Woodstove for interior Alaska cabin
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What diameter logs? I have 10” Swedish coped logs and wished I would have went with 12” D log for a little better R value and mass. I chase leaks every winter as the logs settle and check. Just something else to consider.
That’s a massive battery bank you’ll have and should do the trick. I only have 10,000 watts and can go 3-4 days without sun before I need to run my little Predator 5000w genny but it only takes a few hours to charge the batteries back up.
The BK 40 will be great for your long shoulder seasons and you should be able to go 24+ hours on low. Expect those burn times to drop dramatically when it’s below zero as you need to turn her up for a hotter burn but you should still have no problem with an overnight burn with that big firebox.
That’s a massive battery bank you’ll have and should do the trick. I only have 10,000 watts and can go 3-4 days without sun before I need to run my little Predator 5000w genny but it only takes a few hours to charge the batteries back up.
The BK 40 will be great for your long shoulder seasons and you should be able to go 24+ hours on low. Expect those burn times to drop dramatically when it’s below zero as you need to turn her up for a hotter burn but you should still have no problem with an overnight burn with that big firebox.
Will the BK 40 have longer burn times than the Woodstock Soapstone Progress Hybrid and Hearthstone Manchester, specifically for a home in Alaska ?
Yes it is a larger thermostat controlled stove that holds more firewood. But as the temps get colder those burn times start to even out between stoves because you need to burn hotter. The PH would have no problem with a 12 hour burn or reload schedule in the shoulder seasons. Not sure on the Manchester. Birch would probably be your best bet for longer burns and Spruce good for when you need a lot of heat without the coaling you would get from harder woods. Process as much as you can your first year so you get a good idea how much you will need then stock pile a couple years worth or more once your settled.
EbS-P
Minister of Fire
There are not that many stoves that require 8” flue. Just the biggest of the big boys and the BK40 is one.
Yes, with obvious qualification like outside temp, insulation level, sq ftg. etc.
wood, as in logs, are going to have an R value of around 1/inch. So as you go up the wall, r value will fluctuate. And wont be there if there’s a leak.
My 1400 sq ft house in Upstate NY requires 20k btu/hr at -10. Your proposed cabin is larger and the temp will be much lower. It’ll also have worse air sealing… much worse. Heat requirements are not linear. You may need 50-60k + an hour at -50. That’ll really shorten burn times. Draft will also increase.
I have a cabin in the Adirondacks and have put over 100k btu/hour into a 12x16 room and only had the temp increase by 2 degrees/hour. That was a very windy day and I was trying to heat the place from ambient. But you get the picture.
You’re going to need a lot of wood.
You might even want to set your backup heat plan up where wood is the backup plan and you just use it full time. People who have been burning their entire lives get a little tired of tending a woodstove for 5 months burning 5 cords a year. You’ll be tending 2 for 8, and have never used a woodstove. Be realistic. You don’t want to hate it. Just handling that much wood will not be easy. You might be stacking 40,000lbs of wood, then feeding 30,000 into the stove.
My 1400 sq ft house in Upstate NY requires 20k btu/hr at -10. Your proposed cabin is larger and the temp will be much lower. It’ll also have worse air sealing… much worse. Heat requirements are not linear. You may need 50-60k + an hour at -50. That’ll really shorten burn times. Draft will also increase.
I have a cabin in the Adirondacks and have put over 100k btu/hour into a 12x16 room and only had the temp increase by 2 degrees/hour. That was a very windy day and I was trying to heat the place from ambient. But you get the picture.
You’re going to need a lot of wood.
You might even want to set your backup heat plan up where wood is the backup plan and you just use it full time. People who have been burning their entire lives get a little tired of tending a woodstove for 5 months burning 5 cords a year. You’ll be tending 2 for 8, and have never used a woodstove. Be realistic. You don’t want to hate it. Just handling that much wood will not be easy. You might be stacking 40,000lbs of wood, then feeding 30,000 into the stove.
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What does your insurance company require for heating requirements? Mine want a thermostat controlled heating source that will run without human intervention. Wood stove alone won’t cut it.
A thought re plumbing, consider designing your waterworks so that you can drain the entire system for prolonged absence, much like seasonal cabins.
A thought re plumbing, consider designing your waterworks so that you can drain the entire system for prolonged absence, much like seasonal cabins.
Absolutely. The PH is a great stove but it's pretty small, just 2.8 cubic feet. It only holds a medium amount of fuel. That's smaller than the princess model BK that I use to heat 1700 SF in western washington. If you want to go with woodstock, I'd look at their largest model the IS.
The reason that the BK king has longer burn times is because it holds much more fuel, think of it as a big fuel tank, and also because it is capable of lower burn rates. Regardless of the chosen burn rate, like X BTU, the King will always burn much longer because it is more efficient and has a larger fuel tank.
I'd be crossing Hearthstone off of your list. You are going to be what is called a "serious" wood heater.
I too burn 9 months of the year and it's no big deal. You'll be pushing more wood through but you also will have plenty of time on your hands.
You cannot count on solar in your winter. Snow, cloud cover, low sun angle, no sun, etc.. The reason that you will rarely need to use your generator is because you have chosen a huge battery bank and low daily consumption. It's a good solution, the only solution, until the sun comes back up. I'd be sure to have at least one extra genset that runs on a different fuel source like gasoline.
I would assume of one of the benefits of having a home built from scratch and installing the Blaze King King 40 is it's not going to require major construction or overhaul with installing the 8" inch flue. It can be built around it from the beginning.
What are the specific benefits of a 8" inch flue over a 6" inch ?
What are the specific benefits of a 8" inch flue over a 6" inch ?
It's much more expensive, and if you want to swap stoves later on you'll have much less choice.
Most stoves run on 6" flues.
Most stoves run on 6" flues.
Will it be cheaper to go with the Blaze King 40 from the get go and have the contractors build the house around the 8" inch flue? I'm try to figure out the short term and long term costs and if it will save money in the long run.
The main difference between the Princess and the King is a much bigger fuel tank which translates to a longer burn time. The Princess is 2.86 cu ft and the King is 4.25 cu ft. That extra capacity translates to a bit more heat, but mostly it means longer times between refueling.
Interesting in this article they write that if the cabin is at a higher elevation, it may rarely see the -50º temps at the lower elevations. They are heating with a Princess.
rosehipsandhoney.com
Interesting in this article they write that if the cabin is at a higher elevation, it may rarely see the -50º temps at the lower elevations. They are heating with a Princess.
Heating an Alaskan Log Cabin
There's one thing for certain about Alaska, it's cold! Heating an Alaskan log cabin takes effort but it's well worth it to be warm and cozy.
rosehipsandhoney.com
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It's not the building around the flue, it's the pipe itself that's more expensive.
The efficiencies are similar so no significant gain there.
My concern about building higher up is the possibility of a deeper water table and it is much deeper to dig a well. Every foot dug is $65 to $85 dollars per foot.The main difference between the Princess and the King is a much bigger fuel tank which translates to a longer burn time. The Princess is 2.86 cu ft and the King is 4.25 cu ft. That extra capacity translates to a bit more heat, but mostly it means longer times between refueling.
Interesting in this article they write that if the cabin is at a higher elevation, it may rarely see the -50º temps at the lower elevations. They are heating with a Princess.
Heating an Alaskan Log Cabin
There's one thing for certain about Alaska, it's cold! Heating an Alaskan log cabin takes effort but it's well worth it to be warm and cozy.
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2 cords a year? They are clearly not heating that place with just the princess. She did not say how much oil they are burning.The main difference between the Princess and the King is a much bigger fuel tank which translates to a longer burn time. The Princess is 2.86 cu ft and the King is 4.25 cu ft. That extra capacity translates to a bit more heat, but mostly it means longer times between refueling.
Interesting in this article they write that if the cabin is at a higher elevation, it may rarely see the -50º temps at the lower elevations. They are heating with a Princess.
Heating an Alaskan Log Cabin
There's one thing for certain about Alaska, it's cold! Heating an Alaskan log cabin takes effort but it's well worth it to be warm and cozy.
I've burned more then that already (early Feb.) here in NJ.
As a frequent, appreciative visitor to the interior, I am always impressed by the 10"-12" thick walls in residential construction.
The Cold Climate Housing Authority in Fairbanks has done numerous, beneficial studies of construction techniques. If you ever get to Fairbanks folks, their offices are very informative.
BKVP
The Cold Climate Housing Authority in Fairbanks has done numerous, beneficial studies of construction techniques. If you ever get to Fairbanks folks, their offices are very informative.
BKVP
Here are a couple of links to The Cold Climate Housing Authority in Fairbanks.
https://cchrc.org/
https://www.youtube.com/@ColdClimateHousing
https://cchrc.org/
https://www.youtube.com/@ColdClimateHousing
They state in the article that they have an oil-fired boiler. I got the impression that the wood stove is supplemental and leaned on mostly when it's very cold and during their frequent power outages.
For a 1,450 to 1,850 square foot cabin with 2 floors and 3 bedrooms is one centralized Blaze King King 40 wood stove plenty sufficient for to keep the cabin warm or should there be a smaller wood stove installed on the 2nd floor?
For a utility shed that is used to house the backup diesel generator should I have installed in there a smaller wood stove or a non-electric Liberator Rocket Heater Generation 2 Pellet Stove with Hopper in case the generator needs to be warmed up?
Same question for a basement and garage? I'm trying to figure out if all it takes is one giant wood stove or if you should also add in smaller wood stoves or a non-electric gravity fed pellet stove.
For a utility shed that is used to house the backup diesel generator should I have installed in there a smaller wood stove or a non-electric Liberator Rocket Heater Generation 2 Pellet Stove with Hopper in case the generator needs to be warmed up?
Same question for a basement and garage? I'm trying to figure out if all it takes is one giant wood stove or if you should also add in smaller wood stoves or a non-electric gravity fed pellet stove.
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Sir in your situation I would call Hearthstone and ask them to put you in contact with a restorer of the old Hearthstone 1 woodstove.I've owned over the years most of the popular stoves on this site.The Hearthstone 1 is the greatest heater of them all. It's the only stove that made me and friends go out into below zero temps just to cool off.Peace.
is the Hearthstone 1 wood stove a centralized wood stove where you place it in the center of the cabin or more of a corner wood stove?
You can placed it in the center of the home.This stove weighs nearly 800 pounds.The Stone emits heat even after the fire burns out.My stove gives me 14 hours of great heat.I also use a pipe damper which increases the heat times and directs heat off the stove. I have just hooked up an item called the recoheat.I haven't used it yet however if it works to specs this item will increase heat times at the same time using less wood.Check out the videos on Youtube. This stove was made to deal with extreme cold.
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