Help! Need to buy first stove!!

[DRINKSFORALL]

I'm sure this will be re-dundant for many long time forum members but here it goes:

I have a typically cape style house (Mid Mass.) w/ a great room (20x20) on the back end which totals about 1770 sq. feet (entire home). The great room does have a full size fireplace but I don’t want to give it up for an insert model. Thinking of putting unit in front living room (of cape) so warmth affects upstairs bedrooms as much as possible. What size would you recommend and do you think one unit could warm the great room in the back area of house?? Looking to spend around 2K or a little more. Which brands should I avoid please?? I have read some negative remarks about the the large retailor brands (Lowes/ HomeD)?!? Also how far must any unit be away from walls and is it necesssary to "brick" or stone the base where the unit will go?

Any help is GREATLY APPRECIATED!!

 

[Delta-T]

without getting too specific...I think you'd be lookin for something around the 50K BTU mark. You will need a "non-combustible" surface for the unit to sit on. ~$2K will really limit your options once you account for stove, venting, floor protection and labor. Very few companies making plain old "bad" units. If you're a handy person, and willing to learn a few things, you'll find most stoves are pretty similar, mechanically speaking.

 

[Fsappo]

Pellet stoves have low clearances. A few inches normally. If you not scared to pay for a good quality stove from an actual hearth dealer, I would start with...a hearth shop!

Over the summer months you should be able to find a nice 45K btu stove in the $2000-$2500 range.

Yeah, you will need a hearth under the stove. Hearth shops sell pre made ones for $250-$300. Or you can find 1000 posts here on how to make one yourself much cheaper.

Visit a few hearth shops. Research the shops. Look at their BBB ratings. Make sure their techs are NFI certified. Now is the time to get a deal. Good luck and feel free to post questions about specific models or prices etc.

 

[Fsappo]

frickin DT got me by 4 minutes and he wasnt even funny.

 

[DRINKSFORALL]

Nice start to all the appreciated replies ..keep them coming..Thanks to all!!

 

[GrahamInVa]

I just bought a Englander EP-25 and paid $1400 + $125 for s/h but I am installing it myself. I don't know what the BTU is but it supposed to heat 2,000 sq ft.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=130537872076#ht_4759wt_958
http://www.englanderstoves.com/25-ep_i.html

 

[Delta-T]

frickin DT got me by 4 minutes and he wasnt even funny.

be sure to have your local shaman come in to "cleanse" the area you'd like the stove in. In my experience, restless spirit beings and various legendary creatures cause most, if not all problems with pellet stoves. I hate stove gnomes. Hate them with a passion.

 

[DRINKSFORALL]

Iradicate all stove gnomes and gremelins - check.

 

[Delta-T]

quick learner, good skill to have. you'll be just fine.

 

[sinnian]

While I will certainly get bashed for this............

What is your intent for your pellet stove purchase? It will not heat the whole house, it is a space heater, or area heater at best. With fans and false ducts or grates heat can be moved some, but will also cool as it does.

If you put it in the front living room, you will have to put it next to an outside wall for venting. While there are direct vents, I doubt anyone here would recommend it. You need sufficient rise (personally I would go above the roof line) to eliminate backdraft, especially during a power outage.

I would put it where you will be or want the heat the most, and hope or help convection gets some of the heat elsewhere as a bonus.

You can eradicate all the stove gnomes you want, and you will save some money on oil costs, but it will not replace your whole house heating system.

Good luck!

~Jeff

 

[DRINKSFORALL]

Sinnian - yes its going in front living room of Cape style near wall. I figure a good portion of heat will rise upstairs via nearby stairs. I would also cut a rectangular 4x10 opening for more heat leakage to bedrooms. Was hooping to cut oil bill by 60% or more. I've read some good postings on this being possible w/ homes 30 % bigger than mine ( 18oosq ft)

BTW - My mom in law resided in Limerick until recently!! Lake Arrowhead??

 

[sinnian]

I've read some good postings on this being possible w/ homes 30 % bigger than mine ( 18oosq ft)

Remember “You should only believe half of what you see, and none of which you hearâ€

My mom in law resided in Limerick until recently!! Lake Arrowhead??

Yes.

Where's my drink ;-)

 

[DRINKSFORALL]

Sinnian - I wish I was still going there (limerick) to visit so I could buy several. She sold the place on the water last year. She lived on Leisure Lane I believe. Her st name was Kathleen and her hubb was Win (RIP).

 

[sinnian]

Small world, I am only one street over ~ though Leisure is long (for our country standards). I don't think I had the pleasure of meeting them.

 

[smwilliamson]

I'm sure this will be re-dundant for many long time forum members but here it goes:

I have a typically cape style house (Mid Mass.) w/ a great room (20x20) on the back end which totals about 1770 sq. feet (entire home). The great room does have a full size fireplace but I don’t want to give it up for an insert model. Thinking of putting unit in front living room (of cape) so warmth affects upstairs bedrooms as much as possible. What size would you recommend and do you think one unit could warm the great room in the back area of house?? Looking to spend around 2K or a little more. Which brands should I avoid please?? I have read some negative remarks about the the large retailor brands (Lowes/ HomeD)?!? Also how far must any unit be away from walls and is it necesssary to "brick" or stone the base where the unit will go?

Any help is GREATLY APPRECIATED!!

here is a post I put up a few months back. Though not by models, it gives you a good idea of what to expect in the true cost of ownership by manufacturer.

https://www.hearth.com/econtent/index.php/forums/viewthread/74399/

 

[Frugal]

1800 sf Cape in SE NH. 2008 Lopi Endeavor in Living Room (South end of house) reduces oil consumption by 50-60%. Kept house above 60 for 3-1/2 days during Dec. 2008 ice storm, despite no power for the blower.

Love the bypass damper for startup, reloading and operating with the (optional) screen. IMHO, get the rear-mounted blower, you won't be sorry.

Have your stove installed by a licensed professional. Make sure your insurance company knows about the stove. Better now than later.

 

[imacman]

1800 sf Cape in SE NH. 2008 Lopi Endeavor in Living Room (South end of house) reduces oil consumption by 50-60%. Kept house above 60 for 3-1/2 days during Dec. 2008 ice storm, despite no power for the blower.

Love the bypass damper for startup, reloading and operating with the (optional) screen. IMHO, get the rear-mounted blower, you won't be sorry.

Have your stove installed by a licensed professional. Make sure your insurance company knows about the stove. Better now than later.

Frugal, welcome to the forum, I could be wrong here, but I think the OP wants to install a pellet stove, not a wood stove.

 

[DRINKSFORALL]

Imacman - DIng Ding Ding..you are correct on my questions pertianing to a Pellet stove!!

Thanks again to all for the great replies and info especially the maintenance/repair chart provided by 'SMWILLIAMSON"!

 

[hossthehermit]

frickin DT got me by 4 minutes and he wasnt even funny.

That's OK, you weren't, either

 

[imacman]

Drinksforall....welcome to the forum. LOTS of very helpful and knowledgeable people here.

As for the "negative remarks" you mentioned reading about the stoves from Lowes, HD, etc, those are made by Englander Stove works. I personally own one, and also had a much "higher end" unit made by Avalon previously. Really no issues with either.

That said, EVERY make & model have their "issues" from time to time. Take Harman Stoves for example.....considered by many to be the "Cadillac" of stoves, but if you watch this forum during the burning months, you will see MANY post by members with problems with them.

Don't be afraid of the Englander brand just because it's sold by the "big box" stores.....their customer service dept is second to none, and we even have their Senior Tech rep as a member right here on the forum. As mentioned above, the EP (Evolution Pellet) model is a very nice pure pellet unit, and if you wanted a multi-fuel unit, I have and can recommend the 10-CPM. As I mentioned, I also had an Avalon Astoria, and highly recommend their stoves also.

Are there stoves to avoid? Well, yes, but I won't bash any on the forum. Send me a PM if you want that info.

 

[hossthehermit]

Iradicate all stove gnomes and gremelins - check.

Git yerself one-a-them fang shooey guys while yer at it.

 

[Fsappo]

frickin DT got me by 4 minutes and he wasnt even funny.

That's OK, you weren't, either

Not my job, Hoss. Crawl back under that bridge and start scarin kids.

 

[lessoil]

Welcome!!
We have a 24'X32' Cape with stove installed in the Livingroom.
Although the house needs insulation wook, we have reduced our
oil usage by 54% (From 925 to 425 gal) are warmer and will save
around $1000 this coming Winter.
Good Luck with your search! You came to the right place
to get your questions answered.

 

[GrahamInVa]

Welcome!!
We have a 24'X32' Cape with stove installed in the Livingroom.
Although the house needs insulation wook, we have reduced our
oil usage by 54% (From 925 to 425 gal) are warmer and will save
around $1000 this coming Winter.
Good Luck with your search! You came to the right place
to get your questions answered.

Interesting side note... 1 ton of pellets = 120 gal of heating oil.

I'm not sure how many tons lessoil burned last year but if he burned 4 tons that's equal to 480 gallons of oil. He went from burning 925 gals to 425, saving 500 gal.

Neat little savings calculator... http://www.maineenergysystems.com/userfiles/files/PelletsPropaneOil.swf

Some other facts...

For heating, one ton of
wood pellets equals…
• 120 gallons of heating oil
• 170 gallons of propane
• 16,000 ft3 of natural gas
• 4,775 kilowatt hours (kWh)
electricity

Paying $200/ton for pellets
is the same as paying…
• $1.67 per gallon for heating oil
• $1.18 per gallon for propane
• $12.50 per (1,000 ft3) for natural gas
• $0.04 per kWh for electricity

 

[FyreBug]

BTW - My mom in law resided in Limerick until recently!! Lake Arrowhead??

There once was a wood burner from Limerick who resided in Arrowhead
Who ate pellets like one eat bread
But the PO,s on Hearth.com didn't mind
Their advice ignored - so unkind
They were just as glad they were not called airhead!