Thanks in advance to anyone with insight before I move forward!
I finally have my own house (1500sf 1936 cape, new windows throughout, decent '80s blown-in insulation) and am looking to get an insert for the fireplace solely for supplemental heat whenever we're home. I Think I have the wife convinced it won't spoil her favorite feature of the house—the mantel.
The problem(s): mantle begins at 34" and immediately sticks out 2", and the hearth is flush brick in hardwood and 17.5". Modifying the mantel has been considered and absolutely excluded (the brick only extends one more course anyway!) Extending the 1936 flush brick hearth would be difficult, and more importantly, the room really can't handle an insert extending further into it—it's only 12' across, and the fireplace already sticks out 2' into the room across from the only space a couch fits, which besides being the living room also serves as a hall to a converted porch/office. The room itself is about 250sf.
What I've found: Only 2 flush inserts appear to actually meet clearances with only a heat shield on the trim similar to this thread: https://www.hearth.com/talk/threads/just-installed-a-pacific-energy-neo-1-6-fireplace-insert.127338/
One, as in the linked thread, is the PE Neo 1.6, the other is the Lopi/FPX/Avalon small hybrid-fyre. The wife already prefers the hybrid's looks (in Lopi black arched-door form) and definitely its minimal emissions, but I'm scared that the price will be the end of this project (appears to be almost $3750 for the insert alone??).
I'm new to modern woodburners, having grown up with a waterford stanley cookstove and a few old vermont castings.
Does anyone with more experience know of any other options that would be safe and pass inspection?
Image of fireplace with dimensions attached, and thanks for reading!
![[Hearth.com] New insert — tight clearances, only 2 options?](https://www.hearth.com/talk/data/attachments/152/152510-f91fab8c7d82f93f745bd394d0330eb9.jpg?hash=4XQ-rhqrkM "[Hearth.com] New insert — tight clearances, only 2 options?")
I finally have my own house (1500sf 1936 cape, new windows throughout, decent '80s blown-in insulation) and am looking to get an insert for the fireplace solely for supplemental heat whenever we're home. I Think I have the wife convinced it won't spoil her favorite feature of the house—the mantel.
The problem(s): mantle begins at 34" and immediately sticks out 2", and the hearth is flush brick in hardwood and 17.5". Modifying the mantel has been considered and absolutely excluded (the brick only extends one more course anyway!) Extending the 1936 flush brick hearth would be difficult, and more importantly, the room really can't handle an insert extending further into it—it's only 12' across, and the fireplace already sticks out 2' into the room across from the only space a couch fits, which besides being the living room also serves as a hall to a converted porch/office. The room itself is about 250sf.
What I've found: Only 2 flush inserts appear to actually meet clearances with only a heat shield on the trim similar to this thread: https://www.hearth.com/talk/threads/just-installed-a-pacific-energy-neo-1-6-fireplace-insert.127338/
One, as in the linked thread, is the PE Neo 1.6, the other is the Lopi/FPX/Avalon small hybrid-fyre. The wife already prefers the hybrid's looks (in Lopi black arched-door form) and definitely its minimal emissions, but I'm scared that the price will be the end of this project (appears to be almost $3750 for the insert alone??).
I'm new to modern woodburners, having grown up with a waterford stanley cookstove and a few old vermont castings.
Does anyone with more experience know of any other options that would be safe and pass inspection?
Image of fireplace with dimensions attached, and thanks for reading!
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