Placement and sizing question

[vermont_wood_burner]

Hi all -

We want to put a woodstove in place of our current open fireplace (in corner of living room), but have been trying to figure out sizing.

General info and questions we have:
- 2500 sqft house
- In northern Vermont
- Decently well insulated and air sealed
- Goal is to use it for as much of our heating as possible, then use our propane hydronic baseboard system as backup/supplement heat
- Unfortunately the woodstove would be far away from the stairs, so getting heat upstairs would be hard. Maybe add floor registers above the stove with thermocouplings to try and get a cycle going?
- Would like to get a soapstone stove, partially for looks and partially for the more even heat. Looking at the Woodstock Progress Hybrid or Fireview.
- Maybe it would be better to do two smaller woodstoves (one in the living room, one in the den) rather than one larger one? Bonus of this plan would be the ability to maybe add a really small one in the basement office that could run a second pipe next to the one for the den.

Approximate floor plan



Let me know if any more info would be helpful. Thanks in advance!

 

[begreen]

This doesn't look like a great scenario for wood heating from the living room. It appears to be cut off from the rest of the first floor by doorways. A PH in the living room could turn it into an oven. A better location for the stove would be the den, where it can heat multiple rooms and some of the upstairs.

 

[vermont_wood_burner]

That was my fear - the living room is an addition, so it is definitely pretty cut off from the rest of the house. I was hoping maybe adding the floor registers to the bedroom above it might get enough air flow going (maybe with some fans to push the cold air down the stairs), but it may be too cut off still.

Adding one to the den like you mentioned may be the better option for heat, even though we spend less time in there.

 

[begreen]

With a stove in the den, you may end up spending a lot more time there in the winter. A second smaller stove or ZC fireplace in the LR may work out, but mostly just for area heat and ambiance.

 

[vermont_wood_burner]

Good point. Maybe we'd be better off doing the PH in the Den and something like (broken link removed) or https://www.jotul.com/products/wood-stoves/f-602-v2 in the living room.

 

[begreen]

Yes, that would work. See the Jotul F35 while looking. Also, look at the Morso 2B and the PE Alderlea T4. The Woodstock Fireview can burn at a very low rate so that would work there too, albeit with a dark glass when turned way down.

All of these stoves require fully seasoned firewood. A lot of hardwoods like oak and hickory require 2 yrs to fully season. It's very hard to find truly seasoned firewood from a seller, so a well-stocked woodshed where the wood can dry is a plus. Otherwise, it can be stacked, top covered.

 

[vermont_wood_burner]

Yes, that would work. See the Jotul F35 while looking. Also, look at the Morso 2B and the PE Alderlea T4. The Woodstock Fireview can burn at a very low rate so that would work there too, albeit with a dark glass when turned way down.

All of these stoves require fully seasoned firewood. A lot of hardwoods like oak and hickory require 2 yrs to fully season. It's very hard to find truly seasoned firewood from a seller, so a well-stocked woodshed where the wood can dry is a plus. Otherwise, it can be stacked, top covered.

We have an old outdoor wood boiler that we are looking to replace (it is approaching end of life and we are leaning towards using interior wood stoves and eventually heat pumps instead), so we have a woodshed already and are familiar with seasoning wood, etc. Always a good reminder though to keep in mind!