Recommendations on Pellet Stove

[JJ1021]

Hello, I am new to the forum/site and looking for recommendations on a good stove to look into getting. I have never had a stove before and currently using oil heat which with the outrageous prices and cold weather we've been getting is getting to much cost to be the only heat source.

I plan to put it in living room area, which is the only room with cathedral ceilings the rest of the house is lower.

Overall I'd say house is about 1600/1620 SQ FT, and not the greatest insulation. Bedrooms are on opposite side of house as to where the stove would be so looking for something that could push out some heat, but not break the bank. I have also seen some used ones on craigslist and all that, but not sure if what they are asking for (about half or more of original cost) is worth it for generally 3/4 year old stoves.

Any help would be appreciated. Thank you.

 

[Maladjusted]

Buy as stove that exceeds your heat requirements. 50k btus likely. I am partial to Harman... my father has a 6 yr old XXV that heats his 1300 sq ft A frame chalet in NH exclusively. I have an Absolute63 that I use to heat my 3400 Sq ft house in VA... only use the second floor heat pump for a hour in the morning to take the chill off... other than that, it's pellets. As with any stove... there is maintenance involved with keeping it running at peak efficiency. As with you... my stove is in a primary living space... so aesthetics was important.

This is my father's XXV cranking away on this -3 degree morning!

A cursory search yielded a few XXVs on Craigslist.

Good luck and let us know where you land!
Mal

 

[bags]

I suggest a Harman P61 or P68 but they will possibly break the bank at buy in. Worth every penny in the grand scheme though. Or maybe buy two new Castle Serenity stoves for about $2 grand for both. Can you work in two stoves at somewhat opposite ends of your place?

Running two definitely has an advantage. You also do not have to run both at the same time like when temps are not extremely cold when one would probably supply enough heat. Just an option and cost effective.

 

[bogieb]

If you are looking to heat your bedrooms, try to configure it so the stove is set up to push the heat that way. Moving the hot air with room fans (or ceiling fans), to rooms with lower ceilings can be frustrating and noisy. Here is how my P43 is set up and it pushes the heat to the bedrooms 40' away.

As others have stated, you will want a stove that is rated for higher BTU's than what is technically called for. A P43 can technically heat that square footage, but when you factor in poor insulation and then the occasional really cold weather pattern, you would be better served to go with a larger stove.

There are lots of stoves that could probably do the trick. Try to answer some questions to yourself before deciding though. Such as; Do you need a large hopper (you could possibly go thru 2+ bags/day), how often are you willing to clean (some stoves you have to clean out every day, some every 2-4 weeks), do you need auto start or are you willing to leave it burning all the time (or manually start/stop), how much clearance do you have to combustibles in the area you want to install, are you handy enough to do your own maintenance or will you normally need dealer support?. There are more questions to ask yourself, but those will give you a good start.

I'm biased towards Harman's. They are reliable and easy to clean (plus you can go weeks before doing anything to them). However, they are spendy stoves. Many of us believe it is well worth the price, but there are also cheaper stoves that others are very happy with.

 

[JJ1021]

Thanks for the replies, my setup isn't quite as simple as yours look to be with a straight shot to the bedrooms. The living room besides the high ceilings has only the one wall able to go outside, and then we also have a over-sized fireplace in the center that separates the kitchen, so even pointing stove that way would probably only push out into kitchen and then bedrooms are down the hall from that. It's a weird setup, but I guess in the 70's functionality wasn't high on the list.

2 stoves might in theory work, but one end would be a bedroom and the other would be bathroom/side room so probably not the best options.

Their was also a wood stove from previous owners in basement, but apparently where he had it vented to was just a hole cut into the back of the other fireplace and pipe angled up, which I was told by house inspector you can't have more than one thing venting per chimney/flue and without a proper permit they took it out.

So my other option would be to put a stove down there in basement and hope heat rises up enough to help or fix that one and maybe put pellet stove in living area to see if that would help, but not sure if running 2 different sources would be more cost effective than one and the oil heat I'm using now.

 

[gfreek]

So my other option would be to put a stove down there in basement and hope heat rises up enough to help or fix that one and maybe put pellet stove in living area to see if that would help, but not sure if running 2 different sources would be more cost effective than one and the oil heat I'm using now.

Putting a pellet stove in the basement doesn't always work out. It's hard to get the heat on to the main floor at times...And a wood stove heats different than a pellet stove..

 

[JJ1021]

I am currently looking at the 25-PDV or the 10-CPM as these are rated for about 2200 SqFT which I think should be plenty, and won't break the bank. From what I saw from a couple older posts, it seems besides being multi-fuel the 10-CPM is newer model, but without offhand knowing what other pellets are around where I live is the option of burning other stuff/auger change worth the extra money?

 

[Ssyko]

25-pdv is a great stove for the price. The 10-CPM im not familiar with yet. You will have to dedicate yourself time to clean and maintain the stove (any stove for that matter). Either of the stoves you are looking at are going to produce good heat, but getting it moved around the house will be a challenge. Go big and run it low is good advice the others have posted.

 

[rona]

Truth be known I would second the idea of a Harman P68 only I would tough it out until spring and find a used one on Craigs list or similar advertisements. They may cost a little more but you can rebuilt a used one fairly easy and by doing it yourself you will save money and learn how they work. Just remember a couple things one you can get help on this forum just by asking. The second thing is resale down the road will be a lot better then a cheap box store stove that someone is peddling off so they can buy a Harman. I know many owners that bought their stove new 12 years ago and the only thing they have replaced is door gaskets. The Harman is known for simple operation and very little to go wrong.

 

[jpeterson2322]

I just recently purchased a Harman P61a after doing research. More cost upfront but less down time cleaning. Do you have forced air? I just wired up a relay and second thermostat to control the blower and circulate the air through the ductwork.

 

[Indiana]

I am currently looking at the 25-PDV or the 10-CPM as these are rated for about 2200 SqFT which I think should be plenty, and won't break the bank. From what I saw from a couple older posts, it seems besides being multi-fuel the 10-CPM is newer model, but without offhand knowing what other pellets are around where I live is the option of burning other stuff/auger change worth the extra money?

I have an englander 10cpm 8 seasons now. Heats my 4 bdrm 2500 sf colonial np.

 

[JJ1021]

I have baseboard heat so no ducts that I could tie in. I have looked at the Harman's, but again the biggest thing is cost... It would be my first pellet stove, so I also am uncertain if my setup would work well and heat house which is why I was looking at a cheaper one now to test it and then upgrade down the line if it's in the budget.

 

[Ssyko]

If your testing find a 25-PDV used throw some new parts in it and run with it. Good stoves just picky on cleanliness.