Which Englander Stove for my 1000 sq/ft Bungalow?

[Natedawg63]

I live in Central Alabama... we have what most would call mild Winters but we do get down into the teens at least briefly during our season. A ice-storm or snow is never out of the realm either. I have a basic 4 large room Bungalow with a small hall and bathroom on the center Northern wall. I had kicked around the idea of installing a wood burner, but at 53 y/o... I do not really care to have to devote the amount of time needed daily to keep one in operation. So... I have decided to go with a wood pellet stove to replace my 15+ year old heat pump unit that has gone out. I am on a tight budget and happened upon the AmFmEnergy sight that sells reman'd and blemished Englander stoves and would like to purchase one of their units. Which one of their units is gonna give me the best bang-for-buck and not struggle to heat the lil house? I am gonna install a few in-wall heat exchange fans to go into the 2 bedrooms and place a lil doorway fan to feed back into the kitchen and laundry room.

Any help is greatly appreciated. Would like to get it ordered and headed this way before the heart of cold gets here. We just had our first real cold snap Friday/Saturday nights. We didn't even have a Fall. Leaves are still on the trees and shrub roses and Azaleas are still blooming.

Cheers...
Nate

FYI... they still show the 'Smart Heater' for sale even tho Englander does not show they sell those anymore.

(broken link removed to http://www.amfmenergy.com/manufacturer-refurbished-stoves.html)

 

[doghouse]

55 TRPEP. More to tinker with.

 

[rich2500]

TRPAH if they get more in stock

 

[Natedawg63]

TRPAH if they get more in stock

I had read here that the PAH was pretty underwhelming... only like 25,000 BTU total output? I also saw all the recommendations to step up to the P22 if you were gonna spend money on the P10.

I looked at the Castle Serenity... can not find them anywhere. Even the ACE site seems to not be able to get them.

 

[Jake86]

What about a Castle Serenity for $850. To $999. @ Ace or Home Depot on line. Real nice stove, more than enough heat, easy to clean. Free pick up at store. Super customer service.

 

[Natedawg63]

What about a Castle Serenity for $850. To $999. @ Ace or Home Depot on line. Real nice stove, more than enough heat, easy to clean. Free pick up at store. Super customer service.

I went to the ACE main page and added one to my cart... set my nearest local store... it said 'This Item Not Available Online'... so I assume they are behind on production or they have quit making them.

 

[Natedawg63]

Any ideas about the Fire Flame 'Blue Ridge' stove? I am sure it is a branded China made stove also.

 

[Jake86]

Ordered mine from Home Depot short time ago. $999. On line. Check for coupon first. For more off. Not sure about Ace now, but they were for sale on line a couple of weeks ago. Also for sale at Castlestoves.com $999.

 

[Jake86]

Try a different ace location. Several available near me. They were offering $100. Coupon a while back. Code word: winter season

 

[Natedawg63]

Ordered mine from Home Depot short time ago. $999. On line. Check for coupon first. For more off. Not sure about Ace now, but they were for sale on line a couple of weeks ago. Also for sale at Castlestoves.com $999.

HD says the same thing 'Not Available For Online Ordering'. I think they may be sold out at Castle Stoves.

 

[Natedawg63]

Only place I find a Castle Serenity is Amazon directly from Castle for $1300. I ain't paying that for a China made product. Not when I can get a Englander for almost half that price.

 

[Natedawg63]

I think I am gonna go with the newer designed IP stove. It has 35K btu potential if needed and I like the small footprint because it will sit just inside my front entrance for the most effective distribution to the rest of the house.

 

[Jake86]

Good luck with your new stove and stay warm.



Dog Pirate

 

[Eekeman]

I called castle in August to complain that no one had any and they told me to wait a couple of days and call hd and I did I used the 800 number and spoke to an sales agent and they had it in stock but online it said out of stock

 

[Natedawg63]

I called castle in August to complain that no one had any and they told me to wait a couple of days and call hd and I did I used the 800 number and spoke to an sales agent and they had it in stock but online it said out of stock

Yup... I called Castle myself. They only get 200-400/month from China he said. They test every unit before logging them and then send them out to stores. He said end of the month is the best time to snag one. If they are getting such great reviews... why can't they increase production? Weird.

 

[Natedawg63]

I pulled the trigger on the 25-SSP01 Smart Heater equivalent. It is the newest model and I like the fact that I can run it in AUTO mode when not at home and can then switch to manual and have full control when I am home to tend to it. $500 off SALE Price vs only $200 off for the 25-IP model. I think I will be happy and if not... can always sell it and upgrade before next season. Gonna grab a Selkirk 3" install kit off Amazon now. Then I jus need to find a nice tempered glass hearth to sit it upon to protect my hardwood floor.

 

[Natedawg63]

Actually, after thinking for a moment... one of my advertisers in the lil local newspaper I own has a trade-out account with me. They jus happen to be a glass shop. One 'free' tempered glass hearth pad solved. Now I jus pray my manager buddy at Wal Mart will order me a skid of Pennington Hardwood pellets. I jus don't think pellet stoves have caught on as much in the South? Everybody elses loss IMHO. Stackin' bags of pellets on my covered front porch beats splitting/cutting wood to length and having to stack it also.

 

[Eekeman]

I went to hd and picked up a 3 inch duravent kit for 209.00

 

[Natedawg63]

I went to hd and picked up a 3 inch duravent kit for 209.00

Was jus looking at the Duravent actually... Rural King has them for $199/free shipping.

I actually have another question... maybe somebody can answer. I am going through the wall horizontal onto my slabbed front porch. I can have 0" rear clearance with the lil Smart Stove. Can I run this straight through the wall and terminate it with one of the vent caps that is aimable and jus take it straight down onto the slab and not have to go vertical at all? I know it has to be 12" minimum length on the outside wall from what I have read/watched on youtube.

 

[Natedawg63]

Rethinking a bit... gonna do the thru wall and then vertical install on the porch to assure no backup smoke in case of power outage. Got the Duravent kit for $199/free shipping at Rural King. Also gonna utilize another advertiser for my hearth slab. Sylacauga, Alabama is known as 'The Marble City' cause we have the largest vein of pure white marble in the World. Jus gonna get him to cut me a 3'x3'x.5" slab and frame it out in some nice molding.

Thanks to Andy at AmFmEnergy... very promptly contacted me with the info for my curbside delivery. Waiting to hear back when Englander can ship out a blemished stove. Now I gotta get some pellets. Gonna call HD and see what brands they can get shipped to Sylacauga. I am positive my Wal Mart guy can get the Pennington... maybe others like Green Supremes? Gonna install a few room-to-room thru wall circulation fans to assure the Bungalow Box can transfer the heat properly.

 

[Natedawg63]

Stove arrived today, nice! It is a Englander brand... has a dent in the upper right corner where the info tag is. Won't even be able to tell crapola is wrong with it once it is put into place. The Duravent kit came... it was actually the 3300 made for multi-fuel pellets and required in Canada... all for $199 at Rural King. Great company. They were out in their warehouses so they had a local store in Indiana ship me one from their stock. Very pleased. Im gonna run the clean-out and 3 ft of pipe inside the house and elbow it out onto the porch with the turndown. I am fine with clearance to the top of my enclosed porch but I did not want to risk any City inspectors riding by and giving me crap for venting it to the porch.

Thanks again to Andy and the folks at AMFMEnergy and Estes Trucking for delivering to my curb. Thankfully it will be a mild weekend in Alabama... back close to 80 degrees soon so I will have a pleasant environment to install it.