Help/ Advice with custom fireplace

[arrakis429]

So we bought a house and one of the things we loved about it was this unique fireplace. On our inspection the home inspector recommended getting the fireplace and chimney inspected and cleaned. The chimney folks basically laughed at me and told me I would be putting my family in danger if I used the fireplace due to the smoke and gasses of combustion escaping the area where the wood is burning.
Before having them inspect it I figured some custom work with mesh and rods to hang it up was going to make the fireplace functional again.

After dealing with them, at first I resorted to thinking that I would have to rip the whole assembly off and whatever is underneath and put in a wood stove or pellet stove. Then a friend came over and suggested glass on the sides and maybe a bit along the front to contain the products of combustion. I found several companies that offer fireproof glass, this one seemed really on the ball: https://www.fireglass.com/fire-rate...N37ymC2bUFrurR0jiANqWWXdZTVWLRgwaAuNXEALw_wcB .

So my current thought is to purchase some custom fireproof glass pieces and somehow secure them to the hood frame and the floor.

I'm looking for any advice on this thing, whether it be that my idea is stupid, that the chimney/fireplace folks were wrong, or another creative idea to make this work - or even a pitch to a wood or pellet stove. I am on a somewhat limited budget and would like to spend less than $1000 for a solution that not only works but looks good

 

[SpaceBus]

I don't think you will make that chimney/fireplace into a functional heater for $1,000 or less. An insert, or any solid fuel appliance, will require a full liner. If I were in your shoes I'd probably take it all down and like the chimney for a free standing wood stove. That hood and fireplace looks neat, but it's not efficient and will likely draw heat out of the house. An insert goes into a masonry fireplace which you don't seem to have. Another option would be a what folks like to call a "zero clearance" fireplace, but there is a huge range of efficiency for these types of products. You will want an EPA approved high efficiency unit regardless.

I am no expert, but I'm sure some are on the way!

 

[arrakis429]

Wow, no other responses. Thought I'd have some more help here..

 

[begreen]

There may be other deficiencies that the chimney folk found that we are not seeing. Without full knowledge of problems noted we would just be guessing. Did they supply a written inspection report that lists them? One thing that jumps out is the air volume of the wide-open fireplace vs the chimney size.

The question is, with a limited budget, can anything be salvaged? That's hard to say. If this were outdoors where smoke spillage was not a big deal then no problem, but inside a house it is a serious issue. Would custom ceramic glass sides in some sort of track help salvage it? Maybe, but at what cost? It would still act like a vacuum sucking heat out of the house.

 

[byQ]

It sounds like you aren't that interested in burning for heat but mainly for the view of a burning fire?

If it was me, I would rip the hood and sides out, level out the middle part of that hearth floor, figure out what is going on with the chimney, and install an inexpensive EPA certified wood stove. Or if you have access to natural gas you might be able to install one of those 'fake' stoves that burn natural gas (maybe without having to tear anything apart).

 

[Ashful]

This:

There may be other deficiencies that the chimney folk found that we are not seeing. Without full knowledge of problems noted we would just be guessing. Did they supply a written inspection report that lists them?

... and then this:

One thing that jumps out is the air volume of the wide-open fireplace vs the chimney size.

Even on a properly designed fireplace with a normal aspect opening on one side, your chimney cross section must be 1/8 to 1/10 the cross-section of the fireplace opening. With being open on three sides like that, you have a much larger effective cross section. I really doubt the chimney is of sufficient size to draft that opening, even if it is in good repair.

All of this can be fixed, byQ's suggestion might be a good one, but the trouble is that you're talking about working with a professional on a budget that would be very thin for DIY. It may be possible to do custom fab doors and enclosure, but this is not inexpensive or typically the way to achieve the best performance. What we have seen numerous members do with contraptions such like this is to just tear it out, use that old chimney as a chase for an insulated liner, and set a nice pretty wood stove with glass doors on that hearth. It's a pretty common operation, if your chimney is structurally sound and of sufficient size to take a liner.

Installed liners typically run $1500 - $2000, depending on height and complexity. Most EPA stoves run $800 - $3500, depending on dress and complexity. Figure all other work at $500 per man per day.