Install wood stove?? Yay or Nay?

[1stepcloser]

We live in TN in a two story home. It has 3 bedrooms (all upstairs) and is about 1600 sf. We have a fireplace (downstairs living room) which we never use. In fact, I built a padded wood panel that blocks it for heat loss (or cool air loss in the summer). I would like to get a wood stove insert and heat with wood. I prefer the radiant warmth to the forced air stuff that wrecks havoc with my sinuses but is it economical?

Would it make financial sense to have one installed, especially considering we would have to buy the wood? (Live in the city, no harvest trees on our little property.) I would really appreciate your opinions, experiences, and insight on this. Thanks!

 

[dacjohns]

Buy the insert. Even if you think it will not be cost effective you will have an alternate source of heat and a place to cook when you lose power.

You should be able to find wood for cheap or free. I see piles of trees being burned in road construction areas. You might be near a national forest that allows firewood cutting. When subdivisions go in the trees have to go somewhere. Storm damage clean up. Log home companies that have scraps. Construction sites, just don't use treated lumber. And more.

Free and cheap wood is out there, you just have to find it and get it when the getting is good.

 

[enjoy the ride]

I have a wood stove and a pellet stove and radiant floor heating from propane. I can barely afford to run the propane.
The pellets are easy and, for the length of time I use heat, not to expensive.
But the wood stove is fun- I can sit in front of it and read and watch the fire. It really heats the place.
I pay for wood too but I do believe it is economical even at the huge prices we pay here-$300 per cord of good wood delivered.
If you are really going to do it, there is a tas credit for this year for buying an energy efficient one.

 

[Beekissed]

Yay. Wood could never be more expensive than propane and, as dac says, plenty of cheap wood opportunities if one is willing to scrounge, spread the word, or think outside the box.

I buy seconds lumber by the bundle for $20 each. It takes me about 4 trips to get it all home in my truck. This wood burns quick and hot but it's still wood and can fill out your wood pile quickly. It's easy to cut, easier to stack, has no bark mess and is lightweight.

 

[FarmerChick]

I got a propane fireplace.
I didn't want wood. I actually don't like the smell of wood burning for a long time...I like an outside fire every now and then, but that wood burning smell I can't for a long situation.

Plus being older I don't want to have to deal with carrying or cutting wood. Too much like hard work for me.

I love the propane fireplace. On low it heats the house tremendously and is non electric so is emergency heat when power goes off if needed.

But a wood insert would be great if you want that type. Be sure to research them before you jump in and buy. A little research goes a long way.

Let us know what you get.

 

[1stepcloser]

Thanks everyone. I appreciate your feedback and opinions. I guess it is time to start researching inserts.

 

[Farmfresh]

We live in a 1350 sq ft bungalow (story and half).

Several years ago we bought an insert (cast iron with a blower). It cost a pretty penny to have it installed. We have to pay for wood as well. That said WE love it!

It basically heats the entire house, although it would probably do a better job if the living room fireplace was more centrally located in the house.

Our insert has a blower and is very energy efficient allowing us to burn smaller amounts of wood than we did before even with the old steel insert that was there. We circulate the heated air throughout the house with ceiling fans, which are quite economical to run.

In our area (which is in a big city) a split stacked full cord (4 X 4 X 8) for around $200.00 delivered. We usually burn about 3 cords in a season (October to April). The heat is very comfortable, but it does take work. You have to carry the wood, fill the insert, and clean out and dispose of the ash. In our instance I use the ash to remove the ice from our driveway and as a fertilizer in our gardens. I also pay about $125.00 a year to have the chimney inspected and cleaned.

The other thing is that, even in the city, there are LOTS of opportunities to get free wood if you can do the work. There are often trees that fall in peoples yards and broken limbs that need removed. Last year, for example, we only purchased one cord of wood altogether. The rest of our supply we were even able to get cut up for us. Our neighbors had trees that broke and cut the wood up for us! They would have had to pay for brush and wood removal. I took care of the brush for them in exchange for the cutting and then cleaned up the yard. My D1 had a professional to come to remove a bad tree after a storm. They cut it up but would have charged more to clean up the wood and the mess. Again we did that task.

The free wood we get is not split either. We purchased a $190.00 manual 10 ton hydraulic splitter from Amazon http://www.amazon.com/Swisher-10-Ton-Manual-Splitter-12258/dp/B000N5XMH0. It does the job easily and cheaply. With about a half hours work we can split all the wood we need for about 2 days!

The other thing to consider is wood storage. A cord of wood takes up space. It needs to be kept dry and can draw insects and rodents if not properly stored. We have a concrete pad in our yard where an old dog kennel used to be. We keep our wood on a rack on that concrete pad and haul a few day at a time to our covered front porch.

It is good for emergencies as well. Our stove has heated the house for up to 10 days when the electricity was off due to ice. We were able to stay comfortably in our house while others had to leave theirs.

Hope all of this info helps you make the decision that is right for you. We love our stove!

 

[Big Daddy]

I love a wood burning fireplace. I feel guilty using one though. Here in Colorado we have a lot of days in the winter when they are prohibited. They do have a rather high carbon footprint. Just in case you are not aware, don't burn the rot resistant treated wood.

 

[sufficientforme]

My sister and her husband purchased a gorgeous Jotul woodstove for their 2500 sq. ft home. Its one of the most efficient and I think attractive wood stoves on the market. They went from paying over 300 a month heating their house in the winter time to nothing since they live in a wood supply rich area. I think the benefits outweigh the negatives when it comes to having an alternative heat source in your home. JMO

 

[me&thegals]

We heat exclusively with wood and would never go back. It is definitely messier, but how do you beat free? With the cost of fuel these days, I believe we have already paid off the cost of installing our fireplace insert and our basement wood stove in 6 years.

Is your home an open plan? If you don't have many hallways or closed areas, you should be able to easily heat your home with the insert. Our home (1900 sq feet) is heated from the basement. The heat flows up the staircase to the open first floor and open 2nd floor. We only need the additional fireplace insert in the first floor when the temp drops below zero.

As for cost, as mentioned above I bet you can find freebies. Think of people who have a tree go down in a storm, etc., and don't want to deal with it. Just get your name out there, on Craig's list or whatever.