Ok, I have no idea if this is the right area or not so here goes:
We currently have a Procom ventfree fireplace in our dining room as a backup to the woodstove. It doesn't get used much, but it's there just in case. It's not bad looking, but...I always liked the looks of the older parlor stoves. I'd buy a Thelin if we had the $$. I've found a few older, smaller parlor type stoves for sale and was thinking about retrofitting ventfree logs into one (without really looking into it, some look like you could feed the line in via the ash drawer and up so you don't have to actually damage the stove in the process). The problem is-how on earth do I figure out how far to put it from the walls? Most ventfree units are pretty close clearance wise, ours is basically 0 clearance (there's a mantel around the actual "fireplace" portion). I don't have a ton of room in there, but I think it would look better than the fireplace. We needed something for this winter so I didn't have a lot of time to shop around and consider this earlier. Now I can take my time and find just the right unit-assuming DH wants to play along, lol. He likes the fireplace. Of course this might take a few years to find the right stove and fix it up, so by then he might get bored by it anyway.
We currently have a Procom ventfree fireplace in our dining room as a backup to the woodstove. It doesn't get used much, but it's there just in case. It's not bad looking, but...I always liked the looks of the older parlor stoves. I'd buy a Thelin if we had the $$. I've found a few older, smaller parlor type stoves for sale and was thinking about retrofitting ventfree logs into one (without really looking into it, some look like you could feed the line in via the ash drawer and up so you don't have to actually damage the stove in the process). The problem is-how on earth do I figure out how far to put it from the walls? Most ventfree units are pretty close clearance wise, ours is basically 0 clearance (there's a mantel around the actual "fireplace" portion). I don't have a ton of room in there, but I think it would look better than the fireplace. We needed something for this winter so I didn't have a lot of time to shop around and consider this earlier. Now I can take my time and find just the right unit-assuming DH wants to play along, lol. He likes the fireplace. Of course this might take a few years to find the right stove and fix it up, so by then he might get bored by it anyway.
