We are now window shopping and looking for advice

[lowroadacres]

In the spirit of planning ahead I am now going to open up the floor for suggestions as to what to do with our existing fireplace. I have asked before but now I will actually give details. We also need to admit to ourselves and to others that money is not available right now for this project but we want to be ready when we can put the coin together.

The opening, at the base is 31 inches. The height, at the center of the arch, is 28 inches. The depth of the firebox, with the existing fireplace metal in place, is 22 inches.

Here are some of our non-negotiables..... It has to heat a minimum 1500 square feet. We want as much glass as possible. The blower should be relatively easy to access for repair or replacement. We want to stick with EPA but non catalytic for simplicity's sake as we will have multiple operators taking care of the insert firing.

Ideally we would like to avoid cutting away any of the arched brickwork. We would also like to retain some element, if not all, of the arched look.

We know we will need to extend the floor clearance with tile or a fireproof surface. We also plan on installing a stainless steel insulated liner
Advise away fellow Hearth.com forum members.

 

[tickbitty]

Wow, that's really pretty. Is that a true masonry fireplace or is there some kind of prefab one in there?
If you could find something like "fireplace xtraordinaire" that would fit in there it would look almost the same as it does right now!
http://www.fireplacex.com/product_guide/wood_fireplaces.aspx
Or, the Regency Warm hearth stoves, etc. I don't think any of those have a complete arch like yours though.
If you can't do one of those, I would do one that does not have a surround, so that your pretty arch would still show. Like Dr.Doct's avatar on here. That wouldn't be as much glass though.

If you could fit a pretty Jotul up there, that would look nice.

 

[lowroadacres]

I should have stated that yes, their is some form of metal fireplace built in to the masonry. Cutting it out will be an adventure.

 

[Todd]

A hearth stove like a Jotul would look great there.

 

[branchburner]

I agree, a hearth stove would be nice. That's a great fireplace, but I can't picture an insert doing it justice - if you were going to keep the arch, it would have to be a custom surround, and the insert would have to be pretty small, no?

 

[tickbitty]

This one is Drdoct's. Only one I can recall seeing on here lately with a big arch.

 

[firefighterjake]

Very nice brickwork . . . don't blame you for wanting to keep that intact if possible. I think in this case a nice hearth-mounted stove would be wicked nice.

I almost forgot . . . I'm a bit partial to Jotuls, but I think a nice cast iron stove would look good . . . or perhaps a Hearthstone soapstone stove (normally I might suggest Woodstock, but it sounds as though you don't want a cat stove . . . although I have to say from the cat users here it sounds as though they're really not that much of a challenge to operate . . . at least no more so than running a secondary combustion stove.)

 

[FireAnt]

I agree with a hearth-mount. It would compliment the room nicely, and throw some good heat around the room.

 

[begreen]

When I saw that beautiful fireplace, my first thought was, so now I understand why you are heating with the Drolet. That is a really nice fireplace. It deserves special care to not mess with the look. But the problem is the height. Most stoves are not going to clear unless the legs are shortened. And they are not going to heat as well when in that deep cavity without a blower. It will take some critical measuring, but the F400 with legs shortened might work.

Here is a little teaser eye candy for your window shopping dreams.

 

[FireAnt]

When I saw that beautiful fireplace, my first thought was, so now I understand why you are heating with the Drolet. That is a really nice fireplace. It deserves special care to not mess with the look. But the problem is the height. Most stoves are not going to clear unless the legs are shortened. And they are not going to heat as well when in that deep cavity without a blower. It will take some critical measuring, but the F400 with legs shortened might work.

Here is a little teaser eye candy for your window shopping dreams.

NICE!!

 

[branchburner]

That looks awesome but... BG, I think you shrunk the Jotul.

 

[tickbitty]

That looks awesome but... BG, I think you shrunk the Jotul.

It's shrunk, but it would probably fit. With the regular legs it's 29" tall so I assume it would be a couple inches shorter with the short leg kit, and that would put it just under the 28" height of the arch?

 

[begreen]

Sounds like a good title for a Hearth.com movie.

Honey, I shrunk the Jotul!

 

[tickbitty]

Jotul should consider making a legless hearth stove/insert that looks just like that though. No legs, but shroud the back so it can extend into the fireplace a little and exit up the top/rear. With that look, just like the front of the regular Jotul stoves, but the lower clearances of a hearth stove insert (like Lopi, Country, or Regency makes) it would be a sure winner for them. Look on the "inserts without surrounds" thread and imagine how nice some of ours would look with that pretty gothic arch!

 

[branchburner]

That looks awesome but... BG, I think you shrunk the Jotul.

It's shrunk, but it would probably fit. With the regular legs it's 29" tall so I assume it would be a couple inches shorter with the short leg kit, and that would put it just under the 28" height of the arch?

But 28" is at the peak of the arch - what about 13-14" from center?

If the hearth is extended, no reason the stove has to fit into the opening - the more that's out, the better the heat, anyway.

 

[tickbitty]

That looks awesome but... BG, I think you shrunk the Jotul.

It's shrunk, but it would probably fit. With the regular legs it's 29" tall so I assume it would be a couple inches shorter with the short leg kit, and that would put it just under the 28" height of the arch?

But 28" is at the peak of the arch - what about 13-14" from center?

If the hearth is extended, no reason the stove has to fit into the opening - the more that's out, the better the heat, anyway.

Right, but it still needs enough room under that arch for the exit is all.

 

[branchburner]

I thought BG was trying to shrink that Jotul down enough that it would fit in under the arch. But if all you need is 28" for a rear vent, heck, you can fit my Oakwood there! Can you work your magic again, BG?
http://www.metrohouseoffire.com/images/harman_oakwood_ktwb.jpg

 

[begreen]

That looks awesome but... BG, I think you shrunk the Jotul.

It's shrunk, but it would probably fit. With the regular legs it's 29" tall so I assume it would be a couple inches shorter with the short leg kit, and that would put it just under the 28" height of the arch?

But 28" is at the peak of the arch - what about 13-14" from center?

If the hearth is extended, no reason the stove has to fit into the opening - the more that's out, the better the heat, anyway.

Right, but it still needs enough room under that arch for the exit is all.

That's why I showed the stove partially out on the hearth. I don't think it will clear the arch at the corners, but the stove slopes down in back, so part of the back could fit under the arch. It will take some close measuring to determine this. I do like the way the Castine's door curve echoes the curve of the arched fireplace though.

 

[madison]

Agree with the hearth stove, but you may find that removing the prefab may not be that big of a job for a pro, especially if that is an outside wall. Nonetheless you will need to extend the front protection (onto the cool looking wood floors) for a hearth stove.

We had a similar arched brick fireplace, though masonry, in our old house, and ended up covering it with stone and using an insert (gas). It at one time had a VC Winterwarm wood insert, (the surround covered the arch), wife wanted stone and the convenience of gas, so that is what she got.

 

[lowroadacres]

Wow. Keep the suggestions coming.

One of the things we have considered is a custom shroud that would follow the archway line at least at the top of the insert.

We would consider a hearth stove but given the layout of the room we are hoping to lose as little room space as possible.

I say this tongue in cheek but if a stove manufacturer wanted to test drive a new hearth stove design or a new low profile insert I would welcome the chance to turn our log home into a photo opportunity for their new brochure.

I wouldn't even charge a manufacturer anything for the privilege

Thank-you for the compliments on the flooring which I will pass onto my bride. She was the mind behind choosing that pattern and she did the install.

 

[tickbitty]

Wow. Keep the suggestions coming.

One of the things we have considered is a custom shroud that would follow the archway line at least at the top of the insert.

We would consider a hearth stove but given the layout of the room we are hoping to lose as little room space as possible.

I say this tongue in cheek but if a stove manufacturer wanted to test drive a new hearth stove design or a new low profile insert I would welcome the chance to turn our log home into a photo opportunity for their new brochure.

I wouldn't even charge a manufacturer anything for the privilege

Thank-you for the compliments on the flooring which I will pass onto my bride. She was the mind behind choosing that pattern and she did the install.

You are right, a custom surround would look nice fitted in there. Here's some hearth-installed inserts here, many of them would look great in your setup, though obviously won't have as much flame view as your current scene.
https://www.hearth.com/econtent/index.php/forums/viewthread/50201/P0/