Wood Stoves for homes 1,000 sq feet and smaller

[oblivionboyj]

That is a beautiful job you did on that one! 

My brother gave me a stove to put in my house.
He said he was not going to use it, it came with the house.
It is a nice model, and only like 10 years old.
The dimensions are roughly 18" deep X 24" X 32" on 8" legs.
It is nice and has a nice flat top surface for using as a warmer at least.
 
For a hearth I am going to brace the floor at the corner of the kitchen/dining room to bear the weight of the hearth.
After that I plan on using a cinder block base (with the holes oriented together) and cover that with brick.
For the wall I am going to use brick with a gap behind it and cap off the sides and top, with vents at the bottom and top for airflow of course.
I plan to cover the open spaces with some sort of mesh/ screen, but that is TBD.

[rick91351]

Your lucky Ol Jarhead my wife is looking at
 http://www.lehmans.com/store/Stoves___Cook_Stoves___Wood_Burning_Cook_Stoves___The_Waterford_Stanley_Wood_Cookstove___17120000?Args=

Well .... it will go in our house we build up a the ranch when we retire.  That still a couple years out if it gets done at all.  Right now I have plans at the engineer for about 1000 sq ft builders - guest home and thinking about a:

http://www.lehmans.com/store/Stoves___Cook_Stoves___Wood_Burning_Cook_Stoves___Baker_s_Oven_Wood_Heat_Cook_Stove___17120600?Args=

for it.  Has anyone seen or been around one?  We are on grid up there.  However thinking it would be very handy to have a wood cook stove just in case.  Also why not use the stove for cooking in the winter.   After all we will have it fired up anyway.

[davestreck]

This guy is just down the road from me:

http://stovehospital.com/

Never been to his shop, but it looks like he's got quite a selection. I'd love one of those 1920's gas ranges.

Also check out:

://www.goodtimestove.com/

[OlJarhead]

Your lucky Ol Jarhead my wife is looking at
 http://www.lehmans.com/store/Stoves___Cook_Stoves___Wood_Burning_Cook_Stoves___The_Waterford_Stanley_Wood_Cookstove___17120000?Args=

Well .... it will go in our house we build up a the ranch when we retire.  That still a couple years out if it gets done at all.  Right now I have plans at the engineer for about 1000 sq ft builders - guest home and thinking about a:

http://www.lehmans.com/store/Stoves___Cook_Stoves___Wood_Burning_Cook_Stoves___Baker_s_Oven_Wood_Heat_Cook_Stove___17120600?Args=

for it.  Has anyone seen or been around one?  We are on grid up there.  However thinking it would be very handy to have a wood cook stove just in case.  Also why not use the stove for cooking in the winter.   After all we will have it fired up anyway.

For one of those....ya I've seen them, have them bookmarked in fact and would love one.

But my bro told me to hold off because when he was young his mom cooked with one and in the summer it was horrible!  She couldn't wait for the electric stoves to come out.

Since we have Solar I can at least run a MW and hot plate if needed but I would like a small cook stove (wood) and a reflective oven to work with it if I needed it.

[davestreck]

First test-firing today:



I still have to chase a few small leaks with stove cement once it cools down, but I have to say I'm impressed with the way it works. Just burning small pine and cedar scraps got the oven up to 375 within 10 minutes or so:



This thing will definitely get my 12' x 16' cabin nice and toasty, even just burning softwood. I may bring up a few big boxes of hardwood scraps to keep at the cabin as well. The stove does not require a lot of wood to get up to temp. And it gets hot. Welding gloves are definitely a requirement.

One other thing I need to do is use valve grinding compound to get the burners to seat better on the cooktop. There is some smoke escaping from under them.

[ScottA]

Once you have a flue attached the draft will put negetive pressure on the stove and stop most if not all leaks.

[oblivionboyj]

Would any of you be so kind as to post pictures of your stove installations, so I can get an idea what kind of buildup I am going to need on my hearth?
Thanks

[davestreck]

Once you have a flue attached the draft will put negetive pressure on the stove and stop most if not all leaks.

So do you think the valve grinding thing is unnecessary? I realize that its not designed to be airtight, but the little wisps of smoke coming out from under the lids made me think they should seat better.

Also, the oven hit 450 after 20 minutes and held that throughout the whole rest of the burn. Gotta try some biscuits tomorrow...

[MaineRhino]

Unfinished, but it works well. It has a fresh air inlet that goes through the floor.

[ScottA]

Here's a pic of our little stove. Jotul 602, great little stove. $900 but worth it IMO.

davestreck, I'd try the stove with the flue attached before you try to fix any leaks. The draft will suck the smoke out of the stove and draw air into any loose joints.

[davestreck]

davestreck, I'd try the stove with the flue attached before you try to fix any leaks. The draft will suck the smoke out of the stove and draw air into any loose joints.

Good deal, thanks.

Also, the stove is set up to use 4" pipe. Any recommendations for a supplier of double-walled stainless stovepipe (as well as thru-wall fittings, etc) in that size?

Thanks again for the advice.

[ScottA]

You'll need to increase the size to 6". My stove has a 4" outlet also but uses a 6" flue.

[Dave Sparks]

I like the Osburn models out of Canada. I would disagree that you want the biggest stove! What you should strive for is the correct size for the job you intend to do. The worst case would be too big of a unit for the job. Modern woodstoves keep the glass clean burn extremely clean and if installed correctly with a long chimney never get smoke in the house!  Good Luck!

[Shawn B]

davestreck,  That stove cleaned up very well.

The little ship stoves are real classy and appear to be built like a mini-tank. One of the benefits of living by the coast.


Shawn

[davestreck]

They're still available new, but $2200 is a bit steep:



There are a lot of advantages to working in a boatyard that deals with a lot of old classic wooden boats (although the pay isn't one of them): lots of free wood, access to great old surplus boat gear, and a bunch of co-workers who work for beer and know all about 12-volt electrical stuff and off-grid water systems. Boats are a lot like cabins in that way. I even scored an almost-new wind generator recently!

[oblivionboyj]

Is it acceptable to build my hearth directly on the hardwood floor where I want the stove to go?
I am planing on building a fairly substantial hearth of cinder block and brick.
Up the wall I am going to build a brick sheild with an inch of airspace behind it.
A soapstone will be placed under the stove on the hearth.
I am kind of worried about 2 things.
1) not building enough hearth to protect the wood floor from the heat
2) building up more hearth than the floor can support.
I was going to try and address the second problem by installing a floor support something like this under the stove...

(this is not my house, but a picture of the support bar taken from the internet)
Any suggestions?
Has anyone ever fabricated a heat sheld to be mounted to the bottom (or back) of the stove?

[Shawn B]

oblivionboyj ,  That's what I used under my 750lb gun safe. worked well for me.


Shawn

[Proud_Poppa]

oblivionboyj:  That looks like a pretty good idea....except I'd probably use something a bit beefier than a 2X4 turned on its side between the jack and the floor joists....as in the picture. In that picture, the only floor joist that is getting much support is the joist directly above the jack.

[OlJarhead]

Just to be safe I added to pier blocks with 4x4 PT posts which supported a 4x4 beam between them which was adjusted (bolt type saddles) to just put pressure on the floor from underneath.

I did this because I used 2x6 floor joists (though it would be a cost saving measure -- probably won't do that in the future) and wanted to be sure the floor could take the weight of the stove/bricks etc.

I'm happy with it though.

[Proud_Poppa]

   Happy coincidence!!

I have the chance to buy a Fisher Grandpa Bear wood stove just like the one in our old log cabin....in fact it's the same stove....the lady who bought our old cabin wants to sell the stove! I'm "very" familiar with this stove.....my question is: Is $500 a good price for this stove? It'll easily heat 1000-1200 sq ft.....our old log cabin was 750 sq ft and the stove is really tooooo much for it.

PP

Edited to add: I just downloaded the manual for this stove...the manual claims the Grandpa Bear will heat a 1750-2250 sq ft home.