Wood burning fireplace inserts.

stinkbomb

stinkbomb

Well-Known Member
Joined
Dec 10, 2009
Location
Rougemont, NC
Bought a house a few months back, it's a modular(not a trailer), 1,400 sq.ft. and has a wood burning fireplace. It's an open hearth fireplace, it's for aesthetics, not for heating the house. The HVAC unit is all brand new, has a heat pump and the blower and everything is all built into one unit, only thing under the house is ductwork. Since I have no idea how to hook up a boiler to the HVAC unit, I want to use the fireplace.

I'd like to get a wood burning fireplace insert to put in the existing fireplace and heat the house with it, since wood is readily available around me. For my insurance to still insure the house, it needs to be "mobile home approved". What the hell is the difference between a conventional one that would go in a masonry/stick built and a modular/mobile home? There's ones that are zero clearance acceptable, but are not mobile home approved, I don't get it.

Been searching all kinds of shit online, only thing I found was about needing to be grounded, bolted down and require a fresh air inlet from the outside. Don't see how the first two are a big deal for a wood burning insert, vs a free standing wood stove. Obviously a fresh air inlet is needed, not a big deal.

Finding one the right size for my fireplace and being mobile home approved is becoming a pain in the ass. Any help would be great, since this winter is supposed to be really shitty.

-Nick
 
I think you'd be better off (easier,safer,cheaper) getting a freestanding woodstove and putting a double walled stovepipe out of a window or wall and bypassing the built in FP. A freestanding stove will put alot of heat into the house w/o a blower and with a few ceiling fans you can blow that hot air all over the house. W an insert alot of heat is wasted, it goes right up the chimney.
 
Last edited:
mommucked said:
I think you'd be better off (easier,safer,cheaper) getting a freestanding woodstove and putting a double walled stovepipe out of a window or wall and bypassing the built in FP. A freestanding stove will put alot of heat into the house w/o a blower and with a few ceiling fans you can blow that hot air all over the house. W an insert alot of heat is wasted, it goes right up the chimney.
Click to expand...

.... alot of the new inserts are as just as efficient as free standings. Ive been looking into inserts, hearth stoves and free standing stoves a lot. I'm planning on buying one this spring. With already having a FP, it would cost alot more for the pipe, stove, and the roof penetration than just a slide in.... even if you do a chimney liner
 
rodney eppes said:
I know there are hot water heaters that can be hooked into an HVAC. Is that what your calling a boiler? What would that have to do with a FP? What's this Boiler?
Click to expand...

OP is a midway Yankee type. Me thinks they use boilers and radiators for heat the further north you travel. With a little more time, he'll be one of us.

@shawn always knows the actual answers to questions like this...
 
Yes, being that I already have a functioning, wood burning fireplace, a slide in insert is the ticket. And most cost effective.

By boiler, I mean a wood burning boiler unit that would be in my yard, piped underground to the house and then basically a radiator with a fan(pretty much like a car), blowing the warm air through ductwork. The nice thing about outdoor boilers, if anything catastrophic happens, the house doesn't burn down. They can also be super expensive, but I would build my own, at this point in time, it's now cold out and I don't have time to build one.

And I have been eyeing that one at Northern up for a while now, but it doesn't have a blower and don't know how hard it would be to hook one up, I'd like to hear my house, not just the living room

And of course, @Jody Treadway, the guy from hippie-ville, bustin my shit!
 
Is it a new home? Is it a brick/masonry fireplace? I'd be suspect of a modulars chimney if it's a tube in a boxed/framed chimney. Is it approved for an insert woodstove or just a romantic fire in the fireplace? I would trust a smoke stack/stove I constructed w quality components to last for years and safely pay for itself w the heat from free wood over time. In my experience insert blowers don't last long enough and Inserts these days are generally very expensive and work better/safer in brick chimneys.
 
Last edited:
NOW I get it! All in how you {I} read it. Instead of a Boiler, use a FP! I've seen the outside Boilers, one of my neighbors has one. I understand their EXPENSIVE! A former neighbor tried a pellet stove once, but never heard how well it worked.
 
Where did you get this info re: insurance requirements? Did you call them and ask about adding an insert?
I would flat out ask them for more clarification on that requirement, and in fact ask for an example of how you (they...) would know it is compliant.
If they can't tell you how they'd know it meets the requirements, then I'd think that means you're safe from them... since they won't be able to tell what you bought is "right" or not!

And definitely get one w/ a blower on it. I've been digging around thinking about one too, seems there are some big differences in the CFM of the fans etc.
Of course this means you have to have power nearby too, this is obvious but be sure to check.
 
I have one. Burning it now.
 

Attachments

  • uploadfromtaptalk1417042625750.jpg
    uploadfromtaptalk1417042625750.jpg
    69.3 KB · Views: 285
xjay said:
I believe mine is a Porter brand insert w/ therm blower
Click to expand...
Might be Porterlator. That's what I've got in my shop. Made here in Charlotte and very well built.
 
Back
Top