OK... Question Time

[rottiman]

Why not just go with an insert? Buck makes a real nice insert.

+1 on the insert idea. with 800 sf a insert would be just right. I would run the pellet stove till you get everything else in place. Should be able to recoup enough later on by selling the pellet stove to offset some of the insert cost. I would definitely put a proper liner in for the insert though.

 

[Battenkiller]

Do you know the model of the stove??

Yes, it is a Breckwell. Nice to find out it is a top-rated stove.

Long-range hope if this place works out is to go with wood in the house and move the pellet stove to the 2-car garage that will be my new shop.

I'm excited to find that the Keystone has a rear vent that is low enough to install directly into the fireplace. I have secretly yearned for a Woodstock stove since attending the WS mortgage burning party last year. I was hoping to find a home that would take the new Hybrid model so I could be the first on my block to try it out, but that thing would be way overkill in this place.

We are not heat freaks, preferring inside temps in the upper 60s to lower 70s in the winter. I am not averse to zone-heating the bedroom with the electric baseboards on the coldest nights of the year if needed, so a smaller stove will work out fine here. I want to wait the season out and see how things go, but that is a real sweet deal on a stove I want to get eventually, hard to calm the trigger finger.

Anyway, this home buying is a longer process than I'd like it to be. The Woodstock sale may be over by the time we close. I guess if it's meant to happen, it will. Time will tell.

 

[Battenkiller]

I would definitely put a proper liner in for the insert though.

I lived with a sub-standard flue in this rental house for 20 years now. It worked OK for the most part, but those days will soon be over. I intend to go right by the book in my own place, so either flue I use will get a proper liner.

 

[VCBurner]

I would definitely put a proper liner in for the insert though.

I lived with a sub-standard flue in this rental house for 20 years now. It worked OK for the most part, but those days will soon be over. I intend to go right by the book in my own place, so either flue I use will get a proper liner.

It is really nice to hear you say this. What a contrast from a few weeks ago. I hope to be there someday, I'm 35 now so it's never too late.
Anyway, lots of stoves would fit there. I had a DW with 2" legs that could. Also, a standard Defiant Encore would fit. The Keystone would be temptoing for me too! I'd love a soapstone stove. I almost pulled the trigger on a Hearthstone last year, it was an older cat Harvest Model though!

 

[BrowningBAR]

I would definitely put a proper liner in for the insert though.

I lived with a sub-standard flue in this rental house for 20 years now. It worked OK for the most part, but those days will soon be over. I intend to go right by the book in my own place, so either flue I use will get a proper liner.

It is really nice to hear you say this. What a contrast from a few weeks ago. I hope to be there someday, I'm 35 now so it's never too late.
Anyway, lots of stoves would fit there. I had a DW with 2" legs that could. Also, a standard Defiant Encore would fit. The Keystone would be temptoing for me too! I'd love a soapstone stove. I almost pulled the trigger on a Hearthstone last year, it was an older cat Harvest Model though!

I think you were better off passing on that old Hearthstone.

 

[VCBurner]

I would definitely put a proper liner in for the insert though.

I lived with a sub-standard flue in this rental house for 20 years now. It worked OK for the most part, but those days will soon be over. I intend to go right by the book in my own place, so either flue I use will get a proper liner.

It is really nice to hear you say this. What a contrast from a few weeks ago. I hope to be there someday, I'm 35 now so it's never too late.
Anyway, lots of stoves would fit there. I had a DW with 2" legs that could. Also, a standard Defiant Encore would fit. The Keystone would be tempting for me too! I'd love a soapstone stove. I almost pulled the trigger on a Hearthstone last year, it was an older cat Harvest Model though!

I think you were better off passing on that old Hearthstone.

I agree, but it was nice to feel those stones. You must be enjoying yours, right? How's the Encore?

 

[firefighterjake]

I might pull the trigger on a Woodstock stove if you were pretty sure you were going that route . . . but at this point in the game getting seasoned wood for this year might be a real challenge -- I would simply run the pellet stove for this winter and see how things work out.

 

[Battenkiller]

I might pull the trigger on a Woodstock stove if you were pretty sure you were going that route . . . but at this point in the game getting seasoned wood for this year might be a real challenge -- I would simply run the pellet stove for this winter and see how things work out.

The place will come with over a cord of nice seasoned wood that is all under cover. Oh, and I have plenty of wood left over from last year... if I want to move it. Maybe 8 or 10 full-size pickups full, awesome black birch I got last winter. That's a lot of trips, though. The place is half an hour from here. I won't move a bit until we are at least through the title search and awaiting the closing. That's 4-6 weeks away. Right now we're waiting to see what kind of counter offer is coming, what the inspection will show, how it appraises, etc. Plus, Lady BK isn't as keen on the place as I am, so if we don't get it real cheap she wants to walk away from it and keep looking.

Man... this house buying thing is a young man's game. I just want to dig in and light up before winter hits hard and be done with it.

 

[NH_Wood]

So BK, why not a stove tapped into where the pellet stove is? Just wondering. Cheers!

 

[My Oslo heats my home]

Man... this house buying thing is a young man's game. I just want to dig in and light up before winter hits hard and be done with it.

BK, Are you looking at anything else?

 

[Battenkiller]

So BK, why not a stove tapped into where the pellet stove is? Just wondering. Cheers!

Yeah, that was my first thought, but then the stupid looking fireplace is taking up lots of wall space. I suppose I could put a bookcase in front of it. :lol:

The flue that the pellet stove dumps into goes all the way into the basement, and as a long time basement burner I thought I might stick the Vigilant down there for extreme weather, as a supplement to the upstairs stove. Plus, it would heat the basement, which will eventually get turned into a rec room, complete with a bar, home theater, poker table, and pool table. I dunno... just thoughts for now.

 

[Battenkiller]

Man... this house buying thing is a young man's game. I just want to dig in and light up before winter hits hard and be done with it.

BK, Are you looking at anything else?

Yeah, but my heart is set on this place. The house itself is just OK, but the location (minutes from Great Sacandaga Lake) and the setting (back in the woods a ways) is just what old BK's soul needs at this stage of the game. Plus, that attached two-car garage is real sweet, with a full loft (with stairs) above that I can utilize for dry lumber storage and more studio space.

Bottom line is that we can afford it. They keep saying its strictly a buyer's market right now. Yes, there are tons of properties, and interest rates have never been lower, but the sellers aren't cooperating. Most stuff we looked at is junk, and overpriced junk to boot. Foreclosures on nice homes are out there, but a short sale could take from months right on up to a year. Aside from that, most folks can't afford to sell because they will lose too much if they bought before the bubble burst.

Fact is, even a real good deal on a home and 4% fixed interest is a scary decision to make at this time. Prices could slide even further, locking us in forever even if we want something better five years down the road.

 

[BrowningBAR]

So BK, why not a stove tapped into where the pellet stove is? Just wondering. Cheers!

Yeah, that was my first thought, but then the stupid looking fireplace is taking up lots of wall space. I suppose I could put a bookcase in front of it. :lol:

The flue that the pellet stove dumps into goes all the way into the basement, and as a long time basement burner I thought I might stick the Vigilant down there for extreme weather, as a supplement to the upstairs stove. Plus, it would heat the basement, which will eventually get turned into a rec room, complete with a bar, home theater, poker table, and pool table. I dunno... just thoughts for now.

Join the multi-stove world!

 

[Battenkiller]

So BK, why not a stove tapped into where the pellet stove is? Just wondering. Cheers!

Yeah, that was my first thought, but then the stupid looking fireplace is taking up lots of wall space. I suppose I could put a bookcase in front of it. :lol:

The flue that the pellet stove dumps into goes all the way into the basement, and as a long time basement burner I thought I might stick the Vigilant down there for extreme weather, as a supplement to the upstairs stove. Plus, it would heat the basement, which will eventually get turned into a rec room, complete with a bar, home theater, poker table, and pool table. I dunno... just thoughts for now.

Join the multi-stove world!

I dunno... I guess I could learn to like that. ;-)

 

[BrowningBAR]

I would definitely put a proper liner in for the insert though.

I lived with a sub-standard flue in this rental house for 20 years now. It worked OK for the most part, but those days will soon be over. I intend to go right by the book in my own place, so either flue I use will get a proper liner.

It is really nice to hear you say this. What a contrast from a few weeks ago. I hope to be there someday, I'm 35 now so it's never too late.
Anyway, lots of stoves would fit there. I had a DW with 2" legs that could. Also, a standard Defiant Encore would fit. The Keystone would be tempting for me too! I'd love a soapstone stove. I almost pulled the trigger on a Hearthstone last year, it was an older cat Harvest Model though!

I think you were better off passing on that old Hearthstone.

I agree, but it was nice to feel those stones. You must be enjoying yours, right? How's the Encore?

The Heritage is nice. This will be it's first full season as it was installed mid-December last winter. In regards to the Encore, I am waiting on the back access panel to arrive along with a gasket kit. It should be ready to go by the end of the month just in time for the majority of the burning season.

 

[BrotherBart]

Join the multi-stove world!

Should be listed in the dictionary under "PITA".

 

[BrowningBAR]

Join the multi-stove world!

Should be listed in the dictionary under "PITA".

Shhh! If we tell others, then they will never get the second stove and feel my pain.

 

[HollowHill]

Geez, BK, sounds like you've got this all well thought out - woodstove in the fireplace, wood stove downstairs in the pellet stove flue, pellet stove out in the garage. Sounds solid to me. Only suggestion I could make would be to put a deposit down on a Keystone to reserve the great price. If things fall thru, it's refundable, if they don't (and I hope they don't!), then you'll have a great stove ready and waiting! Best of luck!

 

[firefighterjake]

I might pull the trigger on a Woodstock stove if you were pretty sure you were going that route . . . but at this point in the game getting seasoned wood for this year might be a real challenge -- I would simply run the pellet stove for this winter and see how things work out.

The place will come with over a cord of nice seasoned wood that is all under cover. Oh, and I have plenty of wood left over from last year... if I want to move it. Maybe 8 or 10 full-size pickups full, awesome black birch I got last winter. That's a lot of trips, though. The place is half an hour from here. I won't move a bit until we are at least through the title search and awaiting the closing. That's 4-6 weeks away. Right now we're waiting to see what kind of counter offer is coming, what the inspection will show, how it appraises, etc. Plus, Lady BK isn't as keen on the place as I am, so if we don't get it real cheap she wants to walk away from it and keep looking.

Man... this house buying thing is a young man's game. I just want to dig in and light up before winter hits hard and be done with it.

That changes things . . . if you have the wood and can move the wood . . . I would go with a woodstove . . . although for the first winter it still might be easier to just run the pellet stove with all of the changes you may want to make on the house.

House buying . . . I remember it well . . . it was a pain in the butt . . . fortunately I had my wife take the lead and she scouted out properties that she thought we would both like (i.e. I told her I wanted a garage, hot water baseboard heat, etc.) and then she threw out places that we would not like and we visited the places together . . .

Best advice . . . even with winter coming, don't rush things . . . it's a big purchase.

 

[Battenkiller]

Best advice . . . even with winter coming, don't rush things . . . it's a big purchase.

Kinda hard not to rush things. We were given short notice to leave here after 21 years. The Nov. 30 leave-by date is looming over our heads, and with the earliest likely closing date 4-6 weeks after the offer is accepted, we are almost out of time as it is. Moving my entire shop into storage and finding an apartment while we continue our search is not a very attractive option. I could live out my days in this new place, but it's not my decision to make alone.

The realtor we are dealing with wants us to hold off a few days for him to check out a few questionable things with the roof and foundation. I will come in even lower than I originally planned to, so I'll have to wait and see if the guy is receptive at all. The listing agent let it slip that he really wants to get out of there before winter, so that gives me more bargaining power. His wife recently left him, and this could be a lonely place to come home to every evening if you lived alone.

I'm sure he won't be giving it away, but after having it listed for two years with no serious bites, it's his call whether he wants to continue to reach for the sky or let it go at a reasonable price. In the meantime, making plans for heating with wood if we do get it is all I can do at the moment.

Anyway, thanks for all the advice and suggestions. Maybe I'll go ahead and put a deposit on that Keystone. I may go out to Woodstock on Saturday for a day trip and some free beer and pig roast. I'll look over the stove carefully and ask lots of questions if I do. I'll leave the truck here and take the car... just to foil my proclivity for impulsivity.