time for a change to something bigger

[Grisu]

The Manchester is a convective stove so maybe that would work better than a steel /cast or soap stone stove. I don't know.

There are different variants of cast iron stoves out there. The fully cast iron ones certainly produce a lot of radiant heat. Newer models, however, often have a steel firebox and only a cast iron outside shell. Those are usually more convective type stoves. The PE T-line would be an example. From the stoves you may consider the Jotul F55 falls in that category. With 14" side clearance with double wall pipe it is certainly a more convective stove although the Manchester does not seem far off either.

The idea of putting a second insert/stove in the other fireplace is worthwhile considering. You have not posted a floorplan yet but having another stove at the other end of the house would probably give you a more even heat. However, tending two stoves can be pretty time-consuming. To get the warm air out of that room you can try the following trick:
Place a small fan on the floor opposite the stove room. Blow cold air on low into the stove room. Warm air will rush out along the ceiling to replace the cold air that has been moved by the fan. The location/room the fan sits usually warms up by several degrees within 30 minutes. That trick is based on the principle that cold air is denser and therefore easier to move than warm air. You could already try it with your current insert.

 

[clark77]

I definitely don't have a great floor plan for heating but it's what I've got. I'll see if I can make something up all you guys have an idea on what I'm contending with.
Tending 2 stoves is not really what i or my wife wants to do. But I would prob only do it on the colder days/nights. I was prob going to put my current insert in the other room but I would have to get a ss liner. More money I don't have at this time.
As far a getting the heat out of my current room, my ceiling fan does a good job. I taped a 6"piece of toilet paper to the top of the doorway and it waves pretty hard with the hot air exiting the room.

 

[clark77]

so last night around this time I went onto Woodstock's webpage and filled out the ideal steel reservation page and hit send. from talking to a few of you on the forum about what I'm looking for in a stove and the layout I have, I figure that the ideal steel will suit my needs better than the Manchester. having the cat will allow me to do the low and slow burn for the shoulder seasons and when it gets cold out, it will allow the stove to rip and keep my space warm. i figured i would have heard from Woodstock today about completing my reservation but i did not. if i don't hear from them tomorrow, i'll probably end up calling them on Friday.
so now that I've made a decision on the stove, i have to change out my hearth because the 1.5" thick blue stone i currently have does not meet the r value of the ideal steel. I'm going to also have to extent it the hearth out from its current position.
looking on Woodstock's website, the ideal steel calls for a hearth with a minimum r value of .41. going by these numbers (broken link removed), i'll probably make something out of next gen durock, some hardiboard and possibly tile. i just have to figure out a shape because currently i have approximately a 6' x 21" piece of blue stone and the hardwood floor is cut out around it. so i'll want to take the blue stone out but will have to fill in and extent further out to meet the min clearance to the front of the stove. i'll probably just extent out in the middle where the stove is so that the hearth area doesn't protrude into the room as much.
i thought about purchasing a hearth pad but i can't believe how expensive they are. they range from the real low end at around $400 to over $700. I'm sure i could make something for a fraction of that price.

 

[Tenn Dave]

quote="clark77, post: 1879849, member: 41580"]I'm open for options and the searching I came up with was these two stoves.
Looking for 3.0 c.f. stove with 6" rear exit flue to heat 2000-2500 sf and under $3000.
Front, side or top loading, I have no preference. Would like to have ash pan. Seems easier than the shoveling that I do now.[/quote]


The ash pan design on the IS is wonderful. Super easy to use, very clean, and holds a ton of ashes.

 

[clark77]

I'm going to go with the ash pan. Seems much easier than scooping

 

[clark77]

Here's my current setup with the regency. Sorry for the rotated image. Not sure how to get it rotated properly

 

[Dieselhead]

If using a iPhone when you want to take a picture and post it to a forum, hold the phone so the home button is to the right

 

[clark77]

If using a iPhone when you want to take a picture and post it to a forum, hold the phone so the home button is to the right

No iphone here, I've got a Samsung s4

 

[Dieselhead]

Ok give er a shot anyways maybe it's all smart phones?

 

[clark77]

so I started to see what I would need to get a new hearth and what kind of area I would need to make it in. doing this really opened my eyes in how much this new hearth will impede into my floor space in my living room. as you can see in the last picture I uploaded, my dog is laying on the fireproof carpet. that carpet will be approximately how far my new hearth will have to extend out in order to get my min clearance for the stove. that just takes up too much floor space which is needed for my family and dogs.
so the pendulum swings back in the manchesters corner. I just did a comparison on paper of the two stoves. here's what I came up with.

Ideal Steel ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------Manchester

2200 sq/ft area----------------------------------------------------------------------------- 2400 sq/ft area

3.2 c/ft box----------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 2.9 c/ft box

22" max log---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 24" max log

10-14 hr burn time ------------------------------------------------------------------------ 12-14 hr burn time

Hybrid Stove -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Non-Cat

Steel with Soapstone liner ------------------------------------------------------------- Cast with Soapstone liner

60,000 btu ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 78,000 btu

82% efficiency ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 80% efficiency

EPA 1.04 gph ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- EPA 3.0 gph

Front door loading ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Front and side loading

Ash pan ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Ash pan

Hearth with r value of .41 -------------------------------------------------------------- Ember protection only

$2200 cost of stove no tax ------------------------------------------------------------ $2800 plus tax

$200-$300 shipping or drive 275 one way to pick up (gas $100) ---------- no shipping

$300 install plus $50-100 for T connector -------------------------------------- $300 install plus $50-100 for T

have to change hearth - cost $200-$300 or more ---------------------------- keep existing hearth

Total Approx Cost - $3200+ ----------------------------------------------------- Total Approx Cost - $3396 max

 

[jeffesonm]

I was down to the F55 and the Manchester. Saw the Manchester in person and it was a great looking stove. In the end I picked the F55 because of its firebox shape. I like being able to load N/S, jam it full and not worry about logs falling into the glass. The F55 is embers only protection too, so I just put down a piece of 1/2" tempered glass which you hardly even notice and isn't all imposing in the room.

 

[clark77]

Funny that you mention this. I was able to see a Manchester in person and the first thing I thought was how shallow the fire box is. Yes the box can fit a 24" log east/west but that's not going to help me for quite a few years (I have 14 cords that are all 17-18 inches in length all split up).
My next concern was the logs rolling into the glass. The few times I've loaded east/ west in my insert, I usually get a roller.
So that started my search over and I started looking at the jotul f55. I'm finding just about all positive reviews with one member have an over draft issue and had to block of the secondary air with tape. So hopefully I can see this one in person and decide from there. I do like how the fire box is more square and only needs ember protection.

 

[begreen]

Good choice. I think you'll like what you see.