Advise Needed - One verses Two Wood Stoves

[Jennifer]

We are planning to add a wood stove to our house. It would be both to supplement existing heat source (geothermal) and as a backup when we loose power (live way out in the country and it happens more than we would like). We have a reverse two story house (1660 both levels, total 3320) - living area is upstairs and the bedrooms with common room downstairs in a finished walkout basement. Also to note, in the winter it is currently warmer by a few degrees downstairs than up (I think this is unexpected, but the case). It is a new house (2 years old) with good insulation and windows.

So what we are trying to decide after speaking with wood stove dealer is: Do we put one large stove downstairs centrally located in the common room? Or do we have a small stove downstairs and a second upstairs? The dealer is recommending one large downstairs saying that it will heat the entire house. But our concern is that downstairs would be too hot while upstairs is still too cool. Any information/advise would be welcome. Thanks.

 

[MaineMike100]

IMO two stoves would provide for more ease of control to get the comfort you would like in each area. No matter what system of fans, vents etc. is used to distribute the heat, you can plan on the room with the stove being warmer than the other areas. Most people seem to like the bedrooms slightly cooler than the "living" area of the house, so it seems that you would be working backwards to try to heat the entire house with a stove on the bedroom floor.

That being said, two stoves does involve a little more work keeping them going, cleanup, etc. So I would say it's a question of how much inconvinience you're willing to endure to make the temp. more comfortable and closer to what you consider optimum.

 

[woodconvert]

author="Jennifer" date="1230663869"] We have a reverse two story house

...so you walk around on the ceilings?...

Two stoves is certainly doable but without seeing a layout it's a tough call to make. Woodstoves are not ideal for even heating..it's just the nature of the beast. I'd put a stove where stove where you spend the most of your time. IF your layout is condusive to placing one stove downstairs and letting the heat come up (either by itself or forcing it) that sounds like a good idea. You've got a walkout to bring wood in and ash out versus having to bring wood to two locations, remove ash from two locations, maintenance on two stoves, etc.. It may be hotter than you want in that one area but trust me, you'll adjust to it and become like a cat where you just lay around next to the stove all day .

 

[Adios Pantalones]

I was going to say what Woodconvert did about more stoves being more chimney sweeping, install cost, etc. If one is very occasional use then it's simplified quite a bit- but still more expense. Having both be smaller means that you won't be heating as much of the house under most conditions- when one is running only.

My vote would be for one downstairs if the heat can be moved.

 

[trafick]

Hey Jennifer,

I just wrestled with the same question. I have a wood stove in my walk out basement and a fireplace on the main floor. I wanted something that heated the main floor better than the fireplace does so I was thinking about putting a wood stove in the fireplace.

Then we got to thinking about how often we would use it (mostly for back-up heat when the wood stove in the basement couldn't cut it), hauling wood upstairs for it, having two fires to tend to (sometimes one is a real PITA), two different lengths of wood, etc. and decided on a gas stove. Although I do miss the fireplace, the gas stove is the best of both worlds, heats the main floor and is very convenient. Push a button and you have heat.

 

[gpcollen1]

I think folks mentioned most of the stuff I will but this is me - just got a second stove from a member here. I have my large Olympic installed once again back downstairs after trying the Castine there for a month or so. I need the large stove because of the amount of heat that it puts out in the coldest months but also for the extended burn time. A smaller firebox will leave nothing to get the fire started back up - so coming home from work stinks. I have almost completed the install of the Castine in the upstairs fireplace. I will burn that one when I feel like it as I can have small fires when I have time and I can run it full out during the colder months.

Yes there will be cost associated with 2 stoves - including labor - but it really may work better in the long run. I may go to a Wood Furnace or Boiler eventually to do the entire house with one unit but for now, 2 units seems to be the way to go. And once they are lit - is tending one stove really that much harder [or as much fun] as tending to 2??

The issue I think you will have with only one stove is that when you do lose power, you will not get the heat and flexibility you desire. I would go with 2 - size them appropriately and let em rip.

 

[wellbuilt home]

I would try to get 1 large stove to heat the house . Dragging wood around in the house is hard and you have a mess every where . I like to keep the stove buy the door next to the fire wood pile . where i can split wood and dump a truck . I have a hearthstone Equinox , its heating my house no problem down to 15o , both floors . My basement never get below 50 . The biggest advantage is you can load a large stove twice a day. 2 small stoves will give more even heat , you can burn the stove hot all the time. The soap stone stoves are great and burn hot and long But they seem to be having warranty issues all of a sudden and cant wholeheartedly recommend them . John

 

[bokehman]

I'm thinking of having a couple of HiFi's installed in my house (one in the basement and one on the first floor). The salesman told me I only need one in the basement though because if I really turn up the volume I should be able to hear it OK on the first floor (especially if I add a few acoustic ducts to pipe the sound around the house). I'm worried though that the high volume may cause annoyance to those using the basement and they might turn it down to the point where I can no longer hear it upstairs. What do you think I should do, follow my instincts or, listen to someone that doesn't live in my home?

 

[savageactor7]

Jennifer if you haven't burned wood before you could solicit some opinions from friends and neighbors that burn wood. Their personal experience will help determine the heating requirements. Another consideration is do you have a free source of wood? if you haven't done this before it's a big step.

 

[jadm]

Lots of ideas so I'll add mine too since I am here.

Install one downstairs that is big - that way you can build a big fire or a small fire according to your needs. See how you like it and all of the work involved for one winter. See if it throws off enough heat to heat the upstairs - you will probably be surprised. Then, from your own experience, you will know what better to do with your upstairs living space. You can always add another stove later on down the line.

THe soapstone stoves throw off gentle heat and heat for hours after the fire has burned down which might help with keeping the stove room more temperature comfortable for you.

Have fun with whatever you end up doing and keep us posted. :coolsmile:

 

[RonB]

I have a large Quad stove in the walkout basement (1000sf, remainder of basement is garage 500sf) and am able to comfortably heat the main floor area above the basement (1500sf) in any kind of weather, even -20. However, the basement temp is generally 80-85 in order for the main floor to be 74-77. I also have open floor plan/stairs for natural heat convection and occasionally run the furnace blower to average up the temps in the bedrooms on main floor. I doubt that you would be able to use the common room downstairs at all (and even the bedrooms if they are shut off) if you install only one large stove. How about one stove in the basement sized to that area and therefore a cooler upstairs? Would that work? Or let the geothermal heat the upstairs (they are efficient) and use the wood in the basement? Or vice-versa? Where does your family spend the majority of your time? Take the time and think this one through. There are a couple of possibilities.

 

[Jennifer]

wellbuilt home wrote - Dragging wood around in the house is hard and you have a mess every where . I like to keep the stove buy the door next to the fire wood pile . where i can split wood and dump a truck . I have a hearthstone Equinox , its heating my house no problem down to 15o , both floors . My basement never get below 50 . The biggest advantage is you can load a large stove twice a day. 2 small stoves will give more even heat , you can burn the stove hot all the time.

Not a problem for me as both possible stove locations are conveniently located by outside doors with wood storing areas outside.

I am getting the idea that one big stove will be easier to deal with, but two small stoves are going to give me better heat control, more comfort. About right?

 

[Jennifer]

Jennifer if you haven't burned wood before you could solicit some opinions from friends and neighbors that burn wood. Their personal experience will help determine the heating requirements. Another consideration is do you have a free source of wood? if you haven't done this before it's a big step.

We have plenty of free wood in the woods out back so that is not a cost, just time.

 

[smokinj]

with that sq ft if it was me and money not tight I would go with a med. size down stairs and a large one up stairs!

 

[MishMouse]

Since you have so much space to heat.
How about one of those outdoor boilers?

 

[jdemaris]

The dealer is recommending one large downstairs saying that it will heat the entire house. But our concern is that downstairs would be too hot while upstairs is still too cool. Any information/advise would be welcome. Thanks.

Having mulitple fires can be both confusing and wasteful with wood. We (my wife and I) do it now and then, but for different reasons. We have a sprawling farmhouse with one hot-air oil furnace, one hot-air wood furnace, two wood stoves, a Rumsford fireplace, a wood fired bake oven, and two wood cooking stoves.

Some houses are close to impossible to heat evenly without piped hot water or forced air. But, maybe you can add a heat-passage grille/vent in the ceiling above the downstairs woodstove. Old houses often had them, but not common in newer homes with central heating systems. We have one large grille in several rooms upstairs, so the heat can travel up directly.

 

[ScottF]

My vote would be to do both options. I would put one larger one downstairs and a smaller one upstairs (This of course is if you can afford both) that way you burn whichever one you like or you can burn both. If you like to burn both just make a smaller fire in the larger one. If you choose to burn one make a larger fire in the bigger one. Options is the key

 

[BrotherBart]

My vote is a medium sized stove downstairs to start with. It will heat the area that includes the sleeping quarters without roasting you out. For the time being some heat will find its way upstairs. After you give the stove down stairs a try and get into the wood burning groove, if it is doing the job downstairs alright then look at another of the same size upstairs. If the one in the downstairs isn't roasting you out and you need more heat down there then replace it with a larger stove and move the medium sized one upstairs. Take this in steps instead of eating the elephant in one sitting.

 

[wellbuilt home]

Hi jen . there is really no such thing as free wood . You will be surprised how fast the trees in your yard will go. If you start to cut down live trees, you will get stuck with the stumps & branches . I only cut dead trees . It takes a long time and lots of labor to turn a live tree into BTUS (heat ). My wife only sees the work once the wood hits the back door of the house . I would start burning one stove and see how it gos . It is easy to burn most of the time and save some bucks . Heating 24/7 takes much more work . I turned my gas heater off years ago , the stove was always cold when i came home from work , so if every one wants to be warm they need to feed the stove . My wife works at home and has a daycare in the house . The kids love to stack wood . I have three large sons and a construction company with laborers and still The wood thing is lots of work . My house is well over 3000sf and i have rooms i don't heat when its cold . Some rooms will be hotter then others but no one is going to freeze . My bed room is up stairs and its 28 x 20 and i keep the door closed day and night Its always around 60o + John

 

[Wet1]

Jen,
I have to agree regarding the wood concerns. Adding a wood stove sounds great, but it takes a LOT of work to harvest your own wood. It sounds like you have the property (you'll probably want/need about 10+ acres), but please realize how much work it will take to cut, split, deliver, and stack the wood to the house, and then again to feed the stove(s). Heating an area that large with wood can require a lot of wood. Plan on handling each piece of wood several times before it's finally in the stove burning. Also keep in mind the seasoning requirements, you need to have wood cut, split, and seasoning now to be ready for this time next year. Ideally you want to start off by building your initial wood supply so you're always a couple of years ahead. Like i said, it takes a lot more work than most people realize... and it seems like the process never ends.

With that said, I'd suggest going with a wood boiler because of your unique layout. If you want to use stoves, I'd suggest using a med. to large stove in the lower level and see how that works out before jumping to two stoves. I think you'd have more consistent heating with two stoves, but I'd see how it goes with a single stove and then go from there. It's easy enough to add a second stove later if you feel you need it.

BTW, expect to see temps about 10° (+/- a few degrees) cooler upstairs using only a single stove.

Good luck!

 

[mcollect]

I also have an upside down home. the lower level has in floor heat, as does the upstairs, but I installed a fireplace insert upstairs. Now the upstairs is a comply 73+ degrees and the bedrooms are at only 68. I love the living areas being really warm, the bedrooms are for sleeping and 65 would be sufficient. This is my first winter heating the living areas with wood and we love it! Heat has not come on at all this year upstairs, basement only on occasion. If you have a fireplace on the upper floor try an insert. By the way the upstairs is mostly glass and before the insert it was cold.

 

[beau5278]

Normally for a house that big,I would suggest 2 stoves but if I understand your layout correctly,I'd try it with one big stove in your great room.I don't think that it'll roast you out of the bedrooms but seeing that heat rises,it should raise the temps in the upstairs living area some.Does your great room have a high ceiling?How much of the upstairs living area isdirectly above the great room?

 

[jotul8e2]

From a purely investment standpoint, if you already have a groundsource heat pump any savings from wood heat will take, literally, a lifetime to recoup. Your next dollar would be better spent on upgrading windows, doors, and especially insulation. Remember, those three save money in both the heating AND cooling seasons.

Since I also feed two wood burning stoves occasionally (one in the house, one in the shop - which thankfully I don't run 24/7), I guess I am sort of qualified to voice an opinion. It gets to be a chore. And the wood consumption has to be seen to be believed. When sitting in the family room, reading, working, wasting time on Hearth.com, or watching tv, occasionally messing with the fire is something I enjoy. To have to go check on another fire from time to time, carry in more wood, clean out the ashes, etc. is not fun.

If your objective is to merely provide a warm place for the family to gather, while providing an emergency backup heat source, I would second the view that you might try a stove in the lower level first and see how you get along; something with a firebox of 2 1/2 cubic feet, give or take. It may well provide most of your heat in all but the coldest days, should always keep the room it is in (a greatroom if I understand it?) plenty warm, and being in the lower level it should keep the plumbing above freezing even in an extended power outage.

Mark

 

[Jimbob]

I would go with 2 small wood stoves. This way you can run one or both, as needed. Bokehmon said it best above, with his stereo analogy.
You could go with 2 matching stoves, of you could change it up a bit, and have 2 different brands.
There are a few members in here who run 2 stoves.
I don't think you would need med or large wood stoves since it doesn't get that cold there.
Hope this helps.

 

[snowtime]

We installed our T6 right next to the stairs. The convection works great and both floors are heated to our satisfaction. What I wanted to add to this discussion was we like cool bedrooms. The upstairs hallway heats up quite a bit but the bedrooms only heat up past 60f if we leave the doors open. So if you want your down stairs bedrooms to stay cool you could probably just leave the doors closed. Put the stove right next to the stairs and the heat should go up no problem. This does not work if you have narrow stairs or they have a door or other obstruction. If you put the stove upstairs it would not take much from your current heating system to take care of downstairs. Either way you can make this work the one thing I vote for is 1 stove unless you want to put in a cookstove. This would be 1 stove downstairs and one cookstove in the kitchen but I realize this will not be the answer for someone not burning 24/7.