My wife and I bought a 9 year-old tight home ~5 years ago in Central Vermont that has double wall construction with many large (efficient) windows. Most windows have insulating shades for winter. We also have an ERV. Our grid tied PV solar house uses heat pumps that provide all the heat, but we also have a gas stove in our open concept living/dining/kitchen area that is only occasionally used, mainly for ambience. I dislike using this gas stove and would prefer not to burn fossil fuels if possible. I really miss using a wood stove, and we have forested land. I was hoping to swap out the gas stove for a wood stove. This is the only location to place a wood stove. Our goal is to use wood to supplement our heat, specifically on cold days, and for ambiance.
Two concerns I have are that one of our mini splits is directly over the stove. I’m concerned that the heat of a wood stove may damage the mini split that is located 4ft above the stove, even though it would be off. I’m concerned about the electronics, plastic shell and the gas in the coil. I was thinking of making a metal baffle under the mini split to deflect most of the heat to protect it. The second concern is we want to install the new external chimney through the wall (just as the gas stove pipe currently goes), and then straight up the gable end (~20ft) with one 30deg section to fit around the eave. We don’t want an interior chimney because it would have to be located directly in front of the mini split, and also due to a past bad experience with the contractor making a big hole in our metal roof. With the external chimney, I’m concerned about poor draft and smoke blow back. As a potential remedy, we were told to use outside air for the stove and/or use a draft inducing flue collar (from Hearthstone). The cost of this external chimney is pricy, hence I’m trying to see if it’s worth the trouble.
The overall footprint of our second floor living space is 1200 sq. ft., all with 8ft ceilings, but the open area in question is only about 700 sq. ft. I’ve been looking at the Hearthstone Lincoln, but wondering if it may be a little undersized, even if it’s not the main heat source. I’ve also considered the Jotul F602, but the fire viewing window is too small for this fire loving guy. My original idea was a Hearthstone GM40 but was warned about smoke blow back and that it would be too large for the space.
Any advice would be welcome.
Two concerns I have are that one of our mini splits is directly over the stove. I’m concerned that the heat of a wood stove may damage the mini split that is located 4ft above the stove, even though it would be off. I’m concerned about the electronics, plastic shell and the gas in the coil. I was thinking of making a metal baffle under the mini split to deflect most of the heat to protect it. The second concern is we want to install the new external chimney through the wall (just as the gas stove pipe currently goes), and then straight up the gable end (~20ft) with one 30deg section to fit around the eave. We don’t want an interior chimney because it would have to be located directly in front of the mini split, and also due to a past bad experience with the contractor making a big hole in our metal roof. With the external chimney, I’m concerned about poor draft and smoke blow back. As a potential remedy, we were told to use outside air for the stove and/or use a draft inducing flue collar (from Hearthstone). The cost of this external chimney is pricy, hence I’m trying to see if it’s worth the trouble.
The overall footprint of our second floor living space is 1200 sq. ft., all with 8ft ceilings, but the open area in question is only about 700 sq. ft. I’ve been looking at the Hearthstone Lincoln, but wondering if it may be a little undersized, even if it’s not the main heat source. I’ve also considered the Jotul F602, but the fire viewing window is too small for this fire loving guy. My original idea was a Hearthstone GM40 but was warned about smoke blow back and that it would be too large for the space.
Any advice would be welcome.
