What would you do?

[pyper]

Here's our new family room. What would you do? It's about 12 feet from the FP to the wall opposite, This is probably the room we will spend the most time in. It's connected (and open) to the kitchen (where the photo is taken from).

There is also a similar FP in the basement, directly under this one. The basement is half finished (the other half).

It's a clickable thumbnail.

Right now I'm kind of thinking of putting a stove in front of the FP in the basement. The basement door is the door you can see through the open door in the photo.

 

[savageactor7]

Up here in NY I'd put a stove in for much needed heat but where you live maybe the occasional fire for ambiance is perfect...or an insert if you really needed the heat.

If I had to buy wood I might think seriously about a pellet stove. That way a standing wood pile doesn't become a varmint/snake magnet...but that's just me. Around here the wife has final say on anything indoors.

 

[heatwise]

i say put in 2 wood stoves, we used to run just one on the main floor and it was always cold in the basement. our basement is now warm and we only run the stove down theyre when we are using that space. and when the outdoor temp drops down real low it helps to get the inside temps back up faster using 2 stoves.

 

[northwinds]

We run a big stove in the finished walkout basement and a small insert upstairs. It's working out very well.
The insert looks good and has clean lines on the wall. If the temps dip below zero or if we're gone for long periods,
running the insert and the stove together quickly bring the house up to temperature. Also during the shoulder
season, the upstairs insert is perfect for taking off the chill.

 

[mywaynow]

What are you trying to accomplish? What style, size home? What kind of access to fuels?

 

[remkel]

I have a fireplace in the living room and a wood stove in the basement. The wood stove heats most of the house (approx 2000 sq ft) by running it in the basement with the basement door open. 68-70 on the first floor, 64-66 on the second. Fireplace is occasionally lit for ambiance.

If you are going to go this route, I would ensure you purchase a large enough stove with enought btu output.

 

[pyper]

What are you trying to accomplish? What style, size home? What kind of access to fuels?

I guess part of the reason I asked the question the way I did is because I'm not sure what I want to accomplish.

The house is an all brick ranch, probably built in the 1970's. It's 1600 SF on the main level, and 1600 in the basement. 900 SF of the basement is unfinished. Most of the basement is above grade. It has a gas furnace. The fireplace in the photo has gas logs in it.

In our current house we will probably burn about a 1/2 to 3/4 cord of wood this year. I have more than 2 cords on hand, mostly pecan, but also including around 1/4 cord of split red oak that should burn nice next winter. The new property (about 1/2 acre) has numerous mature trees, but we don't plan on cutting any of them. At some point one or more of them may need to come down. I will probably be scrounging for wood. You can buy a pickup load of hardwood here for $50. Part of the reason our wood usage is low in our current house is because we primarily burn at night. After I get home I build a fire, and after a few hours we go to bed. Occasionally it gets cold for a week -- maybe 32F for a high, but most of the winter daytime highs are near 50F, so the house doesn't get that cold during the day. Our current house is wood frame, and it's insulated fairly well.

 

[Adios Pantalones]

If putting in one stove- it's a waste to put it in the basement. Put it in your living area.

I have a slightly leaky 1600 sq ft log home, and a good sized insert (Hampton HI300) has a hard time on the coldest days but heats the whole house on 90%+ of our degree days, but I'm lucky and have a fairly open floor plan and heat also moves upstairs well.

If you live in the deep south (which means Pennsylvania and South ) then you will get away with less than we need in the Great White North.

 

[Danno77]

you say most of your basement is above grade, so you can walk wood into there pretty easy?

 

[RNLA]

It would all depend on how much wood you want to cut or have room to store ahead. Is the access upstairs/down stairs equally easy? If access is a challenge I would put a gas unit either up or down stairs. I would always go with wood if you have the room, supply, and time to do it.

 

[mcollect]

I would put an insert on the first floor. My wife asked for one two years ago, and we bought a Jotul 550. Now I am totally hooked on wood heat. We have an open floor plan and the insert keeps us warm, 75 in the stove room 70 in the kitchen and the furthest room away is 68. BTW it is 12' and windy outside and our house is mostly windows floor to ceiling.

 

[pyper]

you say most of your basement is above grade, so you can walk wood into there pretty easy?

Yes, there is a door right next to the fireplace. No steps up or down, and it's under a deck which I'll probably put a roof under. Also, since it's at least 50% fully above grade and probably not insulated at all, it will probably lose a lot of heat.

That's one drawback with the upstairs location. The entrance is off the carport. We'd probably store wood in the back yard, so that would mean carry wood up a (short) flight of stairs across the carport and through the kitchen. And that carpet in the room with the fireplace looks like it would be easy to make a mess of.

 

[billb3]

I prefer the stove in the family room or where you spend the most time watching TV or have an office at one end, etc and end up spending a lot of time.

I've had a small stove in the basement at the foot of the stairs, too.
Floor over tends to be nice and warm.

I was feeding it pine, though and that was a lot of trips up and down the stairs.

 

[Fsappo]

Deep south I'd put gas logs in, stop posting here, quit my job and go fishing every day.

 

[begreen]

It's a shallow room. I'd put in an insert instead of a freestanding stove. It will require less hearth extension and will vent straight up. My concern is a freestander is going to have a 90 going up to a short flue. In a mild climate that can make for a smoke spillage when the stove door is opened and puffbacks. How tall is the chimney?

 

[pyper]

The chimney isn't very tall. It's on an outside wall. Maybe 6 feet on the outside above the ceiling line. So maybe 10 feet +/- overall.

 

[begreen]

It's going to need all the help it can get with a flue that tall, maybe even a 2 ft extension added. I'm liking Franks suggestion if you have nat gas in the house already.

 

[Fsappo]

Thanks BG. That guy better be out in the back 40 diggin for crawlers as we speak.

 

[iceman]

It's going to need all the help it can get with a flue that tall, maybe even a 2 ft extension added. I'm liking Franks suggestion if you have nat gas in the house already.

*3
You haven't said where you are but I would do gas or pellet.. a lot cleaner, less stress and that chimney might be a little short to get optimal burns.... plus if you are in the 50's most of winter..I would be worried about snakes and all that stuff year round! I have a Nat gas fireplace and it does a great job.. so much I was gonna put one in my basement.... until I was told I could convert my oil burner to gas for a very reasonable price!..

 

[pyper]

Thanks BG. That guy better be out in the back 40 diggin for crawlers as we speak.

Sounds like we're moving to your idea of heaven. There's already NG in the fireplace and you can walk to the lake.

 

[begreen]

pyper, that does sound nice, especially with the cold grey we have sitting over us now. I suggest you head over to the "It's a gas" forum here for some helpful suggestions and options.

PS: Still open to the idea of a stove in the basement if you find yourselves wanting a rec room or nice home theater down there.

 

[Fsappo]

And you were looking to adopt a 40 year old italian child who doesnt eat much? I'll even watch the shrimp and mushrooms so they dont overcook

 

[pyper]

pyper, that does sound nice, especially with the cold grey we have sitting over us now. I suggest you head over to the "It's a gas" forum here for some helpful suggestions and options.

PS: Still open to the idea of a stove in the basement if you find yourselves wanting a rec room or nice home theater down there.

Thanks! I hadn't considered the idea of putting a gas heat source in the old fireplace. That might be just the thing, especially for my wife, who enjoys looking at the fire, but does not enjoy learning how to make fires from wood.

Half the basement is finished into two rooms that have a 3/4 wall between them. It's kind of odd, but it would be a good design for heating with wood. The one room is going to be my wife's music studio and the other is probably a guest bedroom. We don't have any specific plans for the unfinished space, but a pool table would fit. Since the basement is mostly above grade it's dry and pleasant. At least as far as concrete can be pleasant.

 

[Renovation]

If putting in one stove- it's a waste to put it in the basement. Put it in your living area.

+1 What the pantless man said.

When I see a question like this, I always hope the person will end up putting the stove in the living area, where it will heat more efficiently and, most of all, they can enjoy it. I recommend doing what you can to make that work.

 

[pyper]

I really appreciate all the comments.

When I explained to my wife how a gas insert works, she agreed that one of those will be the best solution for the room shown in the photo.

There are several reasons, but she likes it that she'll get to see a fire, but that she can turn it on with a switch, and there will be none of the mess associated with the wood. She also likes the idea that as we get older (this will probably be our last house) it will be very convenient.

And I think we may still put a stove in the basement, which will be used as living space at least occasionally, and I really dislike the idea of heating it with electric baseboards.