newbie here, would like some new stove advice/ with requirements!

[fivesap's]

im new here, but not that new to burning wood.( in old stoves!) my brother sent me your way to ask this simple yet beat to death question.

I currently have a VC vigilant, love it, reminds me of my grandfather, yada yada yada..... The time has come to retire the old girl and upgrade to a more efficient unit. this is a primary source of heat for me (mainly because i hate buying oil)

The stove will be located in the basement, heating approx 2000 sq ft (including basement) of decently insulated home with new windows/doors.

the new stove has to:

- be a rear discharge on account of where the hookup to the brand new 6" flex SS pipe is (located in existing chimney, though it is only 16' tall)
-heat 24/7. looking for long burn times with good heat output. overnight burns where i can wake up to a hot bed of coals would be great!
- be in the $2k price range
-be front or side load, as i am installing a hood for heat collection to duct work throughout the house. top load would be difficult.
-take a long(er) log. i am used to cutting to 20-22" lengths, and currently have 2 years supply ready.
-probably be non-catalytic as i dont want to replace replace them every 5-8 years.

can anyone point me in the right direction? i have looked around some and it amazes me that there is such a huge selection of wood stoves. i have no particular brand in mind.

located in northern RI

 

[Grisu]

Welcome to the forum and thanks to your brother for the recommendation!

The rear-vent requirement will cut your selection short. The first stove that came to my mind was the Woodstock Ideal Steel which will be in the price range and fit pretty much anything else except it is a catalytic/hybrid stove. Still, I would check it out and especially take a look at some threads about it here in the forum. Certainly, for long burn times a cat stove is hard to beat and the cat is not that expensive to replace. In addition, Woodstock has some of the best customer service in the hearth industry.

Two other options would be the Jotul F55 and the Quadrafire Isle Royale but they will both exceed your price target. A little talked about stove here is the High Valley 1600 but maybe you want to give it a look.

 

[Rickb]

Yea rear vent will take away all the blaze king stoves. Woodstock ideal steel or Progress Hybrid would work for ya.

 

[fivesap's]

the ideal steel is a sharp looking stove! is the soapstone a huge benefit to have on a stove like that?

when burning in a cataltytic/hybrid, how is the heat output? my vigilant will blow me out of the basement in a hurry, but usually that is necessary to heat the 1st floor in winter. i am very hesitant to try it, but thats because i'm so used to old technology.

by long burn times, i'm talking 10+ hours. which i consider long compared to the 6 that i get now.

which is more of a hindrance in my case, the rear vent, or the amount i would like to spend? i could spend a little more, but cant change the rear vent thing....

 

[richmhv]

The rear vent requirement is a hindrance because with rare exception, you are limited to cast iron stoves which tend to be more expensive than the steel ones. I ran into this last year when I needed to replace an old insert with a freestanding stove. If you're OK with spending more, check out the major cast iron brands.