Installing an Olympic Fireplace Insert

[washiestbard]

Hello,

I purchased a house that had an Olympic Fireplace Insert in the fireplace. I had the chimney inspected and was informed that the insert was vented directly to the flue and the flue was damaged. I was given a quote for $3500 to replace the flue and make the fireplace safe to use. I have no interest in replacing the flue and using the fireplace without an insert, so I would like to install a liner and use the existing insert.

I pulled the insert out to take a look. I expected to see a round outlet, but instead there is a rectangular outlet. What is the proper way to connect this to a stainless liner?

Also, I see the tag states "MINIMUM MASONRY CHIMNEY AREA:144 SQ. IN. HEARTH EXTENSION". What is this referring to? If round, that would be a 6.77" diameter. Does this mean a 6" liner would not be appropriate?

 

[begreen]

The old Olympic is what is known as a slammer. This is no longer legal. Unfortunately there doesn't appear to be enough room to make a transition to round pipe and connect this to a liner.

Normally what is done here is to clean the chimney very well, then drop an insulated liner down it and connect this to an insert. A modern replacement for the old Olympic will burn much cleaner and will use less wood. It may be the best solution for this situation.

 

[washiestbard]

Slammer just refers to the lack of liner, correct? Other than how it is installed what makes this type of insert inefficient? I felt under with my hand it it looks like there is room above behind the first brick. Would I be able to make a piece similar to this and bolt it to the top of the insert after sliding it in?

 

[bholler]

Slammer just refers to the lack of liner, correct? Other than how it is installed what makes this type of insert inefficient? I felt under with my hand it it looks like there is room above behind the first brick. Would I be able to make a piece similar to this and bolt it to the top of the insert after sliding it in?

View attachment 231256

Yes slammer just refers to the installation. And yes you could make or buy a boot to go ontop of your insert to connect to a liner that matches the volume of the stove outlet. Which on most inserts like yours is 8". But your stove is very inefficient when compared to modern units. So you need to decide if you want to spend the time and money on this old stove when a new stove will use a 6" liner and work much better.

 

[washiestbard]

Yes slammer just refers to the installation. And yes you could make or buy a boot to go ontop of your insert to connect to a liner that matches the volume of the stove outlet. Which on most inserts like yours is 8". But your stove is very inefficient when compared to modern units. So you need to decide if you want to spend the time and money on this old stove when a new stove will use a 6" liner and work much better.

I do not intend to to use the insert to heat my home all winter. My goal is to install it safely and be able to use it on weekends and holidays when my wife would like a fire going. I would have a very hard time justifying the cost of a new unit. Do I need a liner that just matches the area of the rectangular outlet?

 

[bholler]

I do not intend to to use the insert to heat my home all winter. My goal is to install it safely and be able to use it on weekends and holidays when my wife would like a fire going. I would have a very hard time justifying the cost of a new unit. Do I need a liner that just matches the area of the rectangular outlet?

Yes your liner needs to match the volume of that rectangular outlet. You also need to clean all of the crap out of the firebox smoke chamber and chimney.

 

[begreen]

If you can weld and are going to make a transition then you might be able to weld in a flat blank to seal the current flue slot then cut in an 8" round hole for a flue collar. That would lower it considerably. The flue collar should be deep enough for secure attachment of the liner adapter 1.5-2". I recall someone doing this years back with good reported success.

 

[washiestbard]

I pulled the insert all the way out and took some more measurements of the flue. The inside of the flue is only 6" x 14". Because I do not have a good way to ovalize a liner I am having a local chimney company install an insulated 8" ovalized liner and a boot to connect to the insert. An 8" liner ovalized to 5.5" at the narrowest should have about the same cross section as rectangular outlet of the insert.