More heat from a fireplace?

[cmartin]

Short of spending 2k on a stove insert I'm looking at alternatives at making my fireplace more useful. It's great to heat up the area up to ~10' in front but I realize it's more show than go.

Anyone have experience with something like this? Seems to make sense but I dont want to spend $$ to find out it's a nominal improvement. Anything else you've tried?

http://www.northlineexpress.com/images/products/5GS-SP4-xlg.jpg

Thanks

[flipb]

No experience with this, but I'm intrigued by the idea... cheaper than many alternatives.
http://www.plowhearth.com/Heat-Reflecting-Fireplace-Bright-Reflectors_p409359_S2011_D4000_C1031.html

http://www.plowhearth.com/plow_assets/images/shop/catalog/36144x.jpg

[cmartin]

I was looking at something very similar. A sheet of 308 stainless is pretty cheap, might be worth a shot.

Thanks

[SilverStreak]

Is this a prefab unit? Some are prewired to accept a fan. Today's Fireplace installed one for a homeowner of mine for >$500 (the remote is pricey).

[Trak Ratt]

We have the fan/grate/doors. Will drive you out of the room in about 30 minutes! Heats up the family room enough to effect the thermo on the next level. Which makes the bedroom (on the top level) cold'r than well digger's ass in January.

[BlackTalon]

Got 3 FPs in the original part of our house. Installed a gas one in our new addition. Holy crap, I wish I had converted one of the old ones to gas years ago! A big gas FP is way less of a PITA then a wood-burning one.

Be leery of adding fans to a regular fireplace, as they can blow burning embers, etc. out into the room. Modern units might not have this issue, but years back that was a problem.

[Trak Ratt]

Be leery of adding fans to a regular fireplace, as they can blow burning embers, etc. out into the room. Modern units might not have this issue, but years back that was a problem.Everyone I've seen worked like heat exchangers (fire and hot air separate). You've been breath'n roof tar and cement fums to long boy-0!

[BlackTalon]

Everyone I've seen worked like heat exchangers (fire and hot air separate). You've been breath'n roof tar and cement fums to long boy-0!Parents had a setup years back that looked a bit like the first pic in this thread. Warmer air blew out the tubes. When something would 'pop', shiite would sometimes reach the airstream and get propelled further out of the fireplace into the room. Just need to make sure your screen setup, etc. works good with the blower setup.

[smdubovsky]

We have one like OP posted but it runs under everything and the glass doors are kept shut during use. It replaced the lower trim panel. So popping is a non-issue. We never use the fireplace and have considered taking it out and putting in gas.

Works well. We had an 'open one' more like the picture posted back when I was a kid and it could REALLY heat up a room too.

[Vicegrip]

IMO anything short of a stove is not worth the effort. Watch Craigs list in the spring and summer you will find a good free standing stove for cheap. I see them from time to time. I found that top loaders are well worth any extra cost. I have been using a a Vermont Castings Intrepid for the last 21 years to heat the house. No smoke, no soot, no ashes coming out the front just tons of heat. Nice heat too .Roasty toasty for cold bones right in front to comfortable in the far rooms with no sound of blowers.
Iinserts are hard to load and clean and the add on things blow smoke and soot intom the house and the fire place is still running negitive total heat into the house. They suck more cold outside air in than they heat. Firplaces are great to warm the soul but to heat your house and a soul you need a good free standing stove.

[Fritz]

We're putting in a rumsford fireplace on the main floor which is designed to throw heat into the room instead of up the flue. It works the same as the stainless deflectors or angled iron backings that bounce the heat out. The new gas ones are impressive as well as the pellet stoves if you decide to go down the upgrade route.

[tdatk]

We have 2 fireplaces, one has stone facia and we use the type of blower DD mentioned, tube w/blower....we hardley ever use it as per BTU of heat it gives out it pulls in way more cold air, IMHO nice to look at useless to heat with. In the other we have a pellet insert, bought it used ~$400 1994 model and it heats VERY well. Uses 2 -40lb bags of pellets a day on medium and basically heats 1/2 the downstairs and all the upstairs at night. We keep it running from Dec to March pretty much all the time. I usually buy 2 tons of pellets in fall on sale for ~ $219 a ton.(50 bags) Best bang for the buck IMHO.

[BlackTalon]

I usually buy 2 tons of pellets in fall on sale for ~ $219 a ton.(50 bags) Best bang for the buck IMHO.Man, if I calculate the bang-to-buck ratio from my first marriage, the pellets are way, way better!!!!

[Trak Ratt]

Man, if I calculate the bang-to-buck ratio from my first marriage, the pellets are way, way better!!!!12 pellets in the right tub (12 in the left for backup) would have cost even less :twisted:

[Cliff Claven]

vicegrip is correct, nothing works as well as a stove. plus many of them you can cook on, heat water, etc.

[C3PC]

^^^^^ and they don't require electricity!

[cmartin]

Thanks for the info. I still like the wood thing, old fashioned I guess. I hope/plan to move soon so I dont want to drop $$ just for another season of heat so I'm thinking budget.

I have a prefab builder grade fireplace, I'll look into the fan option.

Other than that I think I'll give a sheet of stainless a shot.

[flipb]

Can't remember when/where, but I met someone who'd plumbed water lines in a circuit that routed through the fireplace and to radiators in each room (via the basement). Added an inexpensive water pump into the circuit and heated his whole house with a wood-burning fireplace.

[roundel]

I do love a fireplace even if it does cool the rest of the house. I found that if I fiddle with the flue and close it just enough so that smoke does not enter the room, the sucking of cold air into the rest of the house is reduced. My fireplace has a heatilator which uses convection currents and uses the hot iron fireplace insert to heat air and release it above the mantle. I also have a pellet stove on the opposite side of the house. If I burn both, I can turn the furnace off since the fireplace pulls the pellet stove heat through the whole house. The other benefit is the exercise of splitting and humping logs.

[cmartin]

the exercise of splitting and humping logs.

Agreed. I like the ritual of getting the chainsaw to run, splitting, moving wood... Then the sounds and smells from the fireplace. If I had more space at the house I would stock wood all year. Unfortunately I dont have a ton of storage so it's ~1.5 seasons worth usually.

My firewall has a fresh air intake from outside but I'm sure it still sucks air from the house.