Newbie, please help!

[hr1234]

Hello,
We are building a new house and we have always wanted a wood burning fireplace. We are looking at wood burning inserts, but we are pretty clueless. We have a 3000 square ft home but will be heating primarily with a heat master wood brining furnace and we will also have heat pumps. We don’t need (or even want) a ton of heat from the fireplace, but at the same time we don’t want it to be extremely drafty. For the sake of ambiance, I’d greatly prefer not to have doors. We were looking at fireplace xtraordinair (but those have doors) and a salesman recommended heatilator for a more open look. Does anyone have any insight or recommendations you could offer?
Thanks so much!

 

[begreen]

Have to ask why , with a wood-burning furnace + a heat pump, is the concern about a heating fireplace? Design and build the house so that it has excellent insulation, sealing and thermal glazing and this will be less of an issue. There are several wood stoves and ZC fireplaces that can heat a well-insulated, 3000 sq ft house.

 

[Hogwildz]

Anything open or with open doors will send your heat up and out.

 

[hr1234]

I’m not concerned about a heating fireplace- in fact if anything I’m concerned it will overheat. We have a gas fireplace now that we can hardly turn on because it gets the room so so hot in minutes. I’m not looking to repeat that.

 

[kennyp2339]

Since its a new home (new cons) with the furnace I would be suspect of issues with reverse draft / stack effect when the wood burning furnace is in operation, maybe not as bad as I think depending on where the return air is located in relation to the fireplace.
If your looking for an ambiance fireplace and building it with masonry check out rumford design fireplaces, my neighbor has one its really nice, does throw a little heat out, but its cozy when the weather is bad.