Rookie looking to pull the trigger - Need some strong advice

[mursebuzz]

The pellet stove is to offset the price of oil and to keep our main living area warm. I would like to not even have to use the oil. I purchased a 25-EP from AM/FM energy and a wall thermostat. The one I ordered was a " factory second" i.e. a scratch or dent. Paid 1199.00 for it. Going to place it on the main level off the kitchen. Get a fan to shoot some air back into the main room. Having a hard time finding anyone who installs pellet stoves.....

 

[MikeNH]

The pellet stove is to offset the price of oil and to keep our main living area warm. I would like to not even have to use the oil.

If that's your goal, I would suggest putting the stove on the floor you'll be spending the most time in, as some others suggested. Before pellets, we were running a wood stove in the basement to offset the oil heat. Our basement was toasty and the heat rose up the stairs to the next two floors gradually (after the concrete basement walls warmed up the dirt around the foundation) but our main floor was always about 68-70 and the oil would come on occasionally. I'm sure alot of that wood heat was sucked up by the basement walls. We burned through about 400 gallons of oil each winter with that setup. Once the wood stove needed to be replaced, we opted for the P61a and installed it in the living room. Result was first floor at 73/74ish with no oil usage at all for heat. Only downside was a cold basement, but we found a way to mitigate that which is kinda off-topic here.

 

[Tonyray]

Same here...
Put the P61A on the 1st floor living space...
basement is for storage here mostly as awaiting 2 more early buy Tons.
There is a tv, couch etc there but cannot see Heating the Concrete walls and whatever leaks out in order to get heat upstairs.. basement stays around 60 degrees most of the year and summer

 

[TimfromMA]

Our basement is finished but only used for storage. Our 6 1/2 tons of pellets plus a few other things are in there. We keep the oil thermostat down there set to 50. Our laundry room, oil furnace, oil tank and garage access is down there too.

 

[Tonyray]

Same here....Actually with a jacket on, sometimes watch tv down there in the winter when wife hogs the tv..
Oil Furnace, Laundry also down there..guess u would call it a cellar instead of basement.
Pellets come thru the window off of the truck with a few people involved.
[last winter picture.]
Oil Furnace for DHW] but last years Zero degrees Vortex had us run the furnace at night for a week just in case a pipe here or there decided to freeze up.
basement did drop to low 40's overnight for 1st time in 20yrs. and made me a bit nervous..
Only takes a drafty hidden corner somewhere to freeze up a 90 degree pipe.
saved so much on Oil Anyways so burning a few gallons a night for a week was no biggie.

 

[TimfromMA]

Same here....Actually with a jacket on, sometimes watch tv down there in the winter when wife hogs the tv..
Oil Furnace, Laundry also down there..guess u would call it a cellar instead of basement.
Pellets come thru the window off of the truck with a few people involved.
[last winter picture.]

We have a walk in basement (no steps).

I unload the pellets 5 bags at a time onto a dolly, wheel them into my finished room and restack.

 

[Tonyray]

We have a walk in basement (no steps).

I unload the pellets 5 bags at a time onto a dolly, wheel them into my finished room and restack.

Wish I had a walk-in.
. loading pellets there is no biggie via window but wife does alot of steps doing Laundry. Especially since she like to hang cloths outside 9 months a year.
2nd floor down to 1st floor down to basement then back again. rinse/lather /repeat.

 

[TimfromMA]

Wish I had a walk-in.
. loading pellets there is no biggie via window but wife does alot of steps doing Laundry.
2nd floor down to 1st floor down to basement.. rinse/lather /repeat.

Let me clarify. We can walk from our driveway to the basement with no steps. There is, however, 1 flight of stairs from our main living area to get down there.

 

[Tonyray]

Let me clarify. We can walk from our driveway to the basement with no steps. There is, however, 1 flight of stairs from our main living area to get down there.

ok.. so no stranger to bringing up bag or 2 of pellets each day from the inside I assume.

 

[TimfromMA]

Nope. Only 1 flight to deal with though.

 

[mursebuzz]

I have an old fruit cellar below my back patio. I sealed it up and dry locked it. It does get SOME water in there mainly just wet spots on the concrete. Put a dehumidifier down there and its as dry as a bone. Gonna dolly them into there for storage and then take em up stairs as needed. It would be easier to have the stove down stairs, but it will save $$ and wear and tear having it upstairs. I just ordered 3 tons. 1 hamer and 2 green gold. 224 for greengold 234 for hamer. Delivered for 60 total.