A new old stove for a new old house

[Dan R-M]

Hey All - the forum has been very helpful already, but have brought me to a place where I needed to join to get some specific advice.
My family is fixing up a house to move into, and wood heat is the way we're going for a primary source. It's a small house, and we'll only be in the first floor of it till we fix up the rest.
So I had couple of options for stoves. One was the Clydesdale insert my mom used to have (till she replaced it with a Hearthstone Heritage a couple of years ago). Not sure how relatively non-ideal it is to plunk an insert down without a fireplace cavity, but it sure pumps out the heat. Probably too much heat for this application. Also not ideal 'cause we'd like a cooking surface.
The second option is one my brother got from craigslist. It's a HearthMate HM25 (which I've found no reference to anywhere online, this forum included). Its plate notes that it was made in 1978, that it is for wood, and a few other things.
The obvious (to me) damage is that it 1) is a bit rusty, 2) has been sprayed half-heartedly with white paint, 3) needs the firebricks on the sides replaced, 4) has bent rails that hold the firebricks in toward the back, and 5) seems to have warped baffles at the top of the back. I'd guess rust and spraypaint are not important, and I know firebricks can be replaced.
But I'd love to hear what someone who has seen more old-ish stoves sees, and a guess about how practical this one would be to use in a modest home.

 

[Ashful]

What's your budget? Assuming it's not at the new stove level, I'd be shopping for a used Jotul 8-TDIC, if I had a smaller space to heat, and the stove needed to look at all right in an old house.

 

[firefighterjake]

Is that truly white paint . . . or white from the stove being over-fired?

Honestly, sounds like money is tight right now . . . but I think I would keep looking for something used and newer or consider something brand new but inexpensive like an Englander or Drolet woodstove. My own thinking is that something like a woodstove can negate all that hard work in refurbishing a home if it is not installed correctly and/or if there are any issues.

Probably you already know, but . . . a) the stove is just part of the equation. You also need to figure in the cost of the flue/chimney and b) seasoned wood is very important with EPA woodstoves . . . heck, it's important with all woodstoves if you want to be able to light up the fire easily, keep it going and get a good amount of heat from the stove while at the same time not gunking up your chimney with creosote.

Welcome to the forum by the way . . . and continue to ask questions.

 

[Jags]

The stove in the pictures has been heavily overfired. It is a smoke dragon. It will be fuel hungry. Ya gotta do, what ya gotta do, but I would sure be looking for a different solution for the long term. Keep in mind that the clearance to combustibles on that rig is gonna be 36" on all sides.

As a side note: check with your ins co. Many will no longer allow a new installation of a pre-epa stove. Cover your 6.

 

[Smoke Stack]

That stove looks like another spin-off of the Fisher and All Nighters. It looks real rough, though. Whatever you decide to do, good luck!

 

[fossil]

That stove is scrap. Sorry. RIck

 

[Motor7]

Do you have the means/time and access to free wood? Is there any flue/chimney in the house yet? That does look like a Fisher copy & it might throw pretty good heat if you spend the time to repair it.....but that can be a crap shoot. How many sq ft and how well insulated is the house?

If you are starting from scratch, if you can swing a new stove, I would put in a Englander from HD or TSP...there are many models:
$649
http://www.homedepot.com/p/Englande...i_kw=&ci_gpa=pla&ci_src=17588969#.Up5uU8RDvTo

$495(sale ends today)
http://www.tractorsupply.com//Produ...ategory_rn=&urlRequestType=Base&top_category=

There are plenty of new stoves out there that are reasonable, but more info is needed.

 

[Dan R-M]

Hey All - many thanks for the replies.
Money is always tight, in a way, but not so tight that I want to do something foolish. I wondered if this stove was something that would work if tidied up, and your advice is clear It looks like it could end up being a good shop stove.
I don't have trouble believing that it has been overfired, but the most visible white on it is spray-paint. What signs do you see here that makes it look overfired? Or is a lame whitewash a sign in and of itself?
Also, is over-firing fatal for a stove like this (in terms of functional use) if it hasn't warped and popped welds? (My aunt suggested firing it up after sunset to inspect for cracks.)
Since I'm picking minds of the well-experienced, here, I might as well learn something that might come in handy. Thanks again!

 

[Dan R-M]

We've got access to free wood if we put together the time. The existing chimney is its own story - I'll get a second opinion, but it's an unlined cinder block stack that the first professional appraisal declared too variable in interior diameter for a stainless liner to pass. If the next professional says the same thing then we'll put out an external flue.
The house's footprint is about 580 sq ft, with a full basement and two stories. We'll be in the ground floor, though. Boy, that makes it seem small, huh? As far as I can tell it is not insulated so well, but that could just be the breeze blowing around the rotted out windows We'll fix those before we move in.

 

[My Oslo heats my home]

I have to agree with some of these fellas, the old non-EPA stove may not be worth the time. You can spend a few dollars and get something that will give you a few more dependable years than what you have in pictures.

 

[Smoke Stack]

It may be white paint on the outside, but the warped baffle and damage to the angle iron that holds the bricks in sure looks like it was abused.

Just looking at the pictures I see approximately $80. in brick, $10. for a new rope seal, labor to install both, some materials and labor to weld in new angle iron, some materials and labor to repair the baffle, and materials and labor to make it pretty. We haven't even talked about your installation costs yet.

Bring it outside and fire it up to see if it's cracked. Then decide if you want to go forward with it. Just remember, there's an abundance of used stoves out there...

 

[fbelec]

that is not white paint. it's what happens to metal when it is overfired. they probably had that stove glowing a number of times. don't waste your money. now you know what a overfired stove looks like. if you wind up buying used you know what to look for. if it's white say thanks but no.

good luck
frank

 

[Bootstrap]

I would also put some time into getting a correctly sized stove for your particular application. Burning hot and clean is key and having a stove thats too big for the area means you'll want to choke it down. Also, that stove may work well for a shop type of use, but I would keep it out of my house. It looks beat.

 

[Ashful]

So, you're heating roughly 1160 sq.ft. There's two ways to get this done:

1. Small non-cat, such as an NC-13. Burn times will be short, but it will keep you warm. A large non-cat (eg. NC-30) will roast you, at 580 sq.ft. per floor.
2. Medium catalytic stove, such as Woodstock Fireview, which can be purchased as a refurb from Woodstock (I imagine they have plenty, as their fanboys upgrade to the Progress Hybrid). Cheaper might be the Buck 20 or High Valley 1500. The catalytic stoves can burn at a much lower rate than non-cat's, so you can go with a bigger stove without roasting yourself, and get longer burn times.

It would be great if you could use the existing block stack as a chase for a liner. Definitely more attractive than any steel class-A tube stuck to the outside of the house, and probably cheaper, if you can find a way to make it happen.