Looking for supplemental heat. I like the look of the Winterport. First floor of the house is about 1000 sq ft. Live in the Boston area. I am looking for any recommendations from anyone with experience using the Jotul Winterport. Or just any experience with the Jotul insert line in general. Have you been happy with the Jotul? How load is the fan? Is the fan required to provide adequate heat? Hows reliable is the Jotul line? Would you but a Lotul again? I was also looking at the Morso 1710. this does not have a fan. It is a smaller viewing area than the Jotul. Therefore I am leaning toward the Jotul. Any comments or recommendations would be appreciated.
Looking for advice on new firlace insert. Looking at the Jotul C 350 Winterport
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Welcome Norwich. Jotul makes first class inserts. It's rare to hear major issues with them. Have you read the reviews here? Here is a recent one for a C450: https://www.hearth.com/ratings/art.php?id=2014
FWIW, most folks here have the C450 Kennebec, especially in cold climates. You'll get longer burn times and more reserve for when the temps are below 20 degrees.
FWIW, most folks here have the C450 Kennebec, especially in cold climates. You'll get longer burn times and more reserve for when the temps are below 20 degrees.
I recently bought a Jotul Kennebec after looking at both the Winterport and Kennebec. My dealer steered me toward the Kennebec, saying the Winterport would be too small. From what I can tell and in my limited experience so far, Jotul makes workhorse products that don't disappoint. The fan on low is not loud at all and the low speed is almost always sufficient. In my opinion the fan is absolutely required to "wick" heat off the stove and circulate it throughout the living space. This is especially important for inserts because they are buried inside your fireplace cavity and are flush in many cases, making it difficult to get the heat out. I also view the fan as a safety device of sorts; if your insert gets too hot you can turn off the combustion air and turn the fan on high to cool the stove down as quickly as possible.
I read all the reviews of the Kennebec and the most consistent complaint was that the doors are prone to getting dirty. I think this is mostly due to burning wet and/or unseasoned wood and not having your fires hot enough. As my technique has improved and my fires have gotten hotter, my doors have stayed cleaner. You can clean them with Rutland glass cleaner or simply use some ash on a damp paper towel. The Rutland product says it leaves a silicone coating on the glass which keeps it cleaner.
If you send me a PM I would be happy to give you the names of the stores I shopped, prices, etc.
I read all the reviews of the Kennebec and the most consistent complaint was that the doors are prone to getting dirty. I think this is mostly due to burning wet and/or unseasoned wood and not having your fires hot enough. As my technique has improved and my fires have gotten hotter, my doors have stayed cleaner. You can clean them with Rutland glass cleaner or simply use some ash on a damp paper towel. The Rutland product says it leaves a silicone coating on the glass which keeps it cleaner.
If you send me a PM I would be happy to give you the names of the stores I shopped, prices, etc.
I have an insert too. I have always cleaned the glass on mine with a razor blade. It works great and costs next to nothing to replace blades. When I used a glass cleaner it seemed as though the glass actually got dirtier. I only have to clean my window about once every 2-3 weeks.
I have the Winterport in an ~1500sqft tri-level home, and my goal was to add supplemental heat to the first floor and maybe heat the house. I never intended to be able to keep my oil burner off this winter. For heating the 1st floor of a 1000sqft house, the Winterport would probably work quite well. It has only been running for a few weeks now, and I have had some issues with wet wood and trying to remember how to start and tend a fire so please bear with me. I might have a more useful review in a month or so.
First off, the style is top notch and complements the living room incredibly well, the Winterport and Kennebec were just about the best looking stoves in the store. The door, controls and handle feel solid. The door handle took a few nights to break in as it was very stiff and difficult to operate, but now that it is broken in the operation is very smooth and easy and the handle stays cool. The other unit's I considered were a Regency, Vermont Castings Dutchwest and the Kennebec.
I wasn't thrilled about the style of the Dutchwest, and being on the lower end of the price range I was worried about quality. I had similar thoughts about the Regency. From some of the stories I have heard, and from the advice of the stove store I steered clear of any catalytic models. Sorry if that statement starts a holy war.
I had settled on either the Kennebec or Winterport. I initially favored the Kennebec, based on style and heat output but because of clearance problems with my installation, it probably would not have fit far enough into the fireplace. I would have need a hearth extension on my raised hearth and in my small living room I wasn't willing to part with the floor space. If it wasn't for this, I might have gone with the Kennebec.
I installed the unit, with a full chimney liner in a few days (with a foot of snow on the roof I might add.) By removing the door, fire bricks and baffles it was light enough to muscle around and onto the raised hearth without any helper. I'm not sure I would be able to say the same about the Kennebec, but if you are not doing your own installation it might be a moot point. Getting the liner to bend out of the damper opening and fit into the flue collar was by far the worst part of the installation. With the riser bar installed, the surround panels covered the existing fireplace opening perfectly. It really looks much bigger in place than it did in the store.
The Winterport, with my lousy fire wood and amateur fire building has kept my house in the mid 60's and in the upper 60's in my living room on a 20 degree night. Also, the radiant heat from being in front of the stove is cozy enough in the living room. I now have some dryer wood, and it will be cold tonight so I shall see how it goes. The fans on full speed are effective and quiet enough, the noise they do make is not irritating or intrusive. I am going to try cutting my logs shorter to do a full north-south load and see if that has better heat output and duration.
About the air wash, the glass stays clean as long as the fire is not smoldering. Firing up a fast hot fire with dry wood burns most of the gunk of the glass. Jotul seems to have added a small iron bar on the bottom of the opening that isn't in the original parts diagram, I assume it protects the glass from falling logs. Cresote builds up behind the bar and junks up the bottom inch or so of the glass, but it the bar is there too, so it isn't blocking the view at all.
If you are interested, I'll follow up in a couple weeks. If the Kennebec fits in your home, I might consider than one as well. My Winterport does a fine job of keeping my first floor and living room cozy, and upper floor and bedrooms heated but maybe not enough if I were to spend a lot of time upstairs away from the stove.
First off, the style is top notch and complements the living room incredibly well, the Winterport and Kennebec were just about the best looking stoves in the store. The door, controls and handle feel solid. The door handle took a few nights to break in as it was very stiff and difficult to operate, but now that it is broken in the operation is very smooth and easy and the handle stays cool. The other unit's I considered were a Regency, Vermont Castings Dutchwest and the Kennebec.
I wasn't thrilled about the style of the Dutchwest, and being on the lower end of the price range I was worried about quality. I had similar thoughts about the Regency. From some of the stories I have heard, and from the advice of the stove store I steered clear of any catalytic models. Sorry if that statement starts a holy war.
I had settled on either the Kennebec or Winterport. I initially favored the Kennebec, based on style and heat output but because of clearance problems with my installation, it probably would not have fit far enough into the fireplace. I would have need a hearth extension on my raised hearth and in my small living room I wasn't willing to part with the floor space. If it wasn't for this, I might have gone with the Kennebec.
I installed the unit, with a full chimney liner in a few days (with a foot of snow on the roof I might add.) By removing the door, fire bricks and baffles it was light enough to muscle around and onto the raised hearth without any helper. I'm not sure I would be able to say the same about the Kennebec, but if you are not doing your own installation it might be a moot point. Getting the liner to bend out of the damper opening and fit into the flue collar was by far the worst part of the installation. With the riser bar installed, the surround panels covered the existing fireplace opening perfectly. It really looks much bigger in place than it did in the store.
The Winterport, with my lousy fire wood and amateur fire building has kept my house in the mid 60's and in the upper 60's in my living room on a 20 degree night. Also, the radiant heat from being in front of the stove is cozy enough in the living room. I now have some dryer wood, and it will be cold tonight so I shall see how it goes. The fans on full speed are effective and quiet enough, the noise they do make is not irritating or intrusive. I am going to try cutting my logs shorter to do a full north-south load and see if that has better heat output and duration.
About the air wash, the glass stays clean as long as the fire is not smoldering. Firing up a fast hot fire with dry wood burns most of the gunk of the glass. Jotul seems to have added a small iron bar on the bottom of the opening that isn't in the original parts diagram, I assume it protects the glass from falling logs. Cresote builds up behind the bar and junks up the bottom inch or so of the glass, but it the bar is there too, so it isn't blocking the view at all.
If you are interested, I'll follow up in a couple weeks. If the Kennebec fits in your home, I might consider than one as well. My Winterport does a fine job of keeping my first floor and living room cozy, and upper floor and bedrooms heated but maybe not enough if I were to spend a lot of time upstairs away from the stove.
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