Newbie to wood stoves, have several questions before buying

[OldMission]

I already read the pinned posts and read many articles, still have questions. We've never had a wood stove before.
Trying to make sure I get it right the first time, making our final decision on what very soon and it will be professionally installed. We've visited a few showrooms but each person has different answers depending on what they want to sell us.
We are looking to add supplemental heat and also use it for the only heat when the power is out (which happens often here) or when its not really cold. I will still have a gas furnace for backup but I want to use wood to heat as much as I can.
My dilemma... I have a old long narrow 2 story house, 2000sq ft in MI. Its insulated fairly well and have all brand new windows. There is not a good central place to put a wood stove. My basement sucks too bad to consider a whole house furnace wood stove, you have to get into the basement through a trap door in the kitchen floor.
So we've decided the best place is on the lowest furthest end of the house thats also the coldest but the room
we use the most. There used to be a wood stove with chimney in this spot from the previous owner and there is a grate in the ceiling in the next room over that allows heat into one bedroom (the stairs going upstairs are on the opposite end of the house from where the wood stove would be, so the grate will help a lot) But right now there is a gas fireplace right next to where the old wood stove was and chimney are. Which would be really dumb looking and useless, There is no other heat in this room but we hate the gas fireplace, its loud and the heat that comes out of it is luke warm and you have to leave it on all day and the room is still not warm so we just use a electric space heater instead. Although the fireplace and mantle is very pretty, but useless.
Are wood stove fireplace inserts any good for heating a entire house, or are they more for one room? Was wondering if its worth converting the gas fireplace into a wood burning insert. The walls around it are in my attached garage and would not be too much hassle to have redone and chimney put in, but only if a insert is really worth it. Otherwise I will just have to tear out the gas fireplace and patch it all up, which will be a mess. The walls are a knocked down plaster and I dont have anymore (laminate) flooring planks that match whats in the room (was put in many years ago) so it would not look seamless and I'd probably have to redo the entire floor.
Also, I would like to be able to heat up a teapot or slow cook on a wood stove but the only ones I've seen with actual burners are the long narrow kind which will be in the way. You can still put a pot on top of a regular wood stove right? Are there better types of wood stove for that? Will enamel type stoves still work for that?
Also is it better to get a hearth pad or to put in brick or stone tiles? The hearth pads I've seen are not attractive and they are charing $400+
Any advice would be appreciated!

Stephanie

 

[Grisu]

Welcome to the forum!

Lots of questions; let's see if I can help with some of them. First, posting floorplan (rough sketch is enough) would be good. Maybe we can figure out a good location and/or how to get the heat through the house best. In general, for your climate and house size a large stove with a firebox of at least 3 cu ft would be best. What kind of budget do you have in mind for stove/everything?

I doubt that you can put an insert into your gas fireplace. Is it a prefab unit? If you tear out the gas unit you could replace it with a high-efficient zero clearance fireplace (such as the Kozyheat Z42) but it won't come cheap. The cheaper and easier option would be to remove the whole gas fireplace, finish the floor with a nice hearth and place a stove on top. That way you won't need to find the same flooring again, you will get more radiant heat from the stove, and you have an accessible cooktop. Can you post some pictures of the gas unit and the location of the previous stove? What you use for a hearth is pretty much up to you. If you get a stove that only needs ember protection the surface needs to be non-combustible and cover at least the minimum distances that are given in the manual.

Be aware that any modern stove needs dry wood with an internal moisture content of less than 20% to heat well and burn safely. It is rare that you can buy that from a firewood seller. Thus, most people stack their firewood in their yard with lots of wind and sun exposure for one to three years to get it to that moisture level. Have you put up any wood in your yard yet?

 

[firefighterjake]

I already read the pinned posts and read many articles, still have questions. We've never had a wood stove before.
Trying to make sure I get it right the first time, making our final decision on what very soon and it will be professionally installed. We've visited a few showrooms but each person has different answers depending on what they want to sell us.
We are looking to add supplemental heat and also use it for the only heat when the power is out (which happens often here) or when its not really cold. I will still have a gas furnace for backup but I want to use wood to heat as much as I can. Bit confused here . . . at first it sounds like you're looking to use the woodstove more for back up heating or when it is mild out (incidentally, many folks here tend to use oil or gas when it isn't really cold and then use wood heat when it is) . . . and then you state you want to use the woodstove as much as you can which would seem to indicate more usage than just emergencies. It probably doesn't matter a lot whether it's for use occasionally or for burning more often . . . but this may be a factor when you start looking at stoves and inserts -- some of which may be more or less expensive depending on the features, type, etc.

My dilemma... I have a old long narrow 2 story house, 2000sq ft in MI. Its insulated fairly well and have all brand new windows. This is a very good thing . . . tightening up the home and getting it well insulated so you can keep the heat you generate whether from wood, gas, pellets, etc. always makes sense to me. There is not a good central place to put a wood stove. My basement sucks too bad to consider a whole house furnace wood stove, you have to get into the basement through a trap door in the kitchen floor.
So we've decided the best place is on the lowest furthest end of the house thats also the coldest but the room
we use the most. Sometimes folks tend to get tunnel vision and may not realize there may be other, better spots for a stove . . . as mentioned posting a floor plan of your house here may result in another possible location that you may not have considered. There used to be a wood stove with chimney in this spot from the previous owner and there is a grate in the ceiling in the next room over that allows heat into one bedroom (the stairs going upstairs are on the opposite end of the house from where the wood stove would be, so the grate will help a lot) But right now there is a gas fireplace right next to where the old wood stove was and chimney are. Which would be really dumb looking and useless, There is no other heat in this room but we hate the gas fireplace, its loud and the heat that comes out of it is luke warm and you have to leave it on all day and the room is still not warm so we just use a electric space heater instead. Although the fireplace and mantle is very pretty, but useless.
Are wood stove fireplace inserts any good for heating a entire house, or are they more for one room? There are a few folks using inserts to heat their entire home . . . or at least making a pretty solid dent in their heating needs. It seems often that the lay out of the home, insulation, etc. is a big factor in whether an insert (or a woodstove) for that matter can heat an entire home. More importantly, it would be good to know more about this gas stove and the chimney -- some gas stoves are made so that you cannot simply yank out a gas stove insert and stick a woodstove insert in . . . others you may be able to do so. More info will be needed. Was wondering if its worth converting the gas fireplace into a wood burning insert. The walls around it are in my attached garage and would not be too much hassle to have redone and chimney put in, but only if a insert is really worth it. Otherwise I will just have to tear out the gas fireplace and patch it all up, which will be a mess. The walls are a knocked down plaster and I dont have anymore (laminate) flooring planks that match whats in the room (was put in many years ago) so it would not look seamless and I'd probably have to redo the entire floor.
Also, I would like to be able to heat up a teapot or slow cook on a wood stove but the only ones I've seen with actual burners are the long narrow kind which will be in the way. You can still put a pot on top of a regular wood stove right? Are there better types of wood stove for that? Will enamel type stoves still work for that? Inserts without any real stove top might be a challenge to heat up food or water . . . but any woodstove should be able to meet that challenge. Some woodstoves have a few extra accessories or have been designed to make cooking a bit easier with areas that clean up any cooking mess a bit better, but just about any woodstove should be able to heat up some soup, water, etc.
Also is it better to get a hearth pad or to put in brick or stone tiles? The hearth pads I've seen are not attractive and they are charing $400+
Any advice would be appreciated! This really depends on the stove and the hearth requirement . . . some stoves require a set insulation requirement . . . others only need ember protection. Some folks may not be comfortable attempting to build their own hearth, other folks have no issues. I will say in my own case I saved a bunch of money and built a hearth that gives me more protection than I needed . . . and that helps me sleep quite well at night when the woodstove is running.

Stephanie

 

[OldMission]

There used to be a wood stove where that table is left of the gas fireplace and the chimney that went to it is still there but will need a pipe added.
The gas fireplace was added after the past owner took the wood stove out.
On the other side of this wall is a attached garage.
We have been saving hardwood trees that we have cut down over the years and we will have to start buying wood.

 

[OldMission]

The gas fireplace definitely would have to be ripped out and redone if any wood stove was put there. Thats fine 'if' its a better option in the long run. But will be much more involved then just putting a new wood stove where the old one used to be. I just want to do it right the first time and not regret what I go with...
We had the wood stove companies come out and they all agree this room is the best location. The other rooms on the first floor are bedroom, bathroom, kitchen and dining room with a very closed floor plan and the roof is too tall on that side of the house for a chimney to go out and up (2 stories and a attic). The roof on this end of the house is only 1 story

 

[OldMission]

Far as when we'd be using the stove for heat we've never had one before so obviously thats a learning curve to figure out but definitely want supplemental heat source and power outage backup. Even when the furnace is on full blast the house never feels 'warm' and cozy like wood stove heat

 

[Grisu]

What kind of chimney/vent does the gas fireplace have? What diameter? A relatively easy option would be to remove the raised hearth in front of the fireplace, put a hearth pad down or build your own hearth, install a rear-venting stove in front of the fireplace and vent it through the fireplace. Kind of like this: http://www.thehulltruth.com/attachm...od-stove-inside-fireplace-hearth-resized5.jpg

And when you say the old chimney for the wood stove is still there, what do you mean by that? Is there still a chase for a chimney pipe or the actual pipe?

I would say putting a stove in where the gas fireplace is would work as well as placing it where the table is. It will depend on you if you like to look at the unused gas fireplace. Should you consider selling the home in a few years leaving the fireplace may not be a bad idea.

Has the wood been split and stacked? It does not really dry while still in logs.

 

[bholler]

By the looks of it that gas fireplace will not be usable in anyway for a wood stove or insert. As far as reusing the old chimney it may be easy or may not we would need more info and pics to know. also if that part is only 1 story how far is that chimney from the rest of the house that could cause issues. At the very least i would say you should remove that gas unit line the old chimney and either build a hearth or lay down a prefab hearth of some sort.

 

[OldMission]

The companies came out and checked everything out and the old chimney was fine to use it just needs the pipe put in it

 

[bholler]

The companies came out and checked everything out and the old chimney was fine to use it just needs the pipe put in it

A pipe put in it meaning a liner or just a stove pipe? If they are saying just a stove pipe did they run a camera through the chimney? Did they check for clearances where the pipe will pass thru the wall?

 

[Grisu]

Right now it is unclear what kind of chimney you are actually referring to. And I am having trouble locating it: Is it behind the table or the fireplace or both? Could you post a pic from outside and/or the back of the wall inside the garage to clarify what you have there?

 

[Dix]

Hay Stephanie, welcome to the forums You've come to the right place to get your questions answered, but we will need some help from you.

As Grisu said, even a rough hand drawn floor plan is gonna help a ton. Pics ... as many as possible as well.

Always nice to see another member of the "Sistahood" here