adding a fireplace / woodstove

[Road Guy]

ahh that was probably written by some gubernment employee who has never made a real decision in their entire life..

For vented they really are a simple install, but that gas supply lines looks a little iffy though....

 

[matt267 PE]

written by some gubernment employee who has never made a real decision in their entire life

I didn't write it....

 

[csb]

My two favorites so far were:

- Delayed ignition of a vented fireplace (soft of a natural gas fired pot belly stove).  We filled the firebox up with natural gas, then hit the igniter.  Blew a fireball about 10 feet out the top and front of the fireplace.  The loss we were trying to re-create was a personal injury where the glass front of the fireplace blew out when the user was trying to light the fire.

- Pouring water on a grease fire.  We built a room out of 2x4's and drywall outside, put a stove in it, put a pan on one of the burners, put vegetable oil in the pan, heated the oil, ignited the oil, then poured a cup of water (attached to a long stick) into the pan.  The fireball was absolutely insane.  It went to the ceiling, then rolled out of the front of the room.  Everything above about 5 feet high would have been singed.  

But I'm still okay to grab the pan and huck it out onto the driveway, right? 

 

[knight1fox3]

 

[wilheldp_PE]

But I'm still okay to grab the pan and huck it out onto the driveway, right? 

Good luck.  I had a deposition with an ambulance chaser whose client did something like that.  She was claiming that the microwave somehow malfunctioned and ignited the pan of grease on the cooktop.  Turns out, the microwave still works like a champ and her insured is an *****.

 

[Dleg]

Good God.

 

[Supe]

Dammit!  I keep getting banner ads for gas logs now thanks to this thread.

 

[Audi Driver P.E.]

They needed to do something about those curtains anyway.

 

[Dleg]

I got my propane fireplace working!

Following what I learned from Youtube and the internet, I cleaned the two thermopiles but that didn't do it.  I was getting ready to replace them, when I ran into the former owner of my house.  He asked me if I had gotten it working yet (it was called out on the engineering report, but I waived it in exchange for a price reduction). He said he had wanted to talk to me about it and a number of things but the realtors kept us separated the whole time.  The trick was to turn the gas control knob from the pilot to the on position very slowly.  That did the trick. When I would pop the knob out and turn it quickly, the pilot would go out, but when I did it slowly, it stayed lit and the main burner valve was then activated.  Works great now using the remote control, and just in time - first snow was yesterday.

 

[kevo_55]

^^Nice!!!

No snow here, but it is getting colder. I'm not ready to turn on the furnace just yet but we have been using our gas insert fireplace quite a bit already.

So worth the install!!

 

[Dleg]

It is nice, even if it doesn't add all that much heat.  Last night we had it on, and to go between watching the flames indoors and the Aurora outdoors (at 33 degrees) was pretty nice.

 

[jeb6294]

I suppose it's time I head out back and start splitting the huge stack of wood in the back yard. A fireplace isn't the most efficient thing in the world, but it's kind of hard to argue when the fuel is free.

 

[knight1fox3]

Although the install doesn't seem too involved, to @wilheldp_PE's point, it would give more peace of mind to have a professional do it I think. I spoke to a local retailer and gave them all the specs. They quoted me $750 for everything including the install. I also asked about vented vs. non-vented and he said since I already have a traditional fireplace with a chimney, I wouldn't realize the benefits of non-vented. This isn't something I plan to use all winter either. Probably only have it on weekends we are home and when people are visiting.

In addition to the concerns above, there's also some parts I'm unfamiliar with (see photo below). I assume this is some sort of regulator/diffuser? Can that just be taken off and then connected to whatever inlet assembly there is for the gas log? Assuming I can even remove it to begin with. It's looks pretty worn. Or do I leave the large part and just remove the gas tube? :dunno:

Just in time for Turkey day.

 

[Supe]

Gas fireplace doors that OPEN?

 

[Road Guy]

So did you install it yourself or puss out and pay some high school drop out / "professional" to do it?

 

[knight1fox3]

A little bit of both. The valve/regulator was easier than I thought. Just a #$%#@$ to initially crack loose.

 

[Dleg]

Just in time for Turkey day.

View attachment 8834

Do those doors close?  They look too big for the space.

Awesome, though.  Looks more "realistic" than my propane logs.

 

[knight1fox3]

Yep they close. This was originally a wood burner with gas start. I got sick of the wood and we don't use it as a primary source of heat so it was never getting used. This way I can at least turn it on and off and not have to mess around with it much anymore.

 

[FLBuff PE]

Looks very similar to my setup. Watch your fingers on the open/close valve if you've had the fireplace on for awhile. That MF'er gets hot.

 

[Ship Wreck PE]

Did you get it with the circulation fan under the box?