New Wood Insert Advice

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J

jerrede

New Member
Jan 23, 2011
5
NW Oregon
I just recently came across this site after trying to research wood inserts and being someone who has no experience with stoves, am so glad I did!
Anyways after talking with our local shops and what they had to offer, I have narrowed my search for an insert to 3 models Avalon Pendleton, Country Striker C160, and the Lopi Republic 1250.
Is there any one out of these three you would recommend over the other based on performance, quality, experience? Noticed the Striker is the heavier @ 320 lbs. followed by the Pendleton @ 280lbs. then the Republic @ 243lbs don't know if that means the country is more stout or just plain bulky but thought an 80lb. difference was quite alot.
Our house is a little over 1,000 sq. ft. and am hoping to heat the entire house sufficiently. The opening to the fireplace is roughly 25" H 35" W 24"D (picture attached)

Also wondering if having it installed without the surround and having the sides exposed would be more efficient in creating radiant heat when not using the blower or if power is out? After looking at some of the member's photos without the surround we do like the look better but if it takes away from the heating efficiency we won't go there.

Thanks for any and all input!!
 

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You are looking at good brands, but I would suggest going up a size in these lines to their ~2 cu ft models. With NW softwoods, you will appreciate the longer burn times afforded by the additional capacity of the larger firebox.
 
I agree with begreen. If you are hoping to heat your whole house then get a stove with around a 2 cubic foot firebox. Those smaller stoves are going to need wood every 3-4 hours in cold weather and that will get old real quick. The next size up won't be overkill but will be large enough to give you an overnight burn. Also i think going a size larger than you think you need is very wise with an insert. It's really easy to cut back on the heat output with an insert, so don't worry about overheating your home. You can control heat output by increasing and decreasing how much wood you feed the stove and by deciding whether or not to run your blower. Definitely get a blower.
 
Thanks, I was wondering if maybe going bigger would be better, we were worried we would be getting torched in the living room if we did, I will definetly look into those models.
Lanning, yes hoping to heat close to 24/7 but don't mind having to start one in the morning. I noticed the insert you're referring to is a catalytic model is there any drawbacks to those?
 
Look at the Lopi 1750i. Decent sized firebox, good "stove" look without the surround, bypass damper, good sized cooktop.
 
Some other northwest made stoves to look at are the PE Pacific (or Alderlea T5 if you want fancy) insert, Quadrafire 3100i, or if you want a cat stove for long burns, the Blaze King Princess. I like both the Lopi Revere/1750 and Pacific Energy Pacific inserts because they convect well in a power outage and have nice long burn times. Both are solidly made units with tough baffle systems for minimum long-term maintenance.

http://www.pacificenergy.net/product_insert_pacific.php
 
I have the Avalon Pendelton and while it throws out heat the small firebox requires very frequent fillings. For a sole source of heat I would go as big as you could fit in the fireplace.

Also I have found that without the fan the heat output diminishes rapidly so if you are in an area which has frequent power outages you may want to look at a backup system or a stove which extends out of the fireplace more to throw heat in the absence of a fan.

My $0.02

JB
 
Cedarboy said:
Thanks, I was wondering if maybe going bigger would be better, we were worried we would be getting torched in the living room if we did, I will definetly look into those models.
Click to expand...

That shouldn't be a worry. You can always build a smaller fire in the large firebox when you don't need maximum heat.
 
Cedarboy said:
Thanks, I was wondering if maybe going bigger would be better, we were worried we would be getting torched in the living room if we did, I will definetly look into those models.
Lanning, yes hoping to heat close to 24/7 but don't mind having to start one in the morning. I noticed the insert you're referring to is a catalytic model is there any drawbacks to those?
Click to expand...

Sure, the cat has its draw backs, it needs to be replaced. But that no big deal, it will last on the average between 5 to 10 years for $250 to replace. The cat does its best with nice dry wood but all wood burners do.

Do a search on the Blaze King, you will be amazed at the nice long burn times the guys are getting. My fire box is 2.8 Square feet and heats my house evan in below 0 weather. It has givin me some nice long burns, you will not have to take the surround panels off this insert for more heat.

I bet you evan have a BK dealer some where around you?
 
I have a pacific energy pacific insert and I have been very happy with it. It has basically been the primary heater for my 1500 sq ft house, it has been a cold winter and we have been more than comfy. You can easily get enough wood in it for 8 hour burns and it's not uncommon for me to have enough coals after 10 -12 hours to get it going again with some small splits. But he stove also burns really well with smaller loads of wood, so it does a great job when we also just want a little heat.
 
the closest BK dealer is about 30 miles away in Washington but an ex co-worker of mine actually works for them and I had no idea they sold stoves so I will definetly be giving him a call.
Also like the looks of the pacific insert and it was not even mentioned by one of the shops that is a dealer according to the PE site.
Thanks again!
 
Avalon Pendleton of course...upper or low models go bigger if you can.
bd
 
Not sure if pe is still making the pacific insert, they have a new model called the super, it is almost identical to the pacific but has a a few minor cosmetic changes. I believe the firebox is the same in both stoves.
 
I'll second the PE Super insert. Got mine installed this past November and I couldn't be happier. Mine is a two story, but I'm only heating the upper level, so it is about 1500 sqft. I can keep the house running 72-75F with not much effort. I am burning Pine and Doug Fir, even with theses two fast burning woods I get about 8hrs of burn time.
 
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