Supreme Fusion 24 wood insert

[WoodfireNewbie]

Hello there everyone! I found very little information on the Supreme Fusion 24 insert anywhere other than on this thread - not even a single user review! - so I decided to be your official guinea pig

I found the best price by far at Hearthside Hearth & Grill Sales; after a 10% off coupon both the insert and medium face assembly were just $2,050 shipped. BAM! It will take about a week to receive so hopefully by this time next week I'll have updates.

To copy/paste from the thread above, this is a very unique insert:

• all stainless steel.
• No secondary tubes (website shows a flat sheet baffle with perforated holes that supposedly achieves same effect)
• An adjustable "circulating chamber" metal shroud that encapsulates the main unit/firebox. The fans blow into this chamber.
• No firebrick in the unit
• Super light weight (175lbs, this due to the lack of firebrick and no cast iron, correct - confirmed with the manufacturer)
• Fold down grilling plate (Sales rep at Supreme says they cook chicken wings on their display model)
• Only calls for 5" liner (after speaking w/ Supreme, this is due to installer feedback with some customers having difficulty installing a 6" liner so the 5" gives more flexibility)

More posts to follow...

 

[WoodfireNewbie]

Before purchasing I spoke with Supreme both on the phone and in email -- here are the responses I received to questions others may have:

Hi Matt,

Thank you for your inquiry.
The Fusion is a great insert with so many innovative features.

Here are the answers to your following questions:

1. Where are your fireplaces manufactured? All our products are manufactured in Quebec, Canada but distributed all across North America.

2. Can you offer any insight as to the light item weight of 175lbs? Other competitors I've seen run over 300lbs for a steel unit. The Fusion is light in weight because its firebox is built of stainless steel instead of refractory bricks. There are many benefits to stainless steel such as superior heat transfer and durability. Unlike traditional inserts built with refractory bricks, prone to cracking, our heavy-duty chamber offers great thermal tension. We guarantee its durability with a market-leading 25 year limited lifetime warranty.
- I thought firebrick is ideal to avoid warping the steel, but what do I know, see username maybe they use more/thicker metal.

3. I'm a little concerned about the 25-year warranty. I can't find much information about the company online outside your website and there are no product reviews for the Fusion inserts that I can see. How can I be sure there will be warranty support 25 years from now? I understand your concerns however Supreme has been building high-efficiency fireplaces and inserts for over 3 decades. Our products are backed with numerous Vesta awards (the most prestigious form of recognition in our industry, please visit www.vestaawards.com for more info) and several patented technologies. Today we have a network of qualified dealers that sell, install and service our products. I can refer you to the nearest dealer if you email your zip code.
- I did check and there are three dealers in the Twin Cities within 30 minutes, so that is surprisingly good

4. Love the BBQ feature! Yes, the barbecue grill is indeed one of the many unique features of the Fusion.

Also, information I received after calling their sales line (which they answered in French initially!):

5. There are two fans inside the unit to the left and right of the firebox. They blow the air through vents located all around the outside of the front cover. It "won't feel like a hair dryer" heat-wise, but they say it does a good job heating as a secondary source.

6. The 5" liner is purely from installer feedback requesting a smaller liner for easier installation in smaller chimneys. It is also less expensive than 6" so that is a nice perk. My fireplace damper is 5.75" wide max so the 5" liner will be perfect without modifying anything!

I hope this helps.
If you have any other questions, feel free to call or email. I will be away for training tomorrow but you can call and speak to any other inside sales representative.

 

[begreen]

Firebrick is used to protect and extend the life of the metal but it is also used to keep the fire bed hotter for more complete combustion.

FWIW Last I checked, Vesta awards are no assurance of warranty service.

 

[WoodfireNewbie]

Haha I'm with you totally, working in IT I've become quite bitter when it comes to dealing with sales people. Seems they always take unusually long to reply after you buy something...

I'm really interested to see how it performs once I get it. I read some mentions of metal pinging sounds without the firebrick liner.

 

[begreen]

They say it meets EPA standards but I don't see the Fusion 24 listed on the Feb 2018 EPA certification list.

 

[WoodfireNewbie]

Thanks begreen, do you have a link to that? From the owner's manual it states it is "certified to comply with" EPA phase II and tested by Dirigo Laboratories in Clackamas, OR.

Edit: nvm, (broken link removed to https://www.epa.gov/compliance/list-epa-certified-wood-stoves)

 

[WoodfireNewbie]

Reply from Supreme:


Hi Matt,


Both the Fusion 18 and 24 appear on the EPA list under Foyers Supreme Inc. (foyers is fireplace in french).


Let me know if you still can't find the listing.

 

[begreen]

Do you see it listed? I only see the Fusion 18 and Fusion FN.

 

[WoodfireNewbie]

Fusion FN matches the 4.4 emissions rate for the Fusion 24 so that must be the same thing, it's the only model they have besides the 18

 

[begreen]

I expect that could be right. Might be a difference between marketing name and mfg. part number.

 

[shortys7777]

very curious about this stove as I am looking and this should fit my smaller fireplace while still stating it covers 1500 sq ft. well the fusion 18. Going to be following this.

 

[WoodfireNewbie]

Got a text this morning to call the shipping company and schedule a time for delivery. Arriving tomorrow between 10AM and 4PM

 

[mellow]

175lbs is still nothing to sneeze at. If you take the firebrick out and the door off of most inserts they will be in that territory. Will be curious to see how the AAC works on it along with the secondary air to the baffle.

 

[WoodfireNewbie]

Tell you what, I was more than happy about the 175lbs weight when I had to get it down the stairs tonight...



Looking about ready for the liner!

 

[WoodfireNewbie]

So... I unscrewed the outer cover and opened up the front door, excited to see how big the firebox area was...

Aaaand there was no barbecue grill inside. Is it on top? Is it underneath? Is it with the documentation??... Nope, never put in from the factory.

Amusingly there was a signed and dated checklist from 8/2017 by "DP" and one of the items listed was none other than "barbecue grill".

Looks like I'll be making some calls to the manufacturer again........ Closed on weekends BTW.

 

[WoodfireNewbie]

Got the grill!

 

[shortys7777]

is the stove operating yet? How is it?

 

[WoodfireNewbie]

Waiting on the 5" liner, had to be special ordered since the installer (DJ's out of Albertville MN) only stocks down to 5.5". Two week lead time. By this time next week I hope to get some good pics and impressions.

Here's a rough idea of how the metal shroud looks that the stove itself fits inside of:

 

[WoodfireNewbie]

Installation date set tentatively for Thursday, 4/5 in the morning. Took 3 weeks for the liner, the smaller 5" size had to be specially made before they could ship.

 

[WoodfireNewbie]

Another delay with DJ's the installer. Went from two week lead time to three weeks, and now they cancelled on me today to say it will be five weeks. This is why I hate contractors, wish I could just do it myself!

 

[Nigel459]

Sorry to hear! How can they cancel on the day-of? That could be pretty disruptive to one's scheduling... good luck, looks like it'll be a nice one once (if ever haha) it gets in

 

[shortys7777]

Should've just done it by yourself. Even at this point I would do it myself. Even if it takes you a weekend you'll learn something new. Reasons like this is why I don't deal with contractors. Good luck. keep us updated.

 

[supremeastra]

Any updates WoodfireNewbie?? I have a Supreme Astra that I will be installing in a camp I will be building soon and I'm curious how your install goes.

 

[WoodfireNewbie]

I never thought I'd be able to say this, but...

IT'S FINALLY DONE!!

After two months of problems with the installer's liner supplier I finally told them I'd buy my own. Here's the kicker,

We only had 6-3/8" actual clearance in our 7x11" 20-foot high exterior chimney and we live in Minnesota. Clearly we're going to want an insulated liner, but no insulated 6" liner fits a space that small unless it was seriously ovalized. Ugh.... if only an insert existed that took a 5" liner.......... oh, wait!

What I thought was a neat perk of the Fusion 24 -- and an easy way to save a few bucks buying a smaller liner -- ended up being the feature that made the entire installation possible. Epic.

That all being said, even finding a 5" insulated liner was difficult until I came across Rockford Chimney Supply's 5" pre-insulated liner: the only one that would fit with an outer diameter of just 6.25" (all other companies were 6.5"+). After the extra cost of the 9x13 terra cotta screw-on top flue plate adapter the total came out to $915 and it took one week to arrive.

Installers were in and out in two hours so that surprisingly was only $450. All-in, we got the insert, liner and installation for a very palatable $3,500. The local fireplace galleries were trying to sell us inserts that cost that much alone.

First time I opened the door the cat had to jump in,



And then we got a nice small test fire going with some random softwood from the backyard.



Didn't want to get the house any hotter than it already is in June.



Initial impressions:
OK, for a load of wood this small I wasn't expecting much but it made the entire 700sqft lower level noticeably warm in half an hour, roughly +10°F. Much to our surprise we still could smell some of the smoky wood burning smell too which is a plus. The fan kicked on after 20 minutes and generated a slight warm breeze all around the unit, though the majority of the heat was radiated directly through the glass itself. Very toasty with your hand 12" away from the glass; will make a great toe warmer this winter.

I used the "automatic air control" valve on the left to start the fire and could tell a large amount of air was getting sucked in. Shortly after (5-10 mins?) it closed slowly back up again and limited the air for a slow dancing burn. I'll get a video next winter when we put in our first nice sized load. No really, I'll actually make a video and post it here!

- There were a few occasional metal "pinging" sounds while the metal was warming up, subsided after 10 minutes, so fortunately nothing too distracting being totally made of stainless.
- The owner's manual mentions a speed control knob to turn down the fan, which I'm going to want to find and turn that down a bit as it drowns out the sound of the fire. Or just unplug it

I won't have a good idea of how much heat this thing REALLY puts out until December or so, but so far we love it! The size is comparable to other inserts costing much more and the modern look is a big plus. Can't wait to use the BBQ grill.

....IT'S FINALLY DONE!

 

[Jan Pijpelink]

Beauty!!