Wood heat and resale value on a home.

[mgh-pa]

So some of you know my dilemma I'm having (I can't get my main floor heated comfortably with the current setup in the basement).

To summarize quickly, here's the stove setup (basement)

Here's the first floor layout with register/returns identified:

It's a split level, so the floor plan is a little deceiving. The "main" floor is the LEVEL 2 rectangle in the center with the basement extending completely underneath. The LEVEL 3 on the right with the bedrooms is the "upstairs," and underneath that is the room we're romodeling. We're in the process of making that area one big room (so it will be roughly a 26x24 room). On the far right of the diagram next to the "26" there is a fireplace with a thimble installed where the fireplace pictured above was located.

At this point, we WERE considering putting a nice soapstone stove in there (rebuilding the hearth since it's just crappy slate), but we really don't want to haul wood through a new family room. PLUS, we are planning to sell this place in the future (could be 3 yrs, could be 10, but we won't be staying here for life), so we're concerned about resale with just having wood and electric baseboard being the primary heat sources.

What were considering was propane. We're not sure we could have centrally installed furnace though in our situation, so that's an issue we would have to consider.

So, what are everyone's thoughts on wood heat and resale? If you were planning to sell your house in the short term (relatively speaking), would you have an alternate heat source installed or available?

 

[tiber]

In my neck of the woods, there's no gas service so it's oil heat or bust. I don't know if it would help the resale value of the home but it certainly won't hurt it since anyone moving into the neighborhood has to buy fuel one way or another.

Did you ever try putting a good old box fan on the register and seeing if that does better for moving the heat around?

 

[mgh-pa]

Did you ever try putting a good old box fan on the register and seeing if that does better for moving the heat around?

Funny you mention that. We did just that yesterday(in fact we had one of those window dual fans that can be set to exhaust/intake), and it fits perfectly. Ran that for several hours and no change. Really another thing that is probably causing an issue is the fact that we have windows above where the register is. I KNOW this is not ideal, but we wanted the register near the stove location in the basement, and this was it.

 

[Wet1]

I hope the exterior of that basement is insulated! If not, I think I see why you're not getting enough heat upstairs. But, I'll bet the critters living under that corner of the deck are quite happy when the really cold weather comes around...

From a value standpoint, I don't think wood heat will had much resale value to your house. When it comes to the general public, most folks don't want to bother dealing with wood. A good central heating system will add a lot more value. If you're going to be selling the house soon and you aren't going to be taking the (new) stove(s) with you, you might find better uses for you money because most people wont pay extra for a house that has a wood stove.

 

[mgh-pa]

I hope the exterior of that basement is insulated! If not, I think I see why you're not getting enough heat upstairs. But, I'll bet the critters living under that corner of the deck are quite happy when the really cold weather comes around...

From a value standpoint, I don't think wood heat will had much resale value to your house when it comes to the general public. Most folks don't want to bother dealing with wood. A good central heating system will add a lot more. If you're going to be selling the house soon and you aren't going to be taking the (new) stove(s) with you, you might find better uses for you money because most people wont pay extra for a house that has a wood stove.

I insulated all exterior walls with 2" down to the footer (which means even below grade is insulated) ;-)

 

[begreen]

When I look at a house and I see electric heating + a woodstove, it alerts me to the possibility of high heating bills (a negative) or backup heat for power outages (a positive, especially in a rural area). I'm not sure propane would be any better for cost. In our area it isn't.

If at all possible, I'd install a nice stove upstairs. It's an area heater and will work much better if placed where you want the heat.

 

[mgh-pa]

This is a rural area (relatively speaking). Most people have 2+ acre lots, and there's 30 acres undeveloped bordering part of my lot. Plenty of people in this "development" have woodstoves (I was on the roof yesterday hanging lights, and you could see all the smoke coming out of their chimneys). My neighbor has propane, but he's one of the few. Propane costs less than electric, and once electric becomes deregulated, I wonder if that will make propane all the more attractive?

 

[Hurricane]

First I think the block walls are absorbing tons of that heat you are generating.

Second use the fan on the stairs to blow air down or blow air down the register and leave the door to the stairs open to allow heat to come up.

Is that an old smoke dragon stove ?

Oh and to answer your question, I think a wood stove is like a inground pool when selling a house, if someone wants it it is a good thing and if someone does not want it is a negative on the sale.

 

[branchburner]

Go with what looks like it will work best for you for the next few years, and enjoy it. I doubt it will have a huge effect on the house value, and that effect will be hard to predict beyond the short term. Nobody can say what the future might bring if the cap and trade scam becomes law.
Different potential buyers will each see things differently. My neighbor has a house on the market with a Tulikivi masonry heater. To me, that would be a huge plus, but he wants it out - he feels more buyers will see it as a negative.

 

[mgh-pa]

First I think the block walls are absorbing tons of that heat you are generating.

Second use the fan on the stairs to blow air down or blow air down the register and leave the door to the stairs open to allow heat to come up.

Is that an old smoke dragon stove ?

Oh and to answer your question, I think a wood stove is like a inground pool when selling a house, if someone wants it it is a good thing and if someone does not want it is a negative on the sale.

I believe you're right (on the walls).

I don't have stairs into the basement. The stairs indicated in the floor plan are open stairs that go to the currently being remodeled family room, and the upstairs. All of these are isolated from the basement (other than the registers/returns).

As for the stove, I have NO idea, and I asked on here, and many people didn't seem to know either. You're the first to come up with a potential name.

 

[tiber]

This is a rural area (relatively speaking). Most people have 2+ acre lots, and there’s 30 acres undeveloped bordering part of my lot. Plenty of people in this “development” have woodstoves (I was on the roof yesterday hanging lights, and you could see all the smoke coming out of their chimneys). My neighbor has propane, but he’s one of the few. Propane costs less than electric, and once electric becomes deregulated, I wonder if that will make propane all the more attractive?

Sounds like Valley Forge, where I live. The guys next door have propane and they said they got talked into it when their oil burner died. They didn't mention how but there's a lot of mom and pop oil resellers around here which don't inspire confidence. Anyway, the plus side is they had a line run to the porch so they can plug their grill directly into the propane tank, but they said they pay roughly the same as they were with oil after it all was said and done. They do grouse the water doesn't seem to get as hot as quickly, so chalk it up to the BTUs of propane and what it takes to light it off I guess.

Given that good old #2 oil is plentiful and I can drive down to the gas station and buy some diesel in a pinch (god forbid), and given the cost being about the same I see no reason to put my money there. Plus there's the problem of disposing of the tank, installing the new boiler, etc etc etc. Just doesn't seem worth it. If I were going to put my money towards something other than the Jotul or Lopi (depending on what day of the week it is for my wife's whims), I would probably convert the place to point of use electric water heaters and save the oil money for the heating. As it stands I'm actually working the problem from the other direction - converting the heating to wood so I can keep the oil burner bills down.

 

[Hurricane]

First I think the block walls are absorbing tons of that heat you are generating.

Second use the fan on the stairs to blow air down or blow air down the register and leave the door to the stairs open to allow heat to come up.

Is that an old smoke dragon stove ?

Oh and to answer your question, I think a wood stove is like a inground pool when selling a house, if someone wants it it is a good thing and if someone does not want it is a negative on the sale.

I believe you're right (on the walls).

I don't have stairs into the basement. The stairs indicated in the floor plan are open stairs that go to the currently being remodeled family room, and the upstairs. All of these are isolated from the basement (other than the registers/returns).

As for the stove, I have NO idea, and I asked on here, and many people didn't seem to know either. You're the first to come up with a potential name.

Smoke dragon refers to an old non EPA stove. They burn more wood and are less efficient than the newer EPA stoves. The newer stoves produce less smoke out the chimney by burning the smoke to produce more heat from the same wood. The newer stoves also produce a more consistent heat.
So no I do not know what manufacturer that stove is :-(
sorry

 

[mgh-pa]

First I think the block walls are absorbing tons of that heat you are generating.

Second use the fan on the stairs to blow air down or blow air down the register and leave the door to the stairs open to allow heat to come up.

Is that an old smoke dragon stove ?

Oh and to answer your question, I think a wood stove is like a inground pool when selling a house, if someone wants it it is a good thing and if someone does not want it is a negative on the sale.

I believe you're right (on the walls).

I don't have stairs into the basement. The stairs indicated in the floor plan are open stairs that go to the currently being remodeled family room, and the upstairs. All of these are isolated from the basement (other than the registers/returns).

As for the stove, I have NO idea, and I asked on here, and many people didn't seem to know either. You're the first to come up with a potential name.

Smoke dragon refers to an old non EPA stove. They burn more wood and are less efficient than the newer EPA stoves. The newer stoves produce less smoke out the chimney by burning the smoke to produce more heat from the same wood. The newer stoves also produce a more consistent heat.
So no I do not know what manufacturer that stove is :-(
sorry

Wow, you can tell I'm new to this (well my parents burned wood much of my life, but all I had to know what how to start a fire, load the fire, and split the wood. I'm learning a ton from this site.

As for the stove, it doesn't get very hot, nor does it burn very efficiently (longest burn time was 7hrs, and all I had was a tiny tiny bit of coal left (and that was with the air turned down quite a ways).

 

[begreen]

With good, dry wood, I would expect that stove to put out a decent amount of heat. That is assuming that the stove innards are in decent condition.

Could it be that it is either not getting the correct air mix or that the wood is less than ideal? A thermometer on the stove top would help you a lot in learning how the stove is running.

 

[mgh-pa]

It's 10 month dried oak and maple stored covered and stickered for that time frame. I shouldn't say that it doesn't get too hot, just not what I expected. The basement is VERY comfortable, but just not enough heat is getting to the upstairs.

 

[begreen]

Ah ok, back to the previous recommendation then. Put a nice stove in upstairs and you will be warm there as well.

 

[mgh-pa]

Ah ok, back to the previous recommendation then. Put a nice stove in upstairs and you will be warm there as well.

You would recommend that over a propane furnace?

I know it sounds like I'm leaning toward that option, believe me, I don't want to. I enjoy the low cost of wood heat (really just gas for saw and transportation, everything else is labor). My concern is the mess now being moved to a brand new family room, and resale.

I don't even know what the going rate of propane is, but even from what I've researched, an electric heat pump might be an even better bet since we run window AC in the summer since we don't have air.

 

[begreen]

If it were my house, yes. Our house did have a propane, high-efficiency furnace. I took it out. The cost of running it was extraordinary due to the local price of propane. Other areas of the country have much more reasonable costs, so best to check. If you want to use a heat pump in your area, it will need to be a very high efficiency unit. Considering there is no existing ductwork, this will be an expensive install unless you can find someone who will allow you to help with the installation to cut down costs.

We have our stove in the living room. That way we get the warmth and fire view. The mess is really not bad. All one needs is a system to keep things neat. Our kindling hides in an old copper wash boiler. I store a weeks worth of wood on the porch and carry in a couple armloads to the wood holder near the stove. One way to contain the mess is to have a large hearth so that it can store wood at a safe distance from the stove, yet contain the bark crumbs and dust to the hearth. It also helps to have a small broom or vac nearby to keep things tidy.

 

[Stephen in SoKY]

Is that stove one from Atlanta Stove Works?

 

[thinkxingu]

Hello There,
We have electric heat, too, so here's my thoughts:

1. With the new thermostats, we save a TON of money--our bill went down over 20% last year (the new tstats are designed to only turn on quickly instead of sending constant power).
2. Propane is not much cheaper than electric around here and, because we'd have had only one tstat (zone), it would have cost more than to heat only the rooms we need.
3. The cost of installing a new furnace, pipes (for hot water) or air ducts (hot air) would have been way too expensive and would cause us to make lots of changes to our home.

All in all, if you put in a new heating system and only stayed there a few years, you'd lose--it would have taken us almost 20 years to recoup the $10K it would have cost us for a new system.

Wood can be free, a stove/install with the credit would only be a couple grand--you can't really lose.

S

 

[mgh-pa]

Is that stove one from Atlanta Stove Works?

Good question, not sure.

 

[mgh-pa]

Hello There,
We have electric heat, too, so here's my thoughts:

1. With the new thermostats, we save a TON of money--our bill went down over 20% last year (the new tstats are designed to only turn on quickly instead of sending constant power).
2. Propane is not much cheaper than electric around here and, because we'd have had only one tstat (zone), it would have cost more than to heat only the rooms we need.
3. The cost of installing a new furnace, pipes (for hot water) or air ducts (hot air) would have been way too expensive and would cause us to make lots of changes to our home.

All in all, if you put in a new heating system and only stayed there a few years, you'd lose--it would have taken us almost 20 years to recoup the $10K it would have cost us for a new system.

Wood can be free, a stove/install with the credit would only be a couple grand--you can't really lose.

S

Yeah, the heating system might result in a loss, but it might help me sell the house faster since there's no AC or forced air system, correct? My only fear with an electric based heat system like a heat pump is what will happen with deregulation (most say expect a 30% jump).

 

[kalevi]

I don't know it is according to code or not but if you put reflective surfaces (sheet metal) against the wall, you would reflect more heat into the room rather than having it absorbed by the concrete block.

 

[begreen]

How long do you expect to live in the house before selling? If this is short term, I wouldn't bother. It's hard to speculate on what future buyers may want or what energy product will be preferred by them.

If this is for over 3 years, then I would invest in my own comfort first. Maybe go for an efficient mini-split system in the living room and family room? They are quiet, efficient and may qualify for a tax credit. (Sanyo makes a 20 SEER unit).

 

[thinkxingu]

Will it help sell the house? Maybe. Will it fetch more money? Doubt it. Simply put: would the same house as yours with propane-fueled forced hot air sell for $10K more, $15K w/AC? By the way, $10K was the estimate for the heating equipment and install--add more for fixing what would need to be 'manipulated': walls, ceilings, sheetrock, etc. since there is no infrastructure with an electric system.

S