Hello! My last thread was accidentally deleted. We have almost 3,800 sq. ft, a 2 story farmhouse, built in 1993, with the antique mantle around a brick fireplace that was converted to a gas insert. When I first posted we were originally thinking we would put in a wood stove insert... We are 'newbies' and received a lot of great advise and tips on here!! Thanks all!
With the size of the fireplace opening and how close the wood mantel is to the brick, we can not really get anything in there. What we can fit, will not do much for heat. We decided to explore the option of a free standing wood stove. The fireplace opening is very low, so that limits what type of rear venting ones we can look at. So, now the question was... Can we tap into the chimney? There is a 3 ft section of wall between the top of the mantel and the ceiling. That way, there would also be more stove pipe in the house.
So, we were able to meet with a Buck stove dealer and a Pacific Energy dealer (this one also is a chimney sweep) over the weekend. The Buck guy said he would in no way recommend tapping into the chimney, that it could weaken the chimney. He wanted to pipe it straight up and through the 2nd floor and out the roof. But yet, he showed us a picture of one his company had done. The Pacific Energy guy said yes, it can be done. Mixed signals here
I called a brick mason that I found in our area and asked him today. He says yes, it can be done, if done correctly. I have sent pictures and he will call back and come out and take a look.
Has anyone here tapped into an existing chimney? We will close off the firebox opening. How was it done and how is it holding up now?
As far as which stove to go with... we are still deciding. We will see how much the brick mason will charge, maybe get a 2nd bid. Someone suggested the Equinox 8000 but that is pricey! Looks like a real good one! The Kuma Sequoia and a couple Quadrafires are on our list also. We basically are looking at what will heat the most square feet. When we first started this adventure, we just wanted to cut down on our propane bill... if we are going to invest in this we might as well do it right.
With the size of the fireplace opening and how close the wood mantel is to the brick, we can not really get anything in there. What we can fit, will not do much for heat. We decided to explore the option of a free standing wood stove. The fireplace opening is very low, so that limits what type of rear venting ones we can look at. So, now the question was... Can we tap into the chimney? There is a 3 ft section of wall between the top of the mantel and the ceiling. That way, there would also be more stove pipe in the house.
So, we were able to meet with a Buck stove dealer and a Pacific Energy dealer (this one also is a chimney sweep) over the weekend. The Buck guy said he would in no way recommend tapping into the chimney, that it could weaken the chimney. He wanted to pipe it straight up and through the 2nd floor and out the roof. But yet, he showed us a picture of one his company had done. The Pacific Energy guy said yes, it can be done. Mixed signals here
I called a brick mason that I found in our area and asked him today. He says yes, it can be done, if done correctly. I have sent pictures and he will call back and come out and take a look. Has anyone here tapped into an existing chimney? We will close off the firebox opening. How was it done and how is it holding up now?
As far as which stove to go with... we are still deciding. We will see how much the brick mason will charge, maybe get a 2nd bid. Someone suggested the Equinox 8000 but that is pricey! Looks like a real good one! The Kuma Sequoia and a couple Quadrafires are on our list also. We basically are looking at what will heat the most square feet. When we first started this adventure, we just wanted to cut down on our propane bill... if we are going to invest in this we might as well do it right.
How about ripping the wood off, then you can pick from any number of inserts...but I guess you've already considered this and it's a non-starter.
