A few questions from a newbie

[NeedCheaperHeat]

Hello all, my name is Anthony......long time lurker and just joined as I am sick of BGE getting my $$ all winter....thank you all for providing several winters of information as it seems every time I google something with regard to pellet or wood stoves I end up here.....very informative and helpful site!....I wanted to run some thoughts and plans by you all for your opinions......

So here is my situation......and I am sure I'll be repeating questions or show my ignorance so I'll apologize in advance. ....

.My wife and I bought a Rambler with a walk out basement, aprx 3500sq/ft....masonary FP on first floor in main living areas. The windows are builder grade from 1994 when the house was built...and the house is insulated with whatever wall code was in 94......probably R19...attic has blown in insulation, which I plan on topping off.......I know I need new more efficient windows.....And am hoping to do them as i can this year.......However in the meantime I really would like to get my $400 month bill much lower and figure alternative heating would be yield the best results with lowest cost.......after much thought and investigation this is the plan I have come up with......

Step 1....direct vent a pellet stove at the corner of my finished walkout basement.....this is close to grade and I should be able to core drill a hole in the concrete wall for the flu and possible outside air for combustion if required by whatever unit I buy.....this will significantly reduce my costs on chimneys parts.....as I would only need a small section running up the wall on the inside and then jump it out about 3' above grade... This location is directly under our master and babies room, so we should receive radiant heat through the flooring. In addition to this.....I have an air handler with return vent in the basement approximately 20' away from proposed pellet stove location......since I have Engineered floor joists I should be able to fish a 4" flex line between the joists over to said location and install a ceiling diffuser.....other end of the line would be tied into the air handler return duct.....so the heat from the pellet stove would radiate through the flooring as well as work it's way up the stair case, but also if I turned the fan on in the air handler it will blow it all over the house.

Step 2.....Next year.....Install a free standing wood stove in the FP or possibly an insert?......I am trying to do most of this DIY and with the least amount of cost......I figure the free standing wood stove would include the cost of a quality used stove, a chimney liner and a chimney cap.....


This way I can have the convenience of a pellet but not be hamstrung if pellet fuel prices go way up.....I still will have a wood.......I am not trying to go off the grid nor do I expect to never have to use my heat.....just trying to offset it significantly....

questions......
1. does this sound good?
2. Do I need to remove the damper on the FP or replace it?
3. Should I even try this on my own....I am fairly capable of most house and auto fixes....the pellet install seems very straight forward and concerns me much less that the wood install.....
4. Like I said I trying to keep this as cost friendly as possible.....recommended good used pellet and wood stoves.....I have read on here that Englander has a strong following and good customer service....they seem to be in my budget too....the same with Timber Ridge stoves....would like to spend $500-750 on pellet unit
5. I also read on here that Englander sells refurbished stoves.....good choice?

Thanks so much in advance and thanks again for all you folks provide some much info.....

 

[bags]

I'll give you a bump and also recommend that you can use the search bar here and look for some answers that way. 3,500 SQ FT is a lot of area to try to do with a pellet stove. Have you thought of getting a pellet insert for your upstairs fire place? People usually place their pellet stoves in areas most used. Some have had success with basement installs but many have not.

I can appreciate you wanting to have options for fuel choices. I do. If you are handy and have some mechanical capabilities installing a pellet or wood stove is not difficult. You need to follow the guidelines for each particular stove.

Finding a pellet stove for $500 to $750 is going to be difficult even for a decent used one. Not saying deals aren't out there but that price range for a decent stove is slim. Let me also suggest that you figure out exactly what you are planning to heat and shop for stoves that will meet your criteria.

Check some things out by researching here some more and hopefully others will chime in with some more guidance. Good Luck!

 

[Wilbur Feral]

For that price, you can find a good used Whitfield (20 years old). Manual start, no thermostat, but parts are easy to get. Great stove - just not fully automatic. No idea re wood stoves - too much trouble for me, with one room too hot and the rest of house too cold. You will not heat 3500 SF like this without very significant insulation and air sealing upgrades, which will not be cheap, but are your best value in the long run. New windows are almost certainly NOT the place to start - but an energy audit by a BPI or Resnet certified auditor - not some random company at a home show offering free or $99 audits - IS. If no blower door involved, it's a scam and worthless. Start with saving heat rather than just producing more. You will be more comfortable and have a fatter wallet.

Oh, and a suggestion: shorter posts. People just won't read long ones.

 

[mr47930]

Hello fellow Calvert County pellet burner! We had a pellet stove installed in our main floor living room in the fall and love it. Our house is 3200 sq ft which includes the finished walk out basement. The basement doesn't get below a certain temp due to being 90% underground. Put the pellet stove where you spend most of your time. Let me know if you have any questions about local vendors and such.

 

[bogieb]

.My wife and I bought a Rambler with a walk out basement, aprx 3500sq/ft....masonary FP on first floor in main living areas. The windows are builder grade from 1994 when the house was built...and the house is insulated with whatever wall code was in 94......probably R19...attic has blown in insulation, which I plan on topping off.......I know I need new more efficient windows.....And am hoping to do them as i can this year.......However in the meantime I really would like to get my $400 month bill much lower and figure alternative heating would be yield the best results with lowest cost.......after much thought and investigation this is the plan I have come up with......

.....

Well, I got caught up in the fact that you only pay $400/month to heat 3500 sq/ft. That is really cheap and I'm not sure you could do much better than that. When using my boiler, I spend 1k/month to heat 950 sq/ft - and more during the really cold months (like now, when it is -18F). It is beneficial for me to use pellets as I spend half that amount to heat 1600 sq/ft (I have a pellet stove in basement too, whereas my FHW is not set up to heat basement.

I am unsure what type of fuel your current heater uses, but if it is NG, the best savings just might come from doing the energy efficiency upgrades you mentioned.

 

[CladMaster]

Get two pellet stoves, put one in the basement and one in the next floor up. A wood stove is too much hard work over a pellet stove.

3500sqft is a big area to heat, get one pellet stove to heat the basement, 20,000 BTU unit would be fine for this, on the next level up the second pellet stove should have a BTU rating of 35,000 at a minimum.

The trick is not skimp on the BTU's needed to heat the area(s) when it gets real cold, plan to have a reserve buffer with the stoves, so when you need more heat, the stoves can supply it with a simple press of a button / turn of a dial.

 

[NeedCheaperHeat]

Thank you for your replies and insight....I've done some searching in here and have a couple new questions


OAK?, OAT? And are Englander and Timber Ridge the same?....seems TR has a solid following due to their low maintinace and quality parts and design.....I've heard the name Andy mentioned several times, seems he is a rep as well as a member here?.....their refurbished stoves seem to be a nice compromise.

Also, as a previous poster mention about installing the stove in the main living area rather than the basement......is there something wrong with my intentions of using the Return air duct on the HVAC to draw heat from basement and distribute it thought the house?

Thanks again.....I'll get back to searching

 

[bogieb]

OAK = Outside Air Source; a flexible metal tube that runs to the air inlet of your stove so you aren't using inside air to blow into the combustion blower. OAK's can also reduce the clearance required from the exhaust to windows/doors that can be opened.

My understanding is that Timber Ridge is made by the same company that makes Englanders.

 

[Wilbur Feral]

Also, as a previous poster mention about installing the stove in the main living area rather than the basement......is there something wrong with my intentions of using the Return air duct on the HVAC to draw heat from basement and distribute it thought the house?

The problem is that it often does not work, and you don't really know until you try. I have a second stove in basement office that really helps heat main floor and even 2nd story IF basement stairs door is left open. If not, it has little effect and just builds up basement heat with modest effect on floor above. I have tried installing an additional set of returns and even a small duct fan to pull in the heated air, with almost no appreciable gain. It still seems illogical to me, but it is what it is.

After some thought, I think the problem for me is that I have such big losses in the return ducts - a common problem. I had a company attempt to seal our ducts from within using a gas that allows for buildup of a sealant where the gas leaks out. It worked very well for supply lines, but our returns in this mid-1970's house use joist bays for much of the ducting, and are so leaky they could not be sealed. A furnace overcomes this (although with great loss of efficiency) because the air is so hot (or so cold, for AC). But you are just recirculating moderately warmer ambient air with the system you describe, so any losses iverwhelm the gain rather quickly. Bottom line: Depends on your house. Does not work well for most, but depends on local situation.