Here Genius shows his Woodstove/fireplace ignorance.

[Genius]

Yes you can get efficient stove inserts. You can put them into existing fireplace openings or build around them to make them look like a fireplace.

I'm kind of partial to the blaze king line of stoves just because of the easy operation and even heat output. Plus the ability to operate them so low during shoulder season.

My biggest tip for you regardless which stove insert you install is try to install it so the flue pipe can exit straight up through the house. That is an important part of having a good draft in warmer weather to be able to operate the BK stoves on low. You might want to take a close look at all the chimney pipe required to install the stove also. It can cost a lot of money.

I'm fully aware of the cost of the chimney. I put one in our current house when we moved in. I had to run it from the basement and up two floors to the peak of a old farm house.

 

[Wood Doctor]

I have a zero clearance fireplace (real fireplace) with a LOPI insert. Heats up to 2400 sq ft. Takes up to 24" logs. Looks nice and is very efficient. Really is a nice setup. Best stove I ever had. Throws heat like crazy. Well worth the money spent. [emoji106]

I wish my best customer had your LOPI insert. His only handles an 18" log (so he tells me). I end up rejecting half the logs I cut to meet that constraint. I save the longer ones for myself and other customers.

I once told him that if I owned a stove that needed under 18" logs to work, I'd replace it. He didn't like that comment.

 

[Al Smith]

I have a glass front Lopi in a masonary fireplace .Older model probably mid 80's build solid as a rock .Firebrick lower sides with 3/8" plate steel ,cast iron doors .It will take 24" stuff .
The fireplace masonary flue is clay lined 9" square which I installed a single wall 7" round 22 gauge stainless steel liner a few years back because the portion extending above to roof line exibited a lot of wet gooey creosote formation .That fixed it .
BTW I bought that stainless steel through a builders supply for about half the cost as two local so called stove shops who are pirates .The cost as I recall for about 15 feet was under 200 bucks .I had to plate the area where the fireplace damper sat with 1/4" plate .The worst part was moving that 6-700 pound insert .That done after a season I only get maybe the last 6 inches at the top of the flue that extends above the brick with creosote which is pyrolited. The stuff that won't catch fire like that road tar chit that will .

 

[RI Chevy]

Nice Al. Sounds like the same insert as mine. I installed into masonry fireplace and also lined my flue with stainless pipe all the way up. Provides much better draft and gives an extra layer of protection. I bought 4, 4ft lengths of stainless pipe for $160. Used pop rivets to hold the SS pipe together.
These LOPI stoves are built like Sherman tanks and radiate heat very well. Mine has a clear ceramic glass front with a solid brass door. Well worth the money. Heats my whole house. My model is the Freedom Bay Insert.
www.lopistoves.com if anyone is interested. I bought mine about the same time as Al. All they had were wood burning stoves. Now they have a little bit of everything. Gas, pellet, etc.

 

[Lightning Performance]

View attachment 96201
Trying again

Anything with a gun adds easy of use when someone is not around to load the stove. Makes starting a fire much much easier if that matters to you. Plus, you can multi fuel to your liking.
I would make the smoke pipe SS HT. Save your money for the insert, the masonry pad and the hearth. Water is a great way to store and move heat.

I have a zero clearance fireplace (real fireplace) with a LOPI insert. Heats up to 2400 sq ft. Takes up to 24" logs. Looks nice and is very efficient. Really is a nice setup. Best stove I ever had. Throws heat like crazy. Well worth the money spent. [emoji106]

Those LOPI's throw some heat.

 

[Al Smith]

I can stretch mine into about 12 hours if I get a good hot bed of oak or hickory coals .Stuffed to the gills with more larger splits of same it will hold .Generally I don't choke it off that much,just enough for an over night burn .During the day if I'm at home enough for about 2-3 hours between refueling which is usually ash or maple during the day .It will burn anything down to powder .You'd be surprised how small of a pile that is from 4-5 cords of wood . I really think the reason it does so well is the refractory effect of the fire brick .

 

[Al Smith]

I couldn't find a picture so I took another one .That mantle is some of my handy work from ash that came off my property before the invasion of EAB . That tree was a biggun for an ash .About 100 feet tall ,3 feet in diameter snapped right into from a straight line wind . Got several cords of firewood and about 1200 BDF of lumber .

 

[Wood Doctor]

Well guys, I spent half my time today collecting a truckload of 18" logs or less for a customer with a Lopi 1250 that only accepts 18" logs or less. First class PITA. I saved the longer logs for two other customers that aren't so picky. I used an 18" scrap of branch wood as a measuring stick to separate them out. But, will the Lopi owner give me an extra dime a load for logs that fit inside his insert? Well, I'll give you three guesses and the first two don't count.

 

[Marshy]

Well guys, I spent half my time today collecting a truckload of 18" logs or less for a customer with a Lopi 1250 that only accepts 18" logs or less. First class PITA. I saved the longer logs for two other customers that aren't so picky. I used an 18" scrap of branch wood as a measuring stick to separate them out. But, will the Lopi owner give me an extra dime a load for logs that fit inside his insert? Well, I'll give you three guesses and the first two don't count.

Give him all 16". Ha!

 

[RI Chevy]

I cut all my wood to 16". Burns better. But I do have some longer 22" pieces for my bigger insert.
I used to fill my Lopi 3 times a day. The LOPI technology constantly re-burns the ashes in a circular fashion. Only had to clean ash out once a week. Definitely good stoves.

 

[Cigmaker]

I cut all my wood to 16". Burns better. But I do have some longer 22: pieces for bigger insert.
I used to fill my Lopi 3 times a day. The LOPI technology constantly re-burns the ashes in a circular fashion. Only had to clean ash out once a week. Definitely good stoves.

I'm in the same boat. My stove will take a 20 inch log but if I'm a little long on 16 inches everything is good.

 

[Marshy]

I cut 18-22 but my stoves will fit up to 24". No need to be exact, just shoot for 20 and it all fits. Most people who sell split firewood cut it 16" because it a the standard length for face cord and fits in nearly everything.

 

[Al Smith]

I try to get mine at about 16" .Comes from selling the stuff for 8 or 9 years during the mid 70's to mid 80's .Just a force of habit .

 

[Al Smith]

Then again during that time period I made about 10 bucks an hour .Now it's worth more than that to me if than if I sold it .No taxes just so called free heat until the government gets the bright idea to tax me on my own labor .Probably be next right after taxing me for the air I breath .Don't get me started .

 

[RI Chevy]

If you cut all your wood at the same length, it makes for very neatly stacked piles of wood. My FIL taught me that. [emoji106]

 

[fossil]

Ross, Just remember if the house is to be well insulated the heat from an insert in a small room will make it extremely hot in that room unless you have a way to move the heat out.

 

[Cigmaker]

Then again during that time period I made about 10 bucks an hour .Now it's worth more than that to me if than if I sold it .No taxes just so called free heat until the government gets the bright idea to tax me on my own labor .Probably be next right after taxing me for the air I breath .Don't get me started .

I can't bring myself to sell a single piece. I think about the work I put in and then how much I can get NOPE.

 

[Dub11]

I can't bring myself to sell a single piece. I think about the work I put in and then how much I can get NOPE.

I feel ya and I don't even burn wood. I'd rather give to a friend or I hook my uncle up in trade off for storing junk at his place from time to time.

Plus ungrateful m'fers take the fun right out of it.

 

[RI Chevy]

I can't bring myself to sell a single piece. I think about the work I put in and then how much I can get NOPE.

I am the same way. Wood is a labor of love.
Last year was the first year I ever sold wood. I was clearing acre lots for a guy. Literally had no place else to put it. She said she buys 2 cords a year. I made a deal, pay me 2 cords, and I will bring you more than 4.
She ended up screwing me over. Go figure. Cut, split and delivered to your door. WTF!!!!!
I'D just rather give it away to someone who needs it.

 

[kingOFgEEEks]

ungrateful m'fers take the fun right out of it.

That should be printed on a bumper sticker or something. Lots of truth right there.