On the look out for Large Wood Fireplace Insert

[Lfritz]

Hello All,

I have been reading the forums trying soak up as much information as I can to make the decision on our fireplace insert, but would love to hear some advice dealing with our specific needs from people that know their stuff.

Our home is a 1700 square foot 1970s ranch house that we bought as a foreclosure 3 years ago. We had concerns about the fireplace, so we didn't use it until we could get it inspected and found out that the fireplace was unusable as is. The chimney sweep suggested to us to get an insert so we can warm the home as well as make it usable again.

The masonry fireplace is located in the middle of the house and is the classic 70s wall of brick with a brick "seating area" that is 15inches deep. The fireplace opening is quite large and can accommodate a 3.0 cubic foot firebox. The living space is all pretty open and then we have the bedrooms down the hall on the other side of the house.

We would like to at least heat the main living areas in our house, 1000 square feet. We have two small girls I stay home with, so it would be nice to have it going all day to help with our gas bill. If we could heat the whole house with the wood insert that would be even better, the bedrooms are located behind the fireplace wall, so I don't know how likely we will be able to get heat to that part of the house. My husband would really like to have a very large viewing area and the ability to run it without the blower safely in case of a power outage. I think it would be nice to have a small "warming top" to be able to heat up some water or something, we only have 15 inches of the "fireplace seat" to work with so I don't know if this is actually reasonable.

We live in Arkansas so we don't have harsh winters at all, so I don't want to get burned out of our house. One dealer said I was looking at far to big of fireplace inserts and the other said you can always just turn the blower down, so pick what you want. We have been looking at the Pacific Energy Alderlea T5 insert, Quadra-Fire Voyageur Grand, Hampton HI300, Lopi Cape Cod, Vermont Casting Merrimack, and Vermont Casting Montipelier.

We love the look of the nice classic cast iron inserts. Do any of these sound like the best fit for our needs? Are there any others that I should be looking at to consider? We have a busy life with two under three, so we really want something that is going to work well, be easy to maintain, and easy to run.

I look forward to learning from all of you guys! Thanks for taking your time to read my long post.

 

[begreen]

You are on the right course. I would also look at the Enviro Boston 1700. There are some tricks for ranch houses that can help circulate the heat better. A ceiling fan can also help.

 

[Lfritz]

I will check that out for sure! The more I look at the inserts that aren't fully flush mount, I seem to notice a much smaller glass size. Is this just to be expected? Is the merriMerr the only one that has a "heating shelf" and large fewing area comparable to lopi and quadrafire?

Do the "heating shelves". Actually have the capability to heat? The Pacific Energy has a steel box with a cast iron surround, so I didn't know if that lessened the heat to unusable. My husbands only comment is ashe antsw much viewing area to look like aafireplace as possible, and to run during a power outage. The struggle between function and beauty is real.

I think the Merrimack could fulfill all of our needs, but I worry about the quality due to reviews. Has VC customer service improved at all? Are we really going to have to replace a fan every three years? Is smoke going to be pouring in the room during reloads? Do the double doors make reloads harder?

 

[prezes13]

I have cape cod and I am happy with it. It’s pretty and heats my house well.

 

[begreen]

I will check that out for sure! The more I look at the inserts that aren't fully flush mount, I seem to notice a much smaller glass size. Is this just to be expected? Is the merriMerr the only one that has a "heating shelf" and large fewing area comparable to lopi and quadrafire?

Do the "heating shelves". Actually have the capability to heat? The Pacific Energy has a steel box with a cast iron surround, so I didn't know if that lessened the heat to unusable. My husbands only comment is ashe antsw much viewing area to look like aafireplace as possible, and to run during a power outage. The struggle between function and beauty is real.

I think the Merrimack could fulfill all of our needs, but I worry about the quality due to reviews. Has VC customer service improved at all? Are we really going to have to replace a fan every three years? Is smoke going to be pouring in the room during reloads? Do the double doors make reloads harder?

Almost all inserts are steel stoves at heart. The fancier, classic styled ones may have a cast iron front trim, but they are steel stoves. Many have direct steel equivalents. For the Alderlea T5 it is the Super, for the Enviro Boston it's the Kodiak, for the Hampton HI300 it's the Regency 3100, etc.

Flush inserts are not the best choice if the concern is about power outages. In general, the more a stove projects out on a hearth, the better it will heat without a blower. Flush inserts also have a tendency to spill ash on the hearth due to a small or no ash lip. While some like the look, they have a tendency to suck that ash into the blowers making them dirty and sometimes blowing this ash around the room.

Big glass is nice, but most of the time the difference is only talking a matter of an inch or so. I would place good function, serviceability, and reliability above cosmetics. I personally like my stove to have a KISS design for this reason. One thing not mentioned is firebox depth. That can make a big difference in day to day operation. A shallow firebox will tend to spill smoke more readily during weak draft days. It also will need to be loaded E/W (sideways) which means a smaller fuel load in order to avoid logs rolling up against the glass. A deeper firebox like the T5 will also allow N/S loading which is easier to pack full and avoid the possibility of a log rolling against the glass.

 

[Lfritz]

Almost all inserts are steel stoves at heart. The fancier, classic styled ones may have a cast iron front trim, but they are steel stoves. Many have direct steel equivalents. For the Alderlea T5 it is the Super, for the Enviro Boston it's the Kodiak, for the Hampton HI300 it's the Regency 3100, etc.

Flush inserts are not the best choice if the concern is about power outages. In general, the more a stove projects out on a hearth, the better it will heat without a blower. Flush inserts also have a tendency to spill ash on the hearth due to a small or no ash lip. While some like the look, they have a tendency to suck that ash into the blowers making them dirty and sometimes blowing this ash around the room.

Big glass is nice, but most of the time the difference is only talking a matter of an inch or so. I would place good function, serviceability, and reliability above cosmetics. I personally like my stove to have a KISS design for this reason. One thing not mentioned is firebox depth. That can make a big difference in day to day operation. A shallow firebox will tend to spill smoke more readily during weak draft days. It also will need to be loaded E/W (sideways) which means a smaller fuel load in order to avoid logs rolling up against the glass. A deeper firebox like the T5 will also allow N/S loading which is easier to pack full and avoid the possibility of a log rolling against the glass.

This is sooo good to know. After talking to more people I and looking at more stoves I have been leaning towards the Alderlea T5 insert or the Voyager Grand. This may have pushed me over to the T5, but I haven't been able to see any in person which makes me nervous. They have a $250 rebate till Monday, so I feel the pressure to decide soon.

Will I see rebates often for Pacific Energy or will this be the last before the season? Someone told me most of the companies run specials September to October. Is there a best time to buy?

If we go with the T5 would you suggest we have someone install it for us or is this a job we could diy? My husband is young and fit, has Torn out our bath, and done some electrical on our house. He has never even lived in a house with a fireplace before though, so should we do it ourselves or higher it out?

 

[begreen]

I can't predict rebates, but usually the stove season begins after Labor Day. It's rare to see them in peak selling season, but they sometimes happen.

A pro install will probably cost about $2000. The install can be done DIY if one is thorough, patient an follows instructions well. Several folks have done that. The chimney needs to be thoroughly cleaned first. You don't want any residual creosote trapped there.