Having done nothing right... what now?

[drdoct]

This is my first post here. I've been looking through the threads because I got a second hand insert (Silent Flame) and it just isn't cutting it. I've got a nice big fireplace that I set this in and put the skirt around it. No liner, nothing. It doesn't really keep a hot fire in it (probably because there's nothing on top to keep it warm). So I started looking around here to see if buying a new wood burner (epa approved non cat) would let me cut back on the amount of wood I burn and throw out much more heat. The insert is very small and will only take 13" logs so it's pretty much useless. I realize that I probably tried to kill my family buy putting that insert in without a liner. I realize that NOW! We don't get much cold weather, but wife wants the house warm and I think heating with wood is much cheaper than natural gas. Our house is 50 years old and quite drafty and the central heat unit is 15+ years old so it's not a high efficiency unit. I really don't have a ton of money to spend on a new insert because the Liner will be +-$400 or so. I was hoping for a Craig's list miracle or finding something around $500-800. My dad has an older fisher stove and it pretty much heats his 1700 sqft house and keeps a fire through the night. I was hoping for those kind of results when I got this insert, but it's barely better than just a plain open fire. Here's my question. Would my silent flame work properly and burn nice and warm actually keeping a fire if I put a transition on it and relined with SS liner + block off plate? Or would I be much more pleased with a newer model that's more efficient? Until then... no more fires

 

[webbie]

In your climate you might just find that your silent flame does the job.....if properly installed.

BUT, you might find that your unit needs an 8" liner instead of a 6 - which would be both good and bad. Good in the sense that it would then probably be OK to install it with a 5 foot flex plate and decent block off...and it might function fine then. Bad in the sense that if you need to line the chimney all the way up, then 8" cost a lot more than 6" and you will be spending money that could go toward a new stove.

If you are on a tight budget, see the threads recently here about some of the sale stoves at Lowes....maybe you can dig one up in your neck of the woods. In your climate even a non-epa model like the Englander 12-FP or the small century would do the job nicely - at 50% off you can't beat 'em.

 

[Eric Johnson]

I find it hard to believe that a 50-year-old house has an unlined chimney. Are you saying that there's no clay liner inside the brick, or simply that your brick chimney doesn't have a stainless steel liner. 'Cause if it's got clay tile in it, it's considered lined.

Of course, maybe building codes are different in Georgia, but I don't think they've built unlined chimneys in this part of the country since the Roaring '20s.

 

[swestall]

I wouldn't miss Craig's point about going to LOWE's.....The Englander is one heck of a stove, right BB, and being in GA you might find one left down there.
With a deal like that, you could get a 6 inch liner and still be in good shape $$$.
Run, Run!
Definately a stove will put out more heat than an insert; although there are some nice inserts:AKA PE....

 

[drdoct]

My chimney is 'lined' with those orange terra cotta tiles that you see in almost every home. By lined I mean I dont have a stainless pipe going up through the chimney. I'll check out Lowes tonight and see. The only problem with a stove is that I dont have the room. My fireplace is in the 'keeping' room which is wide open to the kitchen. The hearth is about 15" or so up and probably 15-20" wide. Now if it was on the floor, I could probably swing it, but we've got a table about 8 feet or so in front of the fireplace (because it's one big room with a kitchen at one end and a fireplace at the other. Not entirely sure how I could use a stove instead of an insert. Open to suggestions though.

 

[Eric Johnson]

If the clay liner is in good shape (i.e., intact with no big cracks) then it should be OK. Maybe not the best ultimate solution, but safe and functional for a typical wood stove. If you decide to use it, get it checked out by a sweep or someone else who knows what to look for.