wader
Well-Known Angler
my free standing stove heats the entire downstairs of my house to 70 - 75 average & sends a bit to the second floor when I've got a long burn going on (most of the day to really feel it upstairs)
house is between 1800 & 1900 SF
thermostat downstairs stays at 55 most of the time - will nudge to 60 in the morning to take the chill out until I can get the stove going
I see the advantage of a free standing vs. insert in my opinion would be that the ENTIRE stove (top/4 sides) become a heat source in addition to the blower rather then relying on just a blower to get the heat out of the insert & into the room - I can boil water on the top of my stove & cook (limited) if I wanted to.
I have electric baseboard in the upstairs bedrooms which I never use. I like sleeping in a cool even cold room & the only time I'm up there is to sleep for the most part. The spare bedroom I keep the door closed.
My heating during the winter runs about $75 a month on average & I can't really say it's all heat. I run the same amount during the summer running AC & my whole house is electric except my cooking stove/oven which I just recently converted to gas. Big difference from the $250 a month with LIPA.
Before I put the wood stove in I ran the heat pump for heat. During the first really cold month my bill went from
$75 to $300. Last time I did that. Stove was in by the following month.
I can only see going with an insert as you said - if there is an existing fireplace.
Wood stove is the best investment I've made.
house is between 1800 & 1900 SF
thermostat downstairs stays at 55 most of the time - will nudge to 60 in the morning to take the chill out until I can get the stove going
I see the advantage of a free standing vs. insert in my opinion would be that the ENTIRE stove (top/4 sides) become a heat source in addition to the blower rather then relying on just a blower to get the heat out of the insert & into the room - I can boil water on the top of my stove & cook (limited) if I wanted to.
I have electric baseboard in the upstairs bedrooms which I never use. I like sleeping in a cool even cold room & the only time I'm up there is to sleep for the most part. The spare bedroom I keep the door closed.
My heating during the winter runs about $75 a month on average & I can't really say it's all heat. I run the same amount during the summer running AC & my whole house is electric except my cooking stove/oven which I just recently converted to gas. Big difference from the $250 a month with LIPA.
Before I put the wood stove in I ran the heat pump for heat. During the first really cold month my bill went from
$75 to $300. Last time I did that. Stove was in by the following month.
I can only see going with an insert as you said - if there is an existing fireplace.
Wood stove is the best investment I've made.
