Adding WBS to sunroom - questions

[DogDay]

New member and first post. We’re in the design process of our sunroom remodel. It is an 8’ x 12’ room off of a 12’ x 17’ living room. I would like to add a wood stove to the rear-outer corner of the sunroom. I'm hoping the experts here could confirm that we will likely benefit from the stove in the adjoining living room as well as suggestions as to which size/model of wood stove I should target. My concern is the 6' opening and slightly taller ceiling in the sunroom.

Remodel will include new windows and insulation to the sunroom – the rest of the house already has new windows. There will be a double French door between the sunroom and living room so approximately a 6’ opening.

Living room has a ceiling fan and is next to the kitchen, connected via a 5’ opening. Steam radiators in all rooms of the first floor including the sunroom. Ceilings are 8’ and entire first floor is appx 700 sq ft.

Attached floor plan shows the basic floor plan. The 6' opening will be double French doors. The floor in the sunroom is 4" or so lower and the ceiling is about 6" higher than the LR. Looking to supplement the steam heat and have a nice back up heat source. I also like the cozy/smell/romance of the WBS.

Thanks

 

[jetsam]

The average sunroom stove doesn't do much for the rest of the house. You will have better than average results for a sunroom install because of the positioning, new windows/insulation, and large doorway, but you will still lose a lot of your radiant heat.

A living room install would help heat the sunroom and keep a lot more heat in the house.

So while your plan isn't bad, it's not the best spot to put a heater. Is there a fireplace on that chimney in the living room?

 

[DogDay]

Thanks for the reply. Unfortunately there really isn't another viable solution outside of the sunroom for the stove. No fireplace on the chimney, it's used for the boiler/HW. Pretty sure I can't tie into that in MA.

Should I expect to need to use a series of fans to push the heat around? One of those upper doorway/corner units perhaps. Not the nicest but at least hopefully I could move some warm air around.

 

[HomeinPA]

New member and first post. We’re in the design process of our sunroom remodel. It is an 8’ x 12’ room off of a 12’ x 17’ living room. I would like to add a wood stove to the rear-outer corner of the sunroom. I'm hoping the experts here could confirm that we will likely benefit from the stove in the adjoining living room as well as suggestions as to which size/model of wood stove I should target. My concern is the 6' opening and slightly taller ceiling in the sunroom.

Remodel will include new windows and insulation to the sunroom – the rest of the house already has new windows. There will be a double French door between the sunroom and living room so approximately a 6’ opening.

Living room has a ceiling fan and is next to the kitchen, connected via a 5’ opening. Steam radiators in all rooms of the first floor including the sunroom. Ceilings are 8’ and entire first floor is appx 700 sq ft.

Attached floor plan shows the basic floor plan. The 6' opening will be double French doors. The floor in the sunroom is 4" or so lower and the ceiling is about 6" higher than the LR. Looking to supplement the steam heat and have a nice back up heat source. I also like the cozy/smell/romance of the WBS.

Thanks

A sunroom.....in Boston.....in winter?? What heat doesn't get sucked up from the freezing temps outside the windows would, in theory, eventually make it's way into the living space but you better keep that thing hummin' along all the time with good dry wood and have insulated drapes or shades. It would help if the stove has a blower to push some of the heat towards the opening too. A ceiling fan in the living room drawing air up off the floor would help pull air in also.

 

[DogDay]

I would say my "sunroom" is closer to just another room in the house rather than a traditional sunroom. It is heated (steam radiator) and has a full basement below. I'm calling it a sunroom because it has windows on three sides and there isn't a room above it on the second floor.

At the moment there is an interior single French door between the sunroom and living room. The walls have blown in insulation, the floor has fiberglass batts between the joists. I don't know the current insulation situation in the ceiling (under bead-board) but it will be fully insulated under sheetrock as part of the rent. The large casement windows currently installed need replacing.

I guess what I'm saying is that this isn't a Florida style all glass enclosure.

 

[Woody Stover]

Should I expect to need to use a series of fans to push the heat around?

Some heat will still go through the glass, but it will be better than the sunroom install I had at my MIL's with the Buck 91..no wall insulation and old aluminum windows.
I found that the best way to get the heat to the rest of the house was with a small 8" fan on the floor outside the stove room, moving cooler dense air in and displacing heated air out the top of the doorways (2.) The ceiling fan in the stove room only served to disrupt the natural convection loop out of the room, whereas the small fan on the floor blowing in aided the loop, and kept the hottest air close to the ceiling so that sitting in the stove room was bearable.
You have a good-sized opening to the living room so I think this approach will work pretty well.

 

[bholler]

I would say my "sunroom" is closer to just another room in the house rather than a traditional sunroom. It is heated (steam radiator) and has a full basement below. I'm calling it a sunroom because it has windows on three sides and there isn't a room above it on the second floor.

At the moment there is an interior single French door between the sunroom and living room. The walls have blown in insulation, the floor has fiberglass batts between the joists. I don't know the current insulation situation in the ceiling (under bead-board) but it will be fully insulated under sheetrock as part of the rent. The large casement windows currently installed need replacing.

I guess what I'm saying is that this isn't a Florida style all glass enclosure.

All of that may be true but all of those windows are still going to do very little to stop radiant heat loss. Personally I would not install a stove in that location.

 

[DogDay]

Is there a guide on which size stove I should target for my application? Should I look for something that is rated for 700 sq ft? I plan on visiting a local suburban Boston hearth/stove place tomorrow to get some pricing info.

 

[DogDay]

If there are some actual pictures that would be helpful please let me know.

 

[ispinwool]

I can chime in here...we also have a porch area with a wood burner. Lots of "newer" windows and a concrete floor. I finally decided I was done trying to heat the outdoors. I'd sit by the fire and my front was all toasty but the other half facing the windows was quite chilly. I made the ugliest set of window quilts I've ever seen but the temperature difference is amazing. (They are "prototypes" so they may be improved as time goes by).

 

[HomeinPA]

Have you considered rearranging your living room furniture and putting the stove at the 3' sections at either end of the 6' opening to the addition? On the exterior wall you could go up the outside of the house with a class-a or straight up through the floor and out the roof in either corner. In either of those configurations you would get a better distribution of the heat through the entire area including the addition. Just a thought.

 

[DogDay]

Not opposed to the back (by the door/kitchen) corner of the 3' section. My concern with that was the height of the chimney/vent. It would go up by a second floor window if I use the near corner.

 

[xman23]

Since your renovating the room, can you open more of the 6' opening?

 

[planner steve]

New member and first post. We’re in the design process of our sunroom remodel. It is an 8’ x 12’ room off of a 12’ x 17’ living room. I would like to add a wood stove to the rear-outer corner of the sunroom. I'm hoping the experts here could confirm that we will likely benefit from the stove in the adjoining living room as well as suggestions as to which size/model of wood stove I should target. My concern is the 6' opening and slightly taller ceiling in the sunroom.

Remodel will include new windows and insulation to the sunroom – the rest of the house already has new windows. There will be a double French door between the sunroom and living room so approximately a 6’ opening.

Living room has a ceiling fan and is next to the kitchen, connected via a 5’ opening. Steam radiators in all rooms of the first floor including the sunroom. Ceilings are 8’ and entire first floor is appx 700 sq ft.

Attached floor plan shows the basic floor plan. The 6' opening will be double French doors. The floor in the sunroom is 4" or so lower and the ceiling is about 6" higher than the LR. Looking to supplement the steam heat and have a nice back up heat source. I also like the cozy/smell/romance of the WBS.

Thanks

I like your plan. If you install decent windows and insulation, I think that sunroom will get quite toasty and there will be plenty of heat to move. To move heat to the rest of the house, I'd suggest putting a through the wall vent/air transfer fan blowing towards the stove close to floor level. See picture. I don't have a stove suggestion other than to say 700 sq ft is not that big. It would probably be easy to buy a stove that is too big.

 

[TWilk117]

I like your plan too DogDay. I would love to do the same thing with my sunroom.

I would go for a bigger stove. Something that could heat 800-1,500 sf.

EDIT: I would put the stove in the middle where the radiator is across from the French doors.

 

[DogDay]

It would be nice to put it directly inline with the French door opening but that's where my steam radiator sits. Also if it were in the center it would eat up most of the usable space in the room. The room will be a home office so I need room for a desk and other equipment.

 

[DogDay]

Went to the local independent dealer today. Looks like my target will be a Jotul F3 CB.

 

[bholler]

Putting a heavily radiant woodstove in a room surrounded in glass will not give you very good results. I don't think the f3 have a convective jacket so unless I am wrong it is a radiant stove. And radiant heat will pass right through that glass