New to Forum looking to replace existing fireplace with small wood stove or insert

[webberlm]

Hi, I am looking to stop using my fireplace and either getting a wood stove or an insert. We have natural gas heat and we want to supplement with wood. Our existing fireplace has an opening of 33" is 18" deep and 24.5" wide at the back. We have a brick hearth tah extends 20" out and is raised up. We have two feet of tile in front of the hearth. The fireplace is in the end of an open family room that extends out into the kitchen and is about 200 sq ft of space. My house is about 2000 sq ft on two levels. From the research that I have done and reading this forum I believe that I need a rear venting stove or a top vent if I can slide it back into my fireplace. I would like a stove that has viewing glass and meets EPA standards. I was close to the Jotul F 602 but I think I would have to cut the legs down so that it could slide back into the fireplace a bit. Also many reveiws say the firebox is very small and difficult to get even a 3 hour burn. Any advice on where to start would be great.

Thanks

 

[Dune]

I can't offer much advice to you, but I will bump you up and maybe someone who knows about inserts can help.

 

[begreen]

Welcome to Hearth.com. You are correct. If the goal is to heat the house there are many better options than the little 602. An insert would be less imposing on the room space, but there certainly is room for a stove if that is your preference. We need to know how large a stove this space will accommodate. Tell us a bit more about how this area connects to the rest of the house. It would also help to know your climate. Where are you located? How would you run the stove or insert, nights and weekends or 24/7 heating? And last, how tall is the chimney?

 

[Jags]

Give us an idea of your use. Supplemental heat. 8hr burn. Room heater...blah, blah blah. I would also suggest staying away from the tiny stoves like the 602. They are a great unit, but at heart, simply a room heater for short term fires. Look into the 2+ or even 3cuft stoves. Would you be up for a stove half in/half out of the fireplace? Free standing wood stoves do have their advantages over inserts.

 

[webberlm]

Thanks for the responses, I appreciate it.

Answers to some of the questions, We don't plan on burning the stove 24/7 so it will be used to supplement our current Natural Gas. We live in Northern Delaware so it gets cold but not sustained. We would be fine with a stove that sits half way in / out of the fire place. I have no idea how tall my chimney is but it exceeds 20ft. Our fireplace is on the first floor in the family room which is on the east side of the house. The family room opens into the kitchen and then there is a small room off the back of the kitchen. There is a hallway off of the kitchen that goes to the front of the house and access to another room and the upstairs. We really are interested in heating the family room / kitchen area and not the whole house.

 

[Jags]

Sounds like you are into the 2.? category size wise. Consider looking at the PE Super 27 or a myriad of other stoves in that size. Find a few that you like the looks of, then check the specs. Make sure they will fit your opening. You could start at the bargain stage with the Englander NC13 all the way to some soap stone beauties.

What does your area have for dealers? That might be the first place to start. Go see them personally (and take a tape measure and pad of paper).

 

[begreen]

Sounds like a 2 cu ft stove would suffice. If long burns are desired I'd put a Woodstock Keystone on the hearth. But there are several non-cat, medium-sized stoves that would also work. They are all good looking, like the Jotul F400 (Castine), the Hearthstone Shelburne, Hampton H300, etc.

I am uncertain about the front size. What is the height and width of the fireplace at the front?

 

[webberlm]

Thanks for the responses, our fireplace is 33†wide, is 18†deep and 24.5" high.

 

[Todd]

That 24.5" height is going to limit your hearth stove options unless you have a mason come in and raise the lintel. You may be better off with an insert.

 

[Iembalm4aLiving]

We are enjoying our Osburn 2200 insert which was installed a month ago. Sounds about the right size for your situation. There are lots of excellent choices out there!

 

[begreen]

That 24.5" height is going to limit your hearth stove options unless you have a mason come in and raise the lintel. You may be better off with an insert.

I was wondering if a Progress Hybrid plinth model would fit in there? Another option would be to place the stove on the tile floor in front of the hearth, or to cut down and lower the hearth height in the stove area by one or two courses of brick. That way you would have a lot more choices and it would look good too.

 

[mcollect]

Three years ago we were where you are now. Wife wanted a wood stove. We went shopping and she fwell in love woith a Jotul 550. We purchased it and the insert is beautiful. the first year we had poor wood but it heated our home quite well. Now we have great wood and the furnace never comes on. we are in the coldest part of Maryland Garrett County, with a house with 100
+ windows. Before the house was always chilly noe it is warm. Go with a good insert, it will make the wife happy.

 

[thetooth]

I have a Jotul F3cb on my hearth . The lintel measurement is 26" . The stove is vented out of the back and up the existing chimney . I have about a 1" from the top of the chimney to the lintel ( with the normal leg kit ) . Jotul offers a short leg kit for the F3cb with will take off 2 1/4 " . So a F3cb would fit if you vented it out of the rear . We are heating 1500 sq feet with this as a supplement heater ( the longest burn time I have had was 5 hours so no over night burns and cold starts when you get home from work ) .