newbie

[Lovedby2]

Hi Everyone, I am new to the site. I was told you guys really know your stuff and came recommended. My husband and I live in the mountains of NC. We are floridians so we don't know much about heating here. We have a 2800 sf house, 1500 new construction, the rest very old. It was grandpa's cabin, but it has been updated with insulation, new windows, ect. We took the very old gas furnace out which was in the L/R and on the floor. Central air/heat was put in. Well, the last few winters were cold and we paid through the nose for the useless heat pump. We supplemented with portable kerosene, pain. We did have a wood stove in another house here before we moved to grandpa's. We have researched and can't decide on what source of heat to use. We are looking at economics and efficiency. We have considered a pellet stove but see that it costs around 140.00 to run on electric. The stairs from the basement runs up the middle of the house so a wood burner would heat the downstairs and upstairs, except the two bedrooms. We just don't know which way to go. The drawbacks for a wood burner is the work of course, hate that the house freezes by morning. We are willing to go that route if need be. We do still have the problems with the bedrooms. We do have gas still for our cooking stove and a local company will lock you in at a set rate if you purchase in the summer. Thank you for any input.

 

[James02]

Hi Everyone, I am new to the site. I was told you guys really know your stuff and came recommended. My husband and I live in the mountains of NC. We are floridians so we don't know much about heating here. We have a 2800 sf house, 1500 new construction, the rest very old. It was grandpa's cabin, but it has been updated with insulation, new windows, ect. We took the very old gas furnace out which was in the L/R and on the floor. Central air/heat was put in. Well, the last few winters were cold and we paid through the nose for the useless heat pump. We supplemented with portable kerosene, pain. We did have a wood stove in another house here before we moved to grandpa's. We have researched and can't decide on what source of heat to use. We are looking at economics and efficiency. We have considered a pellet stove but see that it costs around 140.00 to run on electric. The stairs from the basement runs up the middle of the house so a wood burner would heat the downstairs and upstairs, except the two bedrooms. We just don't know which way to go. The drawbacks for a wood burner is the work of course, hate that the house freezes by morning. We are willing to go that route if need be. We do still have the problems with the bedrooms. We do have gas still for our cooking stove and a local company will lock you in at a set rate if you purchase in the summer. Thank you for any input.

WELCOME...I'll start this off....Get your wood NOW!!..I'm sure many will chime in with that lil diddy....Also, use fans to move the cold air to the warm room....It works!

 

[DexterDay]

I have used a Kill-a-watt meter amd my Pellet stoves uses less than $75 for the Entire heating season.... $15 a month for my Quadrafire Classic Bay 1200. Some stoves use even less than that. But $15 is a good average.

They have thermostats and will turn themselves on and off as needed (just like a furnace). Just set the thermostat and your good to go.

I love my woodstove, but pellets is a much easier (and warmer in the morning) option for me.

You may want to start a thread in the pellet mill also. Stating the same facts. It seems as if you were given false info on a pellet stove. Added bonus to pellet stoves, is you dont need to season wood for 2-3 yrs (which means you need 9-12 cord on hand/better get cutting) and the fuel stores easily and compactly.

If you have the equipment (saws, splitter, trailer, truck, time, and energy) then wood is pretty cheap (after you get the equipment) and very rewarding.

Welcome to the Forums.

 

[kingquad]

Hi Everyone, I am new to the site. I was told you guys really know your stuff and came recommended. My husband and I live in the mountains of NC. We are floridians so we don't know much about heating here. We have a 2800 sf house, 1500 new construction, the rest very old. It was grandpa's cabin, but it has been updated with insulation, new windows, ect. We took the very old gas furnace out which was in the L/R and on the floor. Central air/heat was put in. Well, the last few winters were cold and we paid through the nose for the useless heat pump. We supplemented with portable kerosene, pain. We did have a wood stove in another house here before we moved to grandpa's. We have researched and can't decide on what source of heat to use. We are looking at economics and efficiency. We have considered a pellet stove but see that it costs around 140.00 to run on electric. The stairs from the basement runs up the middle of the house so a wood burner would heat the downstairs and upstairs, except the two bedrooms. We just don't know which way to go. The drawbacks for a wood burner is the work of course, hate that the house freezes by morning. We are willing to go that route if need be. We do still have the problems with the bedrooms. We do have gas still for our cooking stove and a local company will lock you in at a set rate if you purchase in the summer. Thank you for any input.

Could you post a floor plan? My gut tells me to go big with 2800 sqft, but a narrow staircase and door with a basement install could prove challenging to move heat upstairs. Also, moving that heat throughout the house can be tough too. If you can't get the heat out of the basement, a big stove could cook you out. Is your basement insulated?

Economics and efficiency=Englander NC-30 if you're looking at large stoves. Drolet HT-2000 is good bang for buck too.

 

[DianeB]

We have heated with wood for a long time and have become used to cooler bedrooms. We do not use the bedrooms except for actual sleeping and we have found an electric heating pad designed to go under mattress pad and sheets works quite well on the coldest nights.
http://www.amazon.com/Sunbeam-Heate...3?s=home-garden&ie=UTF8&qid=1337202912&sr=1-3
Our other living areas stay quite toasty with the wood stove We are replacing our 33 yr. old wood stove (fisher) with a new more efficient model (jotul oslo). We thought about pellet, but we would have to invest in a generator for when the power goes out - our ice storms take down trees and power lines. We still enjoy the wood handling. I am sure you are finding that you are living through real seasons so preparing the wood is a rite of passage from one season to another. Gives us something to talk about too!! My husband still splits and I do a lot of carrying and it is good excercise if you are able. I want to get myself my own little smart splitter to see if I can help. Can't swing an axe, but I think I could handle the smart splitter. http://www.amazon.com/Lucky-Distrib...1?s=aps&ie=UTF8&qid=1337202824&sr=1-1-catcorr You of course could buy wood cut and split - ours is approx. $185 for a seasoned cord. Other options for cold bedrooms are the infrared heaters - we have used these in the past. The have the look of a piece of furniture.
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B002QZ11J6...and=5638098721882387868&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=

 

[begreen]

With a big stove, we no longer wake up to a cold house. If the heat can circulate easily this sounds like a case for a large, long burning stove. Maybe a Buck cat stove? Feed us some more info on the stove location and house design.

 

[Wood Duck]

You're going to find plenty of people on thie forum, including me, who enjoy wood stoves and don't mind the effort of preparing the firewood and loading the stove. Don't let us convince you it doesn't require some effort and dedication. If you don't enjoy a wood stove you will find it to be a pain - certainly a huge pain compared to electric or gas heat. I am not trying to discourage you but you should be realistic about it before you spend money on a wood stove or a pellet stove for that matter. Who knows, maybe you'd love a wood stove like a lot of us do, but maybe not. Only you can decide.

How is the insultation in the house? Improved insulation might be a better place to start than improved heating.

 

[hobbyheater]

Central air/heat was put in.

http://www.lamppakuuma.com/Furnaces.html. The Kuuma 200 might be a easy connect to your current duct work. I have been considering the Kuuma 200 to replace Granny's aging wood furnace pictured below.