Chimney

MotorSeven · Aug 31, 2014

As stated, you are better off heating from the main floor with your wood stove. That being said I can maintain 68 degrees on my main from the basement(1080- sq ft each floor & the main is open design 22' vaulted) but I burn around 7 full cords a season running my stove 24/7.

I am going to switch over to a electric over wood furnace that will duct forced air through my registers. The Yukon Electric would knock 2 cords off my consumption and have the convenience of turning a thermostat for shoulder season and times when we are away from the house for extended periods. I can also add a water jacket to pre-heat my domestic hot water when burning wood. I will move my existing wood stove up to the main floor and build a nice river rock hearth around it. Here is the Yukon website:
Yukon - Your Wood Furnace Company

brokenknee · Aug 31, 2014

I have both a pellet and wood stove, put in the pellet stove last September, ran it until mid January when I finally got around to putting in my new wood stove. I have a 1600 square foot slab home. I went through 4 tons of pellet from September to mid January. The pellet stove has only been used a couple of time since. As already mentioned noise being one of the biggest factors for not liking the stove. It is highly recommend by folks over on Hearth.com It is a Harman P68.

The new epa wood stoves have very good burn times. I have a Harman TL 300 down draft stove and get 8-12 burn times with ash/oak. The pellet stove needs to be cleaned once a week and takes about 10 - 15 minutes. The wood stove empty the ashes once a week 5 minutes.

One thing to consider with the new epa stoves my down draft stove and other have said on Hearth their cat stoves you do not get the light show as with non epa stoves. I believe the eap tube stoves you still get the light show but do not know for sure.

Many chimneys are run outside, the disadvantage to this is it cools the chimney and are more prone to creasol (sp)buildup. Either way I would do a stainless class A chimney. I have had both and the stainless are easier IMHO to keep clean.

brokenknee · Aug 31, 2014

Should add I am fairly new to the wood burning, this will be my fifth year burning. With my old wood furnace was burning 10 - 12 full cords a year. Hope to burn only around 7 this year, optimistic.

In hindsight I should have purchased a new wood furnace and a tube fireplace. The furnace heated the house more evenly than the wood stove.

As already mentioned if the intent is to heat the house purchase a wood furnace for the basement and a epa tube fireplace or wood stove for the main living area.