3 Steps to Choosing the Ideal Wood Burning Stove
This medium-sized stove by Piazzeta could heat a small house.
When you set out to find a suitable wood burning stove for your home, there’s a lot to think about. The good news is that once you identify some basic specs, sorting through the available models becomes a question of style–not survival! Here are some steps to help you navigate the world of wood stoves today.
1. Know why you want a wood burning stove. First, what main purpose will the stove serve? Heating, cooking, ambiance, or some combination? Second, how much heat does the stove need to generate? Are you heating just one room, an entire, floor, a moderately-sized house, or a small cottage? Third, how will the stove be installed? Free-standing, or using an existing fireplace? A final question is how often the stove will be used–frequently or occasionally? Deciding what you want to your wood stove to accomplish is the big first step toward making the right purchase.
2. Read the small print on the wood stoves–casually. When you look at models, find the stickers on the stoves that tell you they’re EPA-certified stoves, meaning they’re environmentally friendly and fuel efficient. If you’re shopping for stoves online, this information will be readily available. The EPA approval is the crucial thing. You’ll find the Btu ratings and square footage heating estimates as well–but since Btu ratings aren’t standardized, and factors like climate, fuel choices, and house type affect square footage ratings, it’s a mistake to depend on them too much as you shop. Instead, consider the size of the stoves you’re looking at. (See below.)
3. Don’t buy big, shiny wood burning stoves. Unless that’s what you need. You can buy a Hummer for cross-country road trips without sacrificing comfort. But buying large stoves for small heating needs causes potential fire hazards, not to mention stuffy rooms. Beyond that, stoves that are too large cost you money. To control the heat, you’ll be forced to reduce the air supply into the stove, which will reduce the stove’s efficiency and waste fuel. Buying over-sized wood stoves is a common mistake–one that you don’t have to make. Stoves come in only three sizes: small, medium, and large. Here’s a breakdown of how the sizes relate to your needs:
- Small - these heat a small cabin or large room.
- Medium - these heat small or moderately-sized houses.
- Large - these heat large or drafty houses.
Ultimately, a solid understanding of why you want a wood burning stove, with your climate, house type and fuel choice factored in, will lead you to the correctly-sized, EPA-approved stoves. At that point, it gets fun: questions of color and style. Our advice on how to buy wood stoves might come in handy.
Tags: EPA > fuel efficiency > home design > modern wood stoves > stove shopping > stove size > wood burning stoves > wood stoves
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