Half a duplex, unfinished basement, what to do...

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GunnyTbear

New Member
Apr 20, 2021
2
Pennsylvania
Hello all, reaching out for some advice. The wife wants a wood pellet stove and I'm looking into options. We have an unfinished basement we were planning to put it in. This is the only space we have available. Other than the basement, there are two floors. I've read some of you have vents and blowers. Which sound like really good ideas, as we want to use the pellet stove as the primary heat source. We want to get away from the oil heat we had been using (prices are a big reason, environmental is another). Any advice for a first time buyer?
 
Welcome to the forum First a pellet stove is a space heater, not a central furnace!
Some people do well heating with just a stove for others it is a disaster.
For fully heat, the whole house a pellet furnace is your best option
Others will chime in
 
Unfinished basement walls will suck up alot of the heat conventional pellet stoves puts out. So keep that and your transference of the remaining heat to the other levels of the home in mind.
 
The above advice is sound. Also consider, never ever, put on paper that you consider the pellet stove as your main source of heat. You insurance will not allow it. A pellet furnace is another story.
Also consider that while you might see others posting what they have done to get heat from a basement, in most cases it is against NFPA code or just as likely against local codes to cut a vent from the basement or another level to move heat/air unless it is totally enclosed in duct work. It's a fire hazard.
If you have an older dwelling with vents built in originally your insurance may allow it, but that is doubtful.
Staying warm is one thing, safety should always be your priority when dealing with supplemental heating appliances.
 
How well is your house insulated? Also the design of your house makes a difference in even the possibility of heating your home. Corn/pellet stove is my primary source of heat and will heat our two story farm house (upstairs gets closed off when temps drop below zero). Granted we have fans in about every room of the house. Some designs would not allow you to reasonably heat parts of the house.

Check your insurance and laws like mentioned. Above all install it right and KEEP UP ON THE MAINTANCE for a safe warm source of heat.
 
Been there, done that, see pics
 
This thread Don?

 
Hello all, reaching out for some advice. The wife wants a wood pellet stove and I'm looking into options. We have an unfinished basement we were planning to put it in. This is the only space we have available. Other than the basement, there are two floors. I've read some of you have vents and blowers. Which sound like really good ideas, as we want to use the pellet stove as the primary heat source. We want to get away from the oil heat we had been using (prices are a big reason, environmental is another). Any advice for a first time buyer?
UPDATE: So, we have oil heat currently (blasphemous, I know) and it has the water heat registers. Has anyone gotten a configuration to work with that? It's just a lot of pipe and, to be honest, I'm not sure I'd be able to pipe a duct from the basement to both floors. First floor would be easy, second would be a lot harder. Our registers are the baseboard heaters, if that helps any.
 
UPDATE: So, we have oil heat currently (blasphemous, I know) and it has the water heat registers. Has anyone gotten a configuration to work with that? It's just a lot of pipe and, to be honest, I'm not sure I'd be able to pipe a duct from the basement to both floors. First floor would be easy, second would be a lot harder. Our registers are the baseboard heaters, if that helps any.
Have a look at this thread