Woodstove Recommendations

[fabsroman]

Originally Posted by M.T. Pockets

My house is 25 miles from Canada in Northestern MN. Minus 31 tonight.

I have a free standing stove in the great room that can heat the entire 1600 sq. ft. house to 70 something with very little electric supplement heat. The brand name is Cottage.

Wood heat just plain feels good, and it's also very satisfying. I'd compare it to eating wildgame that you harvested compared to meat from the grocery store.

I would also recommend having it professionally installed. You may also want to check with your insurance company to see if they have any further requirements.

I'm a firefighter, and I've been to more than a few fires involving wood stoves. Many are due to dirty chimneys, but the most I've seen involve people who don't dispose of the ashes properly and they reignite and start a fire. I feel safer heating my house with a wood stove than having my wife light a candle.

While I am cheap, I am not that cheap. I know absolutely nothing about installing a wood stove so I would hire a professional. Had a client burn down his house by installing one himself. What a mess that was. I agree, it is a personal thing for me, along with a cheap thing. I really hate paying to heat the house. As soon as they come out with something good in the form of solar and/or wind power, you can bet I will be getting it. Same goes for a plug in vehicle after the solar/wind power is installed.

My plan with the ashes is to suck them out with a shop vac and then dump them in the yard in a pit or in the garden. Any advice on that?