I have been looking on line for a wood stoves . I went to two stores today they both sell the same stoves . I am not sure if I want cast iron or steel. I have an 1100sq ft house , one store said the lopi pepublic 1750 witch has a heating cap of 1.200 to 2.000 sq the other store said i should go with the lopi answer with the heating cap of 750 to 14oo. I am also not sure if I want a steel stove I have been reading a lot of forums and I have not herd a lot of good things about lopi, can some please help me
I NEED HELP
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You've come to the right place, that is for sure. Unfortunately it is not as simple as calculating square/foot and matching manufactures specs. A little more info would greatly help in getting quality advise. Layout of home, tightness of home regarding drafts and insulation, existing chimney, etc.. You are in Michigan, that being said I would definitely "go large" on the capacity of the stove. You can always tone down the output, but when it's below zero outside a smaller stove will leave you cold.
When was your home built, size of room you plan to place the stove, open-ness of floor plan, access to quality, seasoned wood. Are you trying to supplement a natural gas furnace or largely eliminate the use of a furnace. THings to think about.
THis forum is loaded with great sources of info and you will no doubt get more info than you want! That being said, you won't make any mistakes in this new quest. Take your time, learn as much as possible, check out the "wood shed" forum.
When was your home built, size of room you plan to place the stove, open-ness of floor plan, access to quality, seasoned wood. Are you trying to supplement a natural gas furnace or largely eliminate the use of a furnace. THings to think about.
THis forum is loaded with great sources of info and you will no doubt get more info than you want! That being said, you won't make any mistakes in this new quest. Take your time, learn as much as possible, check out the "wood shed" forum.
I'd go for the Republic. It's not so much about heating capacity, you control that by the amount of wood put in the stove and air supplied to the fire. But it's hard to coax an overnight fire out of a small stove and the only solution there is more capacity.
I agree with begreen and the others. You would probably do OK with either of these stoves but the republic gives you the overnight option. I assume you are talking about the freestanding stove not the insert? I just got that insert, it's essentially the same stove - no legs. It is also the same as the Lopi endeavor which a number of folks on here have, it is a very good stove.
dr.drew said:
The Endeavor features a bypass damper, which the Republic does not have. The is a metal plate at the back of the baffle that slides open to allow the flue gases to go directly up the flue. It is useful for getting a good draft going when starting from a cold stove. It's also useful during reloading. And, finally, when it's time to sweep the flue, you don't have to remove anything from the baffle - you just open the bypass, sweep, and all the soot falls into the firebox.
There are some great videos at (broken link removed to http://www.lopistoves.com/videos) if you want to watch them. There is a factory tour that shows an Endeavor being made, and there is a technical video with a cutaway Endeavor showing you how it all works.
Lopi uses stainless steel burn tubes, kiln fired clay fire brick, and heavy angle iron to construct their baffles. The stove unibody is 3/16" plate steel, and the stove tops on the Endeavor and Liberty are 5/16" plate steel. Quality product. Watch the videos and check one out. I don't think you can go wrong with Lopi.
Edit: see my Endeavor review here https://www.hearth.com/talk/threads/37171/
Pagey said:
That's interesting, the Republic 1750i insert does have the bypass damper. I have found it helpful when lighting and loading.
dr.drew said:
Heh?
Lopis are great. Overpriced, IMO, but great.
But forget Lopi. Go get yourself a Pacific Energy. Get the T5 Alderlea. That way you get cast iron in the outs and steel on the ins.
I woukdnt even bother with the answer, very small, and requires constant attention to burn well. Lopis are great stovemakers built for armageddon if you ask me. But I have to agree with the last post, take a look at pacific energy stuff, the T5o ofers great mellow heat out of the box and looks great, throw the blower on it and it puts out tons of heat, and is very easy to operate. if you don't want the cast iron they also offer steel. Good luck
I have a Lopi Answer Insert, so I am not sure if the firebox size is comparable with a free standing stove. I would also vote for the larger stove.....don't get me wrong, I like my Lopi Answer, just hard to get anything over 4.5 hours or so on a good burn. I'd go with the bigger firebox. Good Luck!
People are giving you great info. I would go with the larger of the stoves mentioned by you. Leaky houses and heat does not go around corners easily etc Better too big but not too too big. The problem if it is really too big is you will not want to burn it hot enough to burn the creosote or not create it in first place and if too small it will disappoint you in the amt of heat you get from it.
I would go back to the store that told you the bigger one. Lopi is a good name. Listen to the guys on the forum, they really know their stoves, I am a beginner so I read a lot but that is my advice.
I would go back to the store that told you the bigger one. Lopi is a good name. Listen to the guys on the forum, they really know their stoves, I am a beginner so I read a lot but that is my advice.
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