Installing Fireplace Inserts

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On this page, I will discuss gas inserts first, then wood inserts, and then freestanding wood stoves (scroll down for wood stoves).

 

Before inserting anything into your fireplace, give us a call and have it inspected and if necessary. we can clean it at the same time. For all manufacturers of fireplace inserts and log sets this is required prior to installation of their products!

  We clean, inspect, repair and reline chimneys in preparation for and during the installation of fireplace inserts.

  We install inserts that are purchased over the internet, from suppliers and from retail establishments and we reinstall inserts old in need of newer installation systems. We have access to many gas and wood inserts and stoves. We install these appliances regularly for The Fireplace Shop and occasionally for Acme Stove. When an installation is said to be very unusual, difficult or even not possible, we find the simplest solution for the individual situation.

What is a fireplace insert?

Generally people refer to an insert as anything that can be placed inside a fireplace. However, the fireplace industry has separated gas logs that sit on a metal grate with an open flame and that have no further enclosure from what they refer to as gas fireplace inserts.
Open flame gas logs are referred to as gas log sets, not gas log inserts. I guess they had to have a different name, but it gets confusing at times.

Non-ventilated or vent free gas log sets burn very clean and require no ventilation. You can keep your damper closed and get all of the heat. You will also get some humidity and after a while it might get a little muggy feeling, particularly if you are burning it in a small, confined area. Oxygen depletion sensors will shut the unit off if the oxygen levels get much below normal. The manuals I have read state to limit use to 3 hours.

The logs look ok but are spaced so as to allow the flames to go between the logs in 1 to 3 separate areas. They are a real flame of course, but a majority of the people I’ve spoken with find them unattractive, though others do like them and appreciate the amount of heat they emit and the remarkable efficiency, (nearly 100%)

Ventilated gas log sets are the most common of the gas logs sets I see and they are the most realistic of all gas logs, because the front of the fireplace is open just like a wood burning fireplace  and the logs placement and flames are colorful and glowing embers and coals are available. Because the fireplace is ventilated, the designers have a greater ability to create an attractive system.

Though gas log sets are not particularly efficient I offer the following opinion: Fuel costs are the result of two separate, but integral things. Only one is the efficiency of your appliance (logs). The other is how and where you use it. This second factor can have a far greater effect then the first. 

  If your thermostat is on the far side of your home and you have it set at 70 degrees while using your fireplace, your overall heating cost will rise, more so if you have a ventilated gas log set or an open wood fire.

  The heat you are producing will not raise the temperature at the other side of the house much, if at all, and with ventilated, open fireplaces, you will pull heated air away from your thermostat, often causing your furnace to run more.

  To save money you can turn your heat down and stay in the vicinity of your fireplace. Enjoy it and save a few bucks. If you are moving around a lot or not staying in the room, turn it off if it is gas. If you’re only going to use it for an hour or two, don’t worry, it won’t cost that much anyway. It’s also nice to make an unusable or uncomfortable area warm.

This example of how I save in fuel costs applies to all fuels. I heat primarily with a wood stove insert. It heats the main portion of my old very poorly insulated home extremely well, both the first and second floors. During extreme cold spells we run an electric space heater for our tiny, frail dog. In the far reaches of the first floor, we also turn on an electric heater at times. Though electric heat is very expensive, we save a small fortune because 90% of our heat use is wood. I use an expensive form of heat at limited times, in limited areas, and an inexpensive heat source for the vast majority of my heat and I save a lot of money. This concept applies to gas use as well.

Gas log inserts, by industry definition, are sealed steel “boxes” with glass fronts that are sealed shut (though they can easily be removed for servicing, only) They function similarly to direct vent gas fireplaces) which do not go in a fireplace) as they draw in air for combustion from outside of your house and exhaust it outside as well. Inserts do this via your chimney through a pipe or pipes called a liner(s). This liner is much smaller than your fireplaces liner and is generally purchased with your gas insert.

Gas log inserts are the most efficient of ventilated gas log systems that are installed in fireplaces. The logs are realistic and the flames are also attractive. I believe most of them are about 70% efficient. Glowing embers and coals are available for these systems. The fireplace designer has the same ability to design attractive systems because gas log systems are ventilated. Some people don’t like the way they look, because gas log inserts usually have a surround or large black shield that extends from the insert to the brick or other material that is around the fireplace opening. Other people like the fact that the inside of the fireplace is completely blocked off, visually. There are numerous styles and decorative accessory fronts available for this reason.

Wood stove inserts are different from free standing wood stoves. Inserts are designed slide into a fireplace and have a shield or surround that closes off the gap between the insert and the perimeter of the fireplace opening. Fans are available to circulate the heated air that is behind the surround out into the room. Though I don’t particularly like the look of the surround, most people I speak with prefer the look. If you use a full liner (a pipe, required in this area) connected directly to the exhaust collar on the top of the stove and extending to the top of the chimney, you do not have to install the surround. However, even though I personally don’t like the look of the surround, I use have one because it allows me to quickly adjust the heat in the house. With the surround in place, if I turn the fan down of off the heat drops instantly. If I turn it up, I get more heat instantly. That feature is awesome. With no surround much heat comes into the room with the fan on or off. But consider that during power outages the surround will lessen the heat available, because 2/3 of the stove is blocked off by the surround and the fan will not operate without electricity. For this reason people in areas struck by frequent power outages sometimes prefer freestanding stoves.

Wood stoves and inserts are available with up to 85% efficiency and some are eligible for the $1500.00 tax credit. I’ve been told this credit cannot be used twice, i.e.: for windows and again for a wood stove, but I’m not positive. As they say, “check with your tax consultant.”

Free standing wood stoves are either vented through the fireplace (I call these hearth stoves) or vented through a metal chimney called a class A, all fuel, high temperature (HT) or triple walled chimney. If you have an existing metal chimney, have it inspected to see if it is suitable for wood stove use before connecting a wood stove to it. It is absolutely necessary to determine if it is a proper chimney for this application, if it is in good condition and if it appears to have been installed correctly and with proper clearances to combustibles. Prefabricated fireplaces or factory built fireplaces rarely use triple walled or class a chimneys. Though they may have 2 or 3 walls they are still not the same. Some stoves are tested and listed for use in prefab fireplaces but generally a liner must be inserted through the chimney and connected to the insert’s flue collar.

In the installation of free standing wood stoves a brick, tile of stone wall or floor covering does not necessarily make the wall or floor non combustible. If brick, tile, stone or other non combustible has been placed directly on top of drywall, wood or other combustible material, the wall or floor may still be considered combustible as these materials conduct heat well. If you intend to cover a combustible wall, special spacers are needed and special ventilation requirements are necessary to be met. Generally ceramic spacers are used to hold the non combustible material 1″ off the combustible wall and at least 50% of the wall covering must be elevated 1 inch above the floor and terminate one inch or more below the ceiling. Even with these requirements the clearances to the combustible surfaces behind the wall covering must still be considered and the manufacturer should be consulted for specific clearance requirements to what would now be considered a protected wall, not a non combustible wall. Flooring requirements vary from wall requirements and manufactures have specific requirements for each. Floor protection called stove boards are available for floor protection and can be placed directly on most floor surfaces.

Before inserting anything into your fireplace, give us a call and have it inspected first and cleaned, if necessary. All Manufacturers of fireplace inserts and log sets require this!

Dave Myers