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5 Hot Tips for Choosing the Best Wood Stove 

5 Hot Tips for Choosing the Best Wood Stove

Wood burning is on the rise in America, making up 18% of renewable energy usage. When it comes to choosing the best wood stove for you, though, there’s a lot to think about.

From cost to cleanliness and ease to efficiency, every wood burning stove has its trade-offs. If you’re wondering how to choose a wood stove, it’s a matter of figuring out which pros and cons are right for your home.

Keep reading for our hottest tips on how to choose the wood stove you need!

Wood Stove Vs. Pellet Stove

It’s one of the most common wood stove questions. In the pellet stove vs. wood stove debate, there are pros and cons on both sides. Ultimately, it comes down to your unique needs.

Pellet stoves offer:

  • Cleaner-burning fuel
  • Less messy fuel loading
  • Easy to purchase fuel (buy pellets at your local hardware store)

However, pellet stoves require a generator because they shut down when the power goes out. If you want to use your stove through power outages, this isn’t the best choice for you.

Wood burning stoves:

  • Use cheaper fuel (i.e., wood)
  • Take more effort to split and stack wood
  • Can be messier to operate (wood particles and bark on floor)

Wood burning stoves run without any power, so you can use them off-grid and during outages.

Size of Wood Stove

Wood stoves come in a variety of sizes. It’s crucial to get the right size of wood stove for your needs. 

If your stove is too small for your space, you will have to keep it burning too hot. This means you’ll use up more fuel. You’ll also damage the components of your wood stove by keeping them constantly overheated.

A wood burning stove that is too large for your space will also cause problems. When you heat a wood stove to its optimal temperature, the metal of the stove holds heat and keeps your space warm. If your stove is too big, you won’t be able to build a large enough fire to use it efficiently, so it will underperform.

Here’s a general guide to how to choose a wood stove size:

  • Small stoves (500 sq feet or less): one room, very small houses, seasonal cottages
  • Medium stoves (500-1,000 sq feet): small houses, very energy-efficient small houses
  • Large stoves (1,000-2,200 sq feet): large houses, medium houses in winter, houses with drafts and heat leaks
  • Extra-large stoves (over 2,200 sq feet): multi-storey houses

The right size of stove for you depends on your house’s size, construction, and floor plan. Getting the best size of wood stove helps save you money, time, and frustration when heating your home.

What’s the Best Wood Stove For You? You Decide

Your finances, time availability, and physical space all play into the decision of which is the best wood stove for you. There are so many options, so don’t be afraid to get out there and find the one to keep you warm this winter.

Looking for more tips on living an elevated and alternative lifestyle? We have them all. Check out the rest of our blog for much more. 

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