What to buy? Fireplace or stove?

[Flip5]

Hi,

We just moved into a new home (new to us but 4 years old) The builder put in a chimney (8" stainless insulated outside the house in an uninsulated chase). He was planning rear vent. The flue center is 20" off the floor (which seems low for every stove I've looked at). He inlayed tile on the floor but it's too small for any stove I can find. Looking for a Pacific energy or napolean. Any ideas? I would like to be able to put a plasma tv above whatever we do, so that would elimatinate a top vent stove. Here is a pic so you can see what I'm dealing with. Any ideas would be appreciated!! Room isn't that big 14'x20' 10' ceiling. House is 1750 sq ft. Would like a fireplace but not sure how big a mess that would make having one installed afer the flooring is done ect.

 

[WILDSOURDOUGH]

Very Nice Room
Very poor location for the chimney thimble...
Center is 20" off the floor- stove can be no taller that 8"
That will be a mighty small stove !

You might want to go to a fireplace store to see what can vent, at that hight.

 

[Flip5]

I was thinking that we would have to move the thimble regards of what we do

 

[titan]

I think a medium sized(2-2.5cu.ft)freestanding stove would be the easiest install,and the two brands you mentioned come as doublewall convection units....which I'd want in that room,'cause a radiant heating stove would burn you out of it.IMO.I agree on relocating that thimble as well,what was the original builder thinking he'd install there anyway?

 

[Jfk4th]

Yep, If you go with a PE you should be all set, Are you planning on using this to heat the entire house all the time or just for "fun". If you could install a nice ceiling fan you could move all that heat into other areas/rooms. I would recommend the Super 27, pretty SWEET stove for heating about 2000 sq ft. Remember, It is always easier to crank the stove down if you have too much heat than buy something too small and have it "eat" wood all day long. I guess once again it's what you want to do with the stove.

I bought the Summit, yes the King of a PE Stoves, for my Florida room. This room has all double pane windows that covers 75% of the room. My house is 1950 sq ft. I bought this knowing that I could turn it down after I heat the area up and reap the benefits of the large firebox, ash pan, and Electronic Burning Technology (which if you don't know is a coil that is on the bottom of the stove that opens up the stove when more draft is needed, Viola, no unburned wood in the stove in the morning...works as good as they say...)

I get enough heat using 2 small door fans that are installed on the upper portion of the door to blow heat into my family room and even all the way up the stairs into 2 bedrooms, pretty sweet. I use my stove in addition to my furnace for the day, but if I wanted to I could heat all the important rooms in my house with just my stove, no problem. My stove is used just about 24/7 from Oct to April because my Florida room (now called Family Room) only had electric baseboard heaters (no vents for the gas heat). I tried running a vent into the room but it did not get warm enough. So about 2 years ago I bought the Avalon, then last year I upgraded, like having a Chevy and getting a HUMMER, to the Summit. I have been happy ever since.

I made the mistake of buying to small of a stove, Avalon Pendelton, because a dealer said this stove is plenty for the room. Well he was right, sort of. The small firebox was way too frustrating and trying to get a long burn 8 hours plus was nearly impossible. Dealers do not know all be on guard, some will sell you anything, especially a place called Heritage in Lockport, NY. I usually do not call out companies but these people had such bad customer service after I bought the stove, I told myself I would let everyone that is interested in wood stoves not to go there, SHAME ON THEM. Being Police Officer for the DEC Forest Rangers I could have helped there business tremendously, once again, SHAME ON THEM...

Good Luck

 

[Flip5]

I never thought to ask what he planned on putting in. He did plan for some air movement thougn, there is a stairwell at the opposite end of the room with a ceiling fan above the stairwell, and a ceiling fan in the large kitchen beside the room for the stove. I would like to put in a larger stove and hopefully get the heat to move around. I'm a little concerned that our basement might be freezing though.

 

[Flip5]

What is the difference between the spectrum classic and the super 27?

 

[Flip5]

I forgot that the PE stoves are designed for 6" chimneys and I have a 8". I emailed PE and they don't want anything larger than 7", I know VC has 8" but after reading about all the problems people seem to have with them I would like to stay away from them.

 

[babalu87]

A free standing stove is going to transmit the most heat per firebox size into the house. You will have to move the wall thimble, 20" is pretty low and you have to build a hearth pad so now that 20" is at least a few inches closer to the floor.

The house must be insulated very well up in Alberta so a 2.5 foot firebox should be just about right.
I have an 1800sq foot house and our Morso heats it easily, it may be perfect for your climate.

VC stoves have more problems because more people have them.

 

[Jfigliuolo]

I THINK putting a plasma above the stove won't work. It will get too hot. Make I THINK 90* is the limit...

 

[velvetfoot]

It's not a huge room. Do you want to use up a lot of ft2 on the stove? And then, forget about the TV.
There are EPA rated fireplaces now right, not just inserts? So you get an efficent unit, that you will have to use a fan.
The temps above my insert are pretty low-only about 5F or so above room temp.
Are the LCD TV's just as sensitive to temps? My 37" LCD reads about 95F when I aim my temperature gun at it, so it probably doesn't throw off as much heat.

 

[Flip5]

I'm leaning towards a freestanding stove. Any suggestions for stove with an 8" flue?

 

[Mike Wilson]

You have any anthracite near you? Put in a coal stoker like the (broken link removed to http://www.harmanstoves.com/callouts.asp?id=4) and you can leave the thimble right where it is.

-- Mike