My husband and I have spent weeks on this, researching online, visiting a local stove shop. We are having some serious problems figuring out what to do in our fireplace.
Our current fireplace is very large/wide. The height of the firebox is normal - about 29" - but it is 5.5' wide. We were looking at the Jotul F3 or Jotul Castine (with short leg option) but then we were thinking maybe of going with the Jotul Kennebec or Wintersport wood inserts. The problems are as follows:
1.) Our brick hearth is 24" (from front of firebox) so we can't come out too far on the hearth. Putting in some sort of fireproof base for the stove is out of the question from an aesthetic/design perspective. So, we're talking about sinking a wood stove back fully (or nearly so) in the firebox or getting a flush insert.
2.) We have a somewhat unusual mantel in that there is a large wood surround above the brick facing and the mantel itself is about 5.5' high. Using a freestanding stove is likely to necessitate using a mantel protector, and we are VERY worried about a.) installing it on our 100 year old mantel and b.) how it will look to have a giant piece of sheet metal 5.5' wide sticking out 4" or whatever from the bricks.
3.) The fireplace is abnormally wide but standard(ish) height. So when looking at freestanding stoves, we're worried how it will look to have a large black box sunk into the firebox and then all this empty space on either side of it. But at the same time, we're worried about getting an insert and having a large amount of unattractive/plain black metal all around it and at least 1' but for some of them more like 15" of black metal on either side of the existing frame for the insert.
4.) Our fireplace is arts & crafts or very simple/straight lines. A lot of the inserts we've seen have very ornate frames that we fear will "clash" with the existing mantel. From what we've seen, the inserts almost look best in very basic brick hearths.
At this point, we've zeroed in on Jotul and Morso and I think there was one other (Lopi?) as brands we're looking at, just from a brand reputation as well as aesthetic perspective, but we're not set in stone on these. What we are lacking are pictures of freestanding stoves and inserts in old houses, in existing hearths (but "formal" hearths, as in a formal living room, which is where ours is going).
Any advice? Does anyone have any link to pictures of it. Again, our house is older (100 years), and it is a pretty typical PA center-hall colonial, though it has arts & crafts design elements. The stove is going in the living room (25'x15').
Our current fireplace is very large/wide. The height of the firebox is normal - about 29" - but it is 5.5' wide. We were looking at the Jotul F3 or Jotul Castine (with short leg option) but then we were thinking maybe of going with the Jotul Kennebec or Wintersport wood inserts. The problems are as follows:
1.) Our brick hearth is 24" (from front of firebox) so we can't come out too far on the hearth. Putting in some sort of fireproof base for the stove is out of the question from an aesthetic/design perspective. So, we're talking about sinking a wood stove back fully (or nearly so) in the firebox or getting a flush insert.
2.) We have a somewhat unusual mantel in that there is a large wood surround above the brick facing and the mantel itself is about 5.5' high. Using a freestanding stove is likely to necessitate using a mantel protector, and we are VERY worried about a.) installing it on our 100 year old mantel and b.) how it will look to have a giant piece of sheet metal 5.5' wide sticking out 4" or whatever from the bricks.
3.) The fireplace is abnormally wide but standard(ish) height. So when looking at freestanding stoves, we're worried how it will look to have a large black box sunk into the firebox and then all this empty space on either side of it. But at the same time, we're worried about getting an insert and having a large amount of unattractive/plain black metal all around it and at least 1' but for some of them more like 15" of black metal on either side of the existing frame for the insert.
4.) Our fireplace is arts & crafts or very simple/straight lines. A lot of the inserts we've seen have very ornate frames that we fear will "clash" with the existing mantel. From what we've seen, the inserts almost look best in very basic brick hearths.
At this point, we've zeroed in on Jotul and Morso and I think there was one other (Lopi?) as brands we're looking at, just from a brand reputation as well as aesthetic perspective, but we're not set in stone on these. What we are lacking are pictures of freestanding stoves and inserts in old houses, in existing hearths (but "formal" hearths, as in a formal living room, which is where ours is going).
Any advice? Does anyone have any link to pictures of it. Again, our house is older (100 years), and it is a pretty typical PA center-hall colonial, though it has arts & crafts design elements. The stove is going in the living room (25'x15').
