I have a 1300 square foot house and thinking about a wood burning stove. I already have a fire place but want to use the stove for the main source of heat in the house, which is better for my home a free standing stove or an insert?
Insert or Freestanding?
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More heat out of a freestading stove per cubic foot of firebox.
No blower needed for a free standing stove....... less noise, actually none.
Less space taken up with an insert.
No blower needed for a free standing stove....... less noise, actually none.
Less space taken up with an insert.
liviyoda,
It dont say where you live, but if it is up north where it gets cold,consider a free standing stove of the 1800 sq ft varity, suggest a
www.englanderstove.com
found at home depot & ace hardware as being an economical workhorse that don't cost much
compaired to some other high end stoves,
with excellent quality & well backed up by the family owned business in monroe,Va.
a free standing stove is nice because it can be installed in the room that the heat can travel to the rest of the house easiest from. Do get the blower for the stove, as they really push the heat out to where it is needed.
Another thing nice about a free standing stove that can't be done with an insert is the ability to place a 24 inch box fan behind the stove or from any other advantagious angle & blow the heat right to where you want it.
Take a hard look at your house with an eye for natural hot & cold air convection flows to & from where the stove will be & the areas that you want to heat. This will help determine where to place the stove to your best advantage.
I recommend the 1800 sq ft size stove, even though you say your house is only 1300 sq ft
for 2 reasons:
The bigger fire box gives better & longer overnite burns that a small size stove won't do -because it don't hold enough wood to overnite burn.
And , to give you some extra heat for a cold nite or if you later decide to heat an additional room.
You can always put less wood in a larger stove if it is too hot & turn down the primary & secondary air control to cut down the temps, but you can't put more wood in a small stove than will fit into it & may end up running the stove full tilt 24/7 if it don't put out enough heat for your needs.
A lot depends on weather you have a mild climate (southerner) or an ice box (northerner).
a southerner can usually get away with a small stove but a northerner should but the biggest
size appropiate.
I don't much care for inserts. i don't like the idea of the stove being stuck to the fire place location. & the fireplace location may not be the best location for heat transfer to other rooms.
Also, a free standing stove can come with you if you move to another house for some reason.
A free standing stove can be installed in front of the fireplace & use the fireplace chimney & you can still get a box fan behind it. The flue pipe goes into the fireplace, just under the top & the rest of the opening is sealed off up inside the fire place with just the flue pipe going thru.
You can even brick up the fireplace & put a clean out door in the fireplace front, so there are two ways to install a free standing stove in from of a fireplace.
I have not seen your house so don't get worked up if I make suggestions that don't fit your setup. The final say is yours.
Just my opinions, 4 what they are worth.
It dont say where you live, but if it is up north where it gets cold,consider a free standing stove of the 1800 sq ft varity, suggest a
www.englanderstove.com
found at home depot & ace hardware as being an economical workhorse that don't cost much
compaired to some other high end stoves,
with excellent quality & well backed up by the family owned business in monroe,Va.
a free standing stove is nice because it can be installed in the room that the heat can travel to the rest of the house easiest from. Do get the blower for the stove, as they really push the heat out to where it is needed.
Another thing nice about a free standing stove that can't be done with an insert is the ability to place a 24 inch box fan behind the stove or from any other advantagious angle & blow the heat right to where you want it.
Take a hard look at your house with an eye for natural hot & cold air convection flows to & from where the stove will be & the areas that you want to heat. This will help determine where to place the stove to your best advantage.
I recommend the 1800 sq ft size stove, even though you say your house is only 1300 sq ft
for 2 reasons:
The bigger fire box gives better & longer overnite burns that a small size stove won't do -because it don't hold enough wood to overnite burn.
And , to give you some extra heat for a cold nite or if you later decide to heat an additional room.
You can always put less wood in a larger stove if it is too hot & turn down the primary & secondary air control to cut down the temps, but you can't put more wood in a small stove than will fit into it & may end up running the stove full tilt 24/7 if it don't put out enough heat for your needs.
A lot depends on weather you have a mild climate (southerner) or an ice box (northerner).
a southerner can usually get away with a small stove but a northerner should but the biggest
size appropiate.
I don't much care for inserts. i don't like the idea of the stove being stuck to the fire place location. & the fireplace location may not be the best location for heat transfer to other rooms.
Also, a free standing stove can come with you if you move to another house for some reason.
A free standing stove can be installed in front of the fireplace & use the fireplace chimney & you can still get a box fan behind it. The flue pipe goes into the fireplace, just under the top & the rest of the opening is sealed off up inside the fire place with just the flue pipe going thru.
You can even brick up the fireplace & put a clean out door in the fireplace front, so there are two ways to install a free standing stove in from of a fireplace.
I have not seen your house so don't get worked up if I make suggestions that don't fit your setup. The final say is yours.
Just my opinions, 4 what they are worth.
Having both, and having lived with the insert for a couple of years I can say the heat from the insert is dispersed very differently than the heat from a freestanding stove without a blower. It can get oppressively hot in the immediate area around a free sanding stove, while the insert doesn't have this problem. My freestanding stove seems to have more pronounced peaks and valleys in heat output along with the burn cycle than the insert. Oh, and you can't make omelets on the insert.
All experiences are correct. This really depends on the house. If there is a very open floor plan, 2 story house with an open staircase, then a free-standing stove can be a very even source of heat. If the stove is in a formal room with doorways between each area, then that room can get warm and other parts of the house can remain cool. There are many freestanding stoves with built-in fans that help circulate heat better. And often an external fan can even out the heat to other rooms. However, freestanding stoves need more room to cover clearances.
Inserts take up a lot less space and have a nice built-in look. You'll definitely want an insert with a blower. A good one will have a variable speed blower that is very quiet on low speed. During the shoulder seasons of fall and spring you may be able to heat without the blower. But on the whole inserts are less efficient, more so if the fireplace is an exterior one.
Both types are available in a wide variety of options and styles. Some things to consider:
How much spare space is there for a free-standing stove?
How often does the power go out? If frequent, do you have a generator? If very rarely, this isn't an issue.
What is your SO's preference?
If this is a small fireplace or one with a low opening, options become more limited.
Inserts take up a lot less space and have a nice built-in look. You'll definitely want an insert with a blower. A good one will have a variable speed blower that is very quiet on low speed. During the shoulder seasons of fall and spring you may be able to heat without the blower. But on the whole inserts are less efficient, more so if the fireplace is an exterior one.
Both types are available in a wide variety of options and styles. Some things to consider:
How much spare space is there for a free-standing stove?
How often does the power go out? If frequent, do you have a generator? If very rarely, this isn't an issue.
What is your SO's preference?
If this is a small fireplace or one with a low opening, options become more limited.
My choice is always freestanding if it is to be your primary source of heat. Having said that, if you like the look of an insert there are some out there which will produce good heat.
You will get different feeling heat from different stoves. You have to consider the clearances (distance front/back/sides) required of the stove and what type of chimney you have. You want to put a total estimate for the stove together so you aren't surprised.
You will get different feeling heat from different stoves. You have to consider the clearances (distance front/back/sides) required of the stove and what type of chimney you have. You want to put a total estimate for the stove together so you aren't surprised.
A lot of good advice so far, I just want to agree with the idea that "oversizing" the stove is a good thing.
Also, the state of your chimney may make a freestanding stove and new Class A chimney the best choice; if your chimney is easy to line, that may or may not cost more than Class A (I really don't know), but some chimneys have small, sloppy or convoluted interiors that make it impossible to get 6" liner down. Going smaller or ovalized may be against code, and some say doing that will affect draft/stove performance (some say it doesn't).
Also, the state of your chimney may make a freestanding stove and new Class A chimney the best choice; if your chimney is easy to line, that may or may not cost more than Class A (I really don't know), but some chimneys have small, sloppy or convoluted interiors that make it impossible to get 6" liner down. Going smaller or ovalized may be against code, and some say doing that will affect draft/stove performance (some say it doesn't).
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