Weighing my future options here. Currently basement has it's own chimney which runs next to the upstairs one in the same masonry exterior . Now the basement flue is only 11x7". So I could simply drop another liner and a T down it. Or I could go to the other side of the basement drill a hole through foundation and do a 12 ft section of class A for an add on gassifier wood furnace. If you were going to cart wood into a basement would you do the second stove or the furnace? I figure the furnace would be great for these times we get the really bad temp drops. What's your thoughts on this?
What wood you do?
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mol1jb
Feeling the Heat
Personally, if I was trying to heat purely with wood in a larger house (2k+) I would definitely go furnace.
I'm thinking furnace would be best but I feel if I do that then my stove on main floor will be neglected lol. But the basement could be great I have a large window I could convert into a chute and the existing propane furnace is in the same room and would be a pretty straightforward hookup.
mol1jb
Feeling the Heat
I also think your house layout has something to do with it. Is it pretty open or a bunch of smaller rooms?
brenndatomu
Minister of Fire
If your house will support the air flow to heat from the basement, then your choice. If it is questionable, go furnace. A Kuuma Vaporfire gasification forced air furnace is a wood miserly heatin machine! http://www.lamppakuuma.com/
How do they stack up against a heatmax? From a bells whistle to cost type comparison. Does my idea of keeping the furnace doing nothing 90% of winter only to fire up on these cold snaps sound like a good idea or a why not run propane for these times ?
Which is one reason why I looked at the englander unit. Cheap, great reviews, and only fire up once in awhile. Does a unit like the kuma really have that much longer of a burn time?
Which is one reason why I looked at the englander unit. Cheap, great reviews, and only fire up once in awhile. Does a unit like the kuma really have that much longer of a burn time?
brenndatomu
Minister of Fire
Ah, I see what you wanna do. Yeah, a premium unit like the Kuuma prolly isn't right for a once-in-a-while burner. Heck, for the lil bit that you'll run it, can you really justify even a Heatmax or an Englander? Put pencil to paper, $1500 (+ how much more $$$ until fully installed) will buy propane for a long time if it's just for deep freeze type weather. This winter has been unusual for sure. Not a good test of "normal" for your stove. I do just the opposite, I run my wood furnace most of the time. I installed a small wood stove in the fireplace this last fall, I fire it up when the weather gets REALLY cold n windy, along with the furnace, rather than run the crud outta the furnace. I run the furnace just like normal, the lil extra from the stove will almost run us out of here. Doesn't take much wood to feed 'er either (1.2 CF stove)
Point is, we had LP logs in the fireplace before, didn't use 'em much, 300 gallon tank lasted 15 years! I wasn't gonna refill the tank (wasn't my tank plus the place I bought LP from quit getting it) and I have wood stacked all over the place, just made sense to install a wood stove. I will run the stove in the spring and fall during those light heat load days too. Alot easier than doing a bunch of small fires in the furnace.
Point is, we had LP logs in the fireplace before, didn't use 'em much, 300 gallon tank lasted 15 years! I wasn't gonna refill the tank (wasn't my tank plus the place I bought LP from quit getting it) and I have wood stacked all over the place, just made sense to install a wood stove. I will run the stove in the spring and fall during those light heat load days too. Alot easier than doing a bunch of small fires in the furnace.
mikey
Burning Hunk
A wood furnace is inherently inefficient and dirty, forced hot air lacks the comfort of hot water.
PLAYS WITH FIRE
Minister of Fire
Before you purchase a Drolet Tundra/Heatmax read this:
http://www.arboristsite.com/communi...d-furnace-to-market-the-drolet-tundra.232092/
I was talking a friend into one but after this decided not!
http://www.arboristsite.com/communi...d-furnace-to-market-the-drolet-tundra.232092/
I was talking a friend into one but after this decided not!
brenndatomu
Minister of Fire
Huh?! Inefficient? Better read up on what I posted a link to in post #6, a Kuuma furnace (or a Heatmax, or Caddy, etc) is NOT your grandpappys smoke dragon wood furnace! Those babys (Kuuma specifically) will make a modern EPA cert wood stove squeal with envy! Dirty? That's exactly why people put wood furnaces in, to keep from draggin the dirt/dust through the house to the wood stove that is in the living area instead of the basement. OK, now as for the forced air comment, with fossil fuel fired forced air furnaces, I gotta agree with you, BUT, not so with a wood fired forced air furnace! The fire is always on, the heat never stops. Just nice, warm, even heat, all the time! Now then, hot water heat IS very comfortable, BUT, unless you already have the hot water system in place, there is not a more expensive system to put in from scratch, and I don't believe the OP has that.
PLAYSWITHFIRE, read todays posts in that thread over on AS, SBI is on top of the issue, fix in place already on the units coming off the assembly line as I understand. I wouldn't be afraid to buy one, it's just unfortunate that happened, and word spreads fast on the interwebs! Good reason to not buy the first year offering of any new product, always bugs to work out!
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An EPA furnace like the Caddy will do the job well and cleanly. Hot water heat may be a cleaner and more efficient delivery system, but if the OP already has a warm air system installed, going with a wood furnace is a sensible choice.
PLAYS WITH FIRE
Minister of Fire
My buddy is buying one when that's fixed as he was ready to pull the trigger. I quote someone on here that said, "when you invite fire into your home, do so only with the utmost care!"
Thankyou all for opinions! I really do enjoy my wood stove and visible fire.. But there's something I like about having a beast in the basement ready to push the extra heat needed when the temps dip to low. I think my setup would be great. The add on wood furnace would sit along a foundation wall with the furnace about 5 feet away. I also have a large finished room in the basement but there is a 5 ft wide space behind the finished wall and foundation. This wall is about 10 ft away from where the wood furnace would sit. This also contains a very large basement window I would convert into a chute and just throw the wood down and hit that wall I mentioned making it a backstop! I really feel it could be very beneficial. Just trying to out weigh the use of propane vs cost of furnace. I also have a feeling that once I fire up an add on furnace I will think to myself ,,, hmm if I'm gonna burn why not just use furnace. Neglecting the stove I enjoy
PLAYS WITH FIRE
Minister of Fire
I would if I were you....I mean some layouts just don't support a single wood burner. The drolet is the way to go in my opinion when the fix the issue they have. My friend is dead set on it when the issue is repaired.
PLAYS WITH FIRE
Minister of Fire
When my pocket book can handle it, I am pulling my insert and installing the the Buderus Logastyle 21w....if I can get into US. I have hot water heat so no add on for me......
brenndatomu
Minister of Fire
Sounds like you got a good plan goin there TJ. Like I said, I have both, they both get used. Can't really use 'em both at the same time unless it is "polar vortex" cold
If I had a workhorse like your 30 though...might not be able to stand both at once even at 20 below! 
You'll work it out, it's nice to have options! Speaking of the 30, you get all that worked out I guess?Well the learning part is nailed now it's my wood. Waiting on moisture meter from eBay . But that kiln dried stuff is an animal in the 30! But far to expensive. I just need that snow off my roof to pull the liner up just a touch to attach my 30 degree elbow and do a proper block off plate attached at lintel. Those 2 adjustments are going to wake her up even more. But all that aside I am useing 1/2 the wood and I broke a new temp record which was 74 degrees inside when temps are 10-20 outside. I jumped the gun early with my first couple burns. But we are happy and can't wait for all the wood I have to be ready for next winter!
Can't believe I missed this post! Yea sounds like I'm trying to do the opposite of you ha. I'm also thinking that if I do spend the extra up front and get a secondary burner add on . Maybe I will just use it primarily. I mean can I expect an 8 hour burn while keeping my house at 70-72 degrees during the winter with one of these?
brenndatomu
Minister of Fire
From what I've been readin, yup, should be no problem, probably a lil more than 8 even, (10-12?) unless it is really cold. I believe the Heatmax is rated to heat a lil more sq ft than the 30 is, so if the 30 is doing it for ya...
Damn now how am I gonna get the woman onboard with this one... She hates my obsession with fire and started to get annoyed with my projects! But I hate LP
What kind of burn times can be expected out of the englander non tube? I see it has great reviews but burn times seem to vary as low as 4 hours?
What kind of burn times can be expected out of the englander non tube? I see it has great reviews but burn times seem to vary as low as 4 hours?
brenndatomu
Minister of Fire
You're on your own with the lil lady! 
You get in trouble for spending too much time on hearth.com yet? I don't know nuttin 'bout that either 
As for the Englander furnace, IDK, I see burn times all over the board. just depends. For the $300 (or so) more, I'd stick with a tube burner, since ya know how to run one now! http://img.tapatalk.com/d/13/12/16/u8ujagym.jpg
posted in https://www.hearth.com/talk/posts/1537886/ I think the sale is 'til end of March. Wouldn't be that far of a drive for you to pick one up.
You get in trouble for spending too much time on hearth.com yet? I don't know nuttin 'bout that either As for the Englander furnace, IDK, I see burn times all over the board. just depends. For the $300 (or so) more, I'd stick with a tube burner, since ya know how to run one now! http://img.tapatalk.com/d/13/12/16/u8ujagym.jpg
posted in https://www.hearth.com/talk/posts/1537886/ I think the sale is 'til end of March. Wouldn't be that far of a drive for you to pick one up.
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