I have a Vermont Castings Montpelier Insert in my masonry fireplace. Recently I was cleaning and re-sealing the grout on the face of the fireplace and hearth. I had the Meade surround off while I was doing this job. Due to too many distractions I did not finish the job in one afternoon but needed to light the insert since the temperatures were dropping.
While I use the insert without the surround when we loose power to permit as much heat to circulate as possible this was the first time I had the surround off and the fan running. What I noticed was that the tiles and bricks directly above the center of the insert were much cooler than usual. All the heat that is normally trapped behind the surround was escaping into the room.
Looking at the surround I noticed that the side panels were not flush to the fireplace face but only made contact at the top and bottom. The is a gap about a half inch wide and about 18" long on either side. The top panel was flush to the face of the fireplace for its entire length. My thought was that if there was a gap on the top similar to the ones on the side it would let the trapped heat escape instead of heating the masonry fireplace.
I sent an e-mail to VC Customer support asking about this. They stated that the flush top piece was for "aesthetic" reasons only and I could move the insert out a half inch to open a gap to permit natural convection to start. (Tried that but the boss said push it back...)
They also said that there was another way to increase in efficiency. Their recommendation is, and this is a quote from their reply:
" If you want to improve the heat ability when not using the blower, wrap the insert sides and top with a ceramic insulation blanket. Ceramic insulation is white. These blankets can be cut to fit the sides and rear/top and tapes together with metal tape. Your performance with out the blower will skyrocket. "
Has anybody tried something like this? I'm guessing that the heat that usually escapes to heat the masonry mass is trapped by the blankets and kept in the stove.
When I was shopping for inserts I noticed that some recommended only using the insert with the fan running. VC made a point that theirs could be used without the fan. I guess that wrapping with insulation might not be a good idea for every insert, it might add to the chance of overheating the stove. It appears that VC has enough confidence in their product to let you push it to the limit...
KaptJaq
(Edited to correct typo)
While I use the insert without the surround when we loose power to permit as much heat to circulate as possible this was the first time I had the surround off and the fan running. What I noticed was that the tiles and bricks directly above the center of the insert were much cooler than usual. All the heat that is normally trapped behind the surround was escaping into the room.
Looking at the surround I noticed that the side panels were not flush to the fireplace face but only made contact at the top and bottom. The is a gap about a half inch wide and about 18" long on either side. The top panel was flush to the face of the fireplace for its entire length. My thought was that if there was a gap on the top similar to the ones on the side it would let the trapped heat escape instead of heating the masonry fireplace.
I sent an e-mail to VC Customer support asking about this. They stated that the flush top piece was for "aesthetic" reasons only and I could move the insert out a half inch to open a gap to permit natural convection to start. (Tried that but the boss said push it back...)
They also said that there was another way to increase in efficiency. Their recommendation is, and this is a quote from their reply:
" If you want to improve the heat ability when not using the blower, wrap the insert sides and top with a ceramic insulation blanket. Ceramic insulation is white. These blankets can be cut to fit the sides and rear/top and tapes together with metal tape. Your performance with out the blower will skyrocket. "
Has anybody tried something like this? I'm guessing that the heat that usually escapes to heat the masonry mass is trapped by the blankets and kept in the stove.
When I was shopping for inserts I noticed that some recommended only using the insert with the fan running. VC made a point that theirs could be used without the fan. I guess that wrapping with insulation might not be a good idea for every insert, it might add to the chance of overheating the stove. It appears that VC has enough confidence in their product to let you push it to the limit...
KaptJaq
(Edited to correct typo)