Help with Deciding Between Hearthstone Manchester and Shelburne

[BuckeyeAaron]

Hello all. I have been a longtime lurker as I try to educate and learn about heating a home with a woodstove. I have narrowed my search down and felt it was time to make my first post and hope some of you folks could offer some advice.

My local dealer carries the Hearthstone brand and I am considering the Shelburne and the Manchester cast iron stove. I am debating on which to buy. Our home is a single-story ranch and is about 1800 sq. ft. Going on the ratings alone (Shelburne is rated for 1,800 sq. ft. and the Manchester is rated for 2,400 sq. ft.) the dealer suggests I go with the Shelburne as the Manchester would likely bake us out of our living room. I don't mind his logic but the Manchester has one feature which I believe I would greatly appreciate that is not offered with the Shelburne: a side door for easy E-W loading. I can't help but think this will be a huge help and a great added benefit. I also wonder why I couldn't simply put in smaller loads if indeed it cranks too much heat for the immediate living area?

I wondered what you guys thought before I move forward with anything. There is no urgency as I will likely wait for a 10% off sale to kick in later this spring but I want to do my research and get the stove selected so I can then prep the site for install as I will have to redo the area that has our current fireplace with a raised wood hearth, mantle, etc. Thanks!

 

[jrems]

Go with the Manchester. I have a Shelburne and I'm very happy with it to heat my 1200sqft house. I would want a larger stove for anything bigger. The side load door is a great feature I wish I had. I don't think you will be happy with the smaller Shelburne.

 

[begreen]

Agreed, unless the stove is located in a small closed off room the larger stove is better sized for 1800 sq ft in Ohio winters. You can load partial loads when the weather is milder.

 

[Woody Stover]

It gets cold up there. How is your insulation and air-sealing? You can always move additional heat out to the rest of the house if need be with a small desk or pedestal fan placed on the floor outside the stove room, blowing cool air in low. And I do like side-loading and starting...

 

[diesel59]

We love our Manchester so far. I don't think you will regret picking the larger stove.

 

[Warm_in_NH]

Agree with the above. Pretty sure my Shelburne wouldn't comfortably heat another 700 square feet, does 1100 in NH perfectly.

Also love the side door on the Oslo in the other house, makes it easy to get full loads in the stove.

 

[BuckeyeAaron]

Thanks a lot for the feedback guys. It sounds like the Manchester is the way to go. It's another $500 but it looks like it will be worth it.

We bought this house about 4 months ago and it was built in 2002. It has decent windows and adequate roof insulation but I can't comment on our home efficiency beyond that. I'd like to think our home is better insulated than many older homes.

I'll keep you posted on my progress and I may post again as I start to prep the area. Thanks again guys!

 

[Warm_in_NH]

The layout of the house has a lot to do with things as well. My "stove room" has an 8' wide cased opening to the kitchen which has a 6' wide opening to an open stair well. So in short, I get very good air flow.

My stove room will be 75 and the upstairs will be 60, this to me is perfect.

The soap stone liner in the stove makes it easy to build a series of short hot fires in the shoulder season and still have a steady heat vs. trying to smolder a fire. First year I tried to burn a big slow fire, then, through this pkace, I learned to go short and hot. These stoves don't heat up too quickly but they give it back on the other end.

 

[Smoked]

You will like the side door and extra firepower when needed.

 

[DanCorcoran]

I love my Shelburne, but for 1800 sf I'd definitely go larger.

 

[Woody Stover]

sounds like the Manchester is the way to go.

Good choice, I think. From what I understand, they can run hot if you let 'em. Don't wait too long on a new load to start cutting back the air so you don't get too much wood gassing, and it should give you a long burn without roasting you.

 

[BuckeyeAaron]

Hello all. So to throw a wrench in this discussion I recently learned of the wood furnace option. My local dealer carries a PSG Caddy and suggested it as an alternative to a wood stove. I was curious if any of you guys considered this option when researching stoves? The benefits are appealing as it would be connected directly to my existing duct work which means better heat distribution and I can load it twice a day or so and just let it cook. The downsides are getting the wood to the basement (though I think I can repurpose a foundation window as a wood shoot), no aesthetic value in watching the fire from the living room, and I'm still dependant upon electricity for the blower to operate (though perhaps a generator just for operating the blower would be a reasonable purchase). So what am I missing?

Thanks guys and Happy Easter!

 

[begreen]

The Caddy is a good furnace. You've hit the highlights and some downsides. I would post a query in boiler room forum here to ask owners about pros and cons of operation for this unit. In particular ask about shoulder season burning when heat demand is lower.

 

[jrems]

That's going to be a whole different animal. I think the Manchester should work fine for your needs. The wood boiler will use at least double the wood compared to the stove. I would guess you would use about 3-4 cords for the stove per year. If you double that for the boiler(then triple it)to have the recommended 3 year supply seasoning that's 24 cords. Do you have room for that?

 

[BuckeyeAaron]

I certainly don't have thr space for 24 cords. Storing 6 to 9 will be a challenge alone. So maybe sticking with the original idea is best.