What wood burning insert for a !! large !! existing fireplace?

I started down this road once before & couldn't find good information about wood-burning inserts. Found this site & have learned a lot, but still have not found a posting that addresses my particular problem/question after a few searches.

Does anyone offer really wide surrounds/backing plates for wood-burning inserts, or offer custom surrounds/backing plates?

Our problem is we have an extraordinarily wide existing fireplace that we wanted to install an insert in--63" wide x 30" high by ~24" deep. Masonry firebox, rough fieldstone facing floor to ceiling with a wide (& long) raised hearth, internal single floor chimney (<25 feet as a guess).

The house is a 1963 open plan single floor post & beam contemporary, so the insert would serve to heat the one big area that includes kitchen/lr/dr/entrance (only less than ceiling height partitions separate about 1200 sf total) complete with lots of single pane glass. (The kid bedrooms are a separate wing, down a long hall; the master & office are also a separate "box" ...) We wanted a flush mount rather than a stove so that the existing hearth could be used (it should just make the 16" req. with a flush mount...) and because the living room would work better without a stove jutting out into it.

A local dealer we visited today has Hampton or Regency but I see a 53" backing plate as the largest size they offer---which they consider oversize with the larger insert. He also had Lopi, and the largest size is 53 3/8". Jotul offers a maximum 48" so far as I can see.

If not a larger backing plate, does anyone have ideas for a non-destructive work-around?

(Pics & more accurate measurements to follow, once some construction materials are moved out of the way...)

Cheers,
Dean

SethB2 said:

BeGreen said:

Welcome Dean. A custom surround extension can be made out of stiff sheetmetal (22ga) and painted black. It can be edge-trimmed with standard metal photo/picture framing which comes in a variety of finishes.

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I would advise something a little heavier than 22 ga. On an opening that is 63" wide, that sheet metal is going to span a larger than normal distance. If I were making it, I would use 16 ga.

my two cents anyway ..

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You guys are fast & helpful! Agree with the idea of a little heavier metal...& the suggestion of photo framing is a great idea!

It would probably help me if I had already done an install, but would the normal procedure be to fit stove/ attach liner & then slide the surround into place behind using the stove to trap it against the stone facing, or would the surround need to have some attachments on the backside?

Looking at the Lopi, their surround seems to be made in 3 pieces top & 2 sides--is this for ease of shipping or ease of install?

Thanks,
dean

Thanks to all for their suggestions----I've been offline for a few days & came back to find lots of ideas.

If I went the stove in firebox route, I guess one issue would be height -- I'm assuming that the stove would need to sit up on its legs.

Second thought would be getting it back far enough to ensure that I can get the 16"--the size of the chunk of stone they used for the raised hearth makes me tired just looking at it & I'd hate to have to add/remove or change...

Some of the stoves I've seen also double as inserts. Is the distinction merely a semantic one, or does having the open space around a "stove in firebox" setup make for more efficient heating?

Cheers,
dean

(Pics to follow--today's project was humping the new wall oven home & getting it unloaded by myself without dropping it... have to say I was really impressed with Yellow Freight & their customer service...)

Sorry to bring this thread back from the dead, but we have gone for a full year without making a decision, & the cold weather is starting.

Many things have conspired in our renovation to keep this back-burnered (if that's not too bad of a pun...)

Coming back to this problem of the huge firebox, & now facing an even smaller budget, I'm starting to think the stove in fireplace idea is a good one. New Clydesdale is not possible; I missed one used that I could have afforded, and the only other is one on CL local that they are asking $2500 for--still a little steep for us.

Now, when I look at used stoves around here (Lower Hudson Valley/Metro NY) I see lots of used Vermont Castings Defiants (and others)--but many seem to date from the late 70s/early 80s in various states of reconditioned-ness. Better than Bens are cheap but plug-ugly. Occasional Jotuls, too. But the bigger problem is that I have no stove experience and couldn't tell a good one from a bad one unless it was really obvious, like the door no longer closed. So I've been thinking new, but more modest.

What I have seen that looks interesting is a couple of new Quadra Fire Cumberlands--one on CL ($1650 w/o handles), one on eBay (Long Island, so striking distance--$1850) and a couple that Sleepy posted on this forum (western Penn, but do-able). My thinking is I could set it back a little & use the side loading, since I should have room even if it is partially inside the old firebox. Then that solves my 16" issue as well...

So I have a lot of questions, but the first one is--if we are planning on this stove as supplemental heat mainly in the "great room" (lr/dr/kitchen/entrance--probably closer to 1400 sf than the 1200 I guesstimated--& still all single pane glass) will the Cumberland be enough stove? Since I first posted, I have checked--the chimney is a single round flue that is about 24" across & the damper ledge may allow the 6" pipe to clear without a problem. (I took pictures-but can't find them--probably on the other computer.)

And I would love to hear from someone with experience with them...

Cheers,
Dean