Stove Placement

[eladdvf]

Greetings

I have an approx. 2400 sq. ft. 2-story farm house (9 foot ceiling on 1st level) that is 100 years old. I am considering purchasing the PE Summit Classic to reduce my insane propane bills (hot water radiators). I believe I have a great location for this wood burner (next to stairs in central part of house with chimney running on back wall - see picture and measurements below). The Summit has fairly tight clearances too so I am hoping to set this up as tight as permissible (also in the running where Cape Cod and Liberty but I think the Summit is better for clearances).

I could use some advice on placement. The challenge for placement is the A/C air return (and A/C vent location). I’m probably going to have to move one or more floor holes.

I was thinking of a corner installation would be awesome here but the installer recommended I install it parallel to the back wall, centering it between the corner and the inside edge of the door woodwork. I think the installer preferred the stove position parallel to the wall so that the pipe coming out of the stove wouldn’t have to twist so far over to get to the chimney (see picture for chimney location), etc. He may have been concerned about too much heat just going up the stairs too with a corner installation (my speculation).

Anyway…. Just looking for ideas and suggestions as far as what would look right and what makes sense for this space. If I should use a ‘cookie cutter’ hearth platform, Which size would make sense? vs. If I should build a custom hearth to try and keep the A/C return exposed there (I’m thinking that having the A/C return grill there would be great for distributing heat with my central A/C fan, but maybe it would look strange and/or maybe there just isn’t room)

If I went with stove placement parallel to the back wall, I think I could place the hearth in front of the little A/C output Vent (unless that would look strange having the hearth in front of that register as opposed to starting at the back wall…. maybe I’d even be able to miss the larger a/c return vent that way (building a custom hearth) I know you need room on the hearth for some tools and maybe even a small wood bundle too, so maybe I do need to move the a/c return. Sorry to ramble on…. so many thoughts with so little sense of what would look right or what would make sense for this space. Thanks in advance for your help.

 

[begreen]

Did the installer discuss alternative locations or is this the only spot? The reason I ask is mechanical code wants the return air to be at least 10 ft away from the stove. If this is being inspected that might get called out. With a stove this close to the open stairway a lot of heat will go right upstairs. Is that ok or is the primary goal to heat the main floor? Another issue with the installer's plan is that there are two light switches and the thermostat located there. Is there a plan to move them? Also, will a stainless liner be added to the chimney?

 

[eladdvf]

Thanks for your thoughts. The installer never said anything about the air return needing to be moved as a code necessity.I'm glad you mentioned that. The goal is to heat the downstairs primarily (hoping downstairs would be the warmest place while also adding heat to the upstairs). There are 3 more locations possible. Two are in corners on the outside walls (might be tough to get a good draft going with such a big old house... probably 25-27 feet of pipe needed... could run pipe through house interior in one of the locations )... might be tougher to move heat around from those corners. A 3rd location is central to the house ... it's a room opposite the one pictured. The pipe would run up through a closet which is good, but it looks like it would come very close to running through the top of the stairs to the attic... would need to carefully measure to understand where exactly that pipe would pass through the attic floor. Thanks for noticing the switches. The thermostat would go away but had no plans for the light and ceiling fan switches.

 

[begreen]

It's good that you have options. Can you make a simple sketch showing the first floor plan with possible stove locations and post a picture of it? It sounds like one or the other might work.

 

[eladdvf]

Here is a very crude sketch. The picture above shows location A by the stairs. The Music Room and the living room are the same size (music room not smaller as pic indicates). The thick lines on the walls are windows. The window by the front door has a radiator in front of it which might rule out location B. Locations C & D are options (location D may work if chimney pipe wouldn't have to go through attic steps). Upstairs is similar with 4 bedrooms and 2nd bathroom.

Thanks again.

 

[begreen]

Looks like a typical 4-square layout. Without seeing other details, C or D appear to be the best bets. However, you may want a humidifier in the music room to protect the instruments.

 

[Grisu]

Would there be room in the living room between the two windows? I think the air will have no problem going up the stairs.

Have you taken a look at the cast-iron model of the Summit, the PE T6? Looks to me like a better fit for your home.

 

[eladdvf]

Unfortunately, on the second floor there is a bedroom window dead center (above and between) the 2 living room windows. Otherwise that would have been a great spot. My 1st choice was actually the PE T6, but then my wife saw the picture in this review (https://www.hearth.com/talk/threads/pe-alderlea-t6-first-clean-and-mini-review.124887/) with the complaint that it was a real dust magnet (the picture says it all as far as my wife was concerned). The T6 does not offer an enamel finish unfortunately (the T5 does but I was afraid of going smaller). I agree with you though that it is a better looking stove given our house type (Summit has a modern look). It's been like this the whole way...compromise on the stove style and now the location (everyone normally hangs out in the living room where I hoped we could enjoy it more). Maybe I should just go with an Englander in the music room since it will not be in a place where we normally hang out (still get the benefit of lowering propane bills while not needlessly spending cash on an upscale stove for a room that is not used that often). I am grateful for the advice and don't want to make a big mistake (especially since the installer was estimating $7200 for the whole thing at location A)

 

[begreen]

We've had the T6 for 7 years and my fussy wife has never complained about the T6 being dusty. $7200 for a woodstove install seems quite high. Did you get an itemized estimate? I would expect it to be more like $4500-5000.

 

[Osagebndr]

I like location b or in front if the big window in the living room. Looks like they would both be a good spot to heat most everything IMHO

 

[Grisu]

That's too bad with the window; would have been a good spot. I would not try to "hide" the stove somewhere. We like to sit in front of it to enjoy the warm glow and the fireshow. For an enamel finish did you take a look at the Jotul F600, Hearthstone Manchester, Quadrafire Isle Royale and BlazeKing Ashford 30? All should be big enough for your home.

Agree with BeGreen, $7200 sounds high. You already have a chimney and just need to drop a liner down there and connect the stove?

 

[Osagebndr]

That is a bit pricey on an install. Some shops are like that tho atleast in my experience. Might get an itemized list like as BG suggested

 

[eladdvf]

Here is my estimate (based on the Lopi Liberty as this dealer does not handle summit). It was actually $7,881 (for location A). It included an extension to the basement (Idea being that I could clean pipe from the basement if he ran it down with a T cap). I left company name off but here is the itemized quote.

 

[begreen]

It's list price all the way, but if they are the best in town and very professional they may be worth it, though I can see why you are looking at alternatives. I would forgo the liner to the basement and cleanout to save a little. It will mean vacuuming out the tee when cleaning which is not that big a deal.

It would be good to get a competitive quote or two. If the music room is an option, you could save maybe $500 on the stove and if you get an ember protection only stove you could save another $400 on the hearth. I would contact a certified professional from one of these organizations and get a competitive quote on the chimney and stove installation. You can order a hearth from Amazon or build it yourself. The chimney itself will need to be enclosed as it passes through the second floor, even if in a closet. Sometimes this is simple, sometimes not. It depends on the house. But this cost should be included unless you can DIY.

In the meantime you should be stocking up with wood now. It takes a while to season after it is split, stacked and covered.