Lopi Declaration (large) or Jotul Kennebec (medium)?

[claydj]

First off - great forum. Thanks for putting this together and helping the less informed.

I am hoping the collective can help with my decision on either a Lopi or Jotul wood insert. I realize both are great, and my decision at this point has come down to size. I have roughly a 2200 sq/ft house in Milwaukee, old house, bad insulation, and poor windows. Stove is going in my living room wich is about a quarter of the house - bottom floor has an open floor plan.

Knowing the Lopi is larger (77K btu compared to 55k in the jotul), any thoughts on whether this may be too large - will I get roasted out? I read in one string that larger is better, but am hoping to verify this. Personally, I like the Jotul better, however, will this be too small?

Thanks!

 

[MountainStoveGuy]

I sell Jotul, and one thing i dont like is the double doors. Its a pain to open and close. The hande is loose and something you have to keep up with. Having that said. i sell alot of them and havent got any complaints. I would look at the lopi, the quad 4100, or 5100.

 

[wingnut]

With that size house and poor insulation I would go with the Lopi freedom if it will fit. or the Avalon Olympic if you want to stick to Travis Inds. products. If not try looking at the PE Summit or the Osburn 2200 or 2400. I have the 2200 and like it. But all of the other stoves I mentioned are very good!! Good luck with your choice and let us know what you decide and how you like it.

 

[elkimmeg]

I think you are missing some points, if you button up your home any stove would be more effective

 

[Mike Wilson]

My vote is listed below. I swear by it, no problems whatsoever and it works like a clock. The double doors don't bother me, I like the look better than the "boiler" look of some single doors, and you only open one door to load it anyway.

-- Mike

 

[MountainStoveGuy]

It must be me, im picky about double doors. My customers love there kennebec just like mike. I brought it up just in case your the type that double doors might bother you. Its a well contructed, quality unit, but i still think drop away handles are a pain. I think its a perfect insert for 1000-1500 square feet of decent insulated space, and you can expect a burn time in the 3-6 hour burn time depending on what kind of wood your burning.

 

[claydj]

Thank you for the posts!

Yeah - the Jotul drop away handle seems a little inconvenient, but not a major detractor for me personally. I think my decision really comes down to capacity and output. I like the design of the Jotul, and the fact they have a cast surround, but not sure if the output will be enough for cold Wisconsin winters - whereas the Lopi would give me no issues (but maybe too much). No doubt I would have gains by bottuning up my home, but I have a long list of projects with limmitted time and money.

I'll let you know what I decide. Until then, appreciate any more thoughts the collective may have.

Thanks!

 

[Mike Wilson]

FWIW, My Kennebec heats the main zone of my house (largest of 3 zones) during the winter, no problem. 1700+ sq ft or so, with 19-34' cathedral ceilings. I think you would have problems heating 2200 sq ft of poorly insulated house though. As far as burn time, it always has plenty of coals 8 hours later, and even usually 10 hours, provided I'm not burning soft junk. Seriously, its considerably more than 3-6 hours. Damned thing cut my heating bills by over half, from 500 gallons/month to 200. The thing I love is that its so predictable, the thing works like a clock. And when that cast iron surround heats up... wonderful.

-- Mike

Oh, and you get used to the handle, I keep it with my gloves... put the gloves on, grab the handle. In practice, with gloves, which I always wear anyways, I don't even use the handle. Just flick the tab with your gloved hand, insert wood, close door and push tab down with gloved hand. No handle needed.

 

[Arthur]

Ditto... I've only used the detached handle once or twice. Opening and loading occur with just a glove. Would say I prefer the double door feature also, since I get a bit of smoke spillage when trying to load with both doors open. Hence, usually open only one door, if possible. However, this may be due to less than stellar draft from short chimney I'm stuck with. Otherwise, very happy with the Kennebec!