enerzone 1.8 cu ft. enough?

[begreen]

extending the hearth sounds hard and expensive. Not sure if I would want to tackle that one myself. Im afraid I would mess it all up and the wife would kill me

OK. Take a look at the Lennox (Country) Performer C210 insert.

 

[kingquad]

Just get a pre-made hearth pad to set on the floor, or make your own. You should only need ember protection out in front of it. I'd go for the Regency HH that was posted.

 

[James02]

Maybe I missed this part....did anybody suggest a freestanding stove in front?

 

[Ashful]

Why not just build out with a surround to get some extra depth, if the Rumford sides or overall depth is your problem? Might be a good opportunity to dress things up a bit in the process, and get the bigger stove you want.

 

[Jags]

At this point, I would do whatever it takes to get away from a 1.4 cuft firebox. I think you will be sadly disappointed in the performance of such a small stove if your intent is to "heat the house".

 

[mellow]

Take that existing drop of 6" liner, put a Tee on it, and hook it up to a rear vented freestanding stove, looks like you will have to extend your hearth, but I think it would be well worth it.

Edit: had to go back and look at fireplace height, only 22.5, don't think that will be enough for a freestanding rear vent stove.

 

[begreen]

Maybe I missed this part....did anybody suggest a freestanding stove in front?

I was working up to that, but between the Country and the Regency, he has some insert options if that is the preference. His freestanding options are restricted by the lintel height.

 

[Ashful]

Edit: had to go back and look at fireplace height, only 22.5, don't think that will be enough for a freestanding rear vent stove.

Not sure that matters. He can always install a thimble above the mantel. My house has them over all the fireplaces.

 

[Wood Duck]

extending the hearth sounds hard and expensive. Not sure if I would want to tackle that one myself. Im afraid I would mess it all up and the wife would kill me

In my opinion extending the hearth is fairly simple. I am not a very experienced remodeler, but find bricks or tile to be pretty forgiving of inexperienced installers (you and me). My question would be what is below the existing hearth? Does the existing hearth provide the insulation (R-value) that is needed for an insert or stove? I think there is plenty of height in the hearth so that if you need to extend it, and if you extend it at the same height (I assume you would), then you have space to fit enough insulation under the finished surface tile to meet the needs of any stove. If you want a stove that sticks out a bit then I'd add a additional row of tiles around the entire outside of the hearth. I think the more hearth the better.

 

[Sprinter]

If you extend the hearth, it looks like you are two bricks high now (probably 8") which will give you R1.6 insulation value (common brick is 0.8 per 4" side), plus whatever that is on top. That should be enough r value and really wouldn't be that hard even with no experience. If it were me, I'd consider a stove on the extended hearth. That's if you can get around the chimney vent height issue. That may be the most difficult thing to tackle. If it is possible, though, it would give you many more options and may even be more efficient if the brick fireplace is built outside the structure. Good luck. This must suck, but there are good options that will make you happy in the long run.

Take a look at the Country insert begreen mentioned if your first choice is still an insert. He's an excellent source of information on makes and models.