Ok as everyone knows the price of fuel oil is quite high and rising. I would like to reduce my usage of fuel oil and become more self sufficient in the process. I have the 2500 bucks I saved for fuel oil to spend. so keeping that in mind I have narrowed my options down to two furnaces.
1. http://www.usstove.com/proddetail.php?prod=1537G
or
2. http://www.usstove.com/proddetail.php?prod=24AF

The first one takes larger logs and more coal and will heat a larger area. The second one will heat smaller area and take less coal and smaller logs but an optional water heater can be added. I like the idea of the optional water heater supplementing or replacing my electric heater in the winter.

I can get the first stove for around 1100 and the second one for 1250. plus 200 bucks for the water heater option.
Both require the same insulated stainless pipe for a flue.

My house is around 1500 square feet so I believe either of these will work well as primary heat source.

Any input that can be provided is greatly appreciated. It seems the local dealers all have salesmen on vacation this month so it is hard to get information and I want this done now.

That seems like alot of money to spend. After all you still need to pay for a wood or coal. Our wood stove is a fireplace type with 8" insulated pipe. We spent about $750. on the whole thing. Wow I just cant see paying that much. As a matter of a fact we just got a new wood stove given to us. One of the four leg types with two burners for cooking.
We burn nothing but wood during the winter. The fireplace model is good for three large logs and heats our 1500sqft home just fine. I load it about every four hours.

You know I had hoped to get something setup in the price range you mentioned. It just does not seem feasible or I ma not looking in the right places. The stainless insulated flue pipe is 83 bucks for 3 feet sections. I'm planning on installing in my basement and means 27 feet of pipe give or take.
I had considered a fireplace but prices are similar or higher once it is built in with a mantle. I also am Leary of any hot stoves or fireplaces where my clumsy two year old can get near them.

I can get something like this for around 600 bucks used with 7 feet of flu pipe on craigs list.
http://www.usstove.com/proddetail.php?prod=2007

I could also install some electric baseboard heaters I suppose but the government cap on electricity cost comes off in 2010 and the price is expected to double.

What part of the country do you live in purple? Are your winters comparable to PA?

A friend of mine built a 3' high fence around his wood burning stove to keep his toddlers away from it. He had a little latch gate in front of the part where the wood goes in. Just throwing some options out there.

Heh, Purple is down in Texas. In the winter you could heat his place with the body heat from a large house cat.

I live a stones throw away from Canada, at a little over 3,000 feet. We're off grid and for the last ten years we've heated with just wood.
I have seen wood/coal furnaces like the ones you posted links for, and I have a friend with an old oil/wood furnace.
I've also seen big wood burners that are mounted entirely outside the home.

Frankly, I'd stay away from 'em. They burn a heck of allot of wood or coal. They still use electricity to run.

My preference is for a simple wood stove. One of the nice things about heating with wood is being able to see the fire.
Not to mention heating water and cooking right on top of the stove.

If your going to go through the trouble of heating with wood, you might as well get to enjoy the soft flicker of firelight on the walls of your home when you turn off the lights to go to bed.

Having the stove right in the living space means less pipe.
I use mostly single wall pipe, and use double wall only where I go through the ceiling and roof.

Having single wall pipe in the living space throws as much heat into the home as the stove itself does.
We use four cords of wood or less a year to heat our place.

Not all homes are easily heated with a stove however. Much depends upon the layout. You have to light a fire first thing every morning, but you get used to that.
You'll need a good woodshed to store your wood in. This is not an option! You need dry wood to heat a home.
You'll need space to stack a day or twos worth of wood inside next to the stove.

I have a brother in law with seven kids who heated with just wood. Only once did one of the rug rats fall against the stove and get a nice burn. They learn fast.
It's easier to teach a kid to avoid such things than try to "kid proof" the planet.

We have a very expensive catalytic soapstone stove. I wouldn't trade it for anything.
I've used bigger non-catalytic stoves, but they didn't heat as well and made so much creosote that chimney fires became a routing occurrence!
Get a catalytic stove. They burn so clean it's fantastic, and they are very economical on wood.

Here is our woodshed, convenient to the back door of our house, with a wide French door that can be kicked open when your arms are full.

This is a good way to arrange things. It's easy to bring in a days supply of wood, and I can back a pickup right up to the woodshed, throw the wood in and stack it.
The daily chores can be pretty easy to do if everything is well set up.


The full woodshed. This shed easily holds five cords. Usually it holds three or four cords, and has plenty of room left over for hanging deer, butchering rabbits, etc...
I even have a spare woodstove in there.

How do you put chimney fires out at your homestead?

Just close down the stove and starve it of oxygen.
Gotta watch the stovepipe, parts will glow red. Sometimes I sprits the pipe with water.


Haven't had a chimney firs since I got my catalytic stove.

A good trick to remember to put out such a fire is to light a road flare and toss it into the stove or fireplace. It will burn up all the oxygen and put it out.

Thanks for the info. It really helps. My last recollection of heating with wood or coal was when I was in elementary school and all we did was help dad with wood all summer and when we burnt coal we had black dust on everything. So I am trying to see how people do it 20 years later.

Bob do you have a relatively open floor plan to your home? I would Imagine heating with a central stove like yours would work much better in something more open.

What brand or model is that stove you recommend?

I do like the idea of not relying on electricity for heat so that is a plus for a stove versus furnace.

I also like the idea of something that is relatively efficient because I don't want my life to revolve around cutting,splitting,stacking wood or feeding the dragon.

Thanks for the pics and the tips on layout of the shed. I need to make this as simple and easy as possible because this will be 100 percent my responsibility. The wife cant/wont even add wood to the fire.

What ya take for the warm house cats EtdBob?


Us North Texans just aint never been in a real winter before. Ill trade you right now for some 109* heat this time of year though. B) We only heat with wood, I cleared alot of lots this year to get my supply up. I am glad you showed the wood shed, I have been wanting to build one.
She aint preddy but she dont smoke or soot too much with an 8" pipe. I clean it out once a year. We burned 3 cords of wood last year. But Ill bet EtdBob burns just a little more. Just threw mine in for Show-n-tell.