Open face fireplace Vs. Woodstove

If you get a house with a traditional masonry chimney you can put a wood stove insert in it...you could possibly install a freestanding stove in it too but those are usually meant to be out in the open to radiate heat better..but they can be made to work in a fireplace or alcove area (some better than others)
If the house has an existing chimney you may be able to use it if it is not already utilized for another appliance....it will probably need to have a liner dropped in it though. You could also put up a new chimney, most people use a class A chimney like Kimberly has, now keep in mind you can go out through the wall like she did or if it works out with the layout of the house, you can go straight up through the house (preferable design if you can pull it off) this is easiest to do on ranch style houses but possible on some multi story houses too.

 

As Kim mentioned, an open fireplace is the epitome of inefficiency, some are actually negative efficiency! I had an uncle that always had is fireplace cookin when we had the family Christmas gathering there, it looked nice, but I don't particularly remember a lot of heat from it.
But modern stoves are very efficient, and you can still hear the wood popping and crackling (slightly muffled I suppose) and everybody loves a good view of the fire, so get a stove with a nice big glass in the door and you get the best of everything!
Install price vary wildly. You can DIY for under $1000 like I did or I see some people spending $5-6k for a dealer installed top of the line stove and chimney. There are some very good stoves out there that wont break the bank (Englander NC30 is a good one) and you can put up a new class A chimney for under $1000 if you know where to shop (Menards has good prices on Selkirk brand chimney)
When I started out I stuffed a little Vogelzang stove in the fireplace that I paid $400 for (on sale) then I found a great deal on an pre-insulated liner that I installed in my chimney myself...BAM, wood heat without

 

There are a lot of good points mentioned here already. I would suggest reading about installations as much as you can. Usually you can install a stove in a fireplace. You may be limited to what size stove will fit in the opening and making the connections may be difficult if there is not much room. Some stoves are top vent only, so you also have to consider how it is vented and look in up the flue to go through the damper.

We started out burning in the open fireplace and quickly learned how much heat is lost up the chimney. We wanted that crackle and pop sound. That was put aside quickly when we had a stove installed and realized how much heat stayed in the house. Some stoves have screens for open door viewing, but we did not really use it.

A stove inside a fireplace may require the hearth to be built out for front clearances. Setting a stove in a fireplace may make it difficult or not possible to cook on the stove top.

An insert is a good choice. I always consider the thought of an extended power loss and having to power a blower fan.

 

Wow these are really great tips. I def want a wood stove badly now. I do love the free standing ones that radiate a ton of heat. I walk into my friends home when theirs is on and the whole house(it is a rancher) feels so cozy. It's not an insert just a freestanding one tucked in a huge deep custom fireplace.

I feel the inserts sounds good but depending on what you have to work with, getting the pipe into the back of the insert and then having to push it back into the fireplace seems hard and complicated. Def getting one with a glass front door cause I absolutely love seeing a fire ablaze

 

Inserts usually have surround plates that are removable. After the insert goes into the firebox, the flue connections are made. The plates go back on and trim out the opening out.

Read up on stove manufacturers websites on stove install manuals and specifications. When the time arrives for stove shopping and purchase, you will be well informed with a good understanding of what you have and may need.

 

Inserts have the flue connection on top...Century makes a small one, the CW2500, that has the flue connection on the top/back edge at a 45* angle. If you want a rear connection unit, there are a few free standing stoves that can be set up for top or rear. A rear connection stove is generally used to set on the hearth out front of the fireplace and the stovepipe will still clear the top of the fireplace opening to make a chimney connection without having to blow a hole through the wall above the fireplace (another option though)

 

Most inserts have a surround that goes around the insert. Once you remove the surround, then there's enough room to install the pipe on to the stove.

Keep in mind, you'll need to look at your draft damper that your current fireplace has.

Sometimes it can be a real pita, and sometimes not so bad to run the SS liner through the existing damper.

The damper "issue" exists whether you use a stove or an insert. Now in a tight damper, a stove or insert that uses a 6" stove pipe will be a lot easier than an 8" pipe, so you really have to pay attention and select the right stove or insert.

I scoured Craigslist and got lucky last Fall. I got my barely used Quadrafire 4100 insert with SS liner and top chimney cap for $350. The liner kit alone would have been that much, and the same stove was over 2000. Granted we had to remove it from the existing house it was installed in , but the effort was well worth it.

Installing the insert into my house took a few hours, but wasn't really that bad. Total outlay was a little under $400 for a few suplies needed and including gas for the 100 mile round trip to get the stove.

Take a picture of the damper you have and post up dimensions of the FP area, including the damper opening.


Then we can help more with options.

 

raybonz , Nicholas has been all over getting wood split and stacked. He's been hitting us up with wood id and stacking/ storage questions.

 

Thank you. I took part of it back down today to see if I can add the three foot section to increase the height. I was going to try and life 17 pounds over my head but figured that was not going to work. Therefore, I took the two foot section and added it to the one foot section and cap; which comes to 17 pounds; maybe a bit more. Add on the three foot section and it comes to 38 pounds. Now, I need lift this to around waist high and set it onto the chimney. I am not sure I can life 38 pounds of chimney and place it. I am going to try this tomorrow, standing at the edge of the roof and I am not happy about it. There is no strong man I can call on to do this for me; and this is one area that men have an advantage; strength.

 

Yes I am on here everyday horkn always looking for help and advice lol I'm a regular lol


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Oh yeah, you're asking all the right questions.

I used to be like you, an open FP burner, and I converted to an epa approved insert last year. Such a huge difference. I went from about $4.50 a day in natural gas, to a little over a buck a day.

My wife was very particular about the amount of glass on the insert. As you know, the amount of light/ flames of an open fireplace is hard to match.

Now what Scotty has, or the ones he listed are the best of both worlds. They are not cheap though, and require a lot of work to implement.

If you have an open FP, is so easy to drop in a liner, and plop an insert in.

Drop and plop.

Second easiest install would be a stove with class A pipe.

 

Don't worry, you get a stove with glass door, you will get some serious heat, the view and you will be happy

 

Ya I think I'm leaning toward an stand alone wood stove over an insert. We're not buying a house for another year or two but I think I'll find either a house with a huge fireplace opening for a stand alone or just build a nice alcove maybe if I have to, idk I'll prolly change my mind a million times before that time comes lol


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Now here's a question my sister and I wondered.....do these wood stoves capable of heating an entire house or at least an entire floor ?? Are these wood stoves good for heating a room only or??? I know my friends rancher his whole house basically gets heated from his wood stove ......