Ecofan + Fireplace... WORKS!

I have a traditional fireplace that was terrible for throwing heat into the room.

Years ago (maybe 8?) after doing some research I ended up not going with a stove and instead spent $381 shipped for the Grate Wall of Fire. It is a 3/4" solid steel vertical grate that is gravity fed and a million times better than a traditional horizontal grate. You build upside down fires and then just give it a tickle every once in a while and keep feeding logs from the top. Combined with the 1/2" solid steel reflective back, this transformed the fireplace into a viable heat source.

I also installed two ceiling fans (in both the dining room where the fireplace is as well as the living room) that have reversible direction so that I could move air.

I've now taken it to the next level by mounting an ecofan. All the videos I've seen are of it sitting on top of a stove or an insert and even the company's own website mentions that it cannot be installed in a fireplace.

Time will tell if it will last .....

But I initially had used a thin piece of sheet metal attached to the "L" brackets and then on top of that had the ecofan mounted. The heat transfer was not ideal as there was definitely an air gap between the two layers.

Yesterday I decided to remove that sheet metal plate and now the fan blades are spinning way better.

I was literally sweating sitting at my desk in the adjacent living room and the temp was reading 79.9F!

This fan is now casting the heat even further. It's awesome!

Video link here.

 

Man that's a genius move.The satisfaction in your voice is a pleasure to hear when things exceed expectations.

 

Man, that is awesome! I've never heard of the "Grate wall of fire" before. That's a really good idea, plus with the fan, awesome work.

 

Thanks. One of my internet gaming buddies was like "Why do you always say 'That's so satisfying!'" and it's true - it's all about that satisfied feeling. Heh heh.

Thanks! Can't say enough about the gratewall - funny name but man the product really delivers. My wife was complaining that it's too hot now with that little fan going.....can you believe that???? She is *always* cold and is now saying it's too hot hahahahahahaha.

 

Wow, that is a true testament right there! I know my jaw dropped a bit when your thermometer said 80.

 

83.1 Holy moly it's working good. I went double wide since I had a bunch of black locust shorties. My wife is complaining that her t*ts are sweating. Lmfao.

 

I misread this comment.

 

No, I don't think you did hahahahaha.

 

LOL, I refrain from the.......
anyway, what's the temp outside right now?

 

Oops, I didn't read the bottom. Sorry

 

That should equal less clothing.... congratulations!!

 

Yeah right....Married 14 years and 3 offspring....no more hanky panky except me, myself, and I man.

 

Hahaha i understand. Tell the kids to go play outside...you can still chase her around the house!

 

21 years here with one Minecraft operator.

 

They are getting to the age where they want to get on my computer!!! I come back from working outside to find crumbs I did not leave, cups I did not drink out of, and my chair raised all the way.....

 

I lucked out and have a work computer that no one but me can work on. My son plays on the home computer. If I didn't have that, I would be totally frustrated with sticky keys and a space bar that doesn't work very well from a 11 year old pounding on it. I'd replace it, but no one else seems to care so....

 

Here's the bracket I used from home depot. I just used some self tapping screws (zippies) and predilled a hole in the ecofan. Then I secured the bracket first to the fireplace surround and used some short machined screws and nuts to secure the ecofan to the bracket.

There are 3 screws per bracket screwed into the fireplace surround and one screw on each bracket to secure the ecofan to the bracket.

These pics are from the first attempt where I added an extra thin piece of metal. That actually prevented the heat from transferring properly. It basically blocked it from reaching the ecofan. Once I removed that plate then the ecofan started spinning super fast.

An example of thinking I needed to secure the front edge of the ecofan when in fact the one screw on each bracket is more than enough.

I will say that if you have small children this installation may pose a bit of a risk since the edges of the ecofan are super sharp. You can grind the corners round I suppose. Easy fix. I will do that.



I just took these pics now. As you can see no plate just the brackets and the ecofan and one screw on each side.

 

They are sharp to cut through the air better.

 

I should have been more clear - was talking about all the 90 degree corners of the base plate, not the blades. The blades are not sharp btw.

 

My reply was meant to be funny. My emoticon disappeared.