HELP! I want a med size wood stove for cooking and open-viewing

[pclafferty]

Does this monster exist? I have a 2,200 sq ft house, the bottom floor is 1,100. So I'm thinking most of these larger stoves would be too big. I'm having a hard time finding a wood stove that I can both cook on and have open-viewing. Any ideas? I live in Asheville, NC.

I've been looking at the Napoleon stoves but I can't tell if you can do open-viewing because they don't offer a screen.

 

[begreen]

Yes, there are many options. Why do you think most stoves would be too large? Will the stove be in a small room or is the bottom floor plan pretty open? Is the first floor plan open to the stairwell?

 

[Simonkenton]

Open viewing. I guess you mean you want to look at the fire with the doors open.
Have you seen one of these new wood stoves with the big glass doors? The view is fantastic.
I bought a Jotul F500 at that wood stove store near Mission Memorial, no need to burn with the doors open the view is so great.
Plus it doesn't work as efficiently with the doors open.

 

[pclafferty]

Yes, there are many options. Why do you think most stoves would be too large? Will the stove be in a small room or is the bottom floor plan pretty open? Is the first floor plan open to the stairwell?

It is a very open floor plan. The man at the store came by and told me that one of the large stoves would heat us out of the house.

 

[pclafferty]

Open viewing. I guess you mean you want to look at the fire with the doors open.
Have you seen one of these new wood stoves with the big glass doors? The view is fantastic.
I bought a Jotul F500 at that wood stove store near Mission Memorial, no need to burn with the doors open the view is so great.
Plus it doesn't work as efficiently with the doors open.

Yes, I would like to have it open sometimes. But most of the time it would be closed. We like the smell of a fire as well as the snap and crackle. The big glass doors is a must for us. Our priorities are: efficient heat source, wood burning, glass door, ability to have open-viewing, ability to cook on it. Am I asking too much?

 

[begreen]

It is a very open floor plan. The man at the store came by and told me that one of the large stoves would heat us out of the house.

That was my thought too. Your house sounds similar to ours and we are in a similar climate, though you might get a bit colder if you are higher up in the mountains. We have a 2000 sq ft house with a 3 cu ft stove that is excellent for cooking. Our stove is nicely sized for our house.

Our priorities are: efficient heat source, wood burning, glass door, ability to have open-viewing, ability to cook on it. Am I asking too much?

Not at all.

 

[SuperJ]

I think a lot of the Jotuls have an open door kit and some have the hot plate surface on top for cooking.

http://jotul.com/ca/products/wood-stoves/jotul-f-500-oslo--12748

 

[pclafferty]

I think a lot of the Jotuls have an open door kit and some have the hot plate surface on top for cooking.

http://jotul.com/ca/products/wood-stoves/jotul-f-500-oslo--12748

funny you should post that one, it's the one I've been looking at. Do you think it's too hot for a downstairs that is 1,100 sq feet?

 

[begreen]

Too hot will be relative to the amount of wood in the stove and air supplied to the fire. This will vary depending on whether it's 45 outside or 25. If it is mild outside, start with a smaller fire.

Jotul makes other stoves that will be less radiant and will not need as much space because they are front loading and have closer clearances. The F500 is primarily a side loading stove. Is this important to you? If so, also look at their F50 and F55 stoves.

 

[pclafferty]

Too hot will be relative to the amount of wood in the stove and air supplied to the fire. This will vary depending on whether it's 45 outside or 25. If it is mild outside, start with a smaller fire.

Jotul makes other stoves that will be less radiant and will not need as much space because they are front loading and have closer clearances. The F500 is primarily a side loading stove. Is this important to you? If so, also look at their F50 and F55 stoves.

side loading is not a priority and despite being in the mountains the winters here are relatively mild... so I'm told. I just moved here.

 

[pclafferty]

Too hot will be relative to the amount of wood in the stove and air supplied to the fire. This will vary depending on whether it's 45 outside or 25. If it is mild outside, start with a smaller fire.

Jotul makes other stoves that will be less radiant and will not need as much space because they are front loading and have closer clearances. The F500 is primarily a side loading stove. Is this important to you? If so, also look at their F50 and F55 stoves.

so it's not true that I shouldn't get a large stove in a smaller home? I can just build smaller fires? that opens up more options for me because the larger stoves have more of what I am looking for.

 

[begreen]

2,200 sq ft is not a smaller home. If the stove is on the first floor and in areasonably open floor plan then a stove in the 2.5 to 3.0 cu ft size will not be too large. It will work even better if you can centrally locate the stove.

 

[pclafferty]

2,200 sq ft is not a smaller home. If the stove is on the first floor and in areasonably open floor plan then a stove in the 2.5 to 3.0 cu ft size will not be too large. It will work even better if you can centrally locate the stove.

thank you for your help. I agree it's not a smaller home, I just didn't know if you only count the floor it's on. It will sort of be centrally located but not as much as I wish. there is a fan in that room that will help distribute the heat. I really like the harman oakwood stove a lot.

 

[begreen]

The Harman Oakwood is pretty, but not necessarily the easiest stove to run. If you like that look, there are other stoves to consider that will be easier to run starting with the Jotul F500. Another would be the Hearthstone Manchester, the Pacific Energy Alderlea T6, or the Enviro Boston 1700.

 

[bholler]

thank you for your help. I agree it's not a smaller home, I just didn't know if you only count the floor it's on. It will sort of be centrally located but not as much as I wish. there is a fan in that room that will help distribute the heat. I really like the harman oakwood stove a lot.

If you bought the harman you most likely wouldn't like it a lot for long

 

[SuperJ]

funny you should post that one, it's the one I've been looking at. Do you think it's too hot for a downstairs that is 1,100 sq feet?

That really depends, if your home has decent natural convection possibilities and the stove is located in a large open central area then it is probably fine. If it tucked in a smaller room with just a single door it may be too much.

 

[pclafferty]

That really depends, if your home has decent natural convection possibilities and the stove is located in a large open central area then it is probably fine. If it tucked in a smaller room with just a single door it may be too much.

the entire downstairs is open, a living area, a kitchen (located toward the back of the house) and a front room with wide opening and no door. there is a stairwell that is in the middle of the house in between the front room and the back of the house that contains the living and kitchen area. does that help you help me?

 

[pclafferty]

If you bought the harman you most likely wouldn't like it allot for long

that's kinda what the guy at the fireplace store said too. he loves the quadra fire stove but he said I wouldn't like it Bec it isn't designed for cooking.

 

[bholler]

that's kinda what the guy at the fireplace store said too. he loves the quadra fire stove but he said I wouldn't like it Bec it isn't designed for cooking.

You can cook on a quad just fine.

 

[pclafferty]

You can cook on a quad just fine.

he said one that has steel or soapstone at the top is better for cooking. no?

 

[begreen]

You can cook on a quad just fine.

I think you are right. Quad makes many models. I think he might be referring to the Explorer series, but that has the topload, so it should work.

@webfish can you cook on the stove top of the Explorer III? Sure looks like it.

 

[bholler]

Quad makes many models. I think he might be referring to the Explorer series. If so, that has a convection top.

Very true but why then go to an overly complicated hard to run expensive to maintain stove like the oakwood?

 

[begreen]

Very true but why then go to an overly complicated hard to run expensive to maintain stove like the oakwood?

As noted above, I don't recommend the Oakwood. Added a question for webfish. The Explorer III might be ok for cooking.

 

[bholler]

As noted above, I don't recommend the Oakwood. Added a question for webfish. The Explorer III might be ok for cooking.

Yeah I really don't know I haunt worked on one yet.

 

[bholler]

he said one that has steel or soapstone at the top is better for cooking. no?

Nope the only thing that can make it not work is a convective top.