Small cabin stove recommendations

[bradseubert]

I'm in the process of building a small cabin and starting to look at wood stoves. The footprint is just under 900sf. A 15 x 17 loft area. The living room area is 240sf with a cathedral ceiling. The rest of the place will be 8' ceilings. Its new construction, will be well air sealed and well insulated.

Its on an insulated concrete slab with radiant heat in the slab. The plan is to temper the space to 55ish with the radiant and then use the wood stove when we are there mostly on weekends to bring the temp up to 70ish.

Recommendations stoves I should be looking at?

 

[EatenByLimestone]

Are you looking for cat or non cat?



Non cat, I’d go small. 1-1.5 cubic foot. You’re not going to need a lot of heat.

For cat, pick one that’ll turn down low, like 10,000 btu.

I suspect you’ll still be opening windows at 10k, but you will take longer to do it.

I suspect that you’ll find there isn’t much need for a stove that’ll bump from 55 to 70. You’ll probably turn the heat up. Stoves don’t turn off at 70. They run until the fuel is gone.

Maybe propane or pellets, which can run off a thermostat, is a better option?

 

[bradseubert]

Are you looking for cat or non cat?



Non cat, I’d go small. 1-1.5 cubic foot. You’re not going to need a lot of heat.

For cat, pick one that’ll turn down low, like 10,000 btu.

I suspect you’ll still be opening windows at 10k, but you will take longer to do it.

I suspect that you’ll find there isn’t much need for a stove that’ll bump from 55 to 70. You’ll probably turn the heat up. Stoves don’t turn off at 70. They run until the fuel is gone.

Maybe propane or pellets, which can run off a thermostat, is a better option?

Open to CAT or no CAT.

The radiant floor heat is going to be very slow to react to likely won't be turning that up. I get that the stove won't turn off at 70. We use wood to heat our main home too.

 

[stoveliker]

I had the same thought; the need for heat beyond the (slow) floor may be less than what the stove will provide.
If you have a lot of thermal mass in the home, a heat pulse and glide down (i.e. small intermittent fires and letting the stove go cold in between) may be needed.

For that reason, I'd go with non-cat as that mode of operation is easier than with a cat stove imo.

 

[EbS-P]

Interested in a cook stove?

 

[EatenByLimestone]

Some weekends I don’t get my cabin above 55 with all the wind I get subjected to, lol. I’m heating from ambient though.

I’d just throw on a hoodie!

In that situation I’d probably go small steel non cat. You could run it on blast furnace and get a good light show with radiant heat, then be done by bed time.

 

[bradseubert]

Some weekends I don’t get my cabin above 55 with all the wind I get subjected to, lol. I’m heating from ambient though.

I’d just throw on a hoodie!

In that situation I’d probably go small steel non cat. You could run it on blast furnace and get a good light show with radiant heat, then be done by bed time.

Thanks. So what stove would you be looking at for a small steel non cat?

 

[Todd]

Drolet probably makes the best bang for your buck non cat steel stoves out there. I’d recommend something with a 1.5-2 cu ft firebox. Higher end stoves look at PE or Quadrafire.

 

[EatenByLimestone]

Thanks. So what stove would you be looking at for a small steel non cat?

Look at what’s available at the dealers and stores near you. If I like brand x and brand x is not sold near you, what I like wouldn’t be of much help. Dealer support for wear items like gaskets can really make a difference. My dealer is no longer around. Buying gaskets last time was not as easy as it should have been.

Things I’d look at is what chimney length is recommended and the design of the reburn system. If you’re going to have a tall chimney and the stove is an easy breather, you may be setting yourself up for frustration.

Some of the reburn systems are more durable than others. If you’re like me and have been known from time to time to motivate a split to fit, one of the more fragile systems might not be for you.

Once you find what’s available read the reviews and posts from others running the stove. Ask lots of questions. Buy the stove you want and don’t worry if the stove is a little more than you wanted to pay. That extra amount breaks down to very little over the 20+ years you’ll be looking at it. And you don’t want to look at it every time you run it and wish you bought that other stove.