Advice for a friend

[ckarotka]

Friend of mine showed some interest in a new to him stove. He plans on heating about 1200sqft. He owns a duplex and rents the upper, lives in the lower and uses his basement alot but has a space heater for this area. With his come and go lifestyle I suggested maybe a pellet stove, for the convenience of timers and stuff. To my surprise he wanted wood.

I thought a nice cat stove would serve him well to get the longer burns for when he works and is out. Budget is always a factor and the chimney would be about 20-25ft with either 2 90's or a stove that vents from the back straight out to a T and then up.

we're looking for a solid economical cat stove stove with a good rep and ease of use. He said he didn't want it to be a primary heat source but I would rather he buys one that could be if he changes his mind.

He has a good advantage because the stove will go in the middle of his home with all rooms adjacent to the stove room.

Any suggestions??

 

[Backwoods Savage]

Economical is a bit of an open statement. I consider my Fireview to be an economical stove all the way. No, it was not cheap to buy but like a car or other machinery, it is not so much the initial cost as the follow up. The constant drain on the purse is usually the fuel. With our Fireview we burn only half the amount of fuel we used to. Now think what that would mean in a car! If one got only 20 miles per gallon with a car and then bought one that got 40 mpg it would certainly make you think about that new car.

If one burns wood at, say, $200 per cord, in our case it would have cost us $1,200.00 per year to heat this old box. With our new Woodstock soapstone stove it costs us $600.00. So, how many years will it take to make up for the cost? Of course one can also consider we don't have the work of cleaning the chimney as we used to because it burns so super clean and the maintenance is extremely minimal.

 

[begreen]

Sounds like the smaller Woodstock stoves might be a good fit. It may cost a bit more up front, but the money saved in maintenance will pay over the long haul. In steel, look at the Buck Model 20.

 

[branchburner]

In steel, look at the Buck Model 20.

I just recommended it on another thread, as well. It the only small, inexpensive steel cat stove I can think of.