Opel III thermostat and other installation question

[annb]

Hi there. We are in the process of installing our new Opel III fireplace with the central heat option. We did not intend to purchase a thermostat and even discussed it with the dealer, but we have one anyway.

Now, we're trying to decide whether to install the central heat option with the thermostat or without it. Does anyone have experience with the thermostat? How well does it work? It seems like it would be a nice feature, but it seems like some people think it's too touchy. Does anyone have it and like it?

Also, if we were to go with the manual control for now, how difficult would it be to add it later? That probably depends on how we trim out the unit, I'd guess. What if we installed the drywall, and cement board but waited for the stone work?

Finally, what happens when the fire dies down and there isn't much wood? Would the thermostat still run the blower?

Also, we're wondering about how to handle the spark guard when you have an un-level floor. We thought we would just level the unit, but when I got ready to install the spark guard, I realize there's a gap on the left side of about 3/4". Is there a good way to handle that?

Thanks.

 

[LLigetfa]

I had wired in a thermostat in my former home but it didn't really work well. We gave up on it and cranked it so it would never shut off. When I built my current home I didn't bother with one. I also reversed the direction of air flow. In my former home I was drawing hot air out the top of the stove. You cannot safely filter hot air so it just blew dust all over the house.

Now I push cold air up into the bottom of the stove. Cold air is easier to move than hot air and there's no heat loss in the duct. I built a filter housing for the fan and filter the cold air before sending it to the stove. I use a washable pre-filter and a 3M Filtrete fine particulate post-filter.

 

[LLigetfa]

Finally, what happens when the fire dies down and there isn't much wood? Would the thermostat still run the blower?

The blower kit comes with a snap disk temperature sensor that won't let the blower turn on until the stove is up to temp and it shuts off the blower after the fire goes out and the stove cools. The wall thermostat runs in series with the snap disk.

What we didn't like about the wall thermostat the temperature in the room with the stove is affected by it. When blower ran it sucked heat out of the room. When it didn't run the heat shot up. I put a variable speed control on the blower and ran the blower constantly.

 

[burnt2perfection]

Since you have the thermostat already, you may as well install it. If you are not happy with how it works you can always just turn it all the way up like LLigetfa mentioned. As far as the spark gaurd? Level your floor properly or make a custom spark gaurd that will give you the proper coverage.