Wood Stoves

PRINTS asked:


We will be having a wood stove installed for heat in difficult to heat structure. It is made mainly of glass and lots of heat is lost. So, since we don’t have a lot of experience with wood stoves, just wondering if anyone has suggestions on anything in regards to their function, etc. Types of wood to burn, things to consider, cleaning, etc. Don’t be too smart-alecky - just some things that you have found helpful. The firebox is probaly about 24″x12″x16 or 18″, but not exactly, so don’t take this as precision.
One thing that I want to know about is the fact that we will need to try to keep the daytime temperature about 70ish degrees and the night-time temp. around 60ish degrees, which might mean damping down the stove. It was suggested to use a damper on the venting pipe in order to allow the stove to burn cooler, when needed. But, that creates creosote as we have heard. Any comments on how to work with this would help. We want to be able to have the stove burn over the evening at the 60ish temps (during winter cold in a 16′x30′greenhouse). Hope to not need to get up during night to reload stove. How do you keep it burning cooler/slowly and not create creosote? Can you just burn it off during day, or clean intermittantly?
There is already another heat source - a gas-powered boiler which costs a lot of money to run. If the temp. drops too low, the boiler would kick in. There is also a Southern Burner - a gas-operated small burner that is not vented by manufacturer’s design. The wood will be for the cold nights (Michigan) and any cold winter days. Heat just costs too much when you are ‘heating the outside’ since it is all windows. We have already put plastic up as an insulator, and it does not do that much. Even bubble wrap on the inside walls. Not going to put the bubble up, this winter. Plastic will go safe distance from the insulated stove pipe. Any good books for telling about heating with wood stoves?

Give Me The Steps Of CPR

Ann Marier asked:


It may seem strange in this day in high tech, but wood burning stoves are more popular than they have been in almost 100 years. May people would think that a wood burning oven was about the least practical thing that you could put in your house. After all, there are so many drawbacks to a wood burning stove. First of all, there is not the same kind of fine temperature control as with a gas heater. Wood burning stoves, basically, are either on or off. When they are on, you have to constantly stock them with wood. When they are off, they take hours to get going again.

Nonetheless, the wood burning stove has a lot going for it. First of all, wood burning ovens are multipurpose. Not only can you use them to heat a room, you can also use them to dry clothes, and warm cold hands. You can even cook certain things on some wood burning stoves! There is also the matter of the cost of heating. Wood burning stoves used to be thought of as impractical because of the amount of labor that goes into running them. Nowadays, however, they make more and more sense. They burn wood very slowly, and in many areas fire wood is available for free. Having a wood burning stove can save you hundreds and hundreds of dollars every winter. For many families, that is no laughing matter.

Nonetheless, wood burning stoves do have a lot of hazards to them. Although they are easy to maintain, they have dangers that normal gas furnaces don’t have. Wood burning stoves need to be in the middle of your comment space. That means that if you have young children, they are at risk. If they run into the wood burning stoves, they can burn themselves! In addition, many people say that wood burning stoves have much greater emissions than other kind of heat. Even oil burning furnaces - notorious for the air pollution they produce - are supposed to be healthier for you that wood stoves. If your wood burning stove is not adequately insulated from the house, it can release hazardous indoor pollution and poison you and your family.

Nonetheless, even with all of these drawbacks, wood burning stoves make sense. They are enjoying a renaissance among environmentally conscious people. Not only are they efficient, but they also allow you to survive with less outside dependence on our shrinking natural gas supply.



Wood Fireplace Inserts

teddy asked:


These stoves were builded in reading, Pa

Goodman Heat Pumps

VixenMom asked:


I’m shopping around for a non catalytic wood stove… and can get the Vermont castings line at a discount. I’m considering between the Resolute Acclaim or the Encore. If you have one, can you tell me which you have and if you’re happy with its performance… does the enamel finish hold up well… is the ash pan easy to clean out… does it really heat the capacity it states… and any other specifics that would matter. Even if you have complaints, I’d like to hear about it… so that I can make an informed decision.

Graco Paint Sprayer

Mark Ralph asked:


Pellet stoves are a great alternative-fuel stove. The pellet stove uses tightly compacted sawdust pellets for its fuel source. Stoves which use pellets have many benefits including being environmentally friendly and safe to use. For those who care about the environment, you will be happy to know that the pellet stove uses a fuel supply which would otherwise be discarded or dumped in landfills. This renewable energy is much different than the fossil fuels which were used in many older stoves.

As heating bills rise, looking for cheaper alternative ways to supplement home heating is becoming increasingly popular. During the past several years pellet stoves have become a favorite because they are cost efficient, easy to operate and they use renewable energy.

Most people think that wood stoves and pellet stoves are the same. On the outside, the stoves look very much the same but internally, the pellet stove is built with different parts and components. The main difference is that a pellet stove relies on convective heat and wood stoves give off radiant heat. As a result, pellet stoves don’t get too hot to the touch - this is a very important consideration if you have small children or pets in the house. This safety feature alone is why many people have switched away from their old wood or gas burning stoves.

Pellet Stoves come in a wide range of styles, sizes and finishes to fit the décor of your home. Once you have your new pellet stove the installation of it requires a few factors to consider. First you must decide on the location. The distance from any windows or walls and also the venting set up must be decided upon. Depending on which one you buy, some stoves require only a tin liner to vent the exhaust through a wall. This makes pellet stoves good for apartments where wood stoves are impractical. If you are not sure how to install the stove then it is best to find a local certified installer or a qualified technician. It is important to have your stove safely installed so that the fumes are exited outdoors.

Next time you are in the market for a stove, consider a stove which uses pellets. Fuel source from pellets are a super alternative from the non-renewable fuels such as oil and propane. Pellet stoves are cleaner to use and does not get burning hot to the touch. Not only is it better for the environment but it is much safer and less expensive than heating with fossil fuels.



Wire Closet Organizers

SweetiePie26 asked:


I live in the mountains of Northern Utah and I would like to be able to heat my house (around 1600 sq feet with cathedral ceilings) with a wood burning or pellet burning stove when the electricity goes out.
I also would love to have an oven along with the stove, but I will settle for a cook-top surface. I need suggestions about brands, ease of use and cooking models. Any pointers would be really helpful! Thanks!

Custom Closet Doors

James D asked:


Vermont Castings, I find, went bankrupt in July. Subsequently they were purchased by Monessen Hearth Systems. I’ve tried to contact them but have yet to receive a response. I need a replacement glass for one of the doors on my old Intrepid wood stove.

If I can’t buy a replacement, where would one go to have a piece of tempered glass cut to shape?

Bamboo Wind Chimes

Ellie asked:


rly years there was only one way to heat your home. That was wood. We have found that we can heat our homes with many different sources of energy. Today we have electric, natural gas, propane, fireplace and even wood stoves. With the rising costs of all of these choices consumers are trying to conserve so they find themselves reverting back to wood heat. To supply the wood to homes with wood stoves and fireplaces it has to be cut to down to size. There are many ways to cut wood such as an ax, chain saw, sledge hammer and wedge, and even a wood splitter.

The most effective way of cutting wood in large sums is to purchase a wood splitter. This allows your wood to be split with ease. First the trees have to be cut down and trimmed so when the wood is placed in the splitter it will not sling these objects back at the person operating it. They then cut the tree into smaller logs with a chain saw so the wood will fit with ease. Each machine has an allowance for different size logs. Be sure to reference this when deciding which splitter to purchase. You want your logs to match your stove or fireplace with room to allow air flow.

Once you have your wood cut into smaller logs it is time to insert them into the wood splitter. Each splitter running on a different source of energy whether it be electric, gas, or hydraulic they will still have safety\’s. Each machine is operated by a press of a button. So once you are sure everyone has their hands away from the machine you may go ahead engage the splitter. You will find that it moves swiftly and splits the wood with ease.

There are many resources in which to find out information about wood splitters such as the Internet. The websites that you review can give you suggestions on what type of wood splitter would be best for the type of job that you have to do. The prices of wood splitters can be anywhere from $99.00 for an easy splitter that is mainly used by an individual for home use up to a couple thousand dollars for a much larger job done by companies that supply wood to consumers. You are sure to find the information that you need in order to make an informative decision on the type of wood splitter that you would need.

Insulated Vinyl Siding

Ariel Vanderhorst asked:


That depends on the stove you have in your mind’s eye. The old-fashioned, pot-belly stoves that appear in most Western movies didn’t do the atmosphere any favors. But today’s wood burning stoves, engineered with fuel economy in mind, are a different story.

Back in the days of cowboys and general stores, wood stoves could have been mistaken for indoor smokestacks–and that wouldn’t have been too far from the truth. But modern stoves are actually one of the “greenest” sources of radiant heat available to home owners today. Here are some of the big reasons why.

Let’s start with a little history. In the early 20th century, even the most efficient wood burning stoves left a lot to be desired and it wasn’t hard to tell. The smoky haze these stoves produced was a telltale sign that an unknowing home owner was literally giving the torch to his heating budget. Fortunately, there has been a revolution in stove design since those days.

Around 1990, there was a growing interest in alternative heating sources, caused by the rising awareness of the impact of fossil fuels (oil, coal) on the environment. In addition, the goal of energy self-sufficiency caused home owners to reevaluate wood stoves as a heating method. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) got involved, instituting demanding emissions standards to make sure that new stoves would be kind to the environment.

As new stoves were produced, engineers incorporated the EPA standards, and the “modern” wood stove came into being. Since 1990, every new wood stove is approved by the EPA, and produces a mere trickle of smoke (2-5 grams per hour) and very little ash. This amounts to a 33 percent increase in fuel efficiency over the old potbelly stoves, and a 90 percent decrease in emissions. In plain English, this means that advanced wood burning stoves burn a lot less wood and are simultaneously kinder to the planet.

At this point, a natural question would be, “Don’t wood stoves put pollutants into the atmosphere just like other heating sources–gas, oil, or coal?” The answer is nuanced. When fossil fuels are extracted from the earth and consumed, they release carbon dioxide into the environment at unhealthy levels. And after the monumental costs of extracting and producing these fuels, once they’re burned, they’re gone for good.

As a fuel source, wood is different on several counts.

Trees, like all other green plants, take carbon dioxide out of the atmosphere and convert it to fiber in order to grow. When trees die, and wood decomposes, this CO2 is released back into the air. But in this case, it is a natural cycle, since all trees eventually die. The same thing is true when wood is burned. Making the wood-burning cycle sustainable is the fact that wood is a renewable source of fuel.

We started this article asking the question, “Are wood stoves good for the environment?” The answer, when you compare stoves to other heating methods, is yes. Today’s stoves are fuel efficient: they produce more heat with less wood, keeping emissions to a minimum by meeting strict EPA standards. Best of all, perhaps, they don’t deprive the earth of non-renewable fossil fuels.

So, call to mind that rusty, black iron stove you saw in a Western movie, a vacation lodge, or at your grandparents. Then prepare yourself for an updated picture as you explore the world of modern wood stoves. Environmentally speaking, today’s stoves are very green.



Wagner Paint Sprayers

bella asked:


I am considering getting a pellet stove in my two story home. Not sure if it will heat the second floor. Looking to save money in natural gas costs. Thinking about waiting out this winter and getting one in the summer to save money on purchase and installation. Anyone out there have any experience/advice re: wood pellet stoves?

Bamboo Has Many Uses