Hey guys, I've been reading for several months now and the amount of knowledge on here is incredible. My wife and I are hoping to be able to install a woodstove in an existing fireplace but we've hit a few bumps in the road. I'd like to get some input from you guys if possible. Details on our situation...
We live in a mid 1800's stone home in southeast Pennsylvania. Its a center hall colonial/farmhouse type house with thick sandstone walls (18" thick or so). The house was completely rehabbed before we purchased it. When they rehabbed, they stripped all the plaster, and studded out 80% of the exterior facing walls with dryway and spray foam insulation. The home has all new Andersen windows, new roof, new electrical, plumbing, ac, heat, etc. The total SF is about 2200 SF but a portion of that is on the third floor, which we don't really use. Heating space on the first 2 floors is probably about 1800 SF. We have propane, hot water heat (baseboards and radiant flooring). The baseboards work pretty well but the radiant floor install is less than perfect and we seem to burn through a lot of fuel and some rooms (the kitchen) really struggle to stay comfortable. For a home pushing 200 years old, its it pretty tight and efficient.
The house is shaped like an "L" with the front door and stairs going to the second floor right in the middle of one leg of the "L." When you walk in the door, the living room is on the right, the stairs are straight ahead, and the dining room is on the left. The kitchen is directly behind the dining room, forming the other leg of the "L." The rooms are connected by normal sized door openings.
Like many homes of this style, there is a fireplace in the living room and a second fireplace in the dining room. Both chimneys have SS liners. We use the fireplace in the living room pretty frequently. The fireplace in the dining room is very shallow (was probably used for coal back when the house was built) so its not really functional as an open fireplace. Both flues have vacu-stack fans. Both chimneys are on the exterior walls.
We would like to install a woodstove on the hearth in the dining room without completely re-working the existing woodwork and stone. The clearances are pretty tight, but I have narrowed it down to 2 jacketed stoves that should fit and meet the clearance requirements. I am considering the Quad Explorer II and the Jotel F45. If we went with the quad the stove would sit on the hearth and we'd use the rear exit flue, then 90 up the chimney. If we went with the jotul, I'd probably want to use the short legs, tuck it farther into the fire box, and use the top exit flue. I like the N/S loading on the jotul but I think space-wise that the quad fits better.
I've had a couple stove shops come up to look at it and both recommended I just go with a pellet stove and run a new 4" liner through the existing liner (or direct vent right out the back wall). I went to look at some pellet units and honestly they just didn't do it for me. The other downfall is having a place to store all the pellets, which I really don't have. Both shops were concerned with the chimney, how it was lined, is it insulated, etc. Eventually I was able to locate the contractor who relined the chimneys. They indicated that their normal procedure for this type of home is to insulate the liners with pour-in insulation (thermo...something or other). I had them come out and they didn't see any reason why a woodstove would not work in my situation (as long as the stove clearances worked, etc.). They seem like a reputable contractor and I have no reason for thinking the previous homeowner cut corners on something like this.
The SS liner is mortared into place about 30" above the firebox lintel. From there, the firebox flares down to the opening. I have attached a drawing showing the dimensions and overall arrangement. I will try to attach some photos later if needed. I originally thought the liner was 6" but now I think it is probably 5.5". I am planning to head up on the roof this weekend to get an accurate measurement. My question is, do you guys think one of the stoves listed above would be reasonable to use on a 5.5" insulated flue? The total flue height is probably 25-30' tall. Also, how would I go about making the connection from the stove pipe to the existing liner since there is no way to screw a coupling to it (at least not now)?
I would like to know your thoughts. I really don't want to resort to pellets. I like burning wood and grew up with fireplaces and a stove. I want my boys to learn how to split wood, build, and maintain a fire. For me I want the benefit of the cost savings but I also want it to be part of our lifestyle. Any input from you guys would be very appreciated...sorry for the long post but I wanted to pre-emptively answer some questions.
NIC
We live in a mid 1800's stone home in southeast Pennsylvania. Its a center hall colonial/farmhouse type house with thick sandstone walls (18" thick or so). The house was completely rehabbed before we purchased it. When they rehabbed, they stripped all the plaster, and studded out 80% of the exterior facing walls with dryway and spray foam insulation. The home has all new Andersen windows, new roof, new electrical, plumbing, ac, heat, etc. The total SF is about 2200 SF but a portion of that is on the third floor, which we don't really use. Heating space on the first 2 floors is probably about 1800 SF. We have propane, hot water heat (baseboards and radiant flooring). The baseboards work pretty well but the radiant floor install is less than perfect and we seem to burn through a lot of fuel and some rooms (the kitchen) really struggle to stay comfortable. For a home pushing 200 years old, its it pretty tight and efficient.
The house is shaped like an "L" with the front door and stairs going to the second floor right in the middle of one leg of the "L." When you walk in the door, the living room is on the right, the stairs are straight ahead, and the dining room is on the left. The kitchen is directly behind the dining room, forming the other leg of the "L." The rooms are connected by normal sized door openings.
Like many homes of this style, there is a fireplace in the living room and a second fireplace in the dining room. Both chimneys have SS liners. We use the fireplace in the living room pretty frequently. The fireplace in the dining room is very shallow (was probably used for coal back when the house was built) so its not really functional as an open fireplace. Both flues have vacu-stack fans. Both chimneys are on the exterior walls.
We would like to install a woodstove on the hearth in the dining room without completely re-working the existing woodwork and stone. The clearances are pretty tight, but I have narrowed it down to 2 jacketed stoves that should fit and meet the clearance requirements. I am considering the Quad Explorer II and the Jotel F45. If we went with the quad the stove would sit on the hearth and we'd use the rear exit flue, then 90 up the chimney. If we went with the jotul, I'd probably want to use the short legs, tuck it farther into the fire box, and use the top exit flue. I like the N/S loading on the jotul but I think space-wise that the quad fits better.
I've had a couple stove shops come up to look at it and both recommended I just go with a pellet stove and run a new 4" liner through the existing liner (or direct vent right out the back wall). I went to look at some pellet units and honestly they just didn't do it for me. The other downfall is having a place to store all the pellets, which I really don't have. Both shops were concerned with the chimney, how it was lined, is it insulated, etc. Eventually I was able to locate the contractor who relined the chimneys. They indicated that their normal procedure for this type of home is to insulate the liners with pour-in insulation (thermo...something or other). I had them come out and they didn't see any reason why a woodstove would not work in my situation (as long as the stove clearances worked, etc.). They seem like a reputable contractor and I have no reason for thinking the previous homeowner cut corners on something like this.
The SS liner is mortared into place about 30" above the firebox lintel. From there, the firebox flares down to the opening. I have attached a drawing showing the dimensions and overall arrangement. I will try to attach some photos later if needed. I originally thought the liner was 6" but now I think it is probably 5.5". I am planning to head up on the roof this weekend to get an accurate measurement. My question is, do you guys think one of the stoves listed above would be reasonable to use on a 5.5" insulated flue? The total flue height is probably 25-30' tall. Also, how would I go about making the connection from the stove pipe to the existing liner since there is no way to screw a coupling to it (at least not now)?
I would like to know your thoughts. I really don't want to resort to pellets. I like burning wood and grew up with fireplaces and a stove. I want my boys to learn how to split wood, build, and maintain a fire. For me I want the benefit of the cost savings but I also want it to be part of our lifestyle. Any input from you guys would be very appreciated...sorry for the long post but I wanted to pre-emptively answer some questions.
NIC
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