Looking for a Flush Mount, Clean looking, Wood Insert

[BlakeKaiser]

Hello all,

First post here although I've been reading up on these forums for some time. My wife and I just bought a house last year and we have been slowly working on it. It's a fairly small (980SqFt) 3 bedroom rambler in Seattle Washington. We have a fireplace on an exterior wall in the main living room. We love having the fireplace and use it a lot in the winter. But is as if the only benefit it gives is aesthetics—no heat. So I have been looking into getting a wood stove insert with a large viewing area so we can still enjoy the fire. My fireplace size is about 31"w x 25.5"h x 24"d. We have a very minimalist style and would like to stay away from any arches, or ornate design features.
We have looked at a few stoves in our area, and of course, each salesperson says theirs is the best. We saw the Regency Ci1250 and Ci2600. and the Fireplace Xtrordinair rectangle inserts. I've hadn't had a chance to see many others. We really love the Morsø 5660 but need to find a dealer nearby.

We would really like to cut back our electric bill and invest in a good quality insert that will last. I am prepared for the time and work it takes. I grew up and northern Minnesota and our house were heated by an old wood stove, I believe it was a Fischer... But us kids were responsible for splitting the wood and keeping the stove going all winter.

look forward to your response!

 

[freddy]

Hello all,

First post here although I've been reading up on these forums for some time. My wife and I just bought a house last year and we have been slowly working on it. It's a fairly small (980SqFt) 3 bedroom rambler in Seattle Washington. We have a fireplace on an exterior wall in the main living room. We love having the fireplace and use it a lot in the winter. But is as if the only benefit it gives is aesthetics—no heat. So I have been looking into getting a wood stove insert with a large viewing area so we can still enjoy the fire. My fireplace size is about 31"w x 25.5"h x 24"d. We have a very minimalist style and would like to stay away from any arches, or ornate design features.
We have looked at a few stoves in our area, and of course, each salesperson says theirs is the best. We saw the Regency Ci1250 and Ci2600. and the Fireplace Xtrordinair rectangle inserts. I've hadn't had a chance to see many others. We really love the Morsø 5660 but need to find a dealer nearby.

We would really like to cut back our electric bill and invest in a good quality insert that will last. I am prepared for the time and work it takes. I grew up and northern Minnesota and our house were heated by an old wood stove, I believe it was a Fischer... But us kids were responsible for splitting the wood and keeping the stove going all winter.

look forward to your response!

If your home is well insulated all of those will work well and infact the Ci2600 may be a bit too much..? Not sure about the hybrid types and how low and slow you can burn but that is a pretty big stove for 980 sq ft. Osburn Matrix is another flush but again may be a bit too much for 980 sq ft. I would concentrate on (if you haven't already) insulating and sealing thus reducing the amount of heat and fuel required to heat your home. I personally like the Morso and European designed stoves. I also like not having a blower. You live in pretty mild temps and if you're home is insulated well, most small stoves will do you well with good seasoned wood.

 

[begreen]

I can appreciate the minimalist style, but if heat is the goal there are some advantages to having a insert that isn't flush. Flush inserts need a blower, that adds some noise to the heating experience. Some flush inserts also have a tendency to suck ash into the blower due to the lack of a proper ashlip. This can create quite a dust problem in the house. Something to think about.

That said, you live in a milder climate and are not heating a large space. Morso makes a nice fireplace insert and it may work out fine for your needs. One big difference from burning in the Fisher is that modern stoves require dry wood and proper draft. This means locating a seller of seasoned wood or buying wood in late winter and stacking it top covered for next season. And it means having at least 15 ft of chimney liner for the average insert installation.

Other options to look at would be the Osburn Matrix and Pacific Energy Neo inserts.

 

[SculptureOfSound]

Some flush considerations:

Vermont Castings Montpelier
Enviro Cabello
Fpx large flush hybrid
Lopi cape cod
Blaze King Sirocco 25



Others that would be more difficult
Jotul 550 (i think this is too wide at front and would require you to remove bricks)
Quadrafire voyageur (also a bit too wide)

 

[BlakeKaiser]

Thank u all for you comments. I will consider the other options you pointed out.
Insulation is something that does need to be addressed. We plan on putting up new siding this coming summer and at the same time we are going to insulate the exterior walls and get new windows and doors.
Attached a picture of my current fireplace(only picture I have is one with a insert photoshopped in... haha) . I just busted out the current tile on the hearth and we plan on tiling that soon. Before we put in the insert of course. I also will paint those vents white too. I find that they are pretty distracting painted black especially seeing it with an insert.
I really hope we can find some one to sell us the morsø. A place close by (Rich’s for the Home) says they sell it on their site but after talking to them they said they can’t sell the insert because it’s not WA certified...? But I know that’s not true... I was given a list of all the stoves that can be sold in WA and the 5660 was on there...

 

[begreen]

The salesperson at Rich's is wrong. At 4.3gm/hr the 5660 just squeaks in under the WA state emissions requirement.
http://www.ecy.wa.gov/programs/air/indoor_woodsmoke/pdfs/Wood_stoves.pdf

You might want to give Morso customer service a call or email and have them educate the salespeople at Rich's.
Wing Sales, Spokane, USA
Mail: [email protected]

 

[BlakeKaiser]

That’s a good idea. I think I’ll contact morsø directly and see what they can do. Does any one here have experience with the morsø 5660? I’m having a hard time finding any reviews or comparisons.