Blaze King Princess big enough?

[SWmt]

Hello all, I am new to this forum and am eager to contribute. Today I have a question regarding whether or not a Blaze King Princess will be sufficient to meet my heating needs.

Here's what I've got going on:

I live in a pretty cold spot at close to 6,000 feet in Montana, and it drops to -20 several times a year. I currently heat with a gas forced-air furnace and a Breckwell Blazer insert pellet stove. During the winter time (especially when temps drop below -20) it can be quite costly keeping the house at a reasonable temperature. The pellet insert does well most days, but when you get real far below zero for multiple days you absolutely crank through the pellets to keep up. To augment/establish better primary heat I am looking at installing a wood burner in the basement and then venting it up to the main floor (could also use the vent function on the furnace as it is in the same room that I would put the wood burner).

The house is rather large; the basement is probably 500 sq ft at 8' ceilings, main floor is probably 1900 sq ft with 8' ceilings and the top floor is probably 800 sq ft with dormer-style ceilings-the hallway is probably at 8' as are the peaks in the rooms, but there is probably a full 1/3 less volume of space as a traditional 8' ceiling due to steepness of the roof and dormers. This top area is generally unoccupied.

I have great access to good firewood and used to sell the stuff, so there is no issue there. I am just curious if the Princess would do enough to help in this situation or if it would be better to go with the King. The downside to the King, of course, would be a very long exterior stove pipe and a much higher material cost/install as it requires an 8" flue. As noted above the house heats decent with the pellet insert but we really go through them. But when we hit -30 or worse even with the gas furnace things don't stay very comfortable. Is the Princess up to the task?

Thanks you all!

 

[bholler]

Hello all, I am new to this forum and am eager to contribute. Today I have a question regarding whether or not a Blaze King Princess will be sufficient to meet my heating needs.

Here's what I've got going on:

I live in a pretty cold spot at close to 6,000 feet in Montana, and it drops to -20 several times a year. I currently heat with a gas forced-air furnace and a Breckwell Blazer insert pellet stove. During the winter time (especially when temps drop below -20) it can be quite costly keeping the house at a reasonable temperature. The pellet insert does well most days, but when you get real far below zero for multiple days you absolutely crank through the pellets to keep up. To augment/establish better primary heat I am looking at installing a wood burner in the basement and then venting it up to the main floor (could also use the vent function on the furnace as it is in the same room that I would put the wood burner).

The house is rather large; the basement is probably 500 sq ft at 8' ceilings, main floor is probably 1900 sq ft with 8' ceilings and the top floor is probably 800 sq ft with dormer-style ceilings-the hallway is probably at 8' as are the peaks in the rooms, but there is probably a full 1/3 less volume of space as a traditional 8' ceiling due to steepness of the roof and dormers. This top area is generally unoccupied.

I have great access to good firewood and used to sell the stuff, so there is no issue there. I am just curious if the Princess would do enough to help in this situation or if it would be better to go with the King. The downside to the King, of course, would be a very long exterior stove pipe and a much higher material cost/install as it requires an 8" flue. As noted above the house heats decent with the pellet insert but we really go through them. But when we hit -30 or worse even with the gas furnace things don't stay very comfortable. Is the Princess up to the task?

Thanks you all!

What is the btu rating of your pellet stove vs the princess?

 

[SWmt]

What is the btu rating of your pellet stove vs the princess?

up to 50,000, so comparable. It would be run in conjunction with the princess most of the time.

 

[Highbeam]

So are you considering a princess insert or freestanding? You mention a king requiring an extrerior chimney so are we to assume that you already have an unused 6" flue in the basement suitable for the princess?

What are you really asking? Would the princess help your other heaters? Of course. All wood being burned becomes heat in your home. Would the princess be able to heat the house alone? That seems to be too much to ask if the furnace plus 50k pellet stove can't do it very well.

 

[SWmt]

So are you considering a princess insert or freestanding? You mention a king requiring an extrerior chimney so are we to assume that you already have an unused 6" flue in the basement suitable for the princess?

What are you really asking? Would the princess help your other heaters? Of course. All wood being burned becomes heat in your home. Would the princess be able to heat the house alone? That seems to be too much to ask if the furnace plus 50k pellet stove can't do it very well.

The princess would be freestanding and would be run in the basement. The pellet insert would remain in place as well and they would be run together.

Both installations would require an exterior chimney, the main difference is the cost for 8" vs 6"; for materials alone to do the King with the 8" would be around $3k more than the Princess.

And as to heating the house alone it would have the help of the pellet insert most of the time. We just crank through a ton of pellets in the winter at 4+ tons last year so we are looking to alleviate that as well as reduce our gas bill. If you have experience with either do you think it would be worth springing the extra cash for the King as opposed to the Princess? Would there be enough heating gain to justify the price?

 

[Highbeam]

The princess would be freestanding and would be run in the basement. The pellet insert would remain in place as well and they would be run together.

Both installations would require an exterior chimney, the main difference is the cost for 8" vs 6"; for materials alone to do the King with the 8" would be around $3k more than the Princess.

And as to heating the house alone it would have the help of the pellet insert most of the time. We just crank through a ton of pellets in the winter at 4+ tons last year so we are looking to alleviate that as well as reduce our gas bill. If you have experience with either do you think it would be worth springing the extra cash for the King as opposed to the Princess? Would there be enough heating gain to justify the price?

Got it. The woodstove will definitely boost your comfort and save on other fuels and the BK system makes an excellent basement stove because that thermostat allows it to self regulate output for long burns. This is also one of those installations where you can choose your output level to hit a certain reload time like 12 or 24 or 36 hours for convenience since your other heat sources fill in to keep the house warm.

I would definitely install the king if the price of pipe was the same. Also, the 8" pipe is not only very expensive but really only good for that one stove and maybe a couple of other lesser stoves. The huge majority of stoves are 6" flue. I worry about it being a waste.

From the basement you might also consider one of the two wood furnace options. Automated, ducted to the living space, air filtration, noncat, and people seem to love them. You do need electricity though.

Some people have great luck heating from the basement with a stove and some have a hard time getting that heat to spread.

 

[SWmt]

Got it. The woodstove will definitely boost your comfort and save on other fuels and the BK system makes an excellent basement stove because that thermostat allows it to self regulate output for long burns. This is also one of those installations where you can choose your output level to hit a certain reload time like 12 or 24 or 36 hours for convenience since your other heat sources fill in to keep the house warm.

I would definitely install the king if the price of pipe was the same. Also, the 8" pipe is not only very expensive but really only good for that one stove and maybe a couple of other lesser stoves. The huge majority of stoves are 6" flue. I worry about it being a waste.

From the basement you might also consider one of the two wood furnace options. Automated, ducted to the living space, air filtration, noncat, and people seem to love them. You do need electricity though.

Some people have great luck heating from the basement with a stove and some have a hard time getting that heat to spread.

Thank you, that response was extremely helpful. And I agree about a wood furnace in the basement. We actually have a Royal 8150 sitting down there right now that is unused. There’s only really one guy in about a 300 mile radius of where we live who installs and services them though. Long story short, he told us what a great deal they are and I’m sure he’s right. However it has sat in our basement for three winters and he can’t seem to find the time to make any progress on the project, so we are having to go a different route and sell the 8150 unit. We would prefer that option, but the issue is getting anyone to install it correctly, and it would take some creative ductwork.

 

[BKVP]

Howdy. I would suggest some more information on RValue, are basement walls insulated, regardless of King or Princess, is the chimney going to go up the side of the house?

Our experience is the King is best suited for straight up and out when installed in a basement.

The number one selling model in the interior of Alaska has always been the Princess. It can get and stay -50 or colder for extended periods in Fairbanks.

The King is more costly, the 8" system is more costly and running up the side out of a basement, you may have to build a chase and insulate the chimney to stay warm.

BKVP

 

[SWmt]

Howdy. I would suggest some more information on RValue, are basement walls insulated, regardless of King or Princess, is the chimney going to go up the side of the house?

Our experience is the King is best suited for straight up and out when installed in a basement.

The number one selling model in the interior of Alaska has always been the Princess. It can get and stay -50 or colder for extended periods in Fairbanks.

The King is more costly, the 8" system is more costly and running up the side out of a basement, you may have to build a chase and insulate the chimney to stay warm.

BKVP

Thanks for the reply; the basement is just concrete but is completely underground except for maybe the top 10" (frost line around here runs pretty deep). And the pipe will have to go up the side of the house. Leaning more towards the Princess based on price alone and the fact that we already have the pellet stove upstairs to augment the heat. Since the basement is not fully finished there is no drywall on the ceiling and only subfloor and then oak on top of that which separates the two levels of the house. Hoping that heat will soak through with relative ease as there is a wide stairwell that goes to the basement for a cold air return.

 

[bholler]

Thanks for the reply; the basement is just concrete but is completely underground except for maybe the top 10" (frost line around here runs pretty deep). And the pipe will have to go up the side of the house. Leaning more towards the Princess based on price alone and the fact that we already have the pellet stove upstairs to augment the heat. Since the basement is not fully finished there is no drywall on the ceiling and only subfloor and then oak on top of that which separates the two levels of the house. Hoping that heat will soak through with relative ease as there is a wide stairwell that goes to the basement for a cold air return.

With an uninsulated basement you will be loosing about 1/3 of the btus put out by the stove to the surrounding earth

 

[begreen]

Addressing the heat loss of the house may be the best investment.

 

[EbS-P]

Have you considered a wood furnace in the basement. You have forced hot air correct? Cost wise it may be a bit more that a stove but capacity wise it’s probably higher and could save $$ on pellets.

Insulation saved money and fuel. Air sealing is cheap, but time consuming.

Do you have decent access to the basement to bring in the amount of wood you plan on burning?

 

[EatenByLimestone]

I’d look at adding insulation and air sealing too. Adding similar dollar amounts to insulate the house would transform your living experience.

 

[SWmt]

Have you considered a wood furnace in the basement. You have forced hot air correct? Cost wise it may be a bit more that a stove but capacity wise it’s probably higher and could save $$ on pellets.

Insulation saved money and fuel. Air sealing is cheap, but time consuming.

Do you have decent access to the basement to bring in the amount of wood you plan on burning?

We actually have a Royall 8150 unit in our basement that was for that purpose. Unfortunately the only guy within 300 miles who installs them and services wood forced air furnaces left us high and dry. Promised big things when we first talked to him and bought the thing 2.5 years ago but since then zero progress and won't return our calls. So if you know anyone who is looking for a wood furnace its for sale, and we're looking to offload it cheap.

And as for access for wood we have the old coal chute which goes right to the woodpile, so that shouldn't be an issue. Currently have 8 cords of pine.

 

[SWmt]

I’d look at adding insulation and air sealing too. Adding similar dollar amounts to insulate the house would transform your living experience.

Thanks! we have added insulation where we could so far, but a large portion of the house has generous amounts of vermiculite that we don't want to disturb. Honestly it's pretty well insulated with good newer windows, just a large space with a very large attached garage.

 

[EatenByLimestone]

Makes sense with the vermiculite. It was the Montana mine with the asbestos, so odds are you’ve got the vermiculite from that mine.