Thoughts or experience on upgrading from insert to freestanding stove?

Currently "heating" a 1900ft2 gambrel with a Jotul Rockland insert. The stove is an insert that sits in my 29"Hx34"W masonry fireplace. It uses a flexible liner and I have installed a block off plate that is insulated with Roxul just at the top of the fireplace opening.

The hearth extends about 20" and is raised about 6" and a piece of stone. Any adjustment of the hearth would be a big undertaking at which point I think I would just make an alcove and pick any stove I wanted!

These cold snaps give it fits. Last night the house was down to 61F after a 6+ hour burn. So here I was,loading up the stove at 2AM with much disgust. It was a low of 0F last night. Took off the surround and tonight it's the same temps but I'm at 65F, so a noticeable improvement. The aesthetics take a hit, but hey. These temps are in the central located tstat so the stove room is a good 5 degrees warmer I would guess. Below about 20F outside and it's a chore to maintain 68F which is our preferred temperature.

I really think a freestanding stove would heat better and more than likely prove to be more efficient given a similar secondary burner setup. However, hearth size and fireplace opening leave me limited in what stove to upgrade to.

An Oslo would fit, but it is only "rated" for an extra 5k BTU and the firebox is marginally larger.

Perhaps the best investment is improved insulation and then deciding where to go. Mid 80's built home with single pane windows and not enough attic insulation.

Anyone care to comment?

 

Attic insulation is Cheap and makes a world of difference year around. Easy money.

My guess- If removing the surround gained you 4F, pulling the "stove" out of the hole would gain you another 4F.

You need a bigger firebox or more insulation/tighten it up.

Where are you located?

 

Single pane windows? I'm assuming they're the original windows. You can use some window film on them until you are able to upgrade them. Do you have a basement? Could you install a stove in the basement that could provide some extra heat on those cold nights? How many nights per year do you have this problem? Are you in one of those states where they conduct a free energy audit? That could help tell you where you could get the most bang for the buck with your insulation/air sealing projects.

Also, if your chimney is on an exterior wall, that might be part of your problem. Heat gets transferred through the masonry directly to the outside.

 

++++++ on window reno, we did triple pane gas filled with foam filled frames and they are AMAZING. Same for the insulation. Before I got the 30, I had a Regency Insert in a brick faced heatolator style fireplace. Found the firebox too small and heat production marginal. By putting the 30 partially in the fireplace it became a heat factory. My vote on changing out the insert for a free-stander.

 

Location is Southeastern Mass, Assonet to be precise.

The stove can't keep up anytime its below about 20F. This is probably 1/6 of the heating season.

The fireplace wall is external, the oil burner shares the opposing flue encased in the typical brick chimney.

Adding a stove is adding a chimney somewhere, but could be an option.

We do have an energy audit available and I do plan to set something up.

The windows are on the short list of things to upgrade, just a decent chunk of change for 21 windows!

 

cnice_37, if you're having trouble at those temps, I would suggest that you have pretty substantial heat loss (like me).
If you can get in the attic, air seal any penetrations you possibly can, and insulate to modern levels (Your area should be a minimum of either R-49 or R-60 in the attic). If you're noticing drafts around windows, do like stuckinthemuck suggests with the plastic until you can do some caulking. In lieu of replacement, a less expensive option could be storm windows.
Insulation is one of those things that, when done well, pays back immediately and for the life of the structure in not only fuel savings, but also comfort level.
You can also do as others have suggested, and do a freestander, but the liner itself should be insulated as well as the block-off plate.
Sounds like you have a good idea what to do, but maybe need a little nudge. We do nudges. Ask Scotty, I've nudged him quite a bit in the past. Wait, that doesn't sound quite right.
Keep us updated, ask more questions, and post up some pics.
We're pic happy.

 

Photobucket app is acting up, I did take a pic last night of the stove front. Here's a view from last year's mid-winter cleaning of the chimney... You can kind of make out the 2 clay flues, I don't quite understand how I would add a 3rd??



And some obligatory woodpile porn, roof view (again, from last year)...

 

OK current view from inside the house with the surround removed...

 

papadave...

I appreciate the nudge. The problem is my to do list never seems to shrink. I have attic access, it's not a fun place to hang out, but I was just up there installing a TV antenna. The insulation (assuming 2"x10" joists up there) is subpar as it sits below the joist level. Are you also suggesting insulating every hole in the sheetrock; as in expanding foam in all the wire drop points?

The windows are leaky. Storms are there, but they block the wind, don't seal well. I have drafts between the sash and the frame, and I'm willing to bet I could insulate around the frame as well. When oil was <$1/gal the original owners probably cheaped out on the build.

If I do upgrade anything in the stove area, a real liner is on the list. I bought the stove without much research, and did what the stove shop suggested on the install. Later on I found resources online (like here and the predecessor) that taught me how to actually use the damm thing, and stuff like block off plates, and what a secondary burn was and how to achieve it. This is year 6 of full time burning. The stove is awesome, only flaw is one squirrel cage blower sounds like a stuck pig, and its time for door gasket replacement. I agree the house is probably the major issue.

 

Had two brick chimneys and one insert on the outside wall. Left the insert, ripped out the other chimney because it was in the wrong place. Remodeled kitchen, living, laundry, and dining room into one family room and added a new interior double wall chimney with new woodstove. Quiet, more heat, and not depending on electricity to move convective heat. Love the radiant heat as well, gets the family together.

 

No, that is my thinking but someone mentioned adding a second stove for the colder stretches. Adding a second stove would require a new chimney.

Haha, the scenery isn't that nice unless you are sitting on the roof! We live in a rural area, but surrounded by some cities. This part of the 'hood everyone sits on a minimum of 1 acre so we have limited privacy but I like it.

 

Hmm, I wouldn't assume anything. Take a tape with you next trip up there and measure the 2x to be sure.
I had/have R-11 (being generous here) in the attic. Ripped it out of the stove room and it's now @ R-49.
Yes, seal any penetrations you can, and then find some more and seal those too. Expanding foam or firestop caulk.
If you don't get in the attic much, do blown in. Inexpensive, relatively easy, and results are noticeable right away. Just make sure the soffits can breathe.
Take the trim off the windows....one at a time over the course of months if needed, and spray foam around those.
We have storms over singles pain D) windows, and most are leaky. 22 windows won't be replaced all in one fell swoop any time soon, with 5 of them being 4'x 5' in the stove room.
I can feel cold on my arms and legs sitting in my chair right now, but I'm trying to do only one project to completion at a time.
Exterior chimney sucks heat from the flue unless it's insulated. Keep the flue as hot as possible by insulating the drop in liner.
You should see an improvement in the way the stove works.
Oh, I can't even see the bottom of my to-do list. I'll be dead before I get to all of it.
ETA: I think Pete's right, the suggestion was to replace the insert with a freestander, similar to rotti's in post #4.