Is this insert any good, or stick with the stove

[Egon]

Re: Is this insert any good, or stick with the sto

Never fear; " She who must be obeyed " will make the decision for you.

Egon

 

[Gary_in_Indiana]

Re: Is this insert any good, or stick with the sto

I just love an obscure reference. /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif What a great Horace Rumpole quote!

 

[Gary_in_Indiana]

Well, here's my two cents worth on the style and decor factor. Generally speaking, I'd think a wood stove would be more limiting than a conventional fireplace.

Simply put, you're not likely to do much other than colonial furnishing in a room with a wood stove. While there's nothing inherently wrong with colonial furnishings, I'd prefer at least the option of doing something else at some point in time, too.

Good luck with whatever you decide. I hope this helps. /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif

 

[s1120]

Re: Is this insert any good, or stick with the sto

</font><font color="blue" class="small">( Never fear; " She who must be obeyed " will make the decision for you.

Egon )</font>

LOL Well really she passed this one on to be. /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif She has been doing almost all of the stuff with the house, and the fireplace is something I want, so here we are.

 

[s1120]

Thanks Gary, I never thought of that. As of now, I think I am going with the fireplace. It is not our only heat sourse, and takes up less room.

BTW did anyone check out the fireplace specs? How do they look? I don't know a whole lot about this fireplace thing. /forums/images/graemlins/crazy.gif

 

[jyoutz]

I've had a fireplace insert for the past 10 years, which is our primary heating. Mine is made by Lopi and it is the best stove I've ever owned (and I've owned quite a few). I few things I have learned about heating with inserts: 1) you have less convective heating (much less surface area exposed to the room) so a blower fan is mandatory, 2) do not even think about installing this directly into your chimney without running stove pipe also. The pipe must go from the stove through the out side of your chimney, just like a freestanding woodstove. I've heard horror stories about people that just vent into the existing masonery chimney. Also with the pipe, the flue is a snap to clean and by venting into the chimney, you have to pull the stove to clean the chimney-what a mess. These type of installs also don't draft very good. 3) use stainless steel chimney pipe-you don't want to pull the stove and replace galvanized pipe. 4) plan for additional air circulation to make your home comfortable (I run the cool air fan on my gas furnice all night long. This circulates the air throughout every room in the house. 5) buy quality (check out the Lopi). Good luck.