Hello all. My family recently moved into an older (1961) home in northern NM. The house is 3700 square feet on two levels. Downstairs is a large fireplace with two openings (adjacent, not opposite), located approximately 2/3 to one end of the house. Ultimately, I'd like to remove the fireplace and put in a wood stove (we heated our previous home extensively with an awesome Jøtul wood burner). However, the fireplace is in a large open room, and I don't know how much ceiling support is behind the brick. The main issue right now is funds, but I'd really like to put a stop-gap in place to lower my gas bill (forced air furnace) and have an emergency backup.
The dual openings make a fireplace insert tricky, but a "Free Heat Machine" heat exchanger made by Aquappliances is being sold locally for $75. This is a set of tubes through which a fan circulates air (see link below). It includes a second set of glass doors which would close off the side opening. Granted, without electricity, it is useless, and the unit is pretty old. Here's a link with the best description I can find: http://alturl.com/4b44j. I guess my question is whether anyone has used one of these, and if so, what is your experience/recommendation? Will I get enough bang for my buck to pay for the unit? For what it's worth, I cut my own firewood very cheap. I welcome any and all feedback. Thanks!
The dual openings make a fireplace insert tricky, but a "Free Heat Machine" heat exchanger made by Aquappliances is being sold locally for $75. This is a set of tubes through which a fan circulates air (see link below). It includes a second set of glass doors which would close off the side opening. Granted, without electricity, it is useless, and the unit is pretty old. Here's a link with the best description I can find: http://alturl.com/4b44j. I guess my question is whether anyone has used one of these, and if so, what is your experience/recommendation? Will I get enough bang for my buck to pay for the unit? For what it's worth, I cut my own firewood very cheap. I welcome any and all feedback. Thanks!
