What size Hearthstone for new house?

[WoodBurner24]

Below is my sorry attempt at drawing a layout of the new house I bought. The X in the family room is where an old wood stove used to be that was removed. The hearth remains. The family room is 14x20. This is connected to the rest of the house through a small hallway. The lower level with the kitchen, dining room, living room, foyer, etc. is 24x28. Above this is the second level with three bedrooms and a bathroom. Nothing is above the family room, i.e. the upper level is only above the larger outer rectangle in my drawing. In the ceiling of the family room above the stove is a fan with ducting that brings warm air to the upper story.

Total first floor living area is 952 sq. ft. and upstairs is 700 sq. ft. I would like to be able to heat the whole house. The previous owner claims he did with the old stove. The old stove was very old and didn't have a visible model number or anything like that.

I really like the Hearthstone soapstone stoves. And I'm thinking the Heritage is the right size. Any thoughts?

Here is the kitchen. On the left side of the picture you can see the hallway that leads to the family room with the stove.

 

[BrowningBAR]

Below is my sorry attempt at drawing a layout of the new house I bought. The X in the family room is where an old wood stove used to be that was removed. The hearth remains. The family room is 14x20. This is connected to the rest of the house through a small hallway. The lower level with the kitchen, dining room, living room, foyer, etc. is 24x28. Above this is the second level with three bedrooms and a bathroom. Nothing is above the family room, i.e. the upper level is only above the larger outer rectangle in my drawing. In the ceiling of the family room above the stove is a fan with ducting that brings warm air to the upper story.

Total first floor living area is 952 sq. ft. and upstairs is 700 sq. ft. I would like to be able to heat the whole house. The previous owner claims he did with the old stove. The old stove was very old and didn't have a visible model number or anything like that.

I really like the Hearthstone soapstone stoves. And I'm thinking the Heritage is the right size. Any thoughts?

Sounds good. Only thought is to buy me one while you are at the stove store.

 

[Fsappo]

The Heritage should give you enough heat. If you did upgrade to the Mansfield you would be giving yourself a longer burn time. The soft heat from a Hearthstone allows you to oversize slightly. I can run the Mansfield in my showroom at about 500 degrees surface temp and still have clients sitting 8 feet away in our couches and being very comfortable. Keep in mind, Hearthstone is running a 10% off sale until mid January

 

[BrowningBAR]

Keep in mind, Hearthstone is running a 10% off sale until mid January

See! This makes it even more affordable to buy me when when you get yours!


I kid...

 

[heatwise]

i own the phoenix and recomend it. i chose it over the homestead for its higher heat output set by hearthstone and i want to have headroom to be able to heat when the temps dip low. but i must say i like their entire line of stoves. pete

 

[BrowningBAR]

i own the phoenix and recomend it. i chose it over the homestead for its higher heat output set by hearthstone and i want to have headroom to be able to heat when the temps dip low. but i must say i like their entire line of stoves. pete

I do to and they are really simple to run compared to the stoves I own. My father in-law owns one at it is damn near monkey proof to run.

 

[Highbeam]

You are right to choose the heritage. What the heritage has that makes it stand out is the side loading door. We only use the side door since these modern stoves, the medium sized ones, and shallow and wide so you load logs sideways. With the side door you don't have to worry about logs rolling back out. I don't really like the looks of the mansfield, the legs always kind of bothered me. Whatever you do, don't go smaller than the heritage/phoenix if you want to heat the home. Overnight burns are very difficult with anything less than the heritage size stoves.

I heat 1700 SF with my stove and it is plenty of heat.

 

[WoodBurner24]

Thanks a lot for all the feedback.

I visited a very nice local dealer after posting, and he said the Heritage or the Mansfield would be fine. He said he may lean slightly toward the Mansfield because it's better to have too much stove than not enough, but the Heritage has the side door while the Mansfield doesn't, so it's really a toss up. I really like the side door and it seems like it would be very convenient.

They had the Heritage in stock (which is eligible for the 10% off sale) but not the Mansfield (which I guess means no 10% off). The price difference is about $650, which would probably more than pay for installation.

Very tempting to go for the Heritage, with my only concerns being that I'd have to run it full tilt all the time to heat the whole house, and it would just barely make it through an all night burn of 8-9 hours.

 

[Fsappo]

Thanks a lot for all the feedback.

I visited a very nice local dealer after posting, and he said the Heritage or the Mansfield would be fine. He said he may lean slightly toward the Mansfield because it's better to have too much stove than not enough, but the Heritage has the side door while the Mansfield doesn't, so it's really a toss up.

They had the Heritage in stock (which is eligible for the 10% off sale) but not the Mansfield (which I guess means no 10% off). The price difference is about $650, which would probably more than pay for installation.

Very tempting to go for the Heritage, with my only concerns being that I'd have to run it full tilt all the time to heat the whole house, and it would just barely make it through an all night burn of 8-9 hours.

According to Hearthstone, the 10% off applies to stock or non stock stoves. They may either add shipping to order a Mansfield or be willing to bend a little more on a stock stove.

 

[WoodBurner24]

Thanks a lot for all the feedback.

I visited a very nice local dealer after posting, and he said the Heritage or the Mansfield would be fine. He said he may lean slightly toward the Mansfield because it's better to have too much stove than not enough, but the Heritage has the side door while the Mansfield doesn't, so it's really a toss up.

They had the Heritage in stock (which is eligible for the 10% off sale) but not the Mansfield (which I guess means no 10% off). The price difference is about $650, which would probably more than pay for installation.

Very tempting to go for the Heritage, with my only concerns being that I'd have to run it full tilt all the time to heat the whole house, and it would just barely make it through an all night burn of 8-9 hours.

According to Hearthstone, the 10% off applies to stock or non stock stoves. They may either add shipping to order a Mansfield or be willing to bend a little more on a stock stove.

Thanks. Is that in writing anywhere, maybe on Hearthstone's website? The guy may just have been mistaken, he seemed honest.

 

[thinkxingu]

Woodburner, I'm sure you can get the Mansfield with the sale price--especially if the dealer's gonna get the accessories and install sale. We saved 10% without a sale.

In any case, my in-laws have the Heritage for a house that's fairly similar to yours. It works ok, but they do have to get it going pretty well to keep the house up to temp, especially in the upper-levels, which would be my concern in your house seeing as there's only that one stairway and vent. Their house is a bit drafty, however, so that might make the difference.

If the space can take the Mansfield, it may be worth it.

Good luck!

S

 

[Fsappo]

Only written in the email I got from the factory. Maybe just double check with them.

 

[Highbeam]

It would be very nice to have a firebox the size of the mansfield. I hear you can load wood either the long way or the short way and just have more power is good. You won't hear many complaints from mansfield owners. Where do you live woodburner24? If it's really cold then you might appreciate the extra power.

Using a side door is great on a stove that MUST be loaded east/west such as the heritage. Try doing this through the front door.

 

[thinkxingu]

Highbeam, I agree on the loading--it's taken some practice to learn how to fill the firebox in our Homestead without a side door. What's worse is the slanting top baffle. In any case, even your Heritage looks small to me from the side--the Homestead must be deeper.

If the Mansfield can load both EW and NS, I think it's a no-brainer here. With the radiation patterns of the soapstone and flexible loading, the OP would have much more control over the amount of heat produced, which might be important in that situation.

S

 

[WoodBurner24]

It would be very nice to have a firebox the size of the mansfield. I hear you can load wood either the long way or the short way and just have more power is good. You won't hear many complaints from mansfield owners. Where do you live woodburner24? If it's really cold then you might appreciate the extra power.

Using a side door is great on a stove that MUST be loaded east/west such as the heritage. Try doing this through the front door.

I live in Connecticut. Not exactly Alaska winters, but it can get pretty chilly.

 

[WoodBurner24]

Highbeam, I agree on the loading--it's taken some practice to learn how to fill the firebox in our Homestead without a side door. What's worse is the slanting top baffle. In any case, even your Heritage looks small to me from the side--the Homestead must be deeper.

If the Mansfield can load both EW and NS, I think it's a no-brainer here. With the radiation patterns of the soapstone and flexible loading, the OP would have much more control over the amount of heat produced, which might be important in that situation.

S

The firebox of the Heritage did seem smaller than I anticipated. The Mansfield is much deeper. I didn't measure it but you could likely load smaller logs in the north-west direction. Although the roof is angled; it's higher in the front than in the back.

 

[thinkxingu]

Woodburner,
That could make all the difference in the shoulder season and/or warmer winter days. My Homestead is not much smaller than the Heritage and we had the house at 70 last night/65 this morning--top floor only, about 1,100 square feet. It was 5 degrees out, and I could've kept it above 70 all night, IF I was willing to get up and feed it. Sure would have been nice to have the Mansfield box then!

S

 

[Highbeam]

How did you like the mansfield's appearance? The window is a little smaller as I recall. One other thing you will be giving up with the mansfield is the flue options. The heritage/homestead/phoenix group can be rear or top vented. The mansfield looks a lot like the older hearthstones which gives it a historical look.

1600 SF, a non-open floor plan, unknown age and insulation, and CT winters will mean that you will need to really heat that family room up to heat up the rest of the house. I am afraid that you might be cooked out of that family room while trying to heat the living room.

The mansfield is rated for 2500SF and the heritage for 1900. While using the bigger mansfield might be nicer, I think the smaller stoves are more appropriate for your home. It's a tough one.

 

[WoodBurner24]

How did you like the mansfield's appearance? The window is a little smaller as I recall. One other thing you will be giving up with the mansfield is the flue options. The heritage/homestead/phoenix group can be rear or top vented. The mansfield looks a lot like the older hearthstones which gives it a historical look.

1600 SF, a non-open floor plan, unknown age and insulation, and CT winters will mean that you will need to really heat that family room up to heat up the rest of the house. I am afraid that you might be cooked out of that family room while trying to heat the living room.

The mansfield is rated for 2500SF and the heritage for 1900. While using the bigger mansfield might be nicer, I think the smaller stoves are more appropriate for your home. It's a tough one.

I preferred the look of the Heritage. The Mansfield is very boxy. The Heritage has a more contemporary look to it.

House was built in 1977. Windows were recently upgraded with double-pane. Not sure about insulation as I don't live there yet, but seemed fine when we viewed it in the cold.

Definitely a tough call!

 

[CO2Neutral]

Can you or do you know someone that can give you a heat loss calculation (I do this for a living so I get to play with my house ;o) If you want a definitive answer on how many BTU's your house needs this will accomplish it. For example, I know my house needs 24000 BTU's on the COLDEST day of the year. So, I bought a medium sized PE fusion. Don't worry about the science too much -- I just want to point out that a calculation does exist to understand what a house needs in terms of BTU load. I also feel BTU's from a stove are misleading.

If you're looking for a shoot-from-the-hip type answer: My house is 200 sq ft. smaller than yours and we heat 100% with our medium fusion. More than enough most days and some days it would be great to have a bigger stove ( but not really-- it just means my house might dip down faster than I'd like). So if your house is a bit bigger and you want to be a serious wood heater than perhaps consider a larger breed. Like someone mentioned above -- soapstone allows you a lot of wiggle room since it is such a great heat buffer.

Good luck and go big (that's my vote)

 

[Fsappo]

It would be very nice to have a firebox the size of the mansfield. I hear you can load wood either the long way or the short way and just have more power is good. You won't hear many complaints from mansfield owners. Where do you live woodburner24? If it's really cold then you might appreciate the extra power.

Using a side door is great on a stove that MUST be loaded east/west such as the heritage. Try doing this through the front door.

I just loaded my Mansfield with that much wood + 3 or 4 more splits, front to back all about 18" long. I stuck a fire starter brick under the splits (no kindling upside down gravity boot fires) Opened the air control. This was at 7:45..12 minutes ago. I'm gonna go look at the stove now. I bet the fire is burning nice and it's almost time turn the air down. I wont have to add wood for 8 hours+ now. Thats right, I start the stove with a FULL load of splits front to back, one little fire starter and thats it. Im gonna go check it. Ok, maybe 5 more minutes. Lets call it 20 minutes. So that my friends is why I love the Mansfield. Easy mode for operation, very very long burns. (I can have 250 surface temps 12 hours after my last loading) and a soft even heat.

 

[fatalbie]

I heated a 1500 sf house in Worcester Ma with a Heritage and had no problmes. After the remodel work and insulation I added it would be consistently 69-70 on the thermostat in the kitchen at the back of the house. The thing you need to realize with the soapstone is that there is a little lag time between the fire start and the stove radiating heat. That said, the retained residual is fantastic.

Not sure if clearance is an issue, but there are major differences between the stoves. Make sure you look into that.


You will love the choice.

Jim

 

[begreen]

No problem with the stove choice, but I suspect it's going to be a challenge to heat the house. This is because of the non-central location of the hearth and not the particular stove choice. IMHO, the stove would be much more effective located in the core of the living space, somewhere along the common wall of the livingroom/kitchen.