Englander 13 vs. 30 - 1250 sq ft bi-level

[NorthernNJ]

Hello, I would like to install a wood stove in my 1250 sq ft bi-level. The stove will live on the ground floor (slab) and with the help of a fan or two, the heat will hopefully permeate to the rest of the house. The room where the stove will run has 7" ceilings and is roughly 16x12. I am looking for help in a stove recommendation between the Englander 13 and 30. Any advice for my situation would be greatly appreciated. Thank you in advance.

-Jon

 

[DamienBricka]

Welcome to the forum Jon, I have a house about the same size as yours. Last year when I ask the forum I had many suggestion. All of them were good. I decide to go with a 3CuF box the Drolet Austral for several reasons.
1) Stove was on sale.
2) I wanted to be over sized in case I moved to a bigger home.
3) Since I was a beginner in wood burning I thought until I got the handle on it I would burn more wood then the season guy.

 

[NorthernNJ]

Welcome to the forum Jon, I have a house about the same size as yours. Last year when I ask the forum I had many suggestion. All of them were good. I decide to go with a 3CuF box the Drolet Austral for several reasons.
1) Stove was on sale.
2) I wanted to be over sized in case I moved to a bigger home.
3) Since I was a beginner in wood burning I thought until I got the handle on it I would burn more wood then the season guy.

Thank you Damien. This forum is amazing. I have a smaller sized bi-level and my only fear is I'm going to super heat the room. s its only 12x16 with 7 foot ceilings. I will hit some single digit nights but not too many in North NJ. I have oil heat but would like the stove to do most of the work if not all. My common sense says get the bigger one but I want to be able to hang out in the room it's in when it's burning. Thank you for your reply.

 

[DamienBricka]

overheating no you just make a smaller fire that is what someone suggest to me last year

 

[Dix]

Welcome to the forums, John !!

The major difference between the 30 & the 13 is burn times. The 13 is going to give you 4 - 6 hours max, but it's a serious heater when it's cranking. In a pinch, I've used mine to heat the whole house (2000 SF), when I've had to shut the PE down for maintenance.

The 30 gives you the option of smaller fires, and still maintaining the heat AND the extra fire power when you need it in temps like we've been having this past month.

Maybe a different stove with a bigger fire box than the 13? Depends on your ability to be able to reload.

Get ahead on your firewood, which ever stove you finally end up with, that's the key to a warm house !!

 

[begreen]

Note that Englander now makes an in between sized stove with easier hearth requirements called the Madison.
(broken link removed to http://www.amfmenergy.com/50masmheup18.html)

 

[Dix]

Note that Englander now makes an in between sized stove with easier hearth requirements called the Madison.
(broken link removed to http://www.amfmenergy.com/50masmheup18.html)

I'm all over that one.

Sell the 13, get the Madison, and sleep all night when it's 0F outside.

 

[bsruther]

I have a 30 in a 1000 sq ft house and it works perfectly for me. It would have been a huge mistake to have gotten a 13 and I don't think the madison would've cut it either.
It took a little time to figure out how to burn on moderately cold days without heating us out of the house, but once I got it down it became very easy to control house temps.
The only time that the 30 is just too much stove is when the daytime temps are in the 40s, but then those temps were also too high to use my old smaller insert as well.
The 30 really pulls it's weight when the temps are sub-zero. -6 when I got up this morning with the stove room at 73.

 

[begreen]

It all depends on the heat loss rate of the house. If insulation and sealing is poor then a larger stove can be warranted.

 

[NorthernNJ]

I have a 30 in a 1000 sq ft house and it works perfectly for me. It would have been a huge mistake to have gotten a 13 and I don't think the madison would've cut it either.
It took a little time to figure out how to burn on moderately cold days without heating us out of the house, but once I got it down it became very easy to control house temps.
The only time that the 30 is just too much stove is when the daytime temps are in the 40s, but then those temps were also too high to use my old smaller insert as well.
The 30 really pulls it's weight when the temps are sub-zero. -6 when I got up this morning with the stove room at 73.

Thank you for the response. I am going to go with the 30 for sure.