Review: Lopi Republic 1250
Reviewed December 11, 2019 by
North Woods
Overall Performance:
Efficiency:
Ease of Use:
Lopi Republic 1250
I put this stove in a new 1150 square foot house with full basement and attached garage in fall 2019.
6 inches wetblown cellulose in walls and 20 inches dry blown in attic.
Lots of double glazed glass windows on main level (10, 4’x5’ sliding windows)
Basement walls (one half wall exposed) with 6 inch bats and 4, 3’x 4’ sliding windows.
One wall between house and garage is 6 inch bat.
I have been heating the house with wood only since September (maple and dome basswood).
The chimney height is 15 feet and has two 45 degree bends in the 6 inch double wall section in the living room.
The stove has the optional outside air kit installed with about 3.5 feet of 3 inch vent (as supplied Max was four feet as I recall). There are several 90 degree and other bends in the supply due to the location through the rim joist below the deck to preclude having to clear the opening of snow.
The stove drafts excellently, especially when chimney is hot but even cold smoke seldom enters room.
One problem with wood stoves is getting them too big. A large stove requires more wood to keep it going without a lot of fiddling with it, especially if the wood is not perfectly dry. If it is too large for the house then it’s too hot.
Conversely if the stove is too small then you have to constellations add wood and keep it burning at a high output condition to keep the house warm.
My only experience prior to this was with a Lopo liberty or endeavor, cannot recall which, but whatever it was it was the next size up from the Republic☹️
It was in a well insulated 1600 sf house in a place averaging 5 degrees warmer temps than this on which in in Michigans upper peninsula.
So, how does it do?
It’s 9 below outside this morning and it is quite comfortable in the house.
I keep it warm in the living room because I like to lounge around in my sweat pants an tee shirt.
78 degrees is comfortable in LRm, and rest of house stays in mid 70’s with nothing more than ceiling fan in room with stove. Perfect for me.
Even at outside temps of 20’s the stove is not too hot, but just add one log every hour to two hours to maintain temp and ease of burn (minimal fiddling with wood in stove).
In my experience you can get the 5-7 hour burn but it is not easy to do nor does it put out much heat with damper cut way back. Wood must be very dry also. I cut and split and stacked trees that were down two years. But uncovered. They were wet when cut/split/stacked in garage late fall due to construction limitations. Next year it will have more time to dry, but a stove that can handle less than perfect wood is highly desirable in my view because thats life.
As to need for a bypass damper, I have found that this is unnecessary if you just crack the door during start up and until you get a good bed of coals.
This is inefficient but in most cases it only takes some dry kindling and 15/20 minutes to get a cold stove going. I use a propane torch with map gas.
You purists can mock all you want but this is most efficient and fastest way to get it going and I never run the propane furnace unless I have to.
Overall I would rate the stove highly. I don’t give out fives because there are things that would make this stove better but I don’t think anyone makes one this size any better. Easy and efficient to operate. Nice viewing glass, wide temperature range of operation, logs are smaller but still large enough to burn 1-3 hours with out adding wood once stove and house are up to desired temp.
I would buy another one. Look replaced the viewing glass because the edges of the original were scored during installation and this creates stress cracks in glass after firing it up.
Look also keeps parts available to replace heat tubes which doo wear out. My brothers larger stove wore them out in 10 years of heavy use.
If you really use a stove for primary heat, buy the best you can get.
You will be glad you did.