Wood Stove for 1600 sq ft home, 2 story.

[BlackIronBurn]

Hello. First time poster here. I have a question about which stove I should pick up. I live on the east coast of Newfoundland, it can get pretty cold some times, down to -25 to -30 deg C. My house is 1600 sq ft, 2 story, pretty good insulation. Shaped like a cube.

I have been looking to pick up a stove that could be used as my primary heat source placed in the basement. The two main sources of wood here are going to be spruce and birch. I plan on placing vents in the floor to allow the heat to transfer up to the rooms upstairs.

I have been looking at the following stoves so far;

1. Century FW3000
(broken link removed to https://www.century-heating.com/en/products/stoves/wood-stove-on-pedestal-model-fw3000-with-blower/#fiche-technique)

2. Drolet Classic wood stove with Blower
(broken link removed to https://www.drolet.ca/en/products/stoves/classic-with-blower/#fiche-technique)

I believe they are the same stove from the same manufacturer. Based on my situation, would you guys recommend these stoves to work fine for what I need? Or look for something else. I like the burn box size (2.4 cu ft I believe) as I kind of don't want to go any lower, and I'm afraid if I go higher, I'll make the area too hot and burn through too much wood.

Aany suggestions/recommendations would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you

 

[DAKSY]

Not gonna comment on either of your stove choices, but I will critique your air movement ideas.
Your method of placing of vents in the floor sounds good, but it's probably going to disappoint you.
You want a method to get heated air UP, but without a method of getting cooler air DOWN,
your method probably won't work. .
It doesn't matter HOW much insulation you have in the exterior framing, those walls are STILL
the coldest walls in your house. Ideally, you should locate your vents are near the outside walls,
allowing you to get a cold air drop. Leaving the basement door open will allow heat to come up the
stairs as the cooler air drops thru the vents. You will get better heat distribution this way.

 

[begreen]

The two stoves are listed as different sizes 2.4 vs 2.9 cu ft.. The Drolet Classic is a flat top, the Century FW3000 is a step top. The Classic has a vermiculite baffle and the FW3000 has a C-Cast baffle. If you are looking for a big Drolet, consider the Baltic II or the HT2000.

 

[BlackIronBurn]

Not gonna comment on either of your stove choices, but I will critique your air movement ideas.
Your method of placing of vents in the floor sounds good, but it's probably going to disappoint you.
You want a method to get heated air UP, but without a method of getting cooler air DOWN,
your method probably won't work. .
It doesn't matter HOW much insulation you have in the exterior framing, those walls are STILL
the coldest walls in your house. Ideally, you should locate your vents are near the outside walls,
allowing you to get a cold air drop. Leaving the basement door open will allow heat to come up the
stairs as the cooler air drops thru the vents. You will get better heat distribution this way.

Thank you for the response on my question. I will definitey take your advice and look into this heat distribution plan.

Thank you again for your help.

 

[ManitobaSky]

I have a classic, it does it's job. My house is 1200sq ft 2 story. The FW3000 and classic are very similar, don't want to step on begreen's toes but both are 2.4 sq ft and use vermiculite baffles(maybe US stoves are not the same as the Canadian ones??). Any way aside from the classic I also have a Harman PC45 since most days I'm away for 10-12 hrs so the pellets stove picks up after the wood stove burns down. I get 5-6 hours of usable heat (from start up until the Harman starts up) per load with mix of aspen and box elder. If I was doing it over I would likely go with a larger stove to get longer burns, begreen's suggestion of the HT2000 or Baltic II would be worth a look.

 

[Beerdog]

I have a well insulated one story home: 2x12 double insulated stud frame walls with a basement stove and a zero clearance fireplace on the main floor. I mainly use the basement stove because the zc fireplace overheat the living space and there's not enough air circulation to the bedrooms at the other end o the hall. I rely on natural circulation since my heat is radiant hot water. My experience is that the basement is heated to about 80F and the main floor doesn't get warm enough with natural convection.

 

[Easy Livin’ 3000]

Hello. First time poster here. I have a question about which stove I should pick up. I live on the east coast of Newfoundland, it can get pretty cold some times, down to -25 to -30 deg C. My house is 1600 sq ft, 2 story, pretty good insulation. Shaped like a cube.

I have been looking to pick up a stove that could be used as my primary heat source placed in the basement. The two main sources of wood here are going to be spruce and birch. I plan on placing vents in the floor to allow the heat to transfer up to the rooms upstairs.

I have been looking at the following stoves so far;

1. Century FW3000
(broken link removed to https://www.century-heating.com/en/products/stoves/wood-stove-on-pedestal-model-fw3000-with-blower/#fiche-technique)

2. Drolet Classic wood stove with Blower
(broken link removed to https://www.drolet.ca/en/products/stoves/classic-with-blower/#fiche-technique)

I believe they are the same stove from the same manufacturer. Based on my situation, would you guys recommend these stoves to work fine for what I need? Or look for something else. I like the burn box size (2.4 cu ft I believe) as I kind of don't want to go any lower, and I'm afraid if I go higher, I'll make the area too hot and burn through too much wood.

Aany suggestions/recommendations would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you

You are right, essentially the same stove with cosmetic differences. I have the same firebox in my insert. Works well, very utilitarian. It'll definitely heat your basement, getting the heat upstairs will be your challenge.

I'd definitely buy another one of these. Wonderful bargain, but not a premium product, which I'm sure you already know. And, definitely not a set and forget stove, as there is no thermostat nor any kind of automation. You have to wait by the stove until hot and then shut the air. Then, make sure it was burning well enough to stay lit. Can take 20 minutes at start up.

I would NOT use these stoves in a room that I didn't spend time in. Way too easy to get distracted and forget to shut the air down. They overfire very easily if you are not present.

I included the link to the Century site to clear up any confusion about the FW3000, and, well, because anything with 3000 in the name has got to be pretty darn good, right?

(broken link removed to https://www.century-heating.com/en/products/stoves/wood-stove-on-pedestal-model-fw3000-with-blower/)