Advice on Wood Insert for 2100 square ft home

[rcsmd]

We are looking at the following. Our criteria are:
High BTUs
long Burn time preferably exceeding 8 hrs
Contemporary look with large glass door
low emissions
ease of use

So far our top picks are:

Matrix 2700 Wood Insert

Matrix 2700 | Wood inserts | Osburn

www.osburn-mfg.com

Regency ci2700

Ci2700 Contemporary Wood Burning Insert by Regency

The Regency Pro-Series CI2700 is a large contemporary catalytic wood insert enabling up to an astonishing 14 hours of burn time and 86% efficiency.

www.regency-fire.com

Which is better and why? Are there any similar options we are missing?
Any other advice?
Thanks in advance

 

[bholler]

We are looking at the following. Our criteria are:
High BTUs
long Burn time preferably exceeding 8 hrs
Contemporary look with large glass door
low emissions
ease of use

So far our top picks are:

Matrix 2700 Wood Insert

Matrix 2700 | Wood inserts | Osburn

www.osburn-mfg.com

Regency ci2700

Ci2700 Contemporary Wood Burning Insert by Regency

The Regency Pro-Series CI2700 is a large contemporary catalytic wood insert enabling up to an astonishing 14 hours of burn time and 86% efficiency.

www.regency-fire.com

Which is better and why? Are there any similar options we are missing?
Any other advice?
Thanks in advance

Neither is nescarily better the regency is a hybrid which uses a cat. That allows you to turn down lower and maintain a clean burn. The osburn is a tube stove that burns cleanly but only at a higher temp. It all depends on your needs

 

[stoveliker]

Blaze King has models with a modern look, has long burn times (can be easily longer than 8 hrs, but note that long burn times means less BTU s per hour for a given size firebox).

If you run BK s high the glass will stay clean.

 

[begreen]

Blaze King has models with a modern look, has long burn times (can be easily longer than 8 hrs, but note that long burn times means less BTU s per hour for a given size firebox).

If you run BK s high the glass will stay clean.

Yes, the BK Sirocco 25 should be included in the list as well as the Lopi Nex Gen Large flush insert.

 

[rcsmd]

Neither is nescarily better the regency is a hybrid which uses a cat. That allows you to turn down lower and maintain a clean burn. The osburn is a tube stove that burns cleanly but only at a higher temp. It all depends on your needs

Super helpful thanks. I wasn't aware of the temp / clean burn trade-off.

 

[rcsmd]

Yes, the BK Sirocco 25 should be included in the list as well as the Lopi Nex Gen Large flush insert.

Thank you for the suggestions. Love the way the BK Sirocco 25 looks and the long burn time. It says it is only 40,000 BTU's. Isn't that on the low side. Also I wonder if it would struggle to heat the full 2100 sq feet. What are your thoughts in relation to the others I listed?
The lopi nexgen also looks nice. The emissions seem high. I'll take both into consideration. Thanks!

 

[rcsmd]

Blaze King has models with a modern look, has long burn times (can be easily longer than 8 hrs, but note that long burn times means less BTU s per hour for a given size firebox).

If you run BK s high the glass will stay clean.

Thanks for the the information about the relationship between BTUs and burn time. I'm learning a lot here. Very helpful.

 

[stoveliker]

Think of it as a gas tank in a car; either you run fast (hot) for a shorter time, or you run slower (less hot) for a longer time before you have to refuel (reload). This holds for all stoves with air control.

Do you know your BTU requirements? Have you owned the home for a year so you can calculate (oil, propane, electric) heating BTUs used from your heating bills?

Note that using a stove to heat a whole home not only requires enough BTUs (the amount of which depends on insulation) but also a geometry amenable to spreading warm air around. This my or may not be easy with any stove.

Going bigger (more BTUs) may seem to be smart, until you cook yourself out of the stove room...

 

[rcsmd]

Think of it as a gas tank in a car; either you run fast (hot) for a shorter time, or you run slower (less hot) for a longer time before you have to refuel (reload). This holds for all stoves with air control.

Do you know your BTU requirements? Have you owned the home for a year so you can calculate (oil, propane, electric) heating BTUs used from your heating bills?

Note that using a stove to heat a whole home not only requires enough BTUs (the amount of which depends on insulation) but also a geometry amenable to spreading warm air around. This my or may not be easy with any stove.

Going bigger (more BTUs) may seem to be smart, until you cook yourself out of the stove room...

Thank you for the informative response. This home is new to us so we don't know what it requires in BTUs. I appreciate all the considerations about layout. It might indeed be difficult to get heat from one end of the house to the other.

 

[begreen]

What is the primary heating system in the house? What is its output in BTUs?

 

[rcsmd]

What is the primary heating system in the house? What is its output in BTUs?

The primary system is oil heating via baseboards. No idea on BTUs as we just purchased the property. Apparently it would cost $5,000 per winter if we used oil to heat. We want to use wood instead.

 

[stoveliker]

That suggests to me that insulating and sealing the home may be the first thing you need to do.
Any wood heat will be escaping too.

 

[begreen]

The primary system is oil heating via baseboards. No idea on BTUs as we just purchased the property. Apparently it would cost $5,000 per winter if we used oil to heat. We want to use wood instead.

Find out the boiler BTU output for a guide on the heat required. The oil company that the previous owners bought from may have this info as well as a record of oil consumption. If it cost $5000 to heat 2100 sq ft in MD in previous years, then it sounds like building heat loss is a big issue that needs to be addressed. Or the previous owners liked to keep it at 85º with a window open.

 

[rcsmd]

That suggests to me that insulating and sealing the home may be the first thing you need to do.
Any wood heat will be escaping too.

Thank you! Yes, that is definitely step one.

 

[mellow]

Like most of us, the first winter is a b*$%$ when we move into a new (old) house, most of the time you spend chasing down air leaks and trying to tighten up the place. Once you get that resolved then you can figure out what you will need for heating and have a better idea on how you can move the heat.

I would highly recommend getting a blower door test done as a baseline.

Energy Audits

An official website of the State of Maryland.

energy.maryland.gov

Residential Incentives

An official website of the State of Maryland.

energy.maryland.gov