Selling house, no more Pellet Stove! Fireplace or Wood Stove?

[bostonfan49]

We burned 3 tons of pellets our first winter and will burn just under 4 tons this year! While I am not a pellet stove experts, I am totally familiar with the hauling of pellets and the weekly and monthly variations of cleaning our pellet stove. ***We will be selling our house this summer/fall and buying a new home before winter. While my wife loves the heat output of the pellet stove, she misses the "smell and crackling" of a traditional fireplace. I don't know what kind of fireplace we will end up with but I assume that fireplaces can be set up with various types of "heat tubes" to throw out additional heat other than having most go up the chimney. I am also assuming that wood stoves muffle most of the snap, crackle, pop and that most of the nice smells go up the exhaust venting. Thanks, hopefully someone can steer me to either Fireplace burning or a Wood stove. Bill

 

[pen]

There are stoves on the market, like the Jotul Oslo that have a viewing screen so that the unit can be operated like a freestanding fireplace for ambiance when you want, and serves as a very efficient wood burning heater with a big glass viewing window when operated as a wood stove.

A traditional fireplace is incredibly inefficient.

pen

 

[mellow]

Since it looks like you modify stuff I would look at getting a freestanding or insert wood stove and hookup the smart stove system so you can have a wood burner that acts simular to a pellet stove.

 

[begreen]

With current heating prices, unless the new house has natural gas, that craving for an open fire will last one month or less in winter. An open fireplace or stove is sucking heat out of the room. You can heat that way, but be prepared to have a trailer load of wood ready to burn. Speaking of which, if you are intending to burn wood. Try to get the most seasoned wood you can and stack it now.

Seriously, 99% of folks (including me) thought that having a screen on the stove would be nice for ambiance fires and bought the screen accessory. In most cases it gets used twice and then gathers dust. My recommendation is to get an appropriate sized and styled stove for the home and get wood right away.

As for the ambiance, buy a good fireplace dvd, turn up the volume and burn incense.

 

[ohlongarm]

We burned 3 tons of pellets our first winter and will burn just under 4 tons this year! While I am not a pellet stove experts, I am totally familiar with the hauling of pellets and the weekly and monthly variations of cleaning our pellet stove. ***We will be selling our house this summer/fall and buying a new home before winter. While my wife loves the heat output of the pellet stove, she misses the "smell and crackling" of a traditional fireplace. I don't know what kind of fireplace we will end up with but I assume that fireplaces can be set up with various types of "heat tubes" to throw out additional heat other than having most go up the chimney. I am also assuming that wood stoves muffle most of the snap, crackle, pop and that most of the nice smells go up the exhaust venting. Thanks, hopefully someone can steer me to either Fireplace burning or a Wood stove. Bill

Pacific energy has a screen to use with their woodburners,acts somewhat like a fireplace.

 

[Highbeam]

A stove with the door closed will only barely allow you to hear the largest and most violent pops from the fire. If you're really close. The smell won't be coming out of your stove during normal operation, only when you open the door to reload.

Lots of good reasons for wood heat and a wood stove but sound and smell aren't on the short list. The silence of a stove and the laziness of the flame compared to a pellet stove are high.

 

[PoolGuyinCT]

There are stoves on the market, like the Jotul Oslo that have a viewing screen so that the unit can be operated like a freestanding fireplace for ambiance when you want, and serves as a very efficient wood burning heater with a big glass viewing window when operated as a wood stove.

A traditional fireplace is incredibly inefficient.

pen

Negative 24% I believe

 

[Backwoods Savage]

Ah, and last night we were at another person's home. They heat with LP. We didn't freeze but only because we bundled up before we left home. Arriving home late, when we opened the house door......AH! Wonderful heat! The stove was down to just coals but the house was toasty warm. Man, I surely do not want to be without wood heat nor would I enjoy the expense of burning oil or gas. Now where is my chain saw?

 

[lopiliberty]

Why not both. Install a freestanding stove to heat the house and use the fireplace for ambiance when desired

 

[Seasoned Oak]

Some stoves and inserts allow both types of burning. I have a fireplace screen for my Harman TL-300 and i would assume that its twin brother the 300-i insert has the same option. Sure open door and fireplace burning its wasteful but for the limited time you do it its not going to break the bank. My next house will have a harman 300-i in its fireplace for the few times you want an open fire and the many times you want the HEAT.

 

[pen]

With my old fisher, using the fireplace screen once and a while was nice as you couldn't see the fire otherwise.

With my 30 having such a large glass window in the door, I don't mind having that door closed a bit. Still a great view and heats way better than it would w/ the door open.

pen

 

[Pallet Pete]

Scotty Overkill has a fireplace that also heats like a wood stove I believe. You could pm him for info.

Pete

 

[billb3]

Negative 24% I believe

I used to use mine for air conditioning in the Summer.

You might use the screen more often in warmer ( maybe not hot ) weather for those times you might have had a fire in the back yard but didn't because of the mosquitos. It's not quite the same.

 

[rdust]

My last stove could be run with the door open and I never used it. My wife and I thought it was a "great" option but once we ran it with the door closed we realized running it with the door open would be silly. I have my stove in the family room and a natural fireplace in my living room. I've used the natural fireplace in the living room no more than a handful of times in 4 years. I may have used it once last year and this year it hasn't been used at all. The living room will probably get an insert at some point when I have some extra money burning a hole in my pocket.

 

[Todd 2]

Hi Bill, alot of good ideas have been said here, also 100% truth about fire places sucking the heat right out of the house. I thought I would miss the nature of a fire place also when I purchased my house with out one (sorta grew up around fire places) but when I finally installed the new epa wood stove with the big glass door I knew right then I found what I thought I had been missing. I did use the screen a fiew times but then I think it became part of a rabbit pen or something but it could be a nice Better Half pleaser then at bed time fill it up, close it up and you have a great 24-7 heat source. Also, safe to leave burn and not worry about the open fire issues while counting sheep.
The fact has also been stated about well seasoned wood, this is a matter that cant be overstated when it comes to getting the best from new wood stoves.
Just a fiew to view - Pacific Energy / Alderlea, Jotul, Lopi Cape Cod, HearthStone - there are more but these come to mind that have the bigger glass door w/ screen fill in.

Todd 2

 

[blades]

Traditional fireplaces - Some of the new designs are fairly efficient heating units when closed up ( still not as high as current stove designs). I have not spent any time assessing them lately. Typically the install cost overall is higher than a quality stove. The fire place is more of an ambiance thing , stoves heat.

 

[ColdNH]

With current heating prices, unless the new house has natural gas, that craving for an open fire will last one month or less in winter. An open fireplace or stove is sucking heat out of the room. You can heat that way, but be prepared to have a trailer load of wood ready to burn. Speaking of which, if you are intending to burn wood. Try to get the most seasoned wood you can and stack it now.

Seriously, 99% of folks (including me) thought that having a screen on the stove would be nice for ambiance fires and bought the screen accessory. In most cases it gets used twice and then gathers dust. My recommendation is to get an appropriate sized and styled stove for the home and get wood right away.

As for the ambiance, buy a good fireplace dvd, turn up the volume and burn incense.

My thoughts EXACTLY. speaking of which the oil delivery guy came yestarday to top off my tank (as home heating prices are nearing 4$ a gallon again, luckly he was only able to fit 80 gallons in the tank. Not bad but it still cost me 300$!

Pellet stoves dont do it for me either. the heat output isnt as great as a wood stove, and the fire is so fake looking its laughable. i say go with a wood stove with a screen kit to please the wife.

 

[Seasoned Oak]

$!

Pellet stoves dont do it for me either. the heat output isnt as great as a wood stove, and the fire is so fake looking its laughable. i say go with a wood stove with a screen kit to please the wife.

I agree ,theres nothing to look at with a pellet stove. I still like the automation aspect but if i had one it might be a boiler in the furnace room,not the living room.

 

[soupy1957]

For the most part, the conversations I've seen by those who use fireplace inserts, seem to indicate a free-standing stove as the better choice for home heating (if that is your goal).

-soupy1957

 

[Seasoned Oak]

For the most part, the conversations I've seen by those who use fireplace inserts, seem to indicate a free-standing stove as the better choice for home heating (if that is your goal).

-soupy1957

An good quality insert can do both (as long as you have power to run the fans) Good looks and functionality.

 

[dafattkidd]

If you're wife loves fireplaces for ambiance maybe try to find a house with a fireplace and install a stand alone unit elsewhere. Otherwise, if you install an insert in that fireplace you won't be disappointed. either way it's a win. The light shows in these new units are impressive.

*Get moving on that wood supply.

 

[ColdNH]

If you're wife loves fireplaces for ambiance maybe try to find a house with a fireplace and install a stand alone unit elsewhere. Otherwise, if you install an insert in that fireplace you won't be disappointed. either way it's a win. The light shows in these new units are impressive.

*Get moving on that wood supply.

I agree, the light show is almost better then a fireplace when the secondaries start blazing away! Just try to imagine the heat this oslo is throwing with this burn!

 

[lopiliberty]

Although I don't have the Jotul Oslo, I don't have to imagine what kind of heat it is putting out. When my liberty is burning like that it is putting out a ridiculous amount of heat

 

[John Ackerly]

That nice smell you are looking for unfortunately means you are getting too much particulate matter in the house. Smelling wood smoke is nice here and there, like in a campground, but you definitely don't want to live with it in your home.

 

[corey21]

That nice smell you are looking for unfortunately means you are getting too much particulate matter in the house. Smelling wood smoke is nice here and there, like in a campground, but you definitely don't want to live with it in your home.

I agree to me smelling smoke in my house means i am playing with the stove to much or the draft is is off.