# Gas Insert a good primary source of heat?



## Crazy Ivan from CT (Dec 4, 2013)

Hello all,

I have a Winslow PI40 pellet insert and was thinking about converting to a gas insert.   Not sure if a gas insert is a good primary source of heat for my home.  I live in CT and have a 1,100 square foot home remodeled this year.  Every walls insulation has been replaced with new windows and what a difference.  I can run the stove on a low setting to keep the whole house warm.

Although the pellet stove is performing well it would be nice to have a maintenance free stove.   Went to the place where I bought the pellet stove and really liked the fireplace inserts.    The salesman did make a comment that the setup was not meant to run fulltime.   I think he said the remote has a thermostat on it and would shut off the stove once warm and restart when the house cooled down.

Plus the inserts looks great.   Puts on a nice flame just like a real wood burn. 

Going back to Saturday to ask more questions but just wondered what people thought.


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## DAKSY (Dec 4, 2013)

Gas inserts are room heaters. If they need to run all the time they will do it.
I have used mine when the power's been out. The only heat we had for 4-5 days.
No problems.


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## FanMan (Dec 4, 2013)

I have not an insert, but a freestanding gas stove (30,000 BTU) which is the primary heat in my 1800sf house.  There are also two 7500BTU gas heaters in the back bedrooms.  I removed the furnace after not using it even once last winter (I'm also in CT).


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## Crazy Ivan from CT (Dec 4, 2013)

DAKSY said:


> Gas inserts are room heaters. If they need to run all the time they will do it.
> I have used mine when the power's been out. The only heat we had for 4-5 days.
> No problems.


 
Did you use a generator to run the blower system?   I am looking at a vented insert not a vent free as I have two black labs that seem to shed all year long.


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## Crazy Ivan from CT (Dec 4, 2013)

FanMan said:


> I have not an insert, but a freestanding gas stove (30,000 BTU) which is the primary heat in my 1800sf house.  There are also two 7500BTU gas heaters in the back bedrooms.  I removed the furnace after not using it even once last winter (I'm also in CT).


 
How much gas do you consume in a year?


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## DAKSY (Dec 5, 2013)

Crazy Ivan from CT said:


> Did you use a generator to run the blower system?   I am looking at a vented insert not a vent free as I have two black labs that seem to shed all year long.


 
Nope. Didn't have one at the time. The only minor issue, now that I think about it was with the remote receiver... It got hot & started beeping. I had to pull it out of the valve cavity & place it on the hearth...


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## FanMan (Dec 5, 2013)

Crazy Ivan from CT said:


> How much gas do you consume in a year?



I haven't totaled it up (I should), but the two 100 gallon tanks lasted three weeks during the coldest part of the winter.

No blower on mine, so it works just fine during a power outage (a good thing, last winter!)


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## Crazy Ivan from CT (Dec 5, 2013)

FanMan said:


> I haven't totaled it up (I should), but the two 100 gallon tanks lasted three weeks during the coldest part of the winter.
> 
> No blower on mine, so it works just fine during a power outage (a good thing, last winter!)


 
How much do you pay for gas??


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## FanMan (Dec 6, 2013)

Crazy Ivan from CT said:


> How much do you pay for gas??



It's about $2.50/gallon.


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## Crazy Ivan from CT (Dec 6, 2013)

FanMan said:


> It's about $2.50/gallon.


 

At that price I would buy a gas insert tomorrow.   But, I checked the trend on propane and its going up...

I just remodeled and really would like to change my brand new electric glass stove top to a gas stove.   I like the gas ranges.   My glass range...I am so worried about dropping something on it and breaking it....


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## FanMan (Dec 6, 2013)

The price of propane varies a _lot_ depending on how much you buy.  Could be double if you're not using enough; when I started they asked what I was using it for and I said, "heating,", so they gave me the price based on that much usage.

I had a glass electric stove for only a few years.  We didn't like it, didn't heat that well, and harder to clean than one would think.  Then mice got into it and we never could get the smell out.  We got a conventional electric stove then (that was before we went to gas for heat), but I plan on replacing the stove with a gas stove when I remodel the kitchen (and the electric hot water heater with a tankless gas heater).


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## Crazy Ivan from CT (Dec 9, 2013)

FanMan said:


> *The price of propane varies a lot depending on how much you buy.*  Could be double if you're not using enough; when I started they asked what I was using it for and I said, "heating,", so they gave me the price based on that much usage.
> 
> I had a glass electric stove for only a few years.  We didn't like it, didn't heat that well, and harder to clean than one would think.  Then mice got into it and we never could get the smell out.  We got a conventional electric stove then (that was before we went to gas for heat), but I plan on replacing the stove with a gas stove when I remodel the kitchen (and the electric hot water heater with a tankless gas heater).


 
I really would rather not buy 2000 gallons of propane just to get a good price,but I understand that they sell gas the gas companies kinda have you by the stones.   

My goal is to get a maintenance free visually apealing gas stove inseret or free standing that I would put in front of my existing fireplace.  No more pellets.  No more wood.      If I could increase my chance of getting a better price by adding a gas range and oven then I would do so. I  just remodeled the house this year and dont like the electic flat top range so much. 

And my goal is to lose more weight.   I did lose and keep off 60 pounds this year so that picture on in my avatar is a thinner me.    More to go.

Thanks  all!


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## FanMan (Dec 9, 2013)

Crazy Ivan from CT said:


> I really would rather not buy 2000 gallons of propane just to get a good price,but I understand that they sell gas the gas companies kinda have you by the stones.



I only buy 200 gallons max at a time (I have two 100 gallon tanks).


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## Crazy Ivan from CT (Dec 10, 2013)

FanMan said:


> I only buy 200 gallons max at a time (I have two 100 gallon tanks).


 

How much do you go through a year?


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## FanMan (Dec 10, 2013)

As I said above, I haven't totaled it up (I should), but the two 100 gallon tanks lasted three weeks (didn't run out by the time they filled it) during the coldest part of the winter.  Of course it's a little colder where you are than down on the shoreline where I am.


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## Crazy Ivan from CT (Dec 10, 2013)

That is the burn rate that I am getting from other people.    Wish gas was cheap where I live as it would be a no brainer.   But, I am leaning toward keeping my pellet stove.  

I am thinking I would burn 1,000 gallongs a year even in my small 1100 square foot house that is properly inulated and remodeled this year.    That is about 3K for gas when I can run my pellet stover for $700 dollars of pellets.

Boy it would be nice if I hit powerball


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## FanMan (Dec 10, 2013)

I think it wouldn't be that much... I asked my wife to look it up; she tells me we spent roughly $2K for propane over the course of the year, or roughly 800 gallons.  That's for an 1800sf house that's _not_ that well insulated, and also includes the usage by a gas clothes dryer that we installed last spring.  And the propane heaters work through power outages...


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## Crazy Ivan from CT (Dec 11, 2013)

FanMan said:


> I think it wouldn't be that much... I asked my wife to look it up; she tells me we spent roughly $2K for propane over the course of the year, or roughly 800 gallons.  That's for an 1800sf house that's _not_ that well insulated, and also includes the usage by a gas clothes dryer that we installed last spring.  And the propane heaters work through power outages...


 

Thanks for the input.  I really want a gas stove for my primary heat for convience and visual effect.   I just bought a new electric washer and dryer along with electirc hot water heater and range.  I would think about selling the hot water heater used and the range used since its only a few months old and convert to gas.    I like a gas range.   To me an oven is an oven.


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