Tips On Buying A Fireplace Wood Stove
Learn about heating with wood and buying a fireplace wood stove.
A fireplace wood stove is a great way to use and existing fireplace. You get the best of both worlds: warm radiant heat from an efficient appliance, and the beauty of a fireplace.<br>It is no secret that the average fireplace robs heat from you home. Sure, it is wonderful to listen to the crackling wood, smell the sweet aroma of the fire and watch the flames as they dance up the chimney. But unless you live in a climate where it really doesn't matter much, the old fireplace just is not an efficient means of home heating.<br>A step up from just a plain fireplace is the grates that are really tubes. These have the limited ability to send warm air back into the room, Some people also have added vents in the chimney that capture heat as it rises, and then radiates it back into the room. This is better than nothing, but not much better.<br>A quality fireplace wood stove can be just as efficient as a free standing cast iron wood stove. The only real difference is that one is inside the fireplace and the other is outside of it. <br>Installation can be a bit more work as well, but today's inserts are designed for the purpose of fitting in with the rest of the room and are easy to work with.<br>The fireplace wood stove has the option of glass doors, removable doors and a screen to go on in place of the doors. So, you can still enjoy the open fire and later shut it up to save on energy costs. With the glass doors you can still see the flames and enjoy the beauty of the fire, while remaining highly efficient at heating.<br>It is possible to find these used in your local newspaper, hardware store, bulletin board, online list or at a heating store. People are always upgrading to bigger and better, often you can find exactly what you want, if you invest some serious searching time. Chances are that you will not succeed at the first attempt, though that actually did happen to me once. I found a nearly new Jotul cast iron wood stove at less than half the cost of new. <br>You will also need some accessories to go with your stove. Make sure you buy a steel ash bucket, steel shovel and a good poker. You can also make a poker out of stainless steel rod, which will last as long as your stove.<br>A thermometer really helps as well to monitor the creosote build up in your stove pipe. Creosote forms when the gases from the fire cool and solidify. This is highly combustible and very dangerous if it catches fire. <br>With the thermometer you can ensure that the fire is hot enough to minimize the build up of creosote. A good hot fire will keep things cleaned out. <br>Another accessory is the fireproof floor covering in front of the fireplace wood stove. This helps prevent floor damage from hot coals or falling wood. You can buy one or make one yourself out of any type of brick and mortar. This can be a great way to integrate the stove with the room.
About the Author
Randy Hough writes about buying a fireplace wood stove, cast iron wood stoves and using a gas chain saw at www.bestwoodheat.com.
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