Yes, yes, yes I am back to discuss the bedroom again. The one that originally was a family room with our wood stove. Now that wood stove is on the first floor doing a great job of preventing me from using oil. . Anyhow, last year if you recall we heated our bedroom with a small electric Pelonis heater. While it did a fair job, it's not a longterm solution. Below are the options as I see them: A wood stove - A store in town has an Ironstrike wood stove, the Striker, for sale 1049. The burn is 6-8 hours. I spoke with the building inspector yesterday, and he told me it would require an outside air feed. Pellet stove - same thing as the wood stove, it would an outside air feed. Propane wall mount direct vent unit - same thing as 1 and 2. Mini-split Each option has pluses and minuses: Wood stove: Cheapest solution. Already process wood. Maintaining a comfortable sleeping temp can be difficult. Burn times over night are not long enough. Fire throwing off light at night - I like a dark room. Pellet stove: Set the temperature and forget it. Storage of pellets is no longer an issue. I've priced the Harman locally, and the P43 is right around 3k. The burn throwing off light at night - I like a dark room. Propane wall mount direct vent unit Dad has been talking about converting over to propane which would help with overall discounts due to greater consumption. (he has a detached mother-n-law apartment right next to our house.) Set it and forget it. Could convert my generator to propane and connect to that system. Second cheapest option. Already have oil, which means I'd be getting two different fuel sources. Mini-split Take care of both heating and cooling for that room. Could run a second one to my son's room on the third floor. Most expensive solution. SEER is high for these units making them more efficient that room heaters and window A/C units. Fluctuations in electric prices becomes a factor. I've called two of our local propane companies to come out and give me a quote. I also need to do the same with the mini-split. Ideally while the min-split is the most expensive upfront, I find it to be the more appealing solution. Especially in a bedroom. Removes the possibility of CO problems, eliminates ambient light from the flame, and they are good now down (-15). It rarely gets that cold here in southern RI. Please let me know what all of you think. Yes this is a firewood forum, and I would normally lean to that as my solution. However; in this case, I am thinking the mini-split or propane wins out. Jason from RI.
being it is a bedroom mini split. Either stove will overheat the room, why add propane, which fluctuates and will probably will overheat the room.
If the mini-split can heat the room during the coldest temps and you want a/c (which I would) that is what I would do. I would never put a wood or pellet stove in a bedroom because I like it cold when I sleep and I wouldn't want the mess in my bedroom. How long do you plan on staying in this house? Not many people are gonna want a wood/pellet stove in their bedroom, but would like the split unit.
Because of my house layout and small footprint we put our stove in our bedroom. If it were possible I would not do it again. As ironpony said, it overheats the room very quickly. I've got a system down now to build smaller fires which require a lot more work. Its worth it to me but does gets tedious towards the end of the year. I'd vote for a mini-split.
I've been contemplating a mini-split too, but wonder at how well they actually heat when it's below zero. I'm thinking efficiency has to drop off quite a bit as temps go down. That's the time you need it most.
I agree with ironpony , the mini split would be the best option for a room that size. The initial cost would be higher but the bonus is A/C in the summer. If the small Pelonis did a fair job, the mini split would be a step up. Being this is a wood forum, I would normally lean in that direction but I can't with what you told us so far
I called around today about Mini-splits. One place told me $3500 for one unit. That is one unit out and one unit in. Additional units would be an additional $3500. From what I've read, there are outside units that support up to 4 internal units. I did read article today that talked about the cost factor in the US versus Asia and other places around the world where mini-splits are popular. After reading a couple of articles, it seems to boil down to the people in the US not liking the ascetics of the units. Which has prevented wide adoption. One site just railed against Mini-splits. All of the comments were from people rebuffing his comments. Made the author look like a corporate hack.
Financially speaking, baring a sudden win of the lottery, we are not moving anywhere. Just can't afford to do so. I have my wife and three kids. Plus my dad that lives in the mother-n-law apartment. If I had to guess, the wife and I would look to move in say 10 years to a smaller home. Personally one of my goals is to purchase 5-10 acres and build a home to suit.
Other than cost, mini-split is the route I'd like to go. I'll not finance it. If I can come up with the cash for the mini-split, then I'll go that route. As for the propane, I get your point. Personally I wish I was at a point financially to replace our oil forced hot air furnace and oil hot water heater with a modern propane boiler and an on demand hot water heater. As for the gas overheating the room, it would have a thermostat. Which should help keep the room from major fluctuations. Here's a link to what I am talking about, Beige Direct Vent Wall Furnace R Series | Overstock.com Shopping - The Best Deals on Air Conditioners & Heaters.
I checked with the building inspector and it's legal so long as it has an adaptor that pulls fresh air from outside.
Call me crazy, but here is what I've found so far. Mini-split for one room: Garage below our bedroom will require a large service to be put in to meet the requirements of the system. Only a 50amp box now. $4400 for unit and installation for one room. Propane direct vent wall mount heater $3000 for the unit and installing of line to the tank. Propane tank and connection to the system. Mini-split - I've read that they are far more expensive in the US compared to other parts of the world. Europe and Asia have much cheaper installations. I guess it's all about the ascetics. The price did not shock me. More than I wanted to spend. Propane - As propane prices depend on usage, it does not make sense to have both oil and propane. However; in my mind this would be a fairly cheap solution. Mounting the wall unit is pretty straight forward, and the gas company takes care of the tank installation/final connection. Online I've found units to run around $1200 (no the cheap HomeDepot crap.) This price did surprise me. I expected the number to be more like $2k. Now that I have the numbers, I am at a lost as to what to do for this year. We could try to get by with just the Pelonis Disc heater. This would drive up my electric bill. However; last years electric bills were not that bad. While I would prefer to go with the mini-split, I just can't stomach $4400 + the cost to increase to an 100amp service in our garage. This would be something I'd need to do for next year. Jason from RI.
Is this room above an un heated garage. I'm wondering if an under floor type heat may be best. Is that an option?
The garage below is not heated. Currently the flooring in the bedroom is a laminate Pergo click in system.
Please ck you state for rebates. Here in Maine, there are rebates that really help off set the cost. Also ck for tax deductions. There are federal deductions for energy improvements that really help. Also there are low cost energy loans. Ck those things out. You might not be able to afford not to do it!
The company that provided with the quote said there is a $250 rebate. After that, I'd need to look deeper into your suggestions.
Like this: Heat Pump Systems for Maine Homes - High Efficiency Heating in Cold Climates and deductions for electric heat pumps - TurboTax Support Low interest energy efficiency loans| New York state| Home Residential Energy Savings and Audits| Franzoso Energy Solutions Westchester county NY
