undecided after much research - wood stove / hp fireplace?

[fireplacenoob]

after doing a couple hours of research on hearth and other sites I still cannot decide what to install. Some details about the location and home:

Southern Michigan, new construction
1200 sqft first floor
1600 sqft second floor, only 2 story foyer is at the entrance
The house just got framed, I have a full size chimney all the way up. I know someone that had a FPX36 and swears by it, which I am considering. I have a friend that has a wood burning stove and he swears by that, though he has a tiny ranch. Really, I dont want to "waste" the chimney space, want something that can keep at least my first floor warm during the day. The big concern I have with the FPX36 is if the power goes out, there is no blower, which the FPX36 heavily relies on for moving heat.

Your thoughts? Chimney opening is located in the living room, open floor plan to kitchen/nook. Would a wood burning stove function at its fullest being somewhat half in the fireplace half out?

Thanks everyone for your time, excited but intimidated by all the options.

 

[weatherguy]

after doing a couple hours of research on hearth and other sites I still cannot decide what to install. Some details about the location and home:

Southern Michigan, new construction
1200 sqft first floor
1600 sqft second floor, only 2 story foyer is at the entrance
The house just got framed, I have a full size chimney all the way up. I know someone that had a FPX36 and swears by it, which I am considering. I have a friend that has a wood burning stove and he swears by that, though he has a tiny ranch. Really, I dont want to "waste" the chimney space, want something that can keep at least my first floor warm during the day. The big concern I have with the FPX36 is if the power goes out, there is no blower, which the FPX36 heavily relies on for moving heat.

Your thoughts? Chimney opening is located in the living room, open floor plan to kitchen/nook. Would a wood burning stove function at its fullest being somewhat half in the fireplace half out?

Thanks everyone for your time, excited but intimidated by all the options.

Why don;t you build the hearth out a little bit more so the stove can be all the way out, my hearth is 18-19" and the majority of the stove is out in the room.

 

[fireplacenoob]

i was debating of having the chimney exposed all the way up to the ceiling (9ft ceiling) so the wood stove is inserted into the chimney and the pipe is at least exposed for that 9 feet. see pic.

 

[Grisu]

What do you mean with "chimney" that is already built? A full masonry chimney, a wooden chase, a steel flue/stove pipe, ...? Pics would be great.

If you are concerned about backup heat when the power goes out then a freestanding stove will work better than a zero clearance fireplace. If you don't have a preference for the fireplace look, I would suggest going for a freestanding stove. That will give you more radiant heat, be cheaper, and easier to repair/replace to name a few advantages.

For that size house I would go for a larger unit. Since it is new I recommend looking at catalytic stoves like the BlazeKing Ashford/Sirocco/Chinook 30 or the Woodstock Progress Hybrid or Ideal Steel. Those will allow better heat regulation and more even heat output. For an airtight home, an outside air kit (OAK) is highly recommended.

Make sure to have dry wood with an internal moisture content of less than 20% for burning or you will have trouble with any modern EPA-approved stove or fireplace.

 

[fireplacenoob]

Chimney already built wasnt too clear,what I have is a framed wooden chase which I will dress with brick on the exterior, and if you see my pic above, potentially the first floor inside of the chase/chimney to look nice. I would have to pipe all the way up and out.

 

[jeff_t]

How wide is that opening?

 

[fireplacenoob]

52" wide x 26" deep, height is ceiling 9ft I have not boxed it in yet.

 

[Lumber-Jack]

Would a wood burning stove function at its fullest being somewhat half in the fireplace half out?

With a wood stove in there what you have would properly be called an "Alcove", and I think they can look pretty sharp if done right. Here are some pictures.
I personally would far prefer a wood stove in an alcove to a fireplace.
The taller and more open your alcove the better heating efficiency you'll get out of the stove. And since you are still framing this thing it would be a good idea to build in some sort of fan in the wall behind the stove to blow the heat out into the room, then you could probably skip having any sort of built in blower on the stove itself.

 

[fireplacenoob]

Wow that can look sharp.. great advice. As far as heat performance a average wood burning vs pfx36 considering the wood stove being in an alcove

 

[Grisu]

Often higher clearances are needed for an alcove install. I suggest looking at some potential stoves first and then determine how wide you want to make the alcove. The bricks will look nice but unless stated otherwise in the manual of the stove they won't reduce clearances. They can actually make it harder because when the wall behind them is combustible you will actually lose clearance to the wall. With a stove at 30" width you will look at only 11" side clearance for an alcove; that can get tight.

Wow that can look sharp.. great advice. As far as heat performance a average wood burning vs pfx36 considering the wood stove being in an alcove

If you get a stove with similar firebox size heating performance may be slightly better. You won't need a blower and you will feel more radiant heat. The effect may be most noticeable during startups when the stove will throw heat before the fireplace.

 

[begreen]

52" wide x 26" deep, height is ceiling 9ft I have not boxed it in yet.

This is what would be called an alcove install. You'll want a close clearance stove for this space. Be sure that it's alcove approved. With new construction it may not need to be a very large stove. How well insulated will the walls and attic be? What is the ceiling height throughout? Has the primary heating system been designed and if so, what will be its output in btus/hr?

PS: Can you add your general location to your avatar loc?

 

[fireplacenoob]

The house has 2x6 exterior walls, will be blown in cellulos, andersen 400 windows, the fireplace section will be spray foam because of 2x4 wood chase. Attic will be blown insulation w.e the local requirements are. I believe its r40.

I still need to get specs on furnace.

ceiling height first floor all 9ft. There is the entrance foyer which is 2 story. Upstairs is 8ft ceiling.

 

[begreen]

Is the goal 24/7 heating with wood or more like nights and weekend burning?

 

[fireplacenoob]

Nights weekends. More supplemental heat unless this thing can really output.

 

[begreen]

Where are you located? Can you add this to your profile so that it shows up in your avatar?

Either setup should be able to heat quite well. How well it will heat will depend on the floor plan, stove size, wood quality and the operator.

 

[begreen]

If there are side rooms that need heat, but are closed off from the main open area, a ducted ZC fireplace can be nice for heat distribution. If you can post a sketch of the floor plan we can comment on this option. Note that if you are in an area with frequent long power outages, a freestanding stove may have an advantage here.

 

[fireplacenoob]

Ill update avatar once im on my pc. Im located in southeast michigan.

 

[jeff_t]

Im located in southeast michigan.

Whereabouts? I'm south of Ann Arbor.

 

[fireplacenoob]

Saline area send me pm

 

[fireplacenoob]

floor plan

 

[Grisu]

Not a bad placement for the lower floor. Large open area and the stairwell/foyer not too far. Some of the rooms in the upper floor could be a challenge like the bonus room or the master bath. What will be your conventional heating source?

 

[fireplacenoob]

traditional furnace with zoning control built in (two thermostats that control a servo flap of sorts to distribute heat where needed). Debating if I put a furnace in attic and one in basement... or just one larger with zoning.

 

[fireplacenoob]

Clearances on the sides are going to be a concern, right now the opening is 52" wide, if I add veneer or brick that will take it to roughly 44" wide opening, leaving little room on each side. Anyone know some reputable "alcove" stoves or close clearance stoves?

 

[Grisu]

Clearances on the sides are going to be a concern, right now the opening is 52" wide, if I add veneer or brick that will take it to roughly 44" wide opening, leaving little room on each side. Anyone know some reputable "alcove" stoves or close clearance stoves?

That will be really tough. 10" side clearance is about the lowest I remember for a medium-size stove (Napoleon 1400, I think) and that was not an alcove installation. That would leave you with only 24" for the stove itself which would be a smaller medium-size stove at best.

 

[begreen]

Depending on how warm you like it for sleeping I would consider a different ZC fireplace that can be ducted and pipe some heat up to the upstairs hallway and master bedroom. Bedroom 4 and the bonus room will need supplemental heating regardless, but that could help heat the upstairs nicely. A 44" opening will accommodate a Kozy Z42 and RSF Opel3.