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[bluebird7]

Hi,
I have been thinking about an outdoor furnace for a few years now but today I learned that my gas furnace is beyond repair and so I have moved from just thinking about one to seriously considering purchasing one. I was wondering if someone here could guide me in which brands are good/better and best. I live in a log home, built from a log home kit. The house is app. 3000 square feet. I was researching the Taylor wood furnace brand when I ran across this forum and randomly saw a very negative review about that brand. Any help anyone could offer would be greatly appreciated. Oh, and I am mostly interested in heating the upper portion of my home at ground level and the loft, which would be app.1837 square feet. The rest of the footage is basement and there is a wood stove down there that heats it pretty well.
Thanks,
Cathy

[slimjim]

Good morning Cathy, I am assuming that you live in a state where EPA phase 2 testing and tagging is not required, we should all have more info about what you are attempting to accomplish, one of the first questions that I like to ask is regarding your heat load, most folks will go solely on the square footage of the building, there is a big difference in heat load of a 3000 square foot well insulated home with radiant heat and a poorly insulated 3000 square foot  home with an oil or gas boiler with baseboard. What I like to use is the total amount of fuel you used over the past 3 years averaged, this gives us a really good # to go on for heat load. My wife put together a nice page of info/ websites for people in your position including questions that should be asked of the dealer, I can send you a copy if you would like, I'm not sure if posting it would be the right thing to do, maybe some of my fellow dealers would let me know how they feel about it and if they are OK then I will post it

[bluebird7]

Thank you Mr. Slimjim for your reply,
 It would be hard for me to estimate the fuel (Gas) cost over the last few years. We have been depending on the woodstove in the basement and a fireplace in the main living room and only using the gas as a supplement when we absolutely had to.  I am not sure if we live in a state where we would have to have EPA phase testing or not. I live in NC so maybe you could tell me if that is required where I live? I have always known if I needed more heat I could always order more Gas and turn the furnance on but that is no longer an option . The gas furnace is 125.000 BTU. The replacement quote for it was 5000.00. I live in a rural area on 30 wooded acres and I have access to other sources selling firewood as well as being able to cut our own. I would like a copy of the info your wife has put together if you can't post it could you possibly email it to me?
Thanks,
Cathy

[yoderheating]

A new 300sq ft log home in NC shouldn't be to hard to heat. Some of the best brands out there would be Heat Master, P&M, Central Boiler, Heatmore and Empyre. Hardy isn't a bad stove either if you don't mind it being ugly and inefficient.
 Some of the main differences between the brand I listed is design and type of material used. I will let Slim explain P&M in more detail because I'm not as familiar with them.
 Heat Master and Heatmore are built from 409 stainless, the idea there is 409 has very little cracking issues but offers a lot of protection from corrosion. P&M, Central Boiler and some Empyre  furnaces use mild steel which will not crack but has a higher likelihood of corrosion. hardy and some Empyre furnaces use 304 stainless which will not have a corrosion issue but has a higher chance of cracking.
 Some furnaces have ash pans and some you shovel the ash out the door that you put the wood into. Some have tubes or bypasses that capture more heat but may also need to be cleaned. When looking at different always keep in mind how user friendly they may be.  And by far most importantly find a dealer near you that has experience and will be in business for the life of your furnace. A good dealer is as important as a good furnace.

[slimjim]

Very well said Yoder, Cathy I sent you a personal message with my E-Mail, if you respond to me I will send you that copy of my wifes questions to ask the dealer and good info sites to visit, this forum being one of them, Yoder would you be opposed to my posting the info sheet.

[fryedaddy]

N.C. the state doesn't have any restrictions but some locals (County, City) may.

I live in Mt. Airy N.C. and have had very good service out of Hicks Waterstove.
They are located in Mt. Airy but his model is an indoor boiler which most people
on here do not like. His main seller is a conventional but he does make EPA "style"
stove. It isn't certified yet.

The brands Yoder and Slim mentioned are fine stoves, the top of the line.

Make sure you have quality service (Installer/Sales) and maintain your stove as required.

[yoderheating]

 Slim post whatever you like as far as I am concerned. I try and give honest advice and while I like the brand I sell I know there are other good products out there as well. I'm not stupid enough to think one size and type fits every customer.

[slimjim]

Thanks Yoder, I started a new thread with the info sheet, it is state specific as far as the Maine govt. websites but has links to some very informative websites and some questions to ask your local dealers, I hope it helps those looking at this industries products and services

[bluebird7]

Hi and thanks for the responses,  I haven't gotten a personal message , Mr. Slim or I would have responded so I could get the list but if you have put it on another thread, I will try to find it.