I can't afford a wood burning stove because of chimney. help

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Your going to love that Ashford! Go with the 30. Also you will need 16 - 25 ft of class A +/-. You will have to measure it and see. Then a through wall and support kit or ceiling kit.

$1200 - $1800
 
I have two "thru the wall" setups, one in the home and the other in the cabin and both work well. Just make sure you have a good, long run up the side of the house to get sufficient draw. Recently we installed a "thru the ceiling" setup in my son's cabin but haven't really started to use it yet as the whole cabin is under construction so can't really comment on the performance, although straight run is better than two 90s in principal, especially if total length is limited.
 
Chimney savers just came round and had a great Idea. I'm going to knock chimney down completely. Keep existing furnace and hot water heater vent both out of top of house using b vent and vent stove via class a. Encase both in cement board.

Thoughts?

I like the plan, which is why I suggested it back on page 1. ;-)

Don't know where in Jersey you are, but if north west, I can also recommend Fireplace and Chimney Professionals to get an opinion before making any final decision. Most of their work with which I'm familiar is masonry chimneys on older houses (I've not owned a house as new as yours), but they are great folks with a ton of knowledge, and might also do chase construction. They're also a stove dealer with several brands, including Blaze King (who mentioned an Ashford 30?).

Second opinions (and sometimes third) always help shape the final plan, even if you end up using the first contractor.
 
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I like the plan, which is why I suggested it back on page 1. ;-)

Don't know where in Jersey you are, but if north west, I can also recommend Fireplace and Chimney Professionals to get an opinion before making any final decision. Most of their work with which I'm familiar is masonry chimneys on older houses (I've not owned a house as new as yours), but they are great folks with a ton of knowledge, and might also do chase construction. They're also a stove dealer with several brands, including Blaze King (who mentioned an Ashford 30?).

Second opinions (and sometimes third) always help shape the final plan, even if you end up using the first contractor.

Ha, sorry. I didn't make the connection between what you suggested and the savings on the hot water heater and furnace. I suppose I'm north central Jersey will check out fireplace and chimney professionals. I first brought up ashford 30. Going back to your first comment about waiting for the summer.I'm not sure I can wait that long because the current venting for hot water heater and furnace is unsafe because of possible cracked flue etc
 
I have two "thru the wall" setups, one in the home and the other in the cabin and both work well. Just make sure you have a good, long run up the side of the house to get sufficient draw. Recently we installed a "thru the ceiling" setup in my son's cabin but haven't really started to use it yet as the whole cabin is under construction so can't really comment on the performance, although straight run is better than two 90s in principal, especially if total length is limited.

Thanks for the suggestion but because I need to sort out venting for hot water heater and furnace I think I'm going to stay with plan of knocking down masonry chimney and replacing.
 
Ha, sorry. I didn't make the connection between what you suggested and the savings on the hot water heater and furnace. I suppose I'm north central Jersey will check out fireplace and chimney professionals. I first brought up ashford 30. Going back to your first comment about waiting for the summer.I'm not sure I can wait that long because the current venting for hot water heater and furnace is unsafe because of possible cracked flue etc

Good thing for you, it's been like summer most of this winter, around here! ;lol
 
I can't wait to hear what you end up doing. Please keep us informed along the way and add a couple pictures too we love those around here ;)
 
I understand every area is different with energy costs. In this part of the country the month to month costs are almost twice as much to use electric over gas. If you switch to electric and use $20 more energy every month it will not take long before you far exceed any savings you had by going cheap on the install. Also keep in mind that the reheat rate is usually a little slower on an electric than it is on a gas water heater. It is often necessary to upsize the heater if you are already pushing it to its limits now with gas. Example: If you are maxing out a 40 gallon gas, but content with it, you should switch to a 50 gallon electric for similar performance.

Not sure about your area, but worth looking into before you switch and realize the real cost of the change. Also remember if you are using an older furnace rated at 80% and you put in a 96% furnace you will be saving about 15% on your heat bill. If you are paying $200 a month now, over a few years the $30 a month savings starts to add up. You need to look forwards and see if you feel the money savings will offset the additional install costs now.
 
Regarding the water heater, we installed a point of use system in our house. Its basically a suitcase mounted to the wall in our basement. No venting needed, as its all electric. Cost was $750 for the unit (which with proper maintenance should last us ~25 years or more) plus the cost to install the heavy duty wiring leading to it (our model eats 3 60-amp breakers. Its a beast). That said... no venting, and no need to replace a water tank every 5-10 years so over the long haul we're saving with it. Being able to just go downstairs and dial in exactly what we want for our water temperature is nice as well.

If you swap out your water heater for POU, that could possibly give you the space you need for your stove unless that chimney is being used for more than just the water ventilation.

EDIT: When we bought this place, the electric had been stripped, so I had the 'luxury' of basically rewiring everything from the new panel we installed to the existing no-stripped wires going up into the house from the basement. It wasn't cheap, but did allow us to go electric for the water heater. YMMV depending on your electric supply, age of the house, etc...
 
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