Oil Stove Basics

Q: What can you tell me about electricity-free oil stoves? I’m starting to hear more about them and I’m curious. How large are these units? How do they vent the exhaust? Where can you buy them? They aren’t carried in any home improvement stores I’ve visited.

A: I don’t have an oil stove in my home, but a few of my friends do. Everyone says they’re great. Most operate off a gravity-fed supply of furnace oil, so they don’t need electricity so they’re black-out proof. They look very much like a woodstove and use a 5 or 6-inch diameter chimney. I’ve never heard of any direct-vent models that send exhaust gases through a wall pipe, probably because one main selling feature is the hydro-free operation. A direct vent system would require an electric blower fan. Oil stoves are new enough that they’re still unknown to many store clerks, but the technology is reliable and mature. Do a Google search on “oil stoves” and you’ll find all the leads you need.