Need help choosing stove/fireplace (floor, furnace, heaters, insulated)

[bananaga7813]

Hey all! Looking for some guidance on choosing a supplemental home heating system. The house we are looking at buying has a propane furnace that has ducts into the basement level and main floor. The top floor has no heating ducts . I would like to hear your experiences with electric heaters (like Eden Pure), pellet stoves, wood/coal stoves, etc. to warm a room or one of the floors. We do not have an existing fireplace to put an insert into so I figured these choices might be the easiest to retrofit into a home. Please also let me know what experiences you've had with heat output and possible soot, odors as well.

And add anything else you think might be helpful!

[Arrby]

Electric heaters do provide very nice heat. There is no difference in efficiency between the very cheapest and most expensive electric heat units. Oil-filled radiators, quartz heaters, old fashioned milk barn heaters, Sun-Twin IR heaters - they all are ultimately resistance heaters. Which design to choose is a factor of your own needs and the particular space to be heated. Currently, the operating costs for electric resistance heating is the most expensive method available. However, the capital costs can be very, very low. If you are just trying to heat a small space you may never, ever recover the extra capital cost of more efficient heat sources.

With pellet stoves in general, and modern EPA rated wood burning stove, odors and smoke should be a non-issue. I have a general rule that says if I can smell or see my stove operating when outside, then something is wrong.

For the wood burning options, do yourself a favor and spend a few hours at www.Hearth.com . Then, when you are ready to ask questions, sign into their forum at Hearth.com Wood Stove and Pellet Stove Forums....and much more! | Powered By ExpressionEngine . I am not trying to blow off your questions, but for anything related to fireplace or stove heat systems there is more information there than anywhere.

Good luck!

[bananaga7813]

Thanks Arrby - sounds like a great site!
I'll check it out

[studedude]

I have a two story house in northern Ill, where it gets fairly cold. While I have heat registers on the second floor I close them in the winter. My house is well insulated and heat from downstairs rises enough in a 2 story foyer to keep the bedrooms up here warm. Of course that means we have to keep the doors open. It's just my wife and I so that's not a problem. Your situation may be different.