Wood stove or insert ?????

[burn one]

Newbie

I'm thinking about getting a wood burning unit for my fireplace to heat a two story house. The house has electric base board heat now and is well insulated. There is about 1700sq' per floor with two open stair wells to the 2nd floor.Total of 3400sq'. The fireplace is located on the first floor on the outside end wall. The fireplace opening is 55"w,301/2"H ,27'D @the bottom &22;"D @ the Top.

Would like to hear what you folks think is the BEST way to go.

Thanks

 

[firefighterjake]

There are pros and cons to both . . . I think a hearth mounted woodstove . . . one on the medium to larger size . . . would be a better bet. Both types can look good, I personally like the look of inserts in fireplaces myself.

 

[afblue]

Quadra fire 5100i is probably the biggest fireplace insert you will find. For existing fireplaces I am more a fan of inserts than hearth mounted stoves. QF5100i is the best lloking one in my opinion thats why I am getting one!!

 

[thinkxingu]

Burn One,
I'm in a pretty similar situation, split with electric baseboard, but my home is only about 2,300 square feet. I don't like the fan noise of an insert nor the look, so we are going with the Hearthstone Homestead--it should be installed next week. I'll let you know how it works.

S

 

[ControlFreak]

An insert is going to have blower(s) and they will create some noise. I think the appearance of an insert is far superior to the appearance of a free standing stove, since you don't see the ugly fireplace opening there collecting dust and wood debris.

My opinion is that you'll get more heat out of an insert with blowers than a free standing stove. I'm sure that others will disagree with this. With the size of your house, you'll need all the heat you can get.

I think the only time it makes sense to use a free standing stove in a fireplace opening is when the opening is so huge that an insert won't enclose it.

I heat a 2900 sq ft 2 story colonial with a Napoleon 1401 here in MA. The house is well insulated with 6" exterior walls, and I use very little oil to supplement.

If you're new to wood heat, then do your homework and learn about moisture content and how to properly season the wood. Firewood sold as "seasoned" is very rarely ever ready to burn. If you don't already have firewood for this season that you cut last summer, then it will be tough trying to heat with wood this winter.

 

[burn one]

Thanks for every ones input. Please let me know what insert would do the best job for me.

 

[weatherguy]

The Kuma line has a big stove with a big firebox that would probably handle your house, I almost bought one because the dealer was willing to let it go cheap last spring but after I measured my fireplace was 1" too small. It looks like a serious heate., I ended up with the Blaze King Princess which I hope to install this week so I can give out advice on that after I use it a while.

 

[BrowningBAR]

Thanks for every ones input. Please let me know what insert would do the best job for me.

With 3400 square feet and two stories it will be tough to heat the whole house with one insert. But, if you have the budget for it I love the look and capabilities of the Napoleon fireplace inserts:

It will supposedly heat 3000+ square feet and give you 12-14 hour burn times.

 

[burn one]

Weather guy, thanks for input. Keep me posted.