ImI'm EARLY in the design stages of a small cabin for occasional use (Not full time.) It will be off-grid, and likely 16 x 20, possibly with a loft. It will be in the woods, and thus I would like to heat with wood to keep it warm when I visit during hunting season or in the Wisconsin winter to snowmobile, snowshoe, etc. So, a large mass heater like a rocket mass heater seems out, since I need something that can heat up in a reasonable amount of time on a weekend, but not something that heats me right out of the tiny cabin.
From what I can understand, the new EPA regs mean that stoves can't really smolder much. Many of the MINIMUM BTU ratings shown in the EPA approved list for many of the wood stoves are around 10,000 BTU. I assume much less than that and you start making too much soot and smoke.
Any suggestions on how to heat a small 16X20 cabin with wood? Seems any wood stove sold today is going to be TOO large for this space. The obvious alternative is something like the NSW Sardine or Little Cod. But even those show a 10K BTU minimum in the EPA sheet, which leads me to believe that I'll end up with a small firebox that I have to refill every 2 hours to keep heat pumping out, since I can't choke even those down enough to last a while/reduce the BTU output.
I did notice many of the cat wood stoves do better at the minimum, some as low as 8000 BTU. But many of those are still somewhat large and seem like overkill for normal firing in that space.
Any thoughts on this? Should I actually consider a conventional fireplace instead? Or is there some other alternative? Is there a small NON-EPA approved stove available anymore? I guess I'd ideally like something that can do 5000 to maybe 15-20,000 BTU, and burn for 4+ hours. Or do I leave a cabin less insulated, or do I have to build bigger just to heat with wood?
Thanks, seems like a knowledgeable group here!
-Nate
From what I can understand, the new EPA regs mean that stoves can't really smolder much. Many of the MINIMUM BTU ratings shown in the EPA approved list for many of the wood stoves are around 10,000 BTU. I assume much less than that and you start making too much soot and smoke.
Any suggestions on how to heat a small 16X20 cabin with wood? Seems any wood stove sold today is going to be TOO large for this space. The obvious alternative is something like the NSW Sardine or Little Cod. But even those show a 10K BTU minimum in the EPA sheet, which leads me to believe that I'll end up with a small firebox that I have to refill every 2 hours to keep heat pumping out, since I can't choke even those down enough to last a while/reduce the BTU output.
I did notice many of the cat wood stoves do better at the minimum, some as low as 8000 BTU. But many of those are still somewhat large and seem like overkill for normal firing in that space.
Any thoughts on this? Should I actually consider a conventional fireplace instead? Or is there some other alternative? Is there a small NON-EPA approved stove available anymore? I guess I'd ideally like something that can do 5000 to maybe 15-20,000 BTU, and burn for 4+ hours. Or do I leave a cabin less insulated, or do I have to build bigger just to heat with wood?
Thanks, seems like a knowledgeable group here!
-Nate
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