My wife and I are going to put an addition on the house. It will be approximately 16 by 27, single story, but with a fairly high ceiling. Lots of windows/glass. We don't have a fireplace anywhere in the house and both my wife and I have wanted one for years. We have decided to buy a pellet stove for the addition. I have been reading this website for many months and thank you all for the information (and laughs along the way).
We have narrowed the options down to the Harman XXV or the new Enviro M55. I think we are leading towards the M55. Since this is going to be installed in this addition on the main floor, we want it to look nice and be fairly quiet.....OK, I'll admit it....my wife will have total control over this addition. She wants it to be warm and toasty in there.
Both units are available at local stores that will service them. I am leaning toward the Harman for a couple reasons - the store that sells Harmans is a home and hearth type place who seems to have much more experience installing and servicing stoves. In addition, I tend to think I am better off with the lower BTU's of the Harman, in light of the size of the addition. The seller of the Harman told me that Harman suggests that the stoves run better when they are run harder. He said they don't tend to like cycling as much. If that is the case for stoves in general, I am better off with the lower BTU Harman. Also, my wife likes the look of the Harman better and it is supposed to be pretty quiet. I understand that the Enviro, on the other hand, is probably a quieter stove. The seller of the Enviro seems to be newer to pellet stoves - I know the Enviro's are new to them. They are certainly both good people, but the Harman place is certainly more specialized to pellet stoves. The one concern I have with the Harman dealer is that they are suggesting that I don't need an outside air kit. I have reviewed the Harman manual and see that Harman strongly recommends them.
I am not looking for a pellet stove that will provide heat for the majority of my house. Indeed, we are switching to a geothermal HVAC system. The goal of having the pellet stove is to heat up the addition (makes wife happy) and to help out the geo during the really cold snaps where the geo might lose efficiency.
Any thoughts or comments on our probable stove selection? Are we making any mistakes?
My second question relates to pellets. I am not really thrilled with the quality in this area (a bit outside of Philly, PA). Our local Lowes has Greene Teams. The two pellet stoves places carry Lignetics, Appling County, and ClearChoice - all for $299/ton. The other option is the Tree Cycle brand for $249. I can also get Andes, Cleanfire, and Amercan Wood via the internet. As you can see, not the highest quality of pellets. Then again, the stove is not intended to heat the house and we don't see the same temperatures that a lot of you do.
Again, thanks for all the help and I'll be sure to post a pic.
We have narrowed the options down to the Harman XXV or the new Enviro M55. I think we are leading towards the M55. Since this is going to be installed in this addition on the main floor, we want it to look nice and be fairly quiet.....OK, I'll admit it....my wife will have total control over this addition. She wants it to be warm and toasty in there.
Both units are available at local stores that will service them. I am leaning toward the Harman for a couple reasons - the store that sells Harmans is a home and hearth type place who seems to have much more experience installing and servicing stoves. In addition, I tend to think I am better off with the lower BTU's of the Harman, in light of the size of the addition. The seller of the Harman told me that Harman suggests that the stoves run better when they are run harder. He said they don't tend to like cycling as much. If that is the case for stoves in general, I am better off with the lower BTU Harman. Also, my wife likes the look of the Harman better and it is supposed to be pretty quiet. I understand that the Enviro, on the other hand, is probably a quieter stove. The seller of the Enviro seems to be newer to pellet stoves - I know the Enviro's are new to them. They are certainly both good people, but the Harman place is certainly more specialized to pellet stoves. The one concern I have with the Harman dealer is that they are suggesting that I don't need an outside air kit. I have reviewed the Harman manual and see that Harman strongly recommends them.
I am not looking for a pellet stove that will provide heat for the majority of my house. Indeed, we are switching to a geothermal HVAC system. The goal of having the pellet stove is to heat up the addition (makes wife happy) and to help out the geo during the really cold snaps where the geo might lose efficiency.
Any thoughts or comments on our probable stove selection? Are we making any mistakes?
My second question relates to pellets. I am not really thrilled with the quality in this area (a bit outside of Philly, PA). Our local Lowes has Greene Teams. The two pellet stoves places carry Lignetics, Appling County, and ClearChoice - all for $299/ton. The other option is the Tree Cycle brand for $249. I can also get Andes, Cleanfire, and Amercan Wood via the internet. As you can see, not the highest quality of pellets. Then again, the stove is not intended to heat the house and we don't see the same temperatures that a lot of you do.
Again, thanks for all the help and I'll be sure to post a pic.