Jotul F-600 blower install

[Sealcove]

I have the rear heat shield on the stove. I already have 2 fans. Just wondering if the blower would make a difference.

I would be surprised if a blower would made a significant difference with your existing setup. It sounds like you are easily heating the basement with, so heat is getting distributed. A blower on the stove isn't going to help move that heat upstairs.

We have our F600 in the center of out 2200 sq. ft house on the first floor. It is a fairly open floor plan, but a single 18" box fan is all I use to help circulate air around the 1st floor. We have no trouble staying ahead of the cold, but we probably have differences in our houses and it is certainly colder in most of Quebec than it is on the coast of Maine!

 

[Laurent Cyr]

Heat rises but you may be asking too much in these severe conditions.... Are you burning 24/7 ?

Yeah, usually stuff the stove full before going to bed. Then restart the fire on remaining embers in the morning.
I agree that it`s been cold this year with multiple weeks at -10 and -20F. But this is a small bungalow with 1800 square feet in the basement, and the same on the main floor. If it is 80F downstairs, the heat should rise and it should be at least 75 on the main floor.
The more I think about it, the more I`m convinced I`ll have to re-insulate the walls. The house was finished in stucco outside, and a few years back I decided to add siding. I added 1 inch foam insulation with a vapour barrier, and then the siding. I figured that would be enough. But I guess the insulation is so sub-standard in the walls, that it all needs to be changed and done properly.

 

[logger]

Poor insulation is going to affect the efficiency of heating a house in any instance, whether wood stove or any heat source.

 

[Ram 1500 with an axe...]

Is adding a stove on the main floor out of the question?

 

[Laurent Cyr]

Poor insulation is going to affect the efficiency of heating a house in any instance, whether wood stove or any heat source.

Yes! For sure!

 

[Laurent Cyr]

Is adding a stove on the main floor out of the question?

Hell! It took everything in my power to convince the lady to have a wood stove in the house. Main issue was cost. Since the old one was in the basement, then that`s where this one went.
I wouldn`t be able to convince her to buy another stove, `cause then she`d say the Jotul was a waste.
She would never agree to bring the Jotul to the main floor. If I did convince her to bring it to the main floor, I could probably install it in the living room, but I would probably heat myself out of the house given the amount of heat this stove pushes out. Also, isn`t there a minimum height in a chimney install? I thought I read that somewhere.

 

[Laurent Cyr]

Well, here`s an update. Perhaps you guys can help explain what`s going on. I tried different placement of fans yesterday, and I didn`t see any noticeable différences in températures and heat moving upstairs.

So today my wife suggested I turn OFF my fan on the electric funace (I use the fan on the furnace only to redistribute the air equally in the house and I figured it would help to get the heat upstairs). Within 1/2 hour, the temperature upstairs has gone up 2 degrees, and I can really feel the warm air rising up the stairwell from the basement to the 1st floor. Températures outside today are colder than they were yesterday.

Can anybody explain that?

 

[begreen]

This is why I said try a single fan in the 12" vent blowing down toward the stove. You have too many moving pieces going on. It's much easier to work with nature. Simplify and let natural convection work better. Your electric bill will be lower and you may find the heat convects well with just minor assistance.

 

[Laurent Cyr]

Well, I`m at the end of the day, and the temperature on the main floor is at least 3 degrees warmer than usual. The temperature is 75F on the main floor. So, shutting the fan on the furnace seems to do the trick. I guess the furnace fan kep a steady temperature throughout the house, but screwed up the natural convection in the basement. Tomorrow I`ll play around with the pedestal fans and see what works best.

 

[begreen]

Running the moderately warm air through the furnace ductwork was probably cooling it down due to heat losses in the ductwork.

 

[Laurent Cyr]

Yes, that`s probably it.