Hey, so I live in about 2600 sq home no basement, no duct work in my house. I have a wood stove with baseboard heat, my house is open concept through out with catherdrial ceilings. I live in canada and I know the winter get cold this way. So I need advice there is the wood stove which truly happy about, but I want to get away from the cost of the baseboard when me and my wife are not at home during the day, he has a older fireplace house as well but needs a insert, my question to you guys is with no duct work no gas on the road would a propane insert be most benefit to install to heat home when wood stove not working? Or is there other opitions out there I should be looking at? Please help I need advice on what smartest investment would be. Thanks
Help please need advice
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bluedogz
Minister of Fire
Propane, (used only for an insert), cost me an arm and a leg, but this is in the US. Our 40,000 btu insert can warm about half of a 3300 sq ft house, but not heat it in the dead of winter. No doubt about it the propane in our area costs way more than wood. The only nice thing about any gas insert is less dirt in the house and the remote control to turn it on and off. ... Oh, and she likes it.
A 3 cubic ft woodstove can do the job for most of the house except during extreme cold -- even while we are at work. And she likes that as well.
A 3 cubic ft woodstove can do the job for most of the house except during extreme cold -- even while we are at work. And she likes that as well.
TimfromMA
Minister of Fire
How about a pellet stove. They can run for 10+ hours between fills and can run on a thermostat regulating the house temperature.
Well my plan is to stock it in the morning when I wake up at 5 in morning and have the fire going but I mean like there may be 10 12 hours until I get home again to get it going again, and I just have another chimney fireplace so was thinking of putting a insert in to have on during those hours until I get home again to get the fire going I just thought someone could give me advice on what would be best? What I should be looking into? I live in the country so no gas just propane, wood or oil or geo thermal and baseboard which I have but think it will cost me a fortune to run. Propane I looked is 59 cents to fill up dunno of that's good or bad or how much I would go through just looking for options
BCC_Burner
Feeling the Heat
Is propane sold by the gallon or liter in Canada? That is an extraordinarily low price if it is per gallon.
59 cents -- per gallon? liter, kg ???
If 59 cents/gallon, fire up your calculator or find an online calculator there are many to calculate btu's, fuel use etc. a 100 gallon tank (holds about 80 gallons) will last you about a month burning a 20 - 30,000 btu insert on medium ~ 8 hrs a day. Very rough estimate. Don't forget there very well be a delivery charge, and tank rental charges etc. If you live in the country you will need multiple 100 gallon tanks or larger. Typically, the propane dealers have a teaser rate, then jack up the cost once you start renting the tank, so read the contract !
If 59 cents per gallon -- i'm moving
If 59 cents/gallon, fire up your calculator or find an online calculator there are many to calculate btu's, fuel use etc. a 100 gallon tank (holds about 80 gallons) will last you about a month burning a 20 - 30,000 btu insert on medium ~ 8 hrs a day. Very rough estimate. Don't forget there very well be a delivery charge, and tank rental charges etc. If you live in the country you will need multiple 100 gallon tanks or larger. Typically, the propane dealers have a teaser rate, then jack up the cost once you start renting the tank, so read the contract !
If 59 cents per gallon -- i'm moving
Random suggestions/ideas:
- Ditch your current woodstove for a big catalytic stove like the BlazeKing King. That should last you through the day.
- Woodboiler tied in your baseboard system?
- Pellet stove/insert.
- Direct-vent wall furnace running on propane. I would price that out. May be the better heater and easier to install than a propane insert. (Do you already have propane? If not I am wondering whether you can really recoup the cost of the unit in electricity savings.)
- Ditch your current woodstove for a big catalytic stove like the BlazeKing King. That should last you through the day.
- Woodboiler tied in your baseboard system?
- Pellet stove/insert.
- Direct-vent wall furnace running on propane. I would price that out. May be the better heater and easier to install than a propane insert. (Do you already have propane? If not I am wondering whether you can really recoup the cost of the unit in electricity savings.)
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The BK King is a good suggestion. Another big cat to consider is the Canadian made Regency F5100. It may be more affordable if that is an issue.
Eddie, you are not that much north of me and I also have an open concept home, similar size, electric baseboards and no basement. When we built 30 years ago, we looked at propane and heat pumps and both were expensive and with many drawbacks. We put in a mid-sized Vermont Castings wood stove and we save at least $1,000 per winter on heat. At first, I had to buy wood and used the stove less but now I have abundant wood and it is on 24-7. Our VC is 2.4 cu ft and it is great to supplement but not as a sole heat source.
Last winter was brutally cold for all of us and the VC has had a great life but needed to be replaced. There are lots of great buys on larger stoves on Kijiji if you take the time and effort to search and the time to research. A PE Summit will heat your home very well, as will a Blaze King King, a larger Regency, etc. I have seen all of these used on kijiji except the King and I bought a Hearthstone Equinox at half of new $$ a few weeks ago. If you have the $$, there are lots of dealers near you but shop around and do your research first. I bet you are burning softwood and that is why you are not getting a long burn. Even the ancient VC I have will still have lots of coals in the morning after a night of burning well dried oak or maple.
Personally, I know a lot of people with inserts and I considered a ZC fireplace but a stove will give you the heat you need. Any larger (3 cu ft +) stove will heat your home. Get a ceiling fan and turn it on very low to get the heat circulating.
Last winter was brutally cold for all of us and the VC has had a great life but needed to be replaced. There are lots of great buys on larger stoves on Kijiji if you take the time and effort to search and the time to research. A PE Summit will heat your home very well, as will a Blaze King King, a larger Regency, etc. I have seen all of these used on kijiji except the King and I bought a Hearthstone Equinox at half of new $$ a few weeks ago. If you have the $$, there are lots of dealers near you but shop around and do your research first. I bet you are burning softwood and that is why you are not getting a long burn. Even the ancient VC I have will still have lots of coals in the morning after a night of burning well dried oak or maple.
Personally, I know a lot of people with inserts and I considered a ZC fireplace but a stove will give you the heat you need. Any larger (3 cu ft +) stove will heat your home. Get a ceiling fan and turn it on very low to get the heat circulating.
So you get away with the baseboard and wood stove? No honestly this is my first winter in the house bought it in may, I got a wood stove just figured it would go out after 8 to 10 hours. So figured baseboard would be really expensive to run. I runned a fire this year just to run it when it was like 0 out and was sweating out of my house. Just be different at minus 30. I just don't ever want my pipes to freeze or want ridiculous hydro bills.
I keep a few of the baseboards set on about 15 C or 60 F., just in case we are away for an extended period. Its well worth it to buy a thermostat timer and make sure none of your electric heat comes on during the periods when rates are at the maximum - breakfast time and supper time in the winter.
There are lots of people who use wood as their primary heat without a problem, just make sure your wood is dry and you learn how to use the stove safely.
There are lots of people who use wood as their primary heat without a problem, just make sure your wood is dry and you learn how to use the stove safely.
Yes they have thermostats that work them in different room don't think timer but I should no be home between 530 in morning until 5 at night and was planning on stocking the wood stove up an leave it running until it goes out. But just maximum time is between those hours for electricity which is what scares me. That's why I thought if I put a insert in the other fire place maybe I could be less cost effective.
TimfromMA
Minister of Fire
Do you think a pellet insert would be cheaper then propane? I dunno looking at Canadian tire they sell a bag of pellets 40 lb for 8 dollars. I dunno just exploring options, maybe pellets come cheaper unsure bout it, propane 2.36 per gallon. Do you have pellet stove and like it?
In winter the 'on peak' (highest price) for hydro is from 5 to 7 pm in the evening. I would think you should have a fair bit of coals by the time you arrive home and I would throw in some very dry softwood to get a real hot fire going fast. Your home should be back up to temps within an hour but really, unless your insulation is awful, you should not be that cold at any time. For overnight and during the day, use large, dry hardwood chunks.
Even with our old VC, the house never got cold, even on the very coldest days. I upgraded because of the age of the VC and I have so much free wood now.
Even with our old VC, the house never got cold, even on the very coldest days. I upgraded because of the age of the VC and I have so much free wood now.
TimfromMA
Minister of Fire
Unfortunately, I don't know how the cost of propane compares to pellets where you are. $8 for a bag is on the high end. Down here, $5 - $7 is the norm depending on where you are and the quality of the pellets.
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