Hello everyone,
First, I want to say a huge thank you for the wealth of knowledge here! I've read a lot and it has steered to me (hopefully) most of the right questions to ask. The girlfriend was pushing for a gas insert but I am convincing her (or trying to) that wood is the way to go. We just had our son - our first child - and I want to grow up burning wood with him, even though I've never really burned wood before except for the few fires here in our masonry fireplace.
So, here is our setup - a handful of things going against this from the beginning hence the lots of questions that will follow (sorry in advance for a LONG post)
Here's a layout of the place, fireplace is on far left of the family room
Key points are:
(excuse the messy paint artwork - the purple lines are just length indicators, not walls or anything)
13' exterior chimney from base of firebox to top of chimney. This is short I know but at least top of chimney is a foot or two taller than peak of house)
I live in central Wisconsin, so very cold winters here.
5.5' opening from family room into the open dining/kitchen area (enough to get heat out easily?)
Family room w/ fireplace has 3 external walls (can better insulate the garage wall though)
1700sf total, would like to heat it all to some degree but at least keep the 1200sf of living area "cozy warm" (73-77 or so when - everything to the right of the kitchen can be cooler
8' ceilings throughout the house. House is older but seems to keep the heat fairly well (only lose a few degrees on thermostat from say midnight to 8am w/ furnace off when it's 10 degrees outside)
-----------------
With all of that being said, I'm looking at the Voyageur Grand or FPX Large Flush. I'm sure I want a flush unit, we've got a small hearth and even more than that, I do want it to look great. We are going to reface the old brick fireplace so I can custom face it to really fit whatever unit we get for a sharp look.
Now lots of questions:
----------------------------
The FPX has a bigger firebox (3ft vs 2.35) - and it's BTU rating is a fair bit higher. Do you think it would be too much for this setup?
In general, Quad's BTU numbers seem low compared to other brands. I noticed the Voyageur Grand's peak rating of 58,600, despite having a 2.35 ft box and a listed 78.4% efficiency, is way lower than the Lopi Cape Cod which rates at 73,300 BTU but with a smaller box at 2.2 and lower efficiency at 76.9%. Can I really infer anything from these numbers?
In general, do you think I'd have a hard time getting the heat out of the family room, even with an almost 6 foot opening into the open dining/kitchen area? I'm ok with - would even prefer - the family room get quite toasty, mid to high 70s, when a fire is roaring, but I don't want it to become unbearable 80+ temp in there with no way to easily get heat out. There is a ceiling fan in the dining area and I could run other fans to help.
Would both the Voyageur Grand and Large Flush Hybrid be big enough for my situation and goal of heating potentially all 1700sf, and at least 1200sf to mid 70s in cold Wisconsin winter?
Is it better to get an insert that will "just fit" in the fireplace opening, or would it be better to get one a bit smaller and then have more room to stuff roxul around the sides/back? I've noticed the inside of the fireplace got quite cold last winter when not in use.
Which unit do you think would perform better with a short chimney? I've read about extending the chimney and I would if required, but would lean towards a unit that could perform better w/ shorter chimney (of course, will get an insulated/smooth liner, too).
Would it be harder to get a hybrid stove like the FPX Flush to burn properly on a short chimney? From my understanding it seems like it would, as cat should require even more draft?
Any other units I should be considering? Local dealer only carriers Jotul/Quad/Travis and Hearthstone. I ruled out Clydesdale as I want quick heat and I think soapstone may be lost benefit in cold exterior masonry fireplace
OK, I guess I could probably go on all night with rambling thoughts and questions but I better wrap this post up before it becomes a novel. Any other thoughts, suggestions or recommendations are welcome!!
First, I want to say a huge thank you for the wealth of knowledge here! I've read a lot and it has steered to me (hopefully) most of the right questions to ask. The girlfriend was pushing for a gas insert but I am convincing her (or trying to) that wood is the way to go. We just had our son - our first child - and I want to grow up burning wood with him, even though I've never really burned wood before except for the few fires here in our masonry fireplace.
So, here is our setup - a handful of things going against this from the beginning hence the lots of questions that will follow (sorry in advance for a LONG post)
Here's a layout of the place, fireplace is on far left of the family room
Key points are:
(excuse the messy paint artwork - the purple lines are just length indicators, not walls or anything)
13' exterior chimney from base of firebox to top of chimney. This is short I know but at least top of chimney is a foot or two taller than peak of house)
I live in central Wisconsin, so very cold winters here.
5.5' opening from family room into the open dining/kitchen area (enough to get heat out easily?)
Family room w/ fireplace has 3 external walls (can better insulate the garage wall though)
1700sf total, would like to heat it all to some degree but at least keep the 1200sf of living area "cozy warm" (73-77 or so when - everything to the right of the kitchen can be cooler
8' ceilings throughout the house. House is older but seems to keep the heat fairly well (only lose a few degrees on thermostat from say midnight to 8am w/ furnace off when it's 10 degrees outside)
-----------------
With all of that being said, I'm looking at the Voyageur Grand or FPX Large Flush. I'm sure I want a flush unit, we've got a small hearth and even more than that, I do want it to look great. We are going to reface the old brick fireplace so I can custom face it to really fit whatever unit we get for a sharp look.
Now lots of questions:
----------------------------
The FPX has a bigger firebox (3ft vs 2.35) - and it's BTU rating is a fair bit higher. Do you think it would be too much for this setup?
In general, Quad's BTU numbers seem low compared to other brands. I noticed the Voyageur Grand's peak rating of 58,600, despite having a 2.35 ft box and a listed 78.4% efficiency, is way lower than the Lopi Cape Cod which rates at 73,300 BTU but with a smaller box at 2.2 and lower efficiency at 76.9%. Can I really infer anything from these numbers?
In general, do you think I'd have a hard time getting the heat out of the family room, even with an almost 6 foot opening into the open dining/kitchen area? I'm ok with - would even prefer - the family room get quite toasty, mid to high 70s, when a fire is roaring, but I don't want it to become unbearable 80+ temp in there with no way to easily get heat out. There is a ceiling fan in the dining area and I could run other fans to help.
Would both the Voyageur Grand and Large Flush Hybrid be big enough for my situation and goal of heating potentially all 1700sf, and at least 1200sf to mid 70s in cold Wisconsin winter?
Is it better to get an insert that will "just fit" in the fireplace opening, or would it be better to get one a bit smaller and then have more room to stuff roxul around the sides/back? I've noticed the inside of the fireplace got quite cold last winter when not in use.
Which unit do you think would perform better with a short chimney? I've read about extending the chimney and I would if required, but would lean towards a unit that could perform better w/ shorter chimney (of course, will get an insulated/smooth liner, too).
Would it be harder to get a hybrid stove like the FPX Flush to burn properly on a short chimney? From my understanding it seems like it would, as cat should require even more draft?
Any other units I should be considering? Local dealer only carriers Jotul/Quad/Travis and Hearthstone. I ruled out Clydesdale as I want quick heat and I think soapstone may be lost benefit in cold exterior masonry fireplace
OK, I guess I could probably go on all night with rambling thoughts and questions but I better wrap this post up before it becomes a novel. Any other thoughts, suggestions or recommendations are welcome!!
Last edited:
