Insert advice needed

[Emre]

I asked for opinion on what to do with a masonry fireplace few weeks ago on this board and you guys were able to convince me that we should get a wood insert. Now I need advice on which inserts would work well for our house.

The house is a 1950s cape that’s about 1500 sq ft. The floor plan is not open. The fireplace sits on an exterior wall in the living room that is about 150sq ft. Opposite the fireplace is stairs so I am thinking if we can get a good insert we will be able to support the heat upstairs. We also have ceiling fans in each of the rooms so we should be able to move air around if needed. The stove would not be our primary heat source although I foresee using it every weekend.

The fireplace is on the small size so our options is limited. I am would like to keep the fireplace looking the way it is so we will need to find something that will work with the clearances we have.

I looked at the Jøtul 350 and overall happy with how it looked however seeing the reviews on here doesn’t give me warm and fuzzy about it. I don’t want to spend $5k on a stove and not be happy with the heat it puts out. Lopi cape cod seems like another good option but clearances are tight. I like the look of pacific Energy neo but don’t have any local shops that carry them so haven’t seen one in person.

Any inserts I should look into/that are recommended? Fireplace measurements are attached.

 

[begreen]

There are several models that would fit. What is the look you want? Traditional or contemporary? What do your local dealers carry?

Previous thread info: Fireplace opening is 38" x 28"
https://www.hearth.com/talk/threads/what-would-you-do.166578/#post-2232864

There is a PE dealer in Peabody, MA. Not sure if that is close by or if they have a Neo insert on display. This might be just a chimney sweep company authorized to sell and install them.
American Chimney Sweeps Inc.
62 Pulaski Street
Peabody, MA
978.532.9200

 

[Emre]

I don’t really have a preference on contemporary vs traditional. I do want something that looks nice. My only requirement is that it has a large glass area. Some inserts just look and feel cheap. There are couple of places that I checked out that have a good reputations and they carry Jøtul and Lopi. Another place carries regency but they had no display units and they didn’t seem like they had it all together. There is another place that is a morso dealer that I plan on checking out.

That company is a chimney sweep company. I don’t think they have a showroom

 

[begreen]

The fireplace is reasonably large but the needs somewhat contradict each other in that you want a small heater, but a large glass area. Due to the close by mantel trim it may be better to stick with flush inserts. Is there a Quadrafire dealer in the area?
(broken link removed to http://www.quadrafire.com/Products/Voyageur-Wood-Insert.aspx)

 

[Emre]

The fireplace is reasonably large but the needs somewhat contradict each other in that you want a small heater, but a large glass area. Due to the close by mantel trim it may be better to stick with flush inserts. Is there a Quadrafire dealer in the area?
(broken link removed to http://www.quadrafire.com/Products/Voyageur-Wood-Insert.aspx)

I do have a couple of quadrafire dealers close by and that stove looks really good except the mantel clearance requirements are off by 10 inches unless i am looking at it wrong. Our ceilings are only like 8 feet. I think if I modify the mantel in any way it might not look very good.

I am ok with getting a medium size insert long as I can make the clearances work. Although as I said the way the house is layout I am afraid we will get heated out of the living with something too big.


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[begreen]

The Voyageur is a medium sized insert. It may take a medium small to hit clearances. In addition to the Neo Take a look at the 1.4 cu ft Regency Alterra 1250 for clearances.

 

[Emre]

Is any of these much better than others? Or do I just pick the one that I think looks the best and fits the fireplace and go with it?

I would say Jøtul is out of the question after reading the reviews of people complaining about the lack of heat output. But I am wondering if the pe neo 1.6, Lopi cape cod, or the quadrafire voyegeur is much better.


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[begreen]

I'd pick out a 2-3 of the largest inserts that meets your clearance requirements and then check dealers out.