Flame Monaco XTD ZC Fireplace Questions.

[warrior327]

Does anyone own a Flame Monaco XTD ZC Fireplace? I am looking for some reviews on this fireplace. Ideally I would love to heat the whole home, and have the long burn times, but I have come to the realization that I probably won't get that. So I am just trying to find some more information and reviews on this fireplace. Dealer stated that I could heat up a decent living area with this fireplace but doesn't want to disappoint me and say weather or not it could heat a whole home of 1100 sq ft. or not. If anyone could give me some reviews on this that would great.

The fireplace has a 2.5 cubic foot fire box.

 

[FyreBug]

We make it... It's the same firebox as the Enerzone 2.5 ZC & Osburn Stratford ZC both of which are best sellers. Mind you the Monaco doesnt come with some of the bells and whistle these other brands have...

But its a great price point for a 2.5 cu ft ZC, rated EPA washington state.

So you may want to look for reviews of the above models since the Monaco might not be as well known.

 

[warrior327]

I can actually get the fireplace a little cheaper than the $2700, which is what peaks my interest. Do alot of the customers you sell this fireplace like the amount of heat this fireplace produces? The dealer I was talking to knows my house layout and basically stated it would heat the few rooms to be on the safe side of his statement. These rooms that he was talking about heating are probably a little bigger than 500 sq. ft. The Flame Monaco rates that it can heat 500-2000 sq pt. with zoning kits, but just curious if some of your customers are able to heat bigger homes with this fireplace?

 

[FyreBug]

Well, most of the posters on this site including myself will want to ask a whole bunch of questions such as the layout of your house, Sq Ft, insulation etc... in order to help you out more with how well it would heat your house. Other will likely jump in with other product recommendations as well.

One thing this unit can help with. It comes standard with two blowers so it will be pretty warm in the room you install it in. There are additionally 2 options for distribution heat. One is the 'gravity kit' basically you plumb flexible duct on top of the unit and either exhaust it above the unit in the same room or the room above. This is inexpensive and works well.

The other is a forced air kit. It's basically an additional 360 CFM multi speed blower, hidden behind the wall and attaches to the fireplace side (download the manual) and you plumb 5" flexible insulated duct up to a room up to 35 ft away (or down). This works on a thermostat, so as soon as the fireplace is hot enough and the other room thermostat calls for heat - that blower starts going. Think of it as a small furnace.

All high efficiencies EPA rated ZC's throw a lot of heat. That is why, if you are going to put them in a smallish room it is recommended to duct the heat somewhere else since it might get too hot in the room its in.

Hope this helps.

 

[warrior327]

Yes that does help. It is not a complicated layout, but I am not at home or I would try and draw a picture of it. I know there are alot of factors like insulation, layout and so forth but just looking for a rule of thumb type thing. Most of all I just don't spend up to $3000 or more on the Monaco and it only heat one room. I have looked into the wood stove but cannot make it work in my layout. With the Enerzone Solution, and the Osburn Stratford the only real difference that I can find so far is the CFM output of the fans. The Osburn, and Enerzone have higher CFM fans where the Monaco has two 75 CFM fans. Can these fans be upgraded in the Monaco?

 

[aansorge]

I have the the Enerzone zc 2.5 and I'm pretty sure it too has twin 75 FCM fans.

I have a 3000 sq ft home (if you include the finished basement) and it can do a good job of heating the whole house oct, nov, and part of dec. then the furnace needs to assist until march at which point the enerzone runs alone again. During the really cold times ( like right now as it is below zero and blowing) I think it does about 70 percent of our heating. This is in southern Minnesota where it is cold and has plenty of wind. My house is an '87 with cathederal ceilings in the stove room.

I do have the auxiliary fan and it shoots down into the basement. I run it when we're down there or when it gets too hot on the main floor and 2nd story. This is nice to have in the spring and fall to better distribute the heat.

With only 1100 sq ft. This heater will keep your whole house plenty warm.

 

[aansorge]

One tip...get rid of the andirons as you can get a lot more wood in tHe stove without them.

 

[warrior327]

Thank you for your input aansorge. I live in Central Missouri and I believe this winter the coldest it has been is down in the single digits a few nights but other than that it has been 20's to 30's for most of the winter. I have 8 foot ceilings throughout the house, and have been offered a good price on the Flame Monaco. What did the Enerzone 2.5 cost you aansorge?

 

[aansorge]

I think it was 2800 plus 600 for the auxiliary fan plus installation and a liner for the flue. Probably 5500 total. Luckily most of mine was covered by insurance due to a major ice dam that sent water into our house for two days. The floors, drywall, and fireplace was all wrecked. It was one of the better days of my life as I went from having laminate floors and an old gas fireplace to hickory floors and an EPA fireplace. And it was 90 percent paid for by insurance!

 

[aansorge]

If you are in Missouri, the stove will keep you in shorts.

 

[wnyburner]

We make it... It's the same firebox as the Enerzone 2.5 ZC & Osburn Stratford ZC both of which are best sellers. Mind you the Monaco doesnt come with some of the bells and whistle these other brands have...

But its a great price point for a 2.5 cu ft ZC, rated EPA washington state.

So you may want to look for reviews of the above models since the Monaco might not be as well known.

I am trying to choose between these very models. Two fireplace stores over 3 hours away, as well as an several online sites told me that the Stratford doesn't have individual firebricks, but rather, solid refractory panels etched to look like bricks. The Osburn site list the firebox being lined with refractory bricks, as did a member of this forum. Do the the newest Stratfords indeed have firebricks, or is it a panel? I do want individual bricks. I visited the local Enerzone dealer, but he didn't carry a 2.5 in stock. He steered me to a Kozy Heat z42. I was concerned that although it does have two kickouts for forced air, it doesn't have an option for a gravity kit. I want the gravity kit, plus the forced air. He suggested that the Enerzone could be installed with a gravity or forced air, not both. Is this true? Albeit, the price quoted for the Kozy Heat was crazy low.

Added note...He would be charging me over $300 for the Enerzone over the price I could buy the Osburn for, either online or through the Osburn dealer over 3 hours away. The Monaco is a couple hundred less than the Osburn online, if you have to pay extra for the door overlay and louver kit. I am still confused if those two are required or optional. Regarding apearances, Does the extra cost for the Osburn and Enerzone doors/grill mean that the Monaco is that much more drab? What is the difference that accounts for more than couple of hundred dollars in extra cost over the Monaco? Is it strictly cosmetic, or functional? I would really appreciate if anyone here to could help me.

 

[aansorge]

If they haven't changed the lower louvre on the Enerzone yet, I would get one of the others. The lower louvre collects ashes and then they get sucked into the fans decreasing fan life. The others have the louvres pointing downward allowing the ashes to slide down. I welded a black plate onto mine to get rid of the problem. I left inlets for the air at the outer corners.

 

[wnyburner]

I wonder why the Stratford and Monaco have/had a differently designed lower louvers. Without seeing the Enerzone 2.5 in person, I have no way of knowing about the lower louver. The dealer would order one after I left a sizable deposit. I saw the the picture of your fireplace with the tin foil in my research, but I didn't know the other two had a different design. I am looking at the brochure the dealer gave me dated 2012 and the picture looks like the same one on the Enerzone website. Hard for me to see clearly how downward they slant.

 

[wnyburner]

There are additionally 2 options for distribution heat. One is the 'gravity kit' basically you plumb flexible duct on top of the unit and either exhaust it above the unit in the same room or the room above.

The other is a forced air kit. It's basically an additional 360 CFM multi speed blower, hidden behind the wall and attaches to the fireplace side (download the manual) and you plumb 5" flexible insulated duct up to a room up to 35 ft away (or down).

Can both be installed, or is it an either or choice?

 

[aansorge]

Here is a photo of the metal I added... Easy to do, works great and should increase fan life significantly.

 

[aansorge]

Basically what I did was take the lower louvre off (two screws, square heads) and welded a piece of metal on that I cut to size. Add a little high temp paint and you're good to go.

 

[wnyburner]

Looks like a workable solution. Good to know. I saw where you have the forced air to your basement. Do you have the gravity kit installed as well? I admit to being impatient awaiting an answer to my question above!

 

[aansorge]

I think you can do both. The forced air is good for shooting into the basement while the gravity one is more for higher up rooms. If you got both, I have a feeling that the forced air one would "steal" most of the heat. When I run it, it overpowers the main fans and most of the heat goes to the basement. So I tend to either run the main fans or the forced air fan not both at the same time. Love the ability to heat the basement!

 

[warrior327]

I had the same questions regarding the price difference with the Flame Monaco, Ssburn and Enerzone. They only thing I could figure and I have not researched in a while is the CFM of the fans and cosmetic looks. The Flame Monaco does come with fire bricks. I just installed my Flame Monaco in late spring and when I get a chance I will take some pictures of it and post them up for you if that helps.

 

[wnyburner]

If they haven't changed the lower louvre on the Enerzone yet, I would get one of the others.

Were you able to see the Enerzone or Osburn in person to compare?

I just installed my Flame Monaco in late spring

Did you install the gravity kit or forced air?

 

[aansorge]

I own the Enerzone and have only seen pics of the other two. The other two look like they are angled a bit more but I could be wrong. They don't look to be angled enough though and you may want to fab up something if you start getting ashes sucked into the fans like I did. I used aluminum foil for my second year of burning and added the plate for my third.

 

[warrior327]

warrior327 said: ↑

I just installed my Flame Monaco in late spring​

Did you install the gravity kit or forced air?

I did not install the gravity kit or the forced air kit. In fact I have not installed the OAK yet, just waiting to see how it performs this winter while I am burning it.

 

[FyreBug]

They all have different functions. The gravity kit as its name implies bring warm air to the room immediately above the unit or the room above. The reason for this if you feel the need to bring additional heat in the room where the unit is or obviously transfer some heat in the room above.

The forced air kit is if you feel the unit brings too much heat in the room you are in you can always dump some heat in a room up to 35 ft away or in the basement. Think of it as a miniature furnace. This kit has a 360 cfm 2 speed blower and can be programmed for 2 separate zone on a thermostat.