- Nov 27, 2012
- 0
Question:
I have a 7 yr old house with a standard prefab fireplace. The family room where the fireplace is located has an open ceiling that goes up to the 2nd where the bedrooms are located. It is an ideal set up for using the fireplace to keep the bedrooms warm in the cold months. But- my guess is that most of the heat is going up the chimney. In my previous house- we had a woodstove insert that heated the house well- but it was in a small room with a standard 8 ft ceiling and we couldn't even stay in the room when the woodstove was in use. What I want is to put a woodstove in my current fireplace- but I've been told that they don't make woodstove inserts for non-masonry fireplaces. Is that true? The other thing I've considered is installing a more efficient fireplace- but I'm not sure how much more efficient even the best fireplace is over the construction grade standard model I already have (they all send heat up the chimney- don't they?) So- my question is: what is my best option to maximize the heat output from my fireplace. My wife really loves fires (so do I)- but I hate the thought of sending all that heat up the chimney and even pulling in colder air through the windows and doors.
Answer:
Two choices
1. There are some small fireplace inserts- which ARE very efficient- that can be set into your pre-fab... - To do the best job- line your chimney to the top with a 6 inch stainless steel pipe hooked to the unit. About $2000. installed with liner
2. Replace the whole mess with a more efficient system..Probably $4000 to $7000 dollars-
Many manufacturers on HearthNet and elsewhere make both inserts and entire fireplace assemblies
I have a 7 yr old house with a standard prefab fireplace. The family room where the fireplace is located has an open ceiling that goes up to the 2nd where the bedrooms are located. It is an ideal set up for using the fireplace to keep the bedrooms warm in the cold months. But- my guess is that most of the heat is going up the chimney. In my previous house- we had a woodstove insert that heated the house well- but it was in a small room with a standard 8 ft ceiling and we couldn't even stay in the room when the woodstove was in use. What I want is to put a woodstove in my current fireplace- but I've been told that they don't make woodstove inserts for non-masonry fireplaces. Is that true? The other thing I've considered is installing a more efficient fireplace- but I'm not sure how much more efficient even the best fireplace is over the construction grade standard model I already have (they all send heat up the chimney- don't they?) So- my question is: what is my best option to maximize the heat output from my fireplace. My wife really loves fires (so do I)- but I hate the thought of sending all that heat up the chimney and even pulling in colder air through the windows and doors.
Answer:
Two choices
1. There are some small fireplace inserts- which ARE very efficient- that can be set into your pre-fab... - To do the best job- line your chimney to the top with a 6 inch stainless steel pipe hooked to the unit. About $2000. installed with liner
2. Replace the whole mess with a more efficient system..Probably $4000 to $7000 dollars-
Many manufacturers on HearthNet and elsewhere make both inserts and entire fireplace assemblies
