Trying to determine wood stove size in North Carolina.

[LittleTea]

Hi All,

First time poster here. We're looking at a wood stove and trying to figure what size we need. I found one website that says downstairs sf + 50% of 2nd floor. Is that an accurate calculation? We have a 2 story home (built in 2000), 1st floor has 963 sf with only one wall between kitchen and dining/entry. This same wall is where stairs are located. Second floor has all bedrooms and square footage equals 1154. I plan on using wood stove as primary heat at least for 1st floor. I have attached a quick and dirty drawing of the room in case it's needed. Would love some help on this one - thanks!

 

[begreen]

If you are in the lowlands of NC then a 2 cu ft stove or there abouts should work fine. There's several to choose from depending on the budget and style desired.

 

[LittleTea]

If you are in the lowlands of NC then a 2 cu ft stove or there abouts should work fine. There's several to choose from depending on the budget and style desired.

I'm in the Piedmont, middle of the state. Not too cold compared to some of y'all but I'm originally from Texas so the winters in NC are quite a bit colder for me. I'm guessing that heating up the whole house with the stove may be unrealistic due to the two floor configuration?

 

[begreen]

The floor plan looks pretty open. That should work well for you. Upstairs may be 5-10 degrees cooler, but it should get a fair amount of heat too.

 

[LittleTea]

Thanks! Initially you said about 2 cf would be good, I just read one of the articles in Hearth Wiki that states 2.5-3 cf would be better for overnight burns. Considering I do want to wake up to a warm downstairs I suppose I should size to that range?

 

[begreen]

In your climate zone it will be overkill. The 2.0 Pacific Energy Super series or Alderlea T5 will do overnight burns with hardwood easily. That said, so will the Enviro Kodiak 1700 or Boston 1700 if you prefer a 2.5 cu ft stove.