Sizing - how to guess your heating needs in terms of square footage.

[wisc harv]

I saw the jotul firelight had the right hand door, which is an option but that is usually where the clothes are drying on the rack : )
We were worried that it may be too big we had a friend who had a 1970's VC defiant and had chimney fires because it was always dampered down so much. I saw that some of the VC stoves are made in the US again, are they getting better reviews now? Seems like they had gone down hill for a while.

 

[jugarf]

BeGreen, tell me more about the PE Alderlea T6. It's actually rated for 3000 sq. ft. I went on the web site and looked at it, but it didn't tell the firebox size. I really liked it. The cooking feature is nice, especially if you have a power failure, which we sometimes do. I could make mud coffee like my mom used to drink. LOL What are the measurements of the legs. Is the flue on top or can it be switched? I only have a 20 inch hearth in front of my fireplace and another 14 (front to back) inside measuring 30 inches from the bottom.

 

[tickbitty]

I got good answers when I originally posted this thread, and plan to go with something medium-ish - actually right now I am leaning toward an insert that says "Up to" 1500 which is a little smaller than I wanted, but the clearances and etc all work and it's considerably less expensive than the other options.

I am mainly posting again though because I did a mockup of my house plan and wanted to put it up!
This is a one story real masonry ranch house. It's actually about 1430 sq feet. Built very solid but maybe a little drafty around the windows. I figure the "up to 1500" might be OK after all since the house is not open and it would be hard to get the heat back to those bedrooms we actually use anyway (the smallest one is closest to the core of the house but is a junk room right now - unused.) Figure some fans can help get the heat around but down that hall would be tough. Any comments or tips on stove size in regard to the house plan welcomed! Oh yeah, the dark yellow is the hot room, and the pale yellow are the ones I figure will get a lot of heat.

 

[tickbitty]

Jugarf, according to this (broken link removed to http://chimneysweeponline.com/wscompf.htm) the alderlea 6 has a 3ft firebox.

 

[Hiram Maxim]

I understand what all you guys are saying about the medium stoves.........However personally I would rather have total overkill than just squeak by! ;-P

IMHO It is better to have it and not need it, than to not have it and really need it. Just my $.03 (had an extra penny)



Cheers, Hiram

 

[tickbitty]

I agree and would go bigger if'n only I could afford it. The great Englander insert that I found was bigger, but had a pesky requirement that it be on a raised hearth, which I don't gots. The bigger inserts that I have found are a little expensive and I often run into clearance issues with my hearth surround anyway... so I guess I might have to go moderate. Bummer eh?

 

[John the Painter]

Just wondering if your chimeney goesdown into the basement?If so would you consider putting a stove down there and putting in floor vents for ciculation.I have a rancher @ 1150 ft² and I heat it this way with about 6 cord of wood and only burn about 200 gallon of oil a year.Most of that if for my domestic hot water.If any of this is not an option I would say go big and burn less as needed.Good Luck

 

[tickbitty]

I only have a little cellar, under the kitchen and maybe half of the dining room or so. Down here in Tidewater VA you don't get too many full cellars and they can tend to be full of water (which mine did during the noreaster a couple weeks ago when the power went out!) The rest of the house has a shallow crawl space. Wish I had a cellar. Or a garage. Need somewhere to put the rest of my junk!

 

[BrowningBAR]

I agree and would go bigger if'n only I could afford it. The great Englander insert that I found was bigger, but had a pesky requirement that it be on a raised hearth, which I don't gots. The bigger inserts that I have found are a little expensive and I often run into clearance issues with my hearth surround anyway... so I guess I might have to go moderate. Bummer eh?

I feel your pain when it comes to what I want vs. what I can afford. I bought two used stoves over the last two years and have made out pretty well.

 

[BrowningBAR]

I got good answers when I originally posted this thread, and plan to go with something medium-ish - actually right now I am leaning toward an insert that says "Up to" 1500 which is a little smaller than I wanted, but the clearances and etc all work and it's considerably less expensive than the other options.

I am mainly posting again though because I did a mockup of my house plan and wanted to put it up!
This is a one story real masonry ranch house. It's actually about 1430 sq feet. Built very solid but maybe a little drafty around the windows. I figure the "up to 1500" might be OK after all since the house is not open and it would be hard to get the heat back to those bedrooms we actually use anyway (the smallest one is closest to the core of the house but is a junk room right now - unused.) Figure some fans can help get the heat around but down that hall would be tough. Any comments or tips on stove size in regard to the house plan welcomed! Oh yeah, the dark yellow is the hot room, and the pale yellow are the ones I figure will get a lot of heat.

If your masonry walls are anything like my stone walls they will slow down the heating process until they warm up. Your floor plan is a lot more open and stove friendly than mine is. If it is possible, I would still urge you to get something rated to about 2000 sqft.

I am attaching my floor plan with the temperatures in each room. The Vigilant, I think, is rated for up to 1800 sqft and the Intrepid is rated for up to 1000 sqft.

 

[tickbitty]

Interesting, thanks. And good point about the masonry. Because the walls are plaster too and they also tend to hold the heat in. This house is built like a bunker. THe former owners did not have AC in the summer but kept the house closed off during the day and only opened it up at night. I couldn't take even one summer of that and we have it now but the point is when it's got heat I guess it holds it like a soapstone stove eh?

I was really seeking something for about 2000 as you suggest. But I'm not willing to do a ton of revisions to my flush hearth and wooden mantel surround, (well I am changing out the hearth material and enlarging it but not raising it) so that is limiting me to inserts or small hearth install stoves. And the $1000 difference between the Englander I can get at Lowes and the low end of nearly anything else (from a dealer) is kinda choking me up some since the more expensive ones don't really seem to put out more BTUs anyway. Still haven't committed to anything though. And still on CL hoping for a dream stove that will meet my clearances to pop up!

 

[tickbitty]

BTW, my sister lived in Doylestown/New Hope for many years in a big old stone house. No idea how she heated. Radiators I guess! She's further north now and heats with wood.

 

[BrowningBAR]

Interesting, thanks. And good point about the masonry. Because the walls are plaster too and they also tend to hold the heat in. This house is built like a bunker. THe former owners did not have AC in the summer but kept the house closed off during the day and only opened it up at night. I couldn't take even one summer of that and we have it now but the point is when it's got heat I guess it holds it like a soapstone stove eh?

I was really seeking something for about 2000 as you suggest. But I'm not willing to do a ton of revisions to my flush hearth and wooden mantel surround, (well I am changing out the hearth material and enlarging it but not raising it) so that is limiting me to inserts or small hearth install stoves. And the $1000 difference between the Englander I can get at Lowes and the low end of nearly anything else (from a dealer) is kinda choking me up some since the more expensive ones don't really seem to put out more BTUs anyway. Still haven't committed to anything though. And still on CL hoping for a dream stove that will meet my clearances to pop up!

The masonry holds the heat, but it also holds the cold. When I first get the stove in the kitchen going it takes a good 3 hours before all of the cold is burned out of the room.

I've purchased both of my stoves off of CL, but I did it during the spring period when you typically find more stoves and deals.

 

[tickbitty]

Right, holds the heat, the cold, and the dreaded damp!

 

[BrowningBAR]

Right, holds the heat, the cold, and the dreaded damp!

The worse is when cold and damp team up. It could be 70* in the house, yet it still feels cold. At least that was the case when we were just running the furnace. The stove heat eliminates the dampness.