Woodstove: Cast Iron or Soapstone?

BarbadosSheep · #1 09/14/11, 09:18 AM

I am getting ready to purchase a woodstove for supplemental heat in my home. I live in South Carolina where it does get cold in the winter (usually no cooler than mid-teens at night), but not nearly as cold as some other areas of the country. My living room/dining room/ kitchen is fairly open, one bedroom is off of the living room. This part of the house is 1300 sq feet. There will be an additional 480 sq ft master suite down the end of a hall in the next year or so. There is also a 434 sq ft sunroom that has french doors opening off of the dining room. I keep plants out there during the winter but don't care if the temps in that room drop down into the low 50s (my orchids like it cool anyway). I can regulate how much heat goes out there by opening or closing the french doors.

So what should I get? A cast iron stove or a soapstone stove? What do you have? Are you happy with it? I know I want a non-catalytic stove because we will burn unseasoned wood and pine from time to time and I don't want to mess with changing the cat. out every few years. Any advise for me? Thanks!

**Cabin Fever** · #2 09/14/11, 09:31 AM

I'm not a big fan of cast iron. The walls of cast iron stoves are held together with bolts and furnace cement. Cast iron can also crack if the fire heats up too fast.

My recommendation is to get a plate steel stove: 1/4" to 5/16" thick. I've owned both Fisher and Lopi plate steel stoves, but there are other good brands out there too, such as Napoleon.

sawman65 · #3 09/14/11, 09:37 AM

as has been said plate steel is the way to go not cast now as to soapstone well if you can afford it get it. they are better. but you may be hard pressed to find one WITH OUT a cat. they are not new by any means but most will have one even the plate steel ones will unless you get an older one

BarbadosSheep · #4 09/14/11, 10:24 AM

hmmm....I had not considered steel plate. I guess I'll look around and see what I can find. Thanks!

homstdr74 · #5 09/14/11, 11:30 AM

We have two Fisher wood heaters in the house, and a huge Home Comfort wood burning cookstove in the kitchen. Altho' Fisher doesn't make wood heaters anymore, you might check Craigslist or eBay to see if any are available in your area. I think they are superior. Barring that, as has been discussed there are other heavy steel plate models.

I think the main advantage to the soapstone, besides looking nice, is that they hold and re-radiate the heat. But consider that steel plate stoves are lined with firebrick bottom and sides, and those bricks hold and re-radiate heat as well. If you get a used steel plate stove, check all the bricks and replace any that are crumbled. Do not burn wood in it without the bricks--they are in there for a reason.

BarbadosSheep · #6 09/14/11, 11:34 AM

I had not thought of that. Fire bricks are basically doing the same thing soapstone does for a fraction of the cost. Great advise! I will check my local craigslist and also start doing more web research. I always equated quality with cast iron and economy with the steel plates but I see that is not necessarly true.

francismilker · #7 09/14/11, 11:50 AM

While cast iron is nostalgic and reminds us of being at grandma's house, I've yet to find one that didn't leak smoke pretty bad. I would suggest, as others have, to look into a plate steel stove that is lined with some kind of fire brick. I've got a new "Englander" stove that is working out great so far. It took me a little while to figure out how to make it draft correctly to get the most bang for my buck but it's great.

Deep Woods · #8 09/14/11, 05:53 PM

Another vote for the plate steel stove.

I have the Drolet Savannah epa certified stove in a 1600+ sq. ft. house and it does a great job. I only burn around 1 & 1/2 - 2 full cords of wood per winter (in MS). The epa certified stoves are very efficient, Our Savannah is rated @ 85% efficiency. And it comes with an attached quiet blower with variable speed control. This is our 4th year using it and we really like it.

Harry Chickpea · #9 09/14/11, 06:34 PM

Absolutely steel plate. If you want the heat storage capacity of soapstone, use a soapstone backer or base. Unless you use steel plate, you become friends with ashes and salt or ashes and waterglass patching pretty quickly. Cast iron legs and fancywork are fine.

vicki in NW OH · #10 09/14/11, 06:44 PM

We have a Woodstock Fireview Soapstone. It's awesome. The warmest stove ever. Had a Vermont Castings before, while it was good, it didn't come near the kind of warmth we get from the soapstone.

Marilyn · #11 09/14/11, 08:17 PM

Have had a Vermont Casting Defiant for 11 yrs and a smaller version for 15+ years before that. I haven't had any leak problems and absolutely love the heat. With the right kind of wood, we wake up a small fire every morning. I love that thing.

Also: you might want to look into 1-2 of the small, quiet doorway fans when it comes time to moving a little heat into additional areas (quiet old computer fans that have been framed and designed to hang in the corner of a doorway - worth every penny).

stormwalker · #12 09/14/11, 08:22 PM

I'd love to have a Soapstone stove, and I admit it's because they are beautiful.
The practical one can stay in the basement.

stormwalker · #13 09/14/11, 08:25 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Marilyn

Also: you might want to look into 1-2 of the small, quiet doorway fans when it comes time to moving a little heat into additional areas (quiet old computer fans that have been framed and designed to hang in the corner of a doorway - worth every penny).

Yup , I've done that. Works very well and it's out of everyones' way- most of the time.

BarbadosSheep · #14 09/14/11, 08:58 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Marilyn

Have had a Vermont Casting Defiant for 11 yrs and a smaller version for 15+ years before that. I haven't had any leak problems and absolutely love the heat. With the right kind of wood, we wake up a small fire every morning. I love that thing.

Also: you might want to look into 1-2 of the small, quiet doorway fans when it comes time to moving a little heat into additional areas (quiet old computer fans that have been framed and designed to hang in the corner of a doorway - worth every penny).

yep...that's what I plan to do to get the warmth to the back bedroom. I like the sound of a fan at night anyway, so it won't bother me in the least to hav a fan in the doorway.

As much as I adore the look of a soapstone stove, getting one will probably mean I can't afford it until next year. I probably could afford a sheet steel stove this winter though. The soapstone ones are pretty pricey, as are the nicer cast iron stoves. Maybe I'll get a used stove this year and save my pennies for a good soapstone one.

Bearfootfarm · #15 09/14/11, 09:20 PM

Quote:

I like the sound of a fan at night anyway, so it won't bother me in the least to hav a fan in the doorway.

Its best to have ceiling fans with wood heat because all the warm air will rise, and you'll want to get it back down to floor level.

The first year I used a wood heater we didn't have fans, and while I thought it did a good job, we used a lot of wood.

At Christmas, I climbed a ladder to decorate the top of the tree, and it was 30* warmer up there than on the floor. (11 ft ceilings)

We put up ceiling fans that Summer, and cut the amount of wood needed in half, and felt warmer too

gila_dog · #16 09/15/11, 07:48 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bearfootfarm

Its best to have ceiling fans with wood heat because all the warm air will rise, and you'll want to get it back down to floor level.

The first year I used a wood heater we didn't have fans, and while I thought it did a good job, we used a lot of wood.

At Christmas, I climbed a ladder to decorate the top of the tree, and it was 30* warmer up there than on the floor. (11 ft ceilings)

We put up ceiling fans that Summer, and cut the amount of wood needed in half, and felt warmer too

I agree with that. Ceiling fans will make your house work better whether you have a wood stove or not.

Here's the stove we have:

http://www.regency-fire.com/Products...ves/F2400.aspx

We really like the glass front, so we can see the fire. Not only is it pretty, but you can see how much wood you have left, and when it's time to reload. Also the ash drawer is a nice accessory. Just chase the ashes thru a hole in the floor of the stove, down into the ash drawer, then pull it out and go dump it outside. That is much better than having to scoop the ashes out and put them in a bucket. We don't have the fan option. With a ceiling fan in the room we don't need it.

One other very important point is to get a stove that will allow you to bring its combustion air from outside the house, rather than sucking air from inside the house. If you use inside air for combustion, it has to come from somewhere, and that's usually thru leaks in the house like around windows and doors in different rooms. That cold air moving thru those rooms toward the stove will make those rooms cold. That's how most fire places work, and why they don't heat the house very well. The stove in the link above allows you to connect a 4" round duct pipe into the bottom. The pipe then runs out the wall behind the stove, or down into the crawl space (if you have one), and brings in fresh air from outside for the fire to burn.

Also really spend some time and money on your chimney. That's as important as the stove itself. A good chimney will draw well and not be a fire hazard.

Jolly · #17 09/15/11, 08:19 AM

I've had a Hearthstone for 25 years. I am well satisfied.

The styles have changed a bit, but mine is a lot like this one:

http://www.hearthstonestoves.com/woo...s?product_id=3

Please note: this stove achieves over 80% efficiency with NO catalytic converter...which is important if you wish to build a "small" fire just to chase the chill away and do not plan to burn the stove at its maximum efficiency.

HDRider · #18 09/15/11, 08:32 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cabin Fever

I'm not a big fan of cast iron. The walls of cast iron stoves are held together with bolts and furnace cement. Cast iron can also crack if the fire heats up too fast.

My recommendation is to get a plate steel stove: 1/4" to 5/16" thick. I've owned both Fisher and Lopi plate steel stoves, but there are other good brands out there too, such as Napoleon.

Fisher Wood Stoves are no longer sold in the states

Which of those is the easiest to clean?

Qhorseman · #19 09/15/11, 08:40 AM

I have a Dutchwest(Vermont Castings), I would not reccomend their stove as serious wood heaters. very slow to come up to temperature, very hard to get to hold a fire for any length of time. Very sorry I spent $1500 on the thing. As soon as money allows, I am replacing it. Would take a Fisher in a heartbeat if I ever find one for sale.

Take a look at Harlans, I have been talking with their local dealer, it seems to be a well built stove, will keep a fire for 8-10 hours.

**Cabin Fever** · #20 09/15/11, 09:28 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by HDRider

Fisher Wood Stoves are no longer sold in the states

Which of those is the easiest to clean?

I've owned Fisher and Lopi. In my opionin - from a construction, quality and appearance perspective - they are equal. To clean either one, I'd use a small flat-nosed shovel and periodicially take a scoop of ashes out and dump them in a metal can.

One never wants to remove all the ashes from a woodstove when cleaning it. The ashes help prolong the fire (banking) and protect/insulate the bottom of the stove (in addition to the firebrick).