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"I don't know why they make any without ash pans. Well, actually, I do, to sell to people who don't know any better." not so, very few wood stove inserts come with ash pans due to design intent...it has nothing to do with selling to uninformed users. Buying a standalone wood stove without an ash pan would be a mistake...IMO. I do hate shoveling ash out of my insert....I don't care how careful and deliberate I am, ash dust gets everywhere, and without power the fan won't work....but I do have heat!
Regards
Gemstone1
Quote:
Originally Posted by Nov3
My co worker has a pellet stove. His electrical backup kicks in just fine. He also has a portable battery bank for his pellet stove. Neither he nor I understand why folks can't be pro active in working with the system. I personally like the wood stove and had more heat permeating from it.
Guess it's where it's placed and layout of the home. I envy folks who.get to enjoy this source of heat.
Because other stoves work better for our needs. You ever had a weeklong power outage? How about just being on vacation for a week when you think keeping the pellet stove on very, very low heat will keep it going but then a cold snap hits? Some regions are much colder than others. Use what works for you, not necessarily someone else.
The keyword here is "secondary" heat source. I've personally lost electricity for as many as 7 days. If it wasn't for the wood stove, I'm not sure what would have happened such as pipes freezing, etc. Wood stove kept the house nice and toasty for all of that time.
I actually would rather have a small wood stove and actually use it as a back-up heat source if the power goes out. My wife, however, has other plans - she wants to use the stove on a regular basis because she loves hanging out next to it in the winter (she's always cold). If it was really going to be just a back-up source of heat, then I would certainly do a wood stove. But as a "possibly main" source of heat that I will need to continuously get wood every year and maintain the thing when it's going, I'm still leaning toward a pellet stove...
Buying a standalone wood stove without an ash pan would be a mistake...IMO. I do hate shoveling ash out of my insert....I don't care how careful and deliberate I am, ash dust gets everywhere,
Depends on the size but you may mat be able to find baking pan that fits the ash compartment, if it has lid you slide the lid on before removing it. You can always have one fabricated.
Another thing you do is have someone run a shop vac while you are shoveling, just so it's clear you aren't using it for the ashes but to suck the dusty air into the shop vac.
They do have shop vacs intended for cleaning ashes with metal cans etc.
I realize that this is a topic with a fairly narrow scope, and that there aren't a ton of people who will be able to offer advice, but I appreciate any opinions.
We are building a SFH this summer and have decided that we will have either a pellet stove or a wood stove as our secondary heat source. We live in a small town in a heavily-forested area with multiple lumber mills supporting the local economy - so wood is a very cheaper fuel source here
I am just looking for opinions as to which one is better - in whichever way "better" is to you.
So far, from my research, both scientifically and anecdotally:
1) Wood stoves are cheaper to buy, but pellet stoves need much less elaborate chimneys, so it's about a wash.
2) Wood is cheaper, especially if you cut your own. But then you have to go cut your own. And then chop it.
3) Pellets are much less labor intensive. You pack 3-4 ton on your trailer once a year and then unload them.
4) Pellet stoves are easier to regulate the heat - they mostly do it themselves.
5) Wood stoves put out higher BTUs size-for-size vs pellet stoves.
6) Pellet stoves will need a battery back-up or a generator to function in a power outage, wood stoves will still work just fine. This is kind of the root reason for having secondary heat...
7) My parents had a pellet stove back in the early '90's and hated it. Mostly due to the need to clean it constantly, but I've heard that today's models are much more efficient and some are even self-cleaning to some extent.
I really am leaning toward a pellet stove, simply because I have a 50-60 hour per week job, and don't look forward to the labor of having to get wood every year, and the labor of starting the fire and keeping it maintained constantly - i.e. adding wood all the time. With a pellet stove, you set the thermostat, dump the pellets into the hopper every 24-48 hours, and that's it. But a wood stove seems better for a power outage, especially if it's long-term (we get long-term outages very rarely, but do get 6-12 hour outages semi-frequently), and the labor thing may be negated if the pellet stove needs tons of frequent cleaning.
Thanks for any help.
I chose a fireplace insert because I have acres of oak if the price of wood goes too high. Purchased wood must be the right size and seasoned. Fireplace inserts can use an existing fireplace. Fireplace inserts have blowers and should be used with houses that have an open architecture. When installing the interface between an emergency generator and your main electrical panel, make sure that the electrician hooks up the interface to where the plug from the insert will be put. Fireplace inserts also look more like a traditional fireplace.
My northern address is in an area where the price of wood chips seem to be fixed across the board.
If convenience over esthetics is important install a pellet stove.
Has the advantages of not having to cut or handle firewood, but will work just fine in a power outage. It has a fan, but can operate without it.
Ours is in the middle of our main living space and heats it quite comfortably even in power outages.
We have a 500 gallon tank that lasts all winter long. Pay around 1.10-1.40 per gallon for propane in recent years, if we buy in summer. No need to handle or store pellets either.
Has the advantages of not having to cut or handle firewood, but will work just fine in a power outage. It has a fan, but can operate without it.
Ours is in the middle of our main living space and heats it quite comfortably even in power outages.
We have a 500 gallon tank that lasts all winter long. Pay around 1.10-1.40 per gallon for propane in recent years, if we buy in summer. No need to handle or store pellets either.
That was and is our top choice. Clean, can heat during power outages, easy to use, can connect to a thermostat but also control by manual switches on the stove.
The thing is, OP mentioned wanting to use wood as the resource consumed. If that is not top priority, I think he and his wife would love a propane stove. Unless the smell of wood burning is desired.
Wood stove, because we have acres of free fuel here we could use.
And propane, for when we just want to flip a switch.
HA! So would I, except propane as the primary and a tiny wood stove as the backup.
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