Is there anybody out there that successfully heats a small house with basement install?

[ajwoodman]

My house is very small 800 sq ft on first floor, basement is only being heated on one half of basement. The other side is other rooms with very little heat. I am hoping to heat the kitchen, living room (open concept) which is directly above stove in basement. Floor register between kitchen and living room and I leave the basement door open. I also have a cold air return down the hallway which goes downstairs into one of the unheated rooms. Any thoughts??? Oh, I have the Big E which is supposed to heat 2200 sq ft. Thanks

 

[x96mnn]

I do not thnk you will have any problems at all.

When I am away I burn my max only and it keeps 2200 Sq/ft warm so I would think a 2200 sq/ft stove in 800 sq/ft house is most likly going to have you opening windows to cool down!

 

[bostonbaked]

I'm planing to do the same with an even smaller house. No experience yet, but I am confident it will do the trick. I guess I'll soon find out.

 

[johnnywarm]

i have done it with a larger house.you should be fine.the only problem is when its really cold i use a space heater.the floors are very nice when they are warm.

 

[kinsmanstoves]

Heating an unfinished basement can be done but GOOD LUCK. The block, stone, cement will suck up most of the heat and it will be pulled into the ground. The best placement of the stove should be in the room where most of the family is. A pellet stove is for spot heat. Yes there are people who do more with the stove but this is not what it is designed for. Get a furnace if you want whole house heat and a stove for spot heat.

Eric

 

[slls]

My oil fired furnace has a 78,000 BTU output, my pellet stove has about a 30,000 BTU output. I put my stove in the living room.

 

[tonyd]

This is my setup for getting the heat upstairs. The stove was purchased for the downstairs family room, but any heat that gets up the steps will be a bonus. Here are some pics taken from the fireplace and from the foyer.

 

[kinsmanstoves]

My oil fired furnace has a 78,000 BTU output, my pellet stove has about a 30,000 BTU output. I put my stove in the living room.

Are you sure it is BTU output and not input on your pellet stove? I have not seen any pellet stove manufactur rate a stove on output.

Eric

 

[slls]

I rated it 30,000 BTU output, I am conservative at 25 % vent loss. The stove is rated 40,000 BTU on the manufactures decal, the brochure states up to 47,000 BTU, what ever that means.

 

[kinsmanstoves]

Eric

 

[mitchinpa]

I have an unfinished basement with poured concrete walls. There is a layer of insulation on the OUTSIDE of the walls, but none inside. Knowing that the true cold weather is not yet here, this past week, with weather in the 50's during the day, and dropping to the high 20's low 30's, the pellet stove in my basement is keeping the 1st floor at 73 degrees on it's middle setting at night and the lowest setting during the day. My house is almost 2300 sq ft and the basement door, which I leave open, is centrally located in an open floor plan.

I am sure once it gets colder, the stove will not keep the house at 73 by itself, but that's why I have a wood burner in my family room.

 

[tinkabranc]

My stove lives in my finished basement/office. The bonus for us
is the heat rises upstairs and warms the rest of the house too.
My home is a small straight ranch, with an open stairwell to the first floor that is
centrally located.

The first floor is comfortable enough that my furnace rarely runs.
The bedrooms at the far end of the house are a little cooler but comfortable
as long as we keep all the doors open.

If you purchase the stove with the intention of supplimenting heat in the
space you spend the most time in, you should be happy with it in your
basement.

Good luck in your decision

 

[save$]

I have a 28x40 raised ranch, split foyer, with both levels finished. I must admit I am new to heating with pellets, but not to heating with wood. In the past, we kept very warm with 5 cords of wood. I went to pellets due to some physical limitations. I have been running my new stove from the evening to about 8 Am. My first level is 75-78 and the second level is about 74. These temps are at 5 Am when it has been in the high 20’s outside. My furnace is OFF .My stove settings are lower end of 4, fan speed on 4 and draft on 3. Pellet use is about 4 bags a week. I have a tower fan at the base of the stairwell pushing air toward the stove, and a doorway fan at the top of the stairwell doorway blowing air up in the foyer where a ceiling fan pushes it about. I think to make the stove heat your house, you must do all that can be done to eliminate outside drafts, and add insulating window coverings. Try to limit accessing your home to using a double entry if you have one.