Wood stoves have been around for generations. The traditional wood stove radiates heat from the burning wood inside the stove and warms anything and everything close to it. The larger the woodstove, the bigger the area of heat generated. The heating capacity of many wood stoves is not fully realized.
To improve on the wood stove, fans can be added to spread the radiant heat through the room or the home. In cold climates, the simple woodstove is added to many newer homes because of the low cost heat generated. The stoves are often added to basements when they are renovated into game rooms or family rooms as an inexpensive way to heat space that does not have duct work or would put too much strain on the heating system of the home.
Electric fans are one choice but perhaps not the best method of dispersing heat from the stoves. The heat generated by the wood burning stove can cause electric fans to have a short life span. In addition, adding electrical use increases the cost of operating the wood stove.
Some stove fans are designed to use the heat of boiling water to drive a piston turning the blade of the fan. The fan then pushes the heat above the stove into the rest of the living area.
A third type of wood stove fan can be compared to a heat sink. Heat from the burning wood is drawn up through an aluminum base. A “peltier cooler” is located part way up that base and the conflict of hotter temperature reacting with cooler temps generates low voltage electricity. This is a widely used version of wood stove fan as the low level electricity produced is enough to power the fan.
In newer homes where owners plan for installation of a wood stove, a programmable furnace fan is effective in spreading heated air throughout a room. Another way to incorporate a wood stove fan is to use existing ceiling fans with the reversible option. The fan would move the heated air that naturally rises to the ceiling and push the warm air down to the living area.
If you are installing a wood stove a fan should be part of the plan. However, wood stove fans are not necessarily mounted on the woodstove. Any fan that gently moves the heated air around the room will do the job.
