Efficient Wood Burning Fireplace Insert - Maybe Double Sided? Or Peninsula?

[cynthrea]

We have a '61 ranch home and want a wood insert into our existing rock fireplace - which is smack dab in the middle of our living room / dining room / potential one day to be expanded kitchen area. (I don't have a pic of ours, so I'm attaching a slightly similar one to give the general idea. Note, however, ours goes all the way up on all sides, not just one side.) Currently, the fireplace is open on the living room side only. We have all electric (and can't get gas and don't want gas) with a heat pump that has trouble getting to temperature even in the 40s, and the house seems chilly even when the thermostat is set to 72, especially in the family room, which a previous owner had converted from the garage. The Wonderluxe woodstove (apparently B2350), in the "garage" side of the house does help when it is on, but doesn't seem especially environmentally friendly - plus, the inspector said we should remove it for some reason or another (and think it was because it was allegedly not functioning, which, obviously, isn't true).

We like the idea of having this be the main heat during the colder months since otherwise our electric bills are out of this world expensive while we're still cold. We don't need pretty flames, but, on the other hand, a viewing window might be nice. I looked at the HearthStone Clydesdale - and thought a 24-hour burn would be nice as are being 79% efficient and up to 66k BTU. I liked the idea of the the Lopi with the Green Start Igniter (less chance of getting burned, no need for too much kindling, no futzing, no smoke) and it seemed pretty efficient, too.

I was drooling at the Spartherm Arte, which has three sides, and was tempted to try to convert the big stone thing to accommodate something like that. But I'm betting dollars to donuts both the fireplace and the installation (and engineering) would be extremely expensive; Wittus seems to carry it, although Luxury Fires carries some of the other Spartherms, which do not seem all that efficient. Also, it seems to be available in Canada, but not the US. Anyway, we would be open to having two sides as well. For either of these options, however, I could imagine that it may be quite a feat to modify the existing rock structure to accommodate either.

I saw another insert which said didn't need a blower and, indeed, doesn't have one, the STUV-16-68. But it looked quite small and one reviewer said the viewing window was constantly black (but who admitted burning softwoods). [By the way, one I also looked at had some sort of method, some air current or something, to keep the viewing window clean. The less work the better!]

We may or may not work from home in the future, but if we do, then we will both be busy and not be able to too much poke about to keep the fire going but will also not be able to turn the heat to an away temperature or just leave the heat pump on and not supplement it with the fire. [Currently, we are using space heaters if the Wonderluxe isn't going in addition to the ineffective heat pump.]

I would be semi-okay with pellets, but hubby has maintained that would be a no go.

Thanks in advance for any assistance you can give.

 

[EbS-P]

Zero clearance fireplaces are different that wood burning inserts. Inserts can only be installed in a code compliant masonry fireplace. Zero clearance units are framed in.

I know of no double sided inserts.

First step is to confirm what type of fireplace you have. A picture with measurements is helpful.

Wood burning is not as easy as pellets. Wood needs stacked for two years to dry before it’s ready. Plan ahead.

 

[cynthrea]

Thank you! We don't use the thing, so it had a sofa plus a screen in front of it which I had to move and which is why I didn't respond sooner.

Measurements for the opening are 34" w, 26" l, 26" d. However, the back has a slanty slope in it, so the back is smaller. But I couldn't figure out exactly how to measure.