Looking for a VERY small woodstove for a small cabin

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Bocefus78

Minister of Fire
Hearth Supporter
Jul 27, 2010
538
Just Outside Indy
Im in the begining stages of planning a small cabin build that I want to heat with a stove. Its roughly 600 sq ft including the loft. 430ish on the main. What makes/models are out there that fit the bill? I'm looking to stay fairly cheap here. Is this 13 that I hear so much about too big? Should I basically plan on keeping a window open so its not 90 degrees inside with any stove in an area this small?

In addition, If you have a rough estimate of distance to combustibles, that would also help me out.

Thanks!
 
If the cabin temp is going to have to be increased significantly, then I would also look at the PE True North TN19. I believe it's hearth requirements and clearances are easier to work with.
 
Morso has some nice looking small stoves
 
Remember that heating a cabin has two components: first, taking it from ambient temperature to comfortable temperature, second, keeping it at comfortable temperature. Many on this forum have had similar experiences to mine: it takes up to 24 hours to get the cabin from ambient to comfortable, when outside temps are below freezing (and longer, if they are way below freezing). Every bit of structure and all interior furnishings are at that same outside temperature. Keeping it comfortable is where a stove's rated capacity comes in. That will be greatly affected by how well insulated the cabin is.

The last time I went to my cabin, I got it to a minimum comfort level in only 5-6 hours, but I used a propane gas log stove (which the previous owner had left) and put the electric oven on self-clean cycle (the pizza drippings needed to go), in addition to burning the Shelburne full bore. It was still 24 hours before the Shelburne was coasting along alone, keeping the place toasty. My cabin is 800 sf (including loft) with 2-inch styrofoam insulation beneath the metal roofing and underneath the floorboards. The walls are 4-inch thick logs and the floor and ceiling are 2-inch thick pine. All the windows are double-pane.
 
Maybe check tractor supply, they have a clearance sale on their stoves and Ive heard good reviews.
 
stoveguy2esw said:
http://www.englanderstoves.com/17-vl.html

In the Englander line this would be my choice for better clearances, easier floor protection and a nice fire view.
 
Have you thought about checking out antique joints or CraigsList for a woodfired cook stove. With a small footprint to heat and little exta space a dual-use stove might be something to consider. Just a thought?
 
My Lopi repiublic 1250 is in a room about 400 or 500 square feet and it is just right for that room plus a little extra heat for upstairs Heat escapes up the stairs so the room doesn't overheat, but it does get warm in there. As a couple of others mentioned it is important to have some extra BTU output if you will need to warm up the cabin when it has been allowed to get cold. When my stove goes out the downstairs room gets cold (but never as cold as a cabin would get) and it takes a long time to heat up the walls, floors, and stuff in the room.
 
BeGreen said:
stoveguy2esw said:
http://www.englanderstoves.com/17-vl.html

In the Englander line this would be my choice for better clearances, easier floor protection and a nice fire view.

Did I read somewhere that last years models do NOT have a blower but this years do? That stove looks like it'll do me just fine but I'd like to have a blower on it.
 
weatherguy said:
Maybe check tractor supply, they have a clearance sale on their stoves and Ive heard good reviews.
If you do get the EPA model ,they are not much different in price. I just got their 2000 model for $499 ,i was tired of waiting for the englander 13 to drop in price from $649 plus its (the 2000) nicer looking.
 
Bocefus78 said:
Im in the begining stages of planning a small cabin build that I want to heat with a stove. Its roughly 600 sq ft including the loft. 430ish on the main. What makes/models are out there that fit the bill? I'm looking to stay fairly cheap here. Is this 13 that I hear so much about too big? Should I basically plan on keeping a window open so its not 90 degrees inside with any stove in an area this small?

In addition, If you have a rough estimate of distance to combustibles, that would also help me out.

Thanks!

There's a guy in Elk County PA trying to market a new "mini" 12 inch wood stove that he invented:

All about the Mighty Mini 12 inch wood burning stove, made by hand in the USA.
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I've exchanged emails with him and he seems to be a sincere honest guy. I told him if he wants to get sales to put a cook top on it and market it to the boating community as a galley stove, as his price point ($550) is way lower than the mini stoves sold to the boating market.

They have a website now too, apparently:

http://www.miniwoodstove.com/
 
Other small (primarily marine) stoves:
FATSCO Tiny Tot and Pet stoves: http://www.fatscostoves.com/
Paul E. Luke’s marine soapstone and tile fireplaces: http://www.peluke.com/Fireplaces/fireplaces.html
NAVIGATOR STOVE WORKS "SARDINE," "LITTLE COD," and "HALIBUT": http://marinestove.com/sproducthistory.htm
ShipMate Stove Company Skippy, Model 211: http://www.shipmatestove.com/Results.cfm?category=6
Kimberly Wood Stoves: http://www.unforgettablefirellc.com/Purchase.aspx
Morsø 1410: http://www.morsona.com/index.php/morso-1410.html
Jøtul F 602: http://www.jotul.com/content/products/ProductArticle.aspx?id=48024&epslanguage=en-GB
Salamander Stoves - The Hobbit, The Pipsqueak: http://www.salamanderstoves.com/docs/51/introduction/
 
Why not do what I just did (see post about 'look what showed up') and get a wood burning COOK stove. Kill two birds with one stone in your cabin. www.sopkainc.com
 
tjnamtiw said:
Why not do what I just did (see post about 'look what showed up') and get a wood burning COOK stove. Kill two birds with one stone in your cabin. www.sopkainc.com

This has been in my local Craigslist for several weeks:

http://altoona.craigslist.org/atq/2830973933.html
Vintage Kenmore wood/coal cook stove best offer - $125

Looking for a VERY small woodstove for a small cabin
Looking for a VERY small woodstove for a small cabin
I've been sorely tempted to buy it and just squirrel it away in my basement, but my dear wife would frown upon it.

Anybody know what kind of BTUs a kitchen cook stove like this typically generated?
 
I would definitely not want to sit around that Kenmore in the evening in my cabin, sipping scotch, and reminiscing on anything. Practical yes, but aesthetically pleasing, not.
 
DanCorcoran said:
I would definitely not want to sit around that Kenmore in the evening in my cabin, sipping scotch, and reminiscing on anything. Practical yes, but aesthetically pleasing, not.

Well, I was thinking of installing it in the basement for backup heating and cooking purposes. We don't sip much scotch down in that dungeon.
 
If my new little one puts out 27,000 btu's, I would imagine that the bigger ones will go much higher. What you really have to worry about is the internals on the old stoves. I picked up the little fella in the pictures here for almost nothing but you can see what the inside looked like once I tore it down. That's a project for this summer and then I'll either sell it will all new internal sheet metal or give it to my son for his shed.
 

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tjnamtiw said:
What you really have to worry about is the internals on the old stoves. I picked up the little fella in the pictures here for almost nothing but you can see what the inside looked like once I tore it down.

Thanks for posting this. At least I'll know what to look for if I go out to check it out.
 
im not sure if you are still looking but i have this exact stove i would sell just let me know
 

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I'll second the Lopi 1250/Answer - nice sized stove for that size place. You could get an early blast to warm it up and then let it mellow on coals to keep it warm. It has good clearances as well for a small room.
 
Remember that heating a cabin has two components: first, taking it from ambient temperature to comfortable temperature, second, keeping it at comfortable temperature. Many on this forum have had similar experiences to mine: it takes up to 24 hours to get the cabin from ambient to comfortable, when outside temps are below freezing (and longer, if they are way below freezing). Every bit of structure and all interior furnishings are at that same outside temperature. Keeping it comfortable is where a stove's rated capacity comes in. That will be greatly affected by how well insulated the cabin is.

The last time I went to my cabin, I got it to a minimum comfort level in only 5-6 hours, but I used a propane gas log stove (which the previous owner had left) and put the electric oven on self-clean cycle (the pizza drippings needed to go), in addition to burning the Shelburne full bore. It was still 24 hours before the Shelburne was coasting along alone, keeping the place toasty. My cabin is 800 sf (including loft) with 2-inch styrofoam insulation beneath the metal roofing and underneath the floorboards. The walls are 4-inch thick logs and the floor and ceiling are 2-inch thick pine. All the windows are double-pane.[/QUOTE


Reload interval is important too. My cabin is 16x25. I use a propane heater and electric space heaters to get me up to temp fast. I found my
 

1 cubic foot stove couldn't cut it at temps far below zero. I was also reloading so often I didn't really sleep. I put a 2 cubic foot stove in there playing special attention to floor protection as a thick hearth gets in the way in such a small place. I was less interested in CTC as I could move furniture out of the way in the winter, but the jacketed stove is pretty good with that too.
 
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