Hello all, been lurking here for awhile and decided to post today with my first project.
The propane bills are killing me. Just filled up for the SECOND time this winter, he left with a $1,700 check . . . price has gone from $1.39/gal to $2.19/gal since November. I'll have this tank burned through by end of February.
First a little background. House is approx 4,800sqft, built in 1890 but has been added onto several times. There is a single 70,000BTU propane furnace to heat the entire place. Obviously that is grossly undersized for this much square footage. It pretty much runs 24/7 when it gets really cold out. The rear 1/2 of the house downstairs has pretty good pressure in the vents and it stays pretty warm. Front 1/2 of the house has almost no vent pressure, heat just barely seeps out and it's pretty chilly in there, maybe 15* cooler than the rest of the house.
We have a steel fireplace insert, pictures are attached. Unfortunately it doesn't do a very good job of heating the place. Honestly I think sometimes it makes the place colder due to the negative draft.
Wanting to replace this with a wood stove insert, something that can put out some serious BTU's and actually provide some decent heating capacity. I've called around a bit, and have been told by some that the existing fireplace can NOT be removed, and whatever insert I buy has to fit inside the existing fireplace. Others claim they can remove the old one entirely, and replace with a more efficient model. Prices have ranged from $3,500 to $5,000. The prices don't scare me much . . . I'm already paying $6,000 per year in propane, if I can reduce that by even 1/3 I'll have the new stove paid for in just a few winters.
Looking here for suggestions & advice. Pictures below. I appreciate any input and I'm open to any suggestions. Most local dealers I have spoken to (brands include Jotul, Buckstove, Lennox) have offered, based on my measurements, inserts rated at around 1,500sqft, that can fit inside the existing insert. I really want something with more heat output than that, minimum 2,000sqft rating, or more if possible. Something in the 50,000btu/hr range. Keep in mind no one has been on-site yet to check things out, all my dealings with local dealers has just been over the phone. I'm sure some opinions will change once they see my setup.
Corn/pellet stoves are out for me. I'm really only interested in woodburning units. I have a crapload of cord wood laying around right now, and plenty more to cut & split. We live in a rural area and have tons of access to free firewood, just takes a little elbow grease . . .
Here's the fireplace from the front. Doors measure 35" across, plus another 9" on each side for the blower vents. Insert is 23" high, 18" deep to the heat exchanger, if that could be removed you could get another 3" in depth. Entire wall this is installed in is done in flagstone (field stones)
Here's the inside of the firebox. Yes I know it's filthy we haven't had it swept in over a year. When we moved in, the rear wall was an accordion-style piece of metal, acted as the heat exchanger for the blower. It was rusted and full of holes, and blew smoke & ash into the room like crazy when we turned it on. I had a few people come out & take a look, none of them recognized the brand of fireplace or blower. One offered to fix it buy screwing on a piece of stainless steel and sealing up the edges with some high-temp putty. It works OK but the fans are weak and don't blow much air. Plus, with the additional piece of steel covering the exchanger it takes a heckuva fire to get it to put out much heat.
There is a pipe coming in from the right side, under the fire grate, running along the entire width of the firebox. I assume it is a propane lighter. There's a key on the wall to the right of the fireplace to turn it on. Doesn't work. Pretty sure the piping that used to fuel this is long gone.
Here's a pic up top towards the flu opening.
Another pic of the flu itself. Steel going up the chimney is 8" diameter.
Here's another pic angled up towards the side. Hard to see due to the lighting but the walls on either side have kindof a lip on the top, with another 2 1/2" or so clearance to the part that angles up towards the flu. These are the ducts attached to the blowers on either side.
The propane bills are killing me. Just filled up for the SECOND time this winter, he left with a $1,700 check . . . price has gone from $1.39/gal to $2.19/gal since November. I'll have this tank burned through by end of February.
First a little background. House is approx 4,800sqft, built in 1890 but has been added onto several times. There is a single 70,000BTU propane furnace to heat the entire place. Obviously that is grossly undersized for this much square footage. It pretty much runs 24/7 when it gets really cold out. The rear 1/2 of the house downstairs has pretty good pressure in the vents and it stays pretty warm. Front 1/2 of the house has almost no vent pressure, heat just barely seeps out and it's pretty chilly in there, maybe 15* cooler than the rest of the house.
We have a steel fireplace insert, pictures are attached. Unfortunately it doesn't do a very good job of heating the place. Honestly I think sometimes it makes the place colder due to the negative draft.
Wanting to replace this with a wood stove insert, something that can put out some serious BTU's and actually provide some decent heating capacity. I've called around a bit, and have been told by some that the existing fireplace can NOT be removed, and whatever insert I buy has to fit inside the existing fireplace. Others claim they can remove the old one entirely, and replace with a more efficient model. Prices have ranged from $3,500 to $5,000. The prices don't scare me much . . . I'm already paying $6,000 per year in propane, if I can reduce that by even 1/3 I'll have the new stove paid for in just a few winters.
Looking here for suggestions & advice. Pictures below. I appreciate any input and I'm open to any suggestions. Most local dealers I have spoken to (brands include Jotul, Buckstove, Lennox) have offered, based on my measurements, inserts rated at around 1,500sqft, that can fit inside the existing insert. I really want something with more heat output than that, minimum 2,000sqft rating, or more if possible. Something in the 50,000btu/hr range. Keep in mind no one has been on-site yet to check things out, all my dealings with local dealers has just been over the phone. I'm sure some opinions will change once they see my setup.
Corn/pellet stoves are out for me. I'm really only interested in woodburning units. I have a crapload of cord wood laying around right now, and plenty more to cut & split. We live in a rural area and have tons of access to free firewood, just takes a little elbow grease . . .
Here's the fireplace from the front. Doors measure 35" across, plus another 9" on each side for the blower vents. Insert is 23" high, 18" deep to the heat exchanger, if that could be removed you could get another 3" in depth. Entire wall this is installed in is done in flagstone (field stones)
Here's the inside of the firebox. Yes I know it's filthy we haven't had it swept in over a year. When we moved in, the rear wall was an accordion-style piece of metal, acted as the heat exchanger for the blower. It was rusted and full of holes, and blew smoke & ash into the room like crazy when we turned it on. I had a few people come out & take a look, none of them recognized the brand of fireplace or blower. One offered to fix it buy screwing on a piece of stainless steel and sealing up the edges with some high-temp putty. It works OK but the fans are weak and don't blow much air. Plus, with the additional piece of steel covering the exchanger it takes a heckuva fire to get it to put out much heat.
There is a pipe coming in from the right side, under the fire grate, running along the entire width of the firebox. I assume it is a propane lighter. There's a key on the wall to the right of the fireplace to turn it on. Doesn't work. Pretty sure the piping that used to fuel this is long gone.
Here's a pic up top towards the flu opening.
Another pic of the flu itself. Steel going up the chimney is 8" diameter.
Here's another pic angled up towards the side. Hard to see due to the lighting but the walls on either side have kindof a lip on the top, with another 2 1/2" or so clearance to the part that angles up towards the flu. These are the ducts attached to the blowers on either side.