the pipes runs vertical (inside) about 7 feet and then goes horizontal outside the house. How to I check the air intake? I hear the air ratio is important, so I want to make sure there is nothing I'm missing.
Thank you,
Brian
