Can I have your opinion on which stove/location would work best.

[Ride]

Hello all,

This is a great site, I've been reading and learning a ton, but I'd still like to hear some opinions on my situation. I'm looking to add a couple of
woodstoves to my house this year, my oil bill has been out of control and I'd like some opinions on which stove/location would work best.

My living room is 20x12, and I have a 20x7 hallway that connects to a cathedral ceiling kitchen. at the corner of the livingroom / hallway is a staircase that
leads to the upstairs bedrooms(2) this staircase has a ceiling fan at the top. I've narrowed it down to two stoves and two spots to place the stoves, and I'd
like to hear opinions on which stove/location would work the best.

My goals are to heat the livingroom and bedrooms, but I don't want to heat the living room so much I can't sit there and watch TV.

Spot one stove one:
Jotul oslo 500 in the hallway next to the staircase, this spot is close to the kitchen and is also right in front of a large sliding glass door.

Spot two stove two:
quadra-fire 4300 in the corner of the livingroom, across from the staircase.

I choose these stoves after reading tons of reviews, I need a stove I can burn over night, and provide enough heat to keep us warm and toasty
and both of these seem like they fit that bill.

So a couple of questions that I have are; will the quadra-fire be too hot for the livingroom and make it too uncomfortable to sit there? Will the jotul lose
too much heat next to the kitchen, staircase and large sliding glass door and not provide use with enough heat?

The house located in Central New Hampshire and is pretty new and well insulated and the kitchen and the floor above it will be heated by another wood stove located
in the basement on that side of the house.

Any and all opinions welcome, and since I'm sure I didn't cover everything any quesitons are also welcome. Thanks in advance to anyone taking the time
to reply.

 

[BotetourtSteve]

Sounds like the location of the 500 will allow heat to rise up the stairs, which is a good thing if you want to heat all of your house obviously, and sounds like the 4300 will put heat upstairs too (not sure of exact plan but going on what you describe) - it might get real warm upstairs?! The only thing I question is your woodburning experience and time you have. You are jumping in with two stoves, and different brands to boot, so you will have different operating quirks to learn for each. Plus you are going to need to obtain a lot of wood, bring a lot of wood into house, clean out a lot of ashes, more dust, etc, etc.. Just hope you know that it takes some commitment to having a stove, much less having 2. I was raised in a wood-burning home, and have burned wood on my own for the past 11 years or so, and I really enjoy everything about woodburning including fooling with the wood and with the stove, but I don't know how excited I would be with 2 stoves - I have one big one that keeps me busy enough. You can see what I think about going overboard on things with the slogan I have posted on my signature line. Good luck on your decisions!

 

[begreen]

Welcome Ride. What is the total sq ftg of the house? Am I reading this correctly, is the intent to be running 3 stoves all winter? If yes, I would very seriously consider another alternative, maybe a wood fired boiler or furnace as a much easier to maintain system that can be zoned for better comfort and control.

 

[Ride]

Thanks for the replies so far,

Looks like I didn't explain myself very well. I'm only looking to run one stove in this part of the house. I'm trying to pick between the two stoves I mentioned, and which location would be better.

 

[begreen]

OK, that sounds a bit more manageable. Can you post a basic diagram of the floor layout? That would help us visualize the setup better. Cathedral ceilings increase the heated space cubic footage greatly. I would lean towards an even bigger stove regardless of location, but will wait to see the layout. How will the stove be burning, 24/7 (with someone there to tend it) or evenings and weekends?