Residential Wood Stove - Requesting Recommendations

[tooljunkie4]

The short version:

Looking for others' experience with modern wood stoves, as well as recommendations for stoves to look at / avoid.



The long version:

A chimney fire has necessitated the replacement of the chimney pipe in the house. It has been suggested that the wood stove insert should be replaced while we're at it (20% efficiency, not insulated, currently installed too close to wood framing).

Turnaround time on whatever we may order (including the pipe) runs about 5 weeks. The sooner decisions are made, the sooner the order goes in, and the sooner we have heat in the house.

I am not up to speed on modern wood stove offerings. If we were to replace what we have, I would look for options that check the following boxes:

- Has blower (ideally a plug-in unit which can be run by generator during power outages).
- Has a casting that can be used to heat water (kettle, pot) either to add humidity, or for use in heating water during power outages.
- Low annual maintenance costs (no catalyst).
- Built for heavy, constant use.
- Capable of heating 3000 sq. ft. with ease.


The house is electric only (by chance rather than by choice). Gas is not an option.
Current insert is an old Timberline. Same as this one (but not this one).

 

[Dankotaru]

I've been very happy with my Regency 2450, and it satisfies all the criteria you have listed except maybe the square footage. I think that would really depend on your home's floor plan layout relative to the stove's location.

We bought our first Regency 2450 about 15 years ago, and we liked it so much we bought one for our new place last winter after considering some fancier options from Lopi. We stuck with the Regency because it's simple to use, works great, and burns everything we put in it without fuss.

 

[PCustoms]

You looking for a wood stove or an insert?

 

[tooljunkie4]

I've been very happy with my Regency 2450, and it satisfies all the criteria you have listed except maybe the square footage. I think that would really depend on your home's floor plan layout relative to the stove's location.

We bought our first Regency 2450 about 15 years ago, and we liked it so much we bought one for our new place last winter after considering some fancier options from Lopi. We stuck with the Regency because it's simple to use, works great, and burns everything we put in it without fuss.

Will look into their product line. Thank you.

You looking for a wood stove or an insert?

Ideally, an insert.

 

[NUTTSGT]

Is a wood add on furnace an option and leave the insert for the colder days to create a little bit extra or ambiance?

 

[LopezBart]

I would also investigate if a stove will hold enough wood of the type you burn to last all night, or whether you need to stoke it at 3 am.

 

[Oatmealman]

I've got an old earthstove bv400c and It's absolute unit but they're no longer in production unfortunately. If you could find a used option I could whole heartedly recommend one. It heats my 2000sq ft house no problem even deep into the negatives.

 

[tooljunkie4]

Is a wood add on furnace an option and leave the insert for the colder days to create a little bit extra or ambiance?

There isn't a central HVAC system here. House was built un-ducted (de-ducted?). Something that ties two heat sources together may happen later (along with tying an emergency generator into the breaker box), but, with the exception of this emergency heating repair, exterior repairs are set to be completed this year (contractor willing) and interior repairs are set for next. For the moment, the focus remains on a wood stove insert.

 

[.mike.]

I have a Pacific Energy stove. They have some modern designs with close setbacks from the wall (can be as close as a few inches). Both inserts and freestanding models. I have the Neo 2.5. Stupid simple, no knobs, just a single lever for adjusting the damper. Built-in Blower.

 

[tooljunkie4]

I have a Pacific Energy stove. They have some modern designs with close setbacks from the wall (can be as close as a few inches). Both inserts and freestanding models

Pacific Energy is one of the brands the chimney guy carries.

Which model do you have? What are its strengths and weaknesses so far?

 

[.mike.]

Pacific Energy is one of the brands the chimney guy carries.

Which model do you have? What are its strengths and weaknesses so far?

I have the Neo 2.5. Mine is about 10 years old. Glass is super easy to clean, cleanout is easy. Blower is temperature activated. Occasionally noisy due to vibrations or needing cleaning, but relatively minor. I like that it can be mounted close to the wall (I have it about 12" off the drywall). No real cons. I had an older Nashua stove before, and it was intrusive (36" offset), and required constant damper adjustments with the knobs. We did a full ground floor remodel, hence the replacement. 10/10 would buy again if I needed another stove. I think the price was in the $2k range at the time.

 

[tooljunkie4]

I have the Neo 2.5. Mine is about 10 years old. Glass is super easy to clean, cleanout is easy. Blower is temperature activated. Occasionally noisy due to vibrations or needing cleaning, but relatively minor. I like that it can be mounted close to the wall (I have it about 12" off the drywall). No real cons.

I'll look into it. Thank you.

I had an older Nashua stove before, and it was intrusive (36" offset), and required constant damper adjustments with the knobs. We did a full ground floor remodel, hence the replacement. 10/10 would buy again if I needed another stove. I think the price was in the $2k range at the time.

Did your Nashua happen to look like this one?

 

[larry4406]

EPA used to publish a list of qualified stoves. I can't find it. It was broken down several ways - wood stoves, inserts, catalytic, non-catalytic, efficiency, country of origin, etc.

Perhaps do some research on Hearth.com.

 

[u2slow]

+1 on Pacific Energy. I have a Super Series 27. Been going for 34 years now with basic maintenance.

There is a blower kit for mine, but I like the simple stovetop heat-driven fans as they are silent.

 

[ericm]

Hearth.com is very useful.

We had an EPA zero clearance fireplace (basically a stove in a box so it can mount to the studs) in the old house. It's a non catalytic model. The new house has a BlazeKing catalytic stove. The BK can be turned down much lower than the old stove but it will crank out heat too if that's what you want. it's a bit more complex to run and takes a bit more maintenance but I think the better heat range is worth it.

 

[u3b3rg33k]

EPA used to publish a list of qualified stoves. I can't find it. It was broken down several ways - wood stoves, inserts, catalytic, non-catalytic, efficiency, country of origin, etc.

Perhaps do some research on Hearth.com.

is this what you're looking for?

Woodstove Database | Burnwise | US EPA

 

[larry4406]

is this what you're looking for?

Woodstove Database | Burnwise | US EPA

Bingo!

 

[imagineer]

We just installed one of these:

Pacific Energy Summit Insert LE | Wood Insert | Made For Large Rooms

Provides 10 Hours of Controlled Burning. Traditional Wood Insert for Large Rooms. Efficient, Clean-Burning Heat Source. Large Viewing Window.

www.pacificenergy.net

$8300 installed, including the chimney

So far, we're pleased with it and the heat it puts out. The blower is a bit noisy, but not obnoxious.

 

[.mike.]

I'll look into it. Thank you.



Did your Nashua happen to look like this one?

Not my pic, but it was this model.

 

[.mike.]

Old stove, new stove install (expanded room size, so we rotated stove 90 degrees, with new chimney (stainless steel double walled pipe))

 

[jar944]

Pacific Energy is one of the brands the chimney guy carries.

Which model do you have? What are its strengths and weaknesses so far?

I was planning on getting a PE FP30 for my living room. Seems like they are not currently available in the US though

 

[u2slow]

I was planning on getting a PE FP30 for my living room. Seems like they are not currently available in the US though

Pacific Energy is manufactured on southern Vancouver Island. If you need a Canadian dealer, these guys are just across the line from Lynden WA.

Welcome To R.E. MacDonald

Get the best Fireplaces, barbeques, and outdoor kitchens at R.E. MacDonald located in Langley and serving lower mainland for over 40 years

www.remacdonald.com

 

[aggie113]

While mine is not sized for heating 3k sqft, I am a fan of my soapstone Hearthstone.

 

[bluedog225]

I missed a sub stone on craigslist cheap. Dang it.

Whatever you get, check on parts availability. Some of the old ones you can get cheap aren’t supported anymore.

And shop around. Prices were all over the place when I bought my wood stove. And get shipping insurance. They are very heavy.

 

[TonyG109]

I've had a Napoleon 1500 series wood stove for almost 20 years that has been used to heat about 3000 sf. But I feel what's more important than brand name are the stoves features.

A blower is really mandatory, especially on an insert. They are really needed to maximize heat transfer from the firebox to the air/room.

Combustion air control is important. There should be a repeatable method of setting the incoming air. Mine had a coarse push/pull control with no reference point to it set by. I added a brass wire reference point (see picture) for more precise control.



A secondary combustion air "injection" feature is probably used on all EPA stoves now. This adds air into the exhaust stream at some point and allows the hot unburned gases, that would otherwise escape, to burn. This produces more heat and reduces creosote buildup. But this relies on the fire burning in a hot and efficient range.

A glass/ceramic viewing window. If you can't see the fire, it's hard to know how the fire is doing! Without one, we're just guessing about combustion air settings. It's too easy to have too much, or more likely, too little air. Too little air produces a smokey fire with incomplete combustion which produces little heat and can lead to no secondary combustion and thus, creosote buildup. Too much air leads to possible overheating of the stove/flue which can damage the flue and possibly ignite creosote, leading to a chimney fire.

A flue thermometer is a good tool to keep the fire burning in an efficient and safe range by properly setting the combustion air intake control.



I find an ash drawer on the floor of the stove to be useless, especially if you're burning a lot of wood which can produce a lot of ash. I just use an ash shovel and a real ash bucket with a double wall floor. That bucket gets HOT!

I'd steer clear of any catalytic converters. I had a stove with one and it was amazing to see it glowing red hot when it was working. It produced a lot of heat but is was susceptible to clogging. The bigger issue was that it was prone to thermal shattering. In order to add wood, I had to let the fire burn down and the catalytic converter to cool down. If I didn't, it could shatter. This really limited the use of the stove. And, yes, I shattered mine! I ended up removing it and installing a bypass kit.

As far as cooking on the stove top or using it to produce humidity, on a large scale I haven't been able to make it work. This may be even more difficult on an insert since the exposed top "cooking" area of the stove is limited. A large uncovered pot of stew or soup simmering on the kitchen stove without the hood vent running seems to work and smell better!

And maybe the most important thing is to make sure the firewood is seasoned! The difference between 20% moisture and below 15% is dramatic. If the wood hisses or steam/moisture appears at the end of the log after putting it in the fire, it's really not dry enough. Moisture takes a lot heat to convert to steam and this must happen before the wood will burn. This is heat that won't be used to heat the house. This moisture can also condense in the flue, leading to creosote buildup. An inexpensive moisture meter is a good investment. I like to season firewood for 2 years before use.

Yeah, this is way more than you asked for but maybe it will help someone! Everyone, please share your opinions for the greater good of all of us!

 

[ericm]

There's a lot of folks on the hearth forum who get 8-10 years or more out of their Blaze King catalysts. You have to follow the right procedure when loading to avoid damaging the catalyst. But I had to figure out and follow the right procedures to get my old non catalyst EPA stove to work right too. The EPA stoves are finickier for sure, not only fire starting and reloading but also needing dry wood. But the great reduction in visible smoke and great increase in heat output per cord is worth it in my opinion.

Right now I'm missing the 4 cords of two and three summer dry wood I left at the old house. The sellers of the new place left a bit of wood and I added some from an oak that lost branches but I have to start over nearly from scratch. It'll be mostly wood I buy since the new place does not have much in the way of trees.

 

[lovetap]

Maybe I've had good luck with catalyst stoves. Before each season I pull it out and clean it, which is just hitting it with air as its rarely dirty at all. When we load the stove you bypass the catalyst to prevent damage. I've heard of clogged catalysts but I wonder what they burn? After our recent Blaze King Princess I wouldn't avoid a cat for any reason except if I was burning wet or otherwise crummy wood. However in our area woodstoves have to be EPA-certified because the air quality gets awful, and other than a cat I believe stoves meet certification as stated above by secondary air injection which makes a hot efficient fire but they don't seem to burn nearly as long.

Anyways I appreciate the long burn times, we can go weeks without having to re-light the fire.

 

[TonyG109]

...When we load the stove you bypass the catalyst to prevent damage.

I've heard of clogged catalysts but I wonder what they burn?

Ah, this is something I'm apparently a bit outdated on. I have to admit, the catalyst stove I had was from many years ago. A catalyst bypass would be a perfect way to avoid the shattered catalyst issue. When I had mine, there was no temporary bypass, just a kit to remove it altogether. I stand humbly corrected! Chalk up a win for catalyst stoves!

And the clogging was mostly just from a build up of ash. Nothing that couldn't be blown out. It's just an inconvenience, not a show stopper.

 

[lovetap]

That's interesting. Yeah ours has a large lever that bypasses the cat whenever you open the door or before the stove gets into the "active zone". I imagine having the cat engaged while starting a fire doesn't help it either.

Last few days its been -30 to -40F and I load the stove before bed and then after I've had a cup of coffee. The Blaze King is thermostatically controlled and it works pretty slick. Open when getting the fire going or rapidly warming the house, nearly closed for long burns at night, and I can pretty accurately bump the room temp by a couple degrees by turning the knob. That plus the built-in fan gives a lot of control. And I have a leaky house.

 

[Denwood]

One thing I would suggest is considering a fireplace insert vs a wood stove. The modern versions are clean, efficient, and the radiant via the glass door is an instant draw for my girls, as well as the cats. I just replaced the secondary burn tubes on our 25 year old Prestige NZ25 which puts out 60 000 BTU, and is beautiful to look at in operation. This unit uses outside air for combustion and includes options for integration into the home's heating system...none of which we use. I did have an 8" duct and inline fan that pulled air from the main floor and dumped into the basement, but now I just run our HVAC systems ECM fan in continuous mode when using the fireplace.



You'll see hybrid units, or not, and I'd point you in the direction of non-hybrid as they are simpler and require less maintenance. If you do want bleeding edge efficiency and don't care about visual flame via a window, then the hybrid catalytic units will be a bit more efficient. Unfortunately Prestige no longer makes the NZ25 unit.

 

[PCustoms]

One thing I would suggest is considering a fireplace insert vs a wood stove.

See post #3 and #4:

You looking for a wood stove or an insert?

Ideally, an insert.

 

[Denwood]

See post #3 and #4:

Yes, so my suggestion was to look at fireplace inserts, or a wood stove with a glass door The downside though is heating water, although there is room at the top of the NZ25 for a pot. We used to keep one filled with water for extra winter humidity. Our winter ambient gets to -35C.

A good point raised by the catalyst guys here is the extra control you have over heat. The non catalyst stoves like ours do throttle down, but even at the lowest damper setting the main floor still heats up a lot, even at -25C outside. Having the option to damper down the visible fire and still have rhe catalyst firing off is a really good argument for going that route.