Hearth mount freestanding stove w/ odd flue location

[rschulman]

I'm looking to buy a stove to hearth mount in our fireplace. The fireplace has never really been usable, due to the fact that its fairly shallow (~ 17") and because the flue for the fireplace is in the back left corner (?!). We could never get good enough draft for an open fire to keep smoke from spilling out into the room. My thought is that an enclosed stove that fed up into the flue would be able to help us with heating and solve the smoke problem.

The fireplace is 29" height and 36" wide, which places some pretty direct restrictions on what stoves we can work with. The house is around 1700 sq ft.

I have two upfront questions:
1) Given that odd location of the flue, will a stove in the fireplace have a hard time drawing properly? As far as I can tell, from that corner, the flue runs straight up to the roof, which is two stories + an attic above. The concern I have is just about the angle that the pipe would have to take from the stove outlet to the flue entrance. I'm guessing it would be an angle of somewhere between 30 and 40 degrees.

2) With the size and rear vent restrictions, I'm just looking for what my options are. So far, I've seen some of the Hearthstone models that would fit, as well as a Jotul 400 Castine. Right now I'm leaning toward the Jotul based on looks and ability to heat the space we have. I would love to get pointers to any other stoves I might be missing that would also fit the requirements.

Thanks in advance for all the wisdom!

 

[begreen]

Sounds like a workable solution exists. How tall is the chimney? That may affect stove choice. The Castine needs good strong draft, especially when rear vented (if that is the best option).

 

[branchburner]

Welcome to the forums. Other rear-vent stove options might include those from Woodstock (thumbs up!), and possibly Quadrafire, Morso, Buck and others (like VC and Harman, not so highly recommended)..

A few other things to keep in mind, if you are not already aware: you may need to extend the hearth to meet clearance requirements, and you will need a 6" chimney liner, which may need to be insulated depending on the condition of the existing flue. I assume it has a clay liner... do you know its dimensions?

 

[rschulman]

According to the contract I still have in my email from when a chimney sweep took out the teracotta and put in a 12" stainless steel liner in 2013, the chimney is 25 feet.

I am aware that it will need a 6" liner, yes. I also know that I will definitely need a hearth extension of some kind. Advice on what kind of board would work best while also not raising the stove up too much are welcome, given the small height tolerances we're also working with. The material in front of the hearth is hardwood flooring (with some scorch marks in it. A prior owner was apparently less careful than I'm planning to be).

I'll look into Woodstock, Quadrafire, Morso, and Buck as well. Thanks for the recommendations!

 

[begreen]

That is good chimney height, it will work in your favor. The hearth extension will depend on the stove. Some need serious insulation under them and others only need ember protection.

 

[rschulman]

Doing some research, I'm definitely interested in the Morso stoves as well, particularly the 2110 and the 7110. It looks like both would give me rear venting plus a couple inches of room to work with under the lintel. Looks like my choice may be between the Castine and one of those two from Morso. Anything I should know about any of those or is look/price the only question? I'm particularly curious about the reliability or life span of any of them, if that's been a problem.

 

[begreen]

I installed and have run the 2110. It's a very nicely built stove designed to last a lifetime. The quality of Morso products is excellent. My only objection to running it was the dual door with the removable handle. Most Morso owners don't mind it or get used to it, but I found it a bit awkward for the few times I have run this stove. The 7110 does not have this issue.

Both of these stoves have a notably smaller firebox than the Castine and should be considered room heaters, not whole house heaters unless the house is <1000 sq ft and well insulated. Burn time is about 2-4 hrs. The larger Castine will also take a considerably longer piece of wood. Morso used to sell the model 3610 in the US which was closer in size to the Castine, though deeper.

 

[Dieselbreath]

I have a Regency insert in my fireplace that I had to put a offset adapter on the outlet to make it fit my flue. I don't have any draw concerns with mine.

 

[rschulman]

Thanks for the advice everyone. Looking at the question, it seems like the Castine may be just what the doctor ordered, since we do want to try to heat most or all of the house. Appreciate the quick advice.

Oh, ninja edit: I'm being quoted $2250 for the Castine by a local dealer, plus $100 for the short leg kit. Does that seem more or less right to people?

 

[begreen]

Be sure that a block-off plate is installed to seal off the top of the firebox in the fireplace. Otherwise a lot of the heat produced will not stay in the room and will instead be heating outdoors.

Another stove about the size of the Castine is the Hampton H300. It has a blower option which can improve fireplace performance. This line is sold by Regency dealers.
https://www.regency-fire.com/Products/Wood/Wood-Stoves/H300

 

[kennyp2339]

My thought is that an enclosed stove that fed up into the flue would be able to help us with heating and solve the smoke problem.

Take some incense now and see were the smoke goes, you may be having a reverse draft situation due to a very tight house and venting from fans / clothes dryers drawing make up air from your chimney. You may also want to look at an outside air kit with any new stoves.

 

[rschulman]

Thanks all for the great pieces of advice. I think the one last question I have is, given the rear vent and the need for a t-junction at the back there, how much space should I plan on leaving between the back of the stove and the rear wall of the fireplace for the piping? I just want to get a sense for how far into the room the stove will come.

Thanks again!

 

[branchburner]

how much space should I plan on leaving between the back of the stove and the rear wall of the fireplace for the piping?

It's going to depend on how the connecting pieces are angled through the offset flue. My fireplace is about 24" deep at the floor, tapering to about 18" deep at the level of the damper/smoke chamber. It is that top deepness at the lintel that is the controlling factor, not the deepness at the floor. My rear-vent stove is about as far back as I could get it, and that leaves the back of the stove about 18" out from the back wall of the fireplace, at floor level (or about 12" out at the lintel).

So my 24" deep stove is recessed only about 8" into the fireplace, leaving 16" extending into the room. That was exactly the maximum amount to keep the stove legs on the original brick hearth, but I extended it out in front of the stove with micore and granite. Having the stove as far out of the fireplace as possible is beneficial in trying to maximize the available radiant heat, although having the masonry act as a heat sink is fine, too, so long as the masonry isn't on an exterior wall.