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Best Wood Burning Stoves of 2022 - Buying Guide
Tired of the high cost of using gas or electricity to stay warm?
What you need is a wood-burning stove!
The best wood-burning stoves are ideal for keeping your home warm and make for lovely décor. Some are also useful for cooking or staying warm while outdoors.
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Quick Comparison Chart
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PROS
SPECS
Drolet High-Efficiency Wood Stove Model HT2000
PROS
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Highly efficient wood burning for heating
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Safe and easy to use
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Minimal emissions
SPECS
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Minimal emissions
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Large firebox that requires less frequent refueling
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Unique pedestal design
EcoZoom Versa Camping Stove
PROS
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Affordable price
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Energy-efficient
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User-friendly and safe
SPECS
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Minimal emissions
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Suitable for cooking and heating
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Durable and lightweight design
Winnerwell Nomad Tent Stove
PROS
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Lightweight and portable design
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Made with durable, rust-resistant stainless steel
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Suitable for various indoor and outdoor uses
SPECS
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Comes with a spark arrestor and ash scraper
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Suitable for heating and cooking
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Lightweight materials,
Vogelzang TR001 Defender EPA Wood Stove
PROS
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Provides quick and efficient heating
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EPA-approved for low emissions
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Can keep a 1,200 square feet room warm
SPECS
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Adjustable legs
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Large ceramic glass window
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Durable build and materials
Duraflame Quartz Fireplace Stove with 3D Flame Effect
PROS
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Zone heating technology for optimal warmth
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Kid-friendly with minimal danger of getting burned
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Easily portable
SPECS
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Very lightweight
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Gorgeous 3D flames
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User-friendly design
7 Best Wood Burning Stove Reviews
1. Drolet High-Efficiency Wood Stove Model HT2000 – Best Overall
Drolet’s Model HT2000 is our overall best wood burning stove because of its size and efficiency. Its firebox is big enough to hold 22-inch logs and burns them slowly with a 78% efficiency. That makes this stove super effective at extracting as much heat as possible from every log it burns.
Considered one of the most efficient woodstoves on the market, the Model HT2000 gets its efficiency from the firebrick lining its firebox. The feature insulates heat and enables the stove to radiate heat more evenly and warm up a room faster.
Aside from being efficient, this stove looks good with its unique pedestal design and is low maintenance, thanks to its glass air wash system. In addition to the glass air wash system, clean-up is also easy and quick thanks to the easily accessible ash drawer for emptying the ash.
The stove is also eco-friendly and EPA-approved, releasing just 3.9 grams of emissions per hour.
All in all, the Model HT2000 is easy to use, safe, reliable, and capable of using less fuel to warm a 2,400 square feet room, making it a great value buy.
PROS
- Highly efficient wood burning for heating
- Minimal emissions
- Safe and easy to use
- Large firebox that requires less frequent refueling
- Durable design
CONS
- It’s a bit heavy, but that’s okay since the stove is for home use and will mostly be stationary
- A bit pricey
2. EcoZoom Versa Camping Stove – Best Portable for Cooking
Need a portable wood stove for when on the go?
We recommend the EcoZoom Versa! It is a versatile wood stove that’s ideal for adventurers. Whether you are going camping, backpacking, or simply lost in the wilderness, you can rely on this stove for heat and comfort.
The best part about this wood burning stove is it can use almost anything for fuel. Simply throw in some twigs, leaves, papers, sticks, charcoal, solid biomass, or anything else you can find, and this stove will burn it to keep you warm or cook.
The stove requires neither gas nor electricity to work. And since it’s built tough, it’ll survive the banging around of your travels, the elements, and keep working.
Aside from being capable of burning almost anything to generate heat, the EcoZoom Versa is energy-efficient, using less fuel for more extended and hotter burns. It also has lower emissions, which means less smoke in your face and minimal environmental impact.
It is highly portable and affordable, making it an excellent investment for people who love spending their time outdoors.
PROS
- Affordable price
- Energy-efficient
- Minimal emissions
- User-friendly and safe
- Suitable for cooking and heating
- Durable and lightweight design
- Great for emergencies
CONS
- You need to sit very close to it to stay warm
3. Winnerwell Nomad Tent Stove
If you are on an outdoor adventure in a group and need to do a lot of cooking, the Winnerwell Nomad Stove offers a good solution.
It’s big enough to cook for several people at a time, but its body is made with lightweight materials to ensure its portability. Even though it’s made with lightweight materials, the Winnerwell Nomad Tent Stove is durable enough to withstand intensive use and many travels for years.
In addition to cooking, you can use it to stay warm in almost any weather condition. It is safe to use and burns wood efficiently for more prolonged and more satisfactory heating.
PROS
- Lightweight and portable design
- Made with durable, rust-resistant stainless steel
- Suitable for various indoor and outdoor uses
- Comes with a spark arrestor and ash scraper
- Suitable for heating and cooking
CONS
- Its many attachments can make transporting it tricky
4. Vogelzang TR001 Defender EPA Wood Stove
The Vogelzang TR001 Defender is one of the best wood-burning stoves for staying warm at home. It can generate enough heat to reliably warm a 1,200 square feet room for up to 7 hours on a single fuel loading, making it a very efficient wood stove.
Its design provides even heat distribution to ensure all parts of a room get warm. It also gets the heat circulating fast so that a cold room can turn cozy quickly.
The stove is made with heavy-duty steel and cast iron for optimal heat conductivity and durability. There’s also firebrick lining on the inside of this EPA-approved stove for efficiency and conserving heat.
PROS
- Provides quick and efficient heating
- Adjustable legs for easy positioning and transportation
- EPA-approved for low emissions
- Can keep a 1,200 square feet room warm
- A large ceramic glass window for watching the flames
- Can burn for several hours on one fueling
- Durable build and materials
CONS
- A bit heavy
5. Duraflame Quartz Fireplace Stove with 3D Flame Effect
Not comfortable using actual flames for heating?
The Duraflame Quartz Fireplace is a great alternative that uses its impressive technology to duplicate the effects of a roaring wood stove.
It uses infrared quartz to generate heat and uses a 3D flame effect to make you feel like you are sitting before an actual fire. You can adjust the 3D flame’s brightness and speed setting to suit your mood or needs.
These features make the Duraflame Quartz Fireplace more than just a decorative piece in the home, but also a reliable source of heating, minus many of the hassles of a traditional wood stove.
It’s safe to use and kid-friendly since its exterior doesn’t get hot, and it can deliver quality heating and an excellent view for 8 hours with minimal energy.
PROS
- Zone heating technology for optimal warmth
- Kid-friendly with minimal danger of getting burned
- Very lightweight and easily portable
- Gorgeous 3D flames that simulate an actual fire
- User-friendly design
- All the benefits of a wood stove minus the downsides
CONS
- It can get a bit noisy
- Depending on the room size, it can take longer to warm things up
6. Vogelzang TR004 Colonial EPA Wood Stove
Want to make the most of your fireplace?
You can install the Vogelzang TR004 in your fireplace to generate heat and safely enjoy a nice flaming view. Its door consists of a large ceramic glass window that lets the flames within the stove illuminate your room and set a pleasant mood.
The body of the stove consists of plate steel, cast iron, and firebrick lining to retain the heat and distribute it evenly.
Load the stove, and it’ll burn for 8 hours with no refueling, meaning you can rely on this stove to keep you warm all night, no matter how cold it is outside.
But the features that set this stove apart and win it a place on our best wood burning stove list are its low emissions, 4.08 grams per hour, and customer-friendly warranty.
PROS
- 75% efficient wood burning
- Minimal emissions
- Comes with a warranty and user manual
- Can burn for 8 hours on one fueling
- Blower fan for raising the heat
CONS
- Installing the stove in your fireplace may be pricey
- The blower can be noisy
- It could do with a bigger firebox
7. Pleasant Hearth Medium Wood Burning Stove
Here’s another excellent wood stove with lots of positive reviews. As its name implies, Pleasant Heart can efficiently deliver heating to warm an 1,800 square feet room evenly.
Because the stove isn’t very large, it makes for an ideal fit in most rooms in a home. There’s a large ceramic glass window on the front for enjoying a great view of the flames, and a brick-lined firebox for longer burns with more heat.
Enjoyable to use, this stove is also easy to clean, thanks to its easily accessible ash drawer. It is also EPA-certified, which means fewer worries about emissions. And to ensure that you can buy with confidence, the Pleasant Hearth stove comes with an instruction manual and a 5-year warranty.
PROS
- Compact design that’s not obstructive in most homes
- Eco-friendly with a low 4.5 grams of emissions per hour
- Comes with a 5-year warranty
- Assembly, installation, and maintenance is straightforward and easy
- Burns fuel efficiently
- Its brick-lined firebox holds heat for longer
CONS
- Its firebox is smaller than that of competitors
- The glass window gets dirty quickly
- Cannot attach it to a fresh air inlet system
Final Verdict
As we said, the best wood burning stove for you will depend on your reason for buying one.
Based on our experience and customer reviews, if what you are looking for is a portable wood stove for outdoor use and cooking meals, you can’t do better than the EcoZoom Versa Camping Stove.
On the other hand, if what you need is a stove that’s easy to use and will keep you warm at home, your best choice is the Drolet High-Efficiency Wood Stove.
Both stoves are durable, efficient, user-friendly, safe, and reliable for their primary purpose of keeping you warm.
Also read our blog: how to get duct heat from a wood burning stove.
How to Pick the Perfect Wood Burning Stove?
There are different types of wood-burning stoves. Finding the perfect one for you requires knowing what features the stove must have if it is to satisfy your needs. For example, if you need a stove for cooking and staying warm, buying one that only provides warmth will be an unsatisfactory investment.
To find the best wood burning stove for your needs, look out for the following features:
Eco-friendliness
High-quality woodstoves generate fewer pollutants and burn less fuel, which in turn makes them eco-friendly. To determine how environmentally friendly a wood stove is, consult its handbook to see its efficiency.
Ideally, the stove shouldn’t generate more than 40mg/m3 of emissions. It should also have at least 75% fuel efficiency.
Further proof of a wood stove’s eco-friendliness will be in its certification. Quality stoves from reputable brands have certifications that indicate they emit low emissions and are safe for use. An example of such a certification is an EPA certification.
Fuel Type
Some woodstoves work better when you use specific types of wood to fuel them. For example, some work better with hardwood.
A stove like the EcoZoom Versa can burn almost anything for fuel, which is what makes it so amazing. But regardless of the type of wood or other fuel you are using, make sure it’s dry to reduce the amount of smoke the flames produce.
Aside from hurting the environment, more smoke will generate more pollutants that spoil the components of your stove.
Size
Do you need a stove that’s big enough to warm a large room?
The bigger a stove is, the more wood it can take to burn, and the more heat it can generate. Another benefit of a bigger wood stove is it requires less frequent refueling since you can put in more wood at once.
If your priority is getting maximum heat, then you should go for a stove that’s as big as possible. But note that the bigger a stove is, the heavier and less portable it’ll be.
Also, you may have trouble finding a suitable space to store a large stove in your home. As such, confirm the size of where you’ll install a wood-burning stove so that you can get one with the perfect size to fit.
Heating capacity
Like we said, the bigger a stove is, the more heat it can generate. Depending on the size of your room, you may need a stove that can warm a 1000 to 3000 square feet space.
If you intend to use the stove outdoors, it must be portable enough to carry and yet, efficient enough to generate enough heat to keep you warm and cook your meals.
Combustion system
A wood-burning stove may feature a catalytic or non-catalytic combustion system.
Catalytic combustion systems are typically the favorite because they are more efficient at burning wood. They burn wood for longer, reducing how much fuel you need and deliver even heating.
Because of the intricate design of this stove type, they typically cost more. They also require more maintenance, which may include replacing the combustion component. If you don’t replace the part when necessary, the stove’s efficiency will reduce.
Non-catalytic systems may not be as fuel-efficient as catalytic systems or deliver longer-lasting heat, but they do produce more spectacular flames. They are also more wallet friendly. If maximum heating is not your priority, and you love a good flame show, a non-catalytic stove is a better and more affordable option.
Efficiency
Modern wood stoves are more efficient at burning wood. The best models can burn wood for longer and generate more heat. This ensures the optimal use of the wood to make as much heat as possible.
For a stove to be able to deliver such levels of efficiency, it must be well vented and insulated. The stove may also have blowers for evenly distributing heated air around the house.
Stoves with a catalytic combustion system are more efficient because they use exhaust gases to ignite fires and burn. As the gases come from a ceramic-coated catalyst into the stove, it generates a long and steady fire that will burn the wood for longer.
Design
Generally, you can get a wood-burning stove in one of three designs. These designs are:
- The traditional design: Stoves in this category are large and free-standing, well-vented, don’t have blowers, and have big fireboxes. Due to the size of the firebox, they generate a lot of flames. But on the downside, most of the heat gets lost due to the lack of blowers.
- Modern design: These may be free-standing or can fit into your home’s fireplace. Like the traditional design, they have large fireboxes, but they also have blowers for increasing the heat output. There’s typically a vent at the top and back, and a ceramic glass window on the front for watching the fire. Because they are made with lightweight materials, they are typically lighter than traditional models.
- Portable design: These are suitable for camping and other outdoor uses. Most of them are smaller and lighter than traditional and modern designs and are ideal for cooking. They burn less fuel and require minimal assembly. But because most of them release smoke and have open flames, they aren’t suitable for indoor use.
Construction
Top-quality wood-burning stoves are made with either steel or cast iron. Both are durable and great heat conductors, but cast-iron stoves are typically pricier. They also require more maintenance and can be more cumbersome.
Budget
How much are you willing to spend on a stove?
If you’re on a budget, go for an option that offers all the features you need without exceeding your budget.