Jotul Oslo or Firelight

[Budge]

In our current home (bungalow/ranch) we have an Oslo and absolutely love it. That said, we are building a home that is a 2 storey with 2000 square feet on the main floor plus an additional 1700 square feet on the second floor. The stove will be located on the main floor and we are trying to decide which stove to purchase.

The fact is we prefer the look of the Oslo, but overnights burns are difficult for a quick re-light. Yes, we have coals but not enough for me to reload and be confident of a stable fire to leave the house. I know the Oslo will heat the main floor without any issues. I guess my question is how much heat actually reaches the second floor? Trying to justify going with the firelight only because it is rated for 2500 square feet (we prefer the look of the Oslo and I have always sad I would buy another). The only opening for air movement to the second floor are the u-shaped stairs and they are in the hallway. Lastly, we don't want to be heated out of the family room where the stove is located trying to push heat to the second storey, make sense?

Thanks,

Budge

 

[begreen]

Greetings. 3700 sq ft is a large house and a lot of space to heat. Are there very high ceilings too? If yes, have you considered other options like a Tulikivi masonry fireplace or a high efficiency zero clearance fireplace?

 

[jotul8e2]

The first question is the size and shape of the family room where the stove is located, and secondly the number, size and door heights of the exits from that room. There is not much one can do with actual doors, but if you can maximize the width and height of any passageways to other rooms you will find that heat will flow around the house more evenly. Stairways are very hard to predict, but again the wider and more open the better for moving heat around.

In your climate I would want the larger capacity of the Firelight unless the room where it is located is too constricted to allow easy movement of heated air.

 

[firefighterjake]

As mentioned it could be a challenge heating such a large place with a single woodstove . . . but if I was to try doing so with a single woodstove and wanted to stick with Jotul I would go with the F600 instead of the F500.

 

[Grisu]

I second BeGreen's recommendation for an EPA-approved ZC fireplace. Many models can have optional ducting installed to move the heat to other areas of the house. A nice fireplace should also increase the value of the house down the road while wood stoves rarely do.

If a Jotul stove is still preferred certainly the F600 and then insulating the house beyond code requirements to have a chance to heat everything with one stove. I would also suggest to connect the stove to an outside air kit to aid draft.

 

[Budge]

I should have mentioned the room size, it is 16' x 23'. The only opening to the adjacent room is 16' x 9' as the family room and kitchen area are open to each other. We will not have any vaulted ceilings or "open to above" ceilings. The ceilings are 9' everywhere.

When we started we actually considered a zero clearance fireplace but when I saw the RSF Opel I didn't like it. My local dealer carries many zero clearance manufacturers but favours RSF and Pacific energy. That said he does not have the pacific energy FP 30 on display but said the summit is the same size fire box which I was able to see. I thought the fire box was small.

We still haven't ruled out a zero clearance Fireplace but as a heater it's hard to beat a stove in my opinion, especially when the power is out. Many heating options do exist for moving heat from a zero clearance but for some reason our local dealer thought that from a performance and price point a heat dump was really the only viable and cost effective solution.

 

[Grisu]

I thought the fire box was small.

Should be similar to the F600. Both are ~3 cu ft.

Here are some other large ZC fireplaces to look at:
http://www.fireplacex.com/ProductGuide/ProductDetail.aspx?modelsku=98500113
(broken link removed to http://www.valcourtinc.com/en/heaters/fp9-versailles-wood-fireplace-epa-)
http://superiorfireplaces.us.com/products/wct6840
(broken link removed to http://www.quadrafire.com/Products/7100-Wood-Fireplace.aspx)

 

[jotul8e2]

I should have mentioned the room size, it is 16' x 23'. The only opening to the adjacent room is 16' x 9' as the family room and kitchen area are open to each other. We will not have any vaulted ceilings or "open to above" ceilings. The ceilings are 9' everywhere.

Could get stuffy, all right. These things are so difficult to determine with certainty in advance.

 

[begreen]

May be ok. We have a 3 cu ft stove in a smaller living room. How large is the family room kitchen area? And do I understand correctly that there is a full room width 16 x 9 opening between these areas. If so that sounds like an open floorplan.

 

[stovelark]

Agree with all here, if its the Jotul you want, the Firelight is a hair bigger. Don't think any one stove will heat 3700 sq ft but a ZC fireplace with heat zone kits might be the best equipped to do it. Quadrafire's 7100 fireplace (3.4 cft) is amongst the big ones, with a large price to overcome.

 

[Woodboy]

I have stared at the F600 for years. Too c heap to buy one. So instead I bought a Vermont Elm, now headed for the barn. I have owned about 20 stoves over the last 40 years. Woodstock Fireview 2008, I sold to my son, BlazeKing Princess 2012, in the barn to be used as a spare.
This year I bought a Jotul F600 Blue Black enamel.
This thing is beautiful.
Today it was 40 out, I put in 3 4" pieces about 18" long.
I also have an outside air kit. A 3' pipe to the outside connected to the 4" adapter.
This thing rocks. I had 450 with the air control completely closed and flames dancing at the top. Looked outside and no smoke.
Great stove so far. Can't wait for real cold weather to show up.
Now I can burn all of the burnable papers and cardboard I want without worrying about hurting the catyltic combuster, or opening the door with it engaged.

 

[bunfoolio]

I have a new house that is 3200SQFT and the Oslo does a good job heating the whole thing. Downstairs is about 72 and the upstairs is 68. If you like looks of the F600 I would get that that seeing you live north of me and your place is bigger. If you like the looks of the Oslo then get that.

 

[Nick Mystic]

I too have an F600 and it does a great job heating our home. One word of caution on burning paper and cardboard in any woodstove. Many chimney fires have been set off by burning such things in stoves. It is the same principle at work as you see on TV with the forest fires raging out west. When the canopies of trees get set on fire the small embers ride the wind, sometimes for a mile or more, and then set off a new fire. In a stove the light weight paper will be aflame and the draft will carry it up the flue where it will come into contact with creosote built up along the walls of the flue. Rain caps often have the most creosote built up on them and this is where the burning paper ends up.
Good luck with the new stove.

 

[Woodboy]

OK I bought the Jotul F600 in May of 2015. Blue Black enamel. It was supposed to be mat-black, I think Jotul either screwed up or gave me their last stove in stock.
It is beautiful.
I have since purchased a Woodstock Progress Hybrid.
What a stove. This has to be the best. Hands down it is so much better than my Jotul.
The wood lasts longer,even without the combuster turned on. Great secondary flames. Heat lasts all night.
It was only 32 Friday night, but the house was 70 in the living room.
My house needs some buttoning up. Now my curtains don't wave as far when a fly goes by.
2 story house. First floor is around 1860 sqft. Upstairs is about 950 sqft.
The Jotul needed to be filled a little too often. I know the stoves are different at how they burn fuel, but with both of them running only using the secondary air system, the progress beats Jotul hands down.
I use oaks on both of them.
I reduced the 4" to 3" on the Jotul and 5" to 4" to 3" on the Progress.
18' chimney, 6" steel double insulated from 2008.
My last stove.

 

[Ashful]

I used to burn two Jotul Firelight F12's, same size as current Firelight F600, but with a cat combustor instead of reburn system. While I was NOT impressed with their ability to heat my home, most of those shortcomings being transferable to the F600, they were beautiful stoves.

One of mine was in an addition of modern construction, a family room roughly 16' x 32' with 14 foot ceilings, open to an 18' x 18' kitchen with 8' ceiling and 12' x 12' pantry with 8' ceiling. It was not too much firepower for that space, so I'd not expect you to have a problem.

 

[Woodboy]

I used to burn two Jotul Firelight F12's, same size as current Firelight F600, but with a cat combustor instead of reburn system. While I was NOT impressed with their ability to heat my home, most of those shortcomings being transferable to the F600, they were beautiful stoves.

One of mine was in an addition of modern construction, a family room roughly 16' x 32' with 14 foot ceilings, open to an 18' x 18' kitchen with 8' ceiling and 12' x 12' pantry with 8' ceiling. It was not too much firepower for that space, so I'd not expect you to have a problem.

I think the best thing I liked about the Jotul was the fire screen option.
We had -12 last winter a couple of days and I tried the screen option with two logs east and west on a bed of coals..
I got the house to 75 easily. But it eats wood and smokes once in a while.
I can't wait until next winter when I can put the PH through it's paces.

I went through 5 full cords each season with the Jotul. I expect to use about 3 to 4 with the PH. Maybe less.

 

[Ashful]

I think the best thing I liked about the Jotul was the fire screen option.
We had -12 last winter a couple of days and I tried the screen option with two logs east and west on a bed of coals..
I got the house to 75 easily. But it eats wood and smokes once in a while.
I can't wait until next winter when I can put the PH through it's paces.

I went through 5 full cords each season with the Jotul. I expect to use about 3 to 4 with the PH. Maybe less.

I had the firescreen, but probably used it only once each year, if that. My Jotuls ate wood, but they were the wrong stove for my application, so that's not a surprise.

You need to update your sig! It doesn't list a Jotul Firelight or a Woodstock PH.

Current:
Blaze King Princess Parlor
Had:
Andes Wood/Coal
Boss Wood Stove
Sotz Barrel Stoves
Jotul 118
Effel Wood
Vermont Castings Vigilant
Harmon Exception
Harman Mark II
Vermont Castings Vigilant Coal
Woodstock Fireview
Vermont Elm