Are soap stone stoves worth the money?

[woodgeek]

A little tempting never hurt. Actually, the point is that until you run one you will never know the difference. It's hard to imagine when the flue is 900, the fire has been raging for like 30 minutes, and heat is burning your knees through the windows that you can place your hand on the cool stovetop.

Woodgeek's post demonstrates that you just don't know until you try one. It stays warm for hours after the fire goes out, not minutes. I have actually owned both and experienced the difference.

As I said, haven't burned the stove--but physics is physics. I checked my maths, started in thread I mentioned. Looks like the specific heat of soapstone is 0.25 BTU/lbF, vs 0.12 for steel. So a ss stove will store twice as much heat as a steel stove of the same mass. For a big 500 lb ss stove, swinging 300F, the stored heat is ~38 kBTU, about 30 minutes of peak output, or one hour of average output. For a steel stove, halve these numbers. So, draft issues aside, a ss should be 20-30 minutes slower on startup than steel, and will release that heat later in the cycle for the same nominal total heat per cycle. Whether this is desirable or not is in the eye of the beholder.

I guess my point is that a lot of the message about the ss stoves is even-even-even heat. That steel stove thar will blow you out of the room, but my rock will just keep you comfortable for hours. I'm not buying it. In the end, all the BTUs end up in your living space--and in the end the heat storage of your house is way bigger than that of your stove. If you are getting too hot in your stove room, you should work on your layout and heat distribution first, rather than dropping change to get a 'magic' stove that can supposedly store hours of heat.

 

[lazeedan]

I have heated with both. We don't regret spending the money on a rock. We are very pleased with the soapstone. I would do it again.

 

[hotpellet]

I am currently looking at a Hearthstone wood stove and am looking for some opinions. Are these stoves that much better than a regular wood stove? I am trying to switch out an old stove I have been burning for years with something more efficient. any thoughts would be welcomed. Thanks in advance.

 

[Wet1]

Where's bigg redd?

 

[Slow1]

Like everything it is a personal decision. Soapstone stoves burn a bit differently but I'm not sure they are any more efficient. You can get very efficient steel or cast stoves as well. EPA efficiency numbers are not what you need to compare with as they frankly don't really mean a whole lot. Almost all the current "EPA2" stoves are rather close in the efficiency range if you burn them well and with the right wood.

Now where the soapstone does have it's value is that it helps to even out the spikes and valleys in the burn cycle. Anyone who goes into burning needs to understand (something that frankly I didn't) that burning is a cycle. You start out with nothing, then get really hot, then there is a lower stage of coaling, then it goes down and you add more wood when a new spike in heat output comes along and the cycle starts all over again. The heat holding capacity of the stove will even out these spikes to a large degree - the greater the amount of heat the burning appliance can hold the more it evens it out - lowers the peaks and raises the valleys. So the basic steel stove of old (with no firebricks at all) would have massive peaks in output and rapid valleys. The other extreme is the huge masonary heaters that weigh tons and have extremely dull peaks and heat all day once warmed up. For stove land the soapstone is the greatest leveler currently in the general market.

The other way to even out the peaks and valleys is to change the way the fire is burned - i.e. go with a Cat vs Non-Cat stove. Basically get a clean burn at a lower temp for a longer time with the cat stove. You can do this in a non-soapstone stove or soapstone.

Another benefit (subjective of course) is the appearance of the stone. Many folks simply like the way they look more than steel or cast stoves. Some folks don't. Downside of soapstone is the weight - best have buddies or a pro carry that baby into your house!

 

[edthedawg]

hotpellet,

I'm a stone runner and there's no way for me to say what I have is best for you. Way too subjective. It's not love/hate (in most cases) so I highly encourage you to read all the reviews you can for the stoves that meet your design criteria and your budget, and develop your own opinion. good luck!

 

[ckdeuce]

I'll let you know in a week or so... Just picked up a new Hearthstone Mansfield yesterday!! Woooo!! I have to get the new chimney set up, but then we will be all fired up. I can't wait to see the first burn.

 

[hotpellet]

Thanks for all your input. I am looking hard at the big equinox stove by hearthstone, 120,000 BTUs! It seems to me like it is the biggest and best looking stove out there, and I really like the idea of the stone radiating heat after the fire goes out, hopefully keeping me from getting up in the middle of the night to put more wood in! Thanks again for your input.

 

[Slow1]

That is one seriously big rock!

How much space you planning on heating with it?

 

[Backwoods Savage]

I'll let you know in a week or so... Just picked up a new Hearthstone Mansfield yesterday!! Woooo!! I have to get the new chimney set up, but then we will be all fired up. I can't wait to see the first burn.

ckdeuce, congratulations on your new stove but there is no way you will be able to tell much after only a week at this time of the year. Wait until mid or late January before making snap judgments! I hope it works out great for you.

 

[Backwoods Savage]

I am currently looking at a Hearthstone wood stove and am looking for some opinions. Are these stoves that much better than a regular wood stove? I am trying to switch out an old stove I have been burning for years with something more efficient. any thoughts would be welcomed. Thanks in advance.

Although I've not heard of it with Hearthstone stoves, the Woodstock stoves definitely burn much less wood and are definitely worth it. We burn half the wood we used to burn and stay much warmer. We also don't have much in the way of peaks and valleys in our heat. We like a more even heat in the house if possible.

Good luck.

 

[hotpellet]

I just bought a converted barn that is post and beam, it has a great room with a 25ft ceiling hieght, the total square footage is roughly 4,000, but 1,500 sqft is down stairs. It currently has a huge old stove that has no name on it, kinda looks like a glorified home made stove. The wife does not like the looks of it and I dont think it will be very effiecient at all. The equinox looks like a toy I got to have.

 

[Slow1]

The equinox looks like a toy I got to have.

Sometimes that says it all now doesn't it?

If the wife likes the looks of it and will allow you to buy your toys, what else matters? The equinox is a beautiful stove and has a great reputation. It sounds like you have enough space to heat to justify its heating capacity so if you can afford the stove then what is left to ask? Is it worth the money to you is what matters. If you are looking minimize the dollars spent to get a heater into that space then there are other ways to do it, but as you just pointed out there are other factors to consider that don't show up on the financial calculations eh? Just don't go into debt over it and then ask me to bail you out directly or indirectly if you can't afford to service your debt.

 

[ckdeuce]

I'll let you know in a week or so... Just picked up a new Hearthstone Mansfield yesterday!! Woooo!! I have to get the new chimney set up, but then we will be all fired up. I can't wait to see the first burn.

ckdeuce, congratulations on your new stove but there is no way you will be able to tell much after only a week at this time of the year. Wait until mid or late January before making snap judgments! I hope it works out great for you.

HEY Don't you dare Wait til January!! Come on man..... I just got a new stove.. I'm so excited, I'm thinking of skipping the break-in fires and just going full bore! Woooo.....

Yeah, your right though.... I have never wanted cold weather sooo bad before. Guess I'll have to wait a bit.

 

[Backwoods Savage]

I hear you ckdeuce. But be very cautious with those break-in fires. Do the right thing. And don't make the mistake of burning all your wood before Christmas! lol Remember, we don't need all that much heat in the house before January.

 

[Fsappo]

I cant see any downside to a Hearthstone product, especially when heating wide open areas. We just started firing up the Mansfield in our showroom. What a pleasure to burn

 

[Highbeam]

Are they better than iron stoves. Yes, they have the added feature of the "heat life" which absorbs heat in the beginning and releases it after the fire dwindles. This feature might be a negative feature if you are the type of burner that starts a fire every night and wants to heat the house up in an hour. It is a great feature for the 24/7 burner that uses the stove for primary heat since it levels the peaks and provides a more constant, though lower, heat output level which isn't as harsh as a 900 degree iron stove.

Also, the equinox is unmatched in btu output. How many other stoves make 120,000btu? You will need an 8" flue though.

Another cool equinox feature is the side loading door. You will love this feature and you won't get it with an iron stove.

I will be honest, I like the looks of stone and that had a large part in my decision to buy a hearthstone. The castings aren't plain but they aren't overly ornate as some of the other brands. The stone is the cool part.

 

[hotpellet]

I have been burning wood for quite some time now and the Equinox is one of those stoves I have always liked and wish I had a place to put it, now that I have a place to put it, I just wanted to check before I purchase one today if anybody had something bad to say about these stoves. looks like my wallet will be a little lighter after tonight.

 

[Fsappo]

Do it and love it. It's rare to find an application where I can honestly tell a customer "The Equinox is the perfect stove for you" So I get excited when someone can really use one. I would love to have the kind of house that would warrant using a stove like that. Let us know how it works and congrats on buying a great stove

 

[hotpellet]

Thanks, I will post a few pics once installed this weekend.

 

[wendell]

Sounds like you are going to need to change you screen name!

I love stone stoves for the nice even heat and love the way they look but as others have said, looks are an individual thing. Surprised Redd hasn't been in to rain on the parade! ;-)

 

[jlow]

Installed the EQ last January. Our first stove and we did some research but were pretty much sold when we saw it. Couldn't be happier the way the radiant heat keeps our 2900 sq ft nice and toasty.

 

[afguy]

This is our 3rd year using our Mansfield and we still love it. The stones put out heat for a long time after the fire goes out, which is great, because if there's a lot of burning coal leftover, the 300 degree top gives me plenty of time to burn them off before adding more wood. I guess that makes it an efficient stove too, right?

 

[Bigg_Redd]

Are soap stone stoves worth the money?

No.

EDIT - Full disclosure: I hate the way SS stoves look and opening or closing the vents can largely obviate and "heat spikes" that the soap stone allegedly ameliorates.

 

[Fsappo]

Are soap stone stoves worth the money?

No.

+1 internet for that reply!