Is a wood burning fireplace insert right for me?

[BlueridgeDsve]

I have a vacation home in the southern Blue Ridge Mountains of Western North Carolina. We have a Masonary stone fireplace that we use very often, 9 months of the year. We are at high elevation (around 4,000 ft) so even summer nights can be cool (but not cold). Winters are cold but rarely frigid, with daytime highs in the 40’s and nighttime lows in the 20’s. We have occasional cold snaps into the low teens. The house is heated with an electric heat pump which heats it just fine. The home was built in 2002 and the insulation is good.

We enjoy the fireplace mostly as ambiance but we use a lot of wood due to inefficiency. My question is: would a high efficiency insert be too hot for us even with the central heating off? Also are there any inserts that allow you to burn with the door open so that you can hear the fireplace crackle (with fireplace screen)? This would be nice because sometimes we would not want it to warm up the house too much.

I guess what I want is the best of both worlds, ambiance for cool nights, and efficiency for really cold ones.

Any advice would be appreciated.

 

[Murray01]

I’ll post on your question if nothing more than to bump your post to the top. I can’t answer your questions other than your comment wanting an insert for efficiency yet you want to run it with the doors open, kind of defeats the purpose of gaining efficiency with an insert. The other consideration would be over firing the insert with the doors open causing damage?

 

[Wisco Shepherd]

I have a vacation home in the southern Blue Ridge Mountains of Western North Carolina. We have a Masonary stone fireplace that we use very often, 9 months of the year. We are at high elevation (around 4,000 ft) so even summer nights can be cool (but not cold). Winters are cold but rarely frigid, with daytime highs in the 40’s and nighttime lows in the 20’s. We have occasional cold snaps into the low teens. The house is heated with an electric heat pump which heats it just fine. The home was built in 2002 and the insulation is good.

We enjoy the fireplace mostly as ambiance but we use a lot of wood due to inefficiency. My question is: would a high efficiency insert be too hot for us even with the central heating off? Also are there any inserts that allow you to burn with the door open so that you can hear the fireplace crackle (with fireplace screen)? This would be nice because sometimes we would not want it to warm up the house too much.

I guess what I want is the best of both worlds, ambiance for cool nights, and efficiency for really cold ones.

Any advice would be appreciated.

With a high efficiency insert you could still achieve your ambiance without overheating by lighting smaller fires. But generally most inserts are designed to run door closed.

 

[begreen]

The likelihood is that there is a good compromise. One does not have to have a full-load fire buring in mild weather. Some inserts even permit open door burning with a screen accessory.

It would help to have more information for specific advice. Tell us more about the area size being heated. Are there high ceilings? Is the fireplace room wide open to other places in the house or closed off by a doorway?

 

[Whitenuckler]

I’ll post on your question if nothing more than to bump your post to the top. I can’t answer your questions other than your comment wanting an insert for efficiency yet you want to run it with the doors open, kind of defeats the purpose of gaining efficiency with an insert. The other consideration would be over firing the insert with the doors open causing damage?

I think it would be hard to beat that look you have now. Martha Steward would be impressed. Maybe keep that the way it is and get lots of wood. If you were to get a pellet stove that could supply heat.
Edit - Also if you lose power up there you could use another heat source. A pellet stove can run on batteries/inverter/generator.

 

[EbS-P]

Do you get much smoke smell when burning??
Do you want to heat with wood?
Are you ready to keep wood stacked and dry for at least two years?

 

[Woodsplitter67]

You will still have a good fire viewing area with the right insert. I don't think you'll overheat the house and if you do you can always open a window. I completely enjoy sitting in front of my wood stove watching the fire

 

[MRD1985]

Drolet 1800i

 

[Whitenuckler]

Drolet 1800i

Nice! Do they make any zero clearance fireplaces?

 

[bigealta]

I'm a fan of a free standing woodstove in a fireplace opening if there is enough room. My jotul f400 has a nice glass door and can also be burned with the door fully open. If fact my buddy burns his f400 almost exclusively with the door open as he wants to hear the crackle and pop. Me i always run it door closed. It's also safe as you can just close the door when it's bed time or if you leave the room. I would never leave an open fire with a screen unattended.

 

[begreen]

Nice! Do they make any zero clearance fireplaces?

SBI sells ZC fireplaces in the Osburn and Valcourt lines. Other Canadian manufacturers also sell good ZCs.