Are insert stoves a good option for a smaller sitting room?

[BoundaryGirl3939]

Hi,

I am in the process of shopping for a stove. The insert one would suit my sitting room best as it's a smaller sized sitting room but I am worried I will lose heat if it is inserted into the wall. Lovely salesman tells me the insert stoves throw out lots of heat.

Anyone here have an insert stove and you're glad you bought it?

How small are we talking @BoundaryGirl3939? We had a normal, not insert, 5kw stove fitted into the 4m x 2.75m living room of our Georgian cottage in 2024. The room is semi open plan to the adjoining (dining) space which is a bit larger. We then decided to convert the living room to the kitchen 🙄 and the stove is great at heating the two areas. If the rooms were completely separate, I think the heat might be too much.

In our snug, where admittedly there's no chimney stack, we chose to have an electric Everhot heater that looks like a wood burner (and can be used to heat food, eg pizza inside). That takes forever to heat the room so it's more of a decorative feature.

How will this stove be fuelled?

Will it be the main, or only source of heat, or an ornament?

Is yours an older house, with a chimneybreast and/or fireplace?

Thanks, that’s helpful to know. A freestanding stove could potentially be too warm for my smaller, enclosed sitting room. I don't have measurements but it's in a smaller, long and narrow room in an old council house.

I’d be happy to go for an insert stove if I knew it would still throw out effective heat. There is also the option of cutting into the wall and having a freestanding stove recessed into it. It would be more expensive and I'd also worry that a 5kW stove could overhea the sitting room anyway. It's so hard know.

I think wood or coal. I will also have radiators throughout the house but I would love a cosy, toasty sitting room in the winter.

Built in 1979. It's still got the old fireplace - as in I could probably light a fire there still.

Pil have one and it throws off so much heat, especially opposite it if that makes sense. Should be ok for a smaller room.

I had a Gasco Box Stockton insert before I moved house.

Just double checking....it's an insert stove that your pil has?

How did you find it?

Does anyone in your house have asthma or breathing problems? Stoves have shown to be really bad for respiratory health

At 1979, it might be a gas flue. Have it inspected for size before placing an order.

I'd echo this, unless you have no other source of heat I would avoid on health grounds. Even if you don't have respiratory issues currently, it makes your home much less healthy.

I had an inset woodburner in my previous house which replaced an open fire. I got it instead of a freestanding one because I thought it looked neat. It was properly installed with a flue liner etc.
I would never do it again. The heat it gave out was pathetic. I felt most of the heat went up the chimney. Woodburners in general are a pain. The glass gets smoked up quickly and is not easy to clean, you have to adjust the airflow for it to burn properly, and open a red hot door to top it up.

Where we moved to we now have a Jetmaster open fire, burning wood which we buy from a reputable firm and also stack for a year ourselves so it's properly dry. By the way, a load of properly seasoned wood is not cheap. We don't light the fire every evening, but it's easy to get going and because of the built-in convection of the Jetmaster it gives off a good warmth. If it gets too hot, just put a smaller log on.
Obviously get a sturdy fireguard and use it whenever you leave the room. Don't forget to have the chimney swept each year.

Last piece of advice. Do not use coal. What is sold now is rubbish. Lighting it really needs a gas or electric poker. The ashes need emptying frequently and you will be dusting every day.

The air quality issue is another consideration of course.

So ours was a gas fire that looked like a wood burner.
Gazco Stockton insert. 4W from memory.
Had it probably 15 years and got lots of compliments.
Heat was decent. The device came with a remote control that stupidly I once left on the top shelf of the fire and melted and cost me £100 to replace. Needs 8 x AA batteries to power the sensor for the remote. You need to change these 2 to 3 times a year.
But overall I would buy again.

My parents have an insert woodburner - it throws out a lot of heat. Maybe not quite as much as the 'normal' one they had before, but plenty to heat the room.

No breathing problems but I had no idea that stoves could aggrevate like that 😬

Yes, this company come, inspect the chimney etc and install the stove so it would be a little more on the pricier side.

@BoundaryGirl3939 pay for a godo quality one and you will keep pollutants to a minimum and it will throw out a lot of heat. We have to run ours very low otherwise it is too hot. A good supplier should be able to advise and install. Will be more expensive in the short term but worst in the longer term.

*worth it in the longer term (just re-read post and clocked unfortunate typo 😁).

Thank you for all that advice. It is really worth asking around as obviously the stove company would never inform me of pitfalls. My worry is that the insert stove would lose huge chunks of heat. And what a disappointment after spending so much money.

I googled the Jetmaster and although they look great, I am not sure I can get them in Ireland. I am happy I have not committed to any company and I will continue to research.

That looks really beautiful. It seems as though some people have had great experiences with insert stoves, and for other the heat output has been poor. I wonder why that is...perhaps different brand of stoves? I am not sure.

Perhaps an expensive good quality insert stove may be the only way to go. Reviews on them are very mixed. At least you get great heat.

Ours is great. Can't remember make unfortunately but think itis a Contura. But it is worth doing your research and going to somewhere that knows what they are doing. Our house is early 1980s, originally a open fire place but a small chimney. We moved from a cottage with a freestanding one. The new insert stove kicks out a lot more heat, burns much more slowly so is better on fuel, and is easier to clean and maintain. I was sceptical, and it took a while to work out its quirks, but I remain impressed 7 years on. The only thing is, small stoves burn better with smaller logs and well seasoned wood. We get a delivery each year from a local.supplier but my DH has to split some of the logs.

To be clear, mine was just a gas fire that did not burn logs.
In a small room it would be certainly adequate.

We've got a Woodwarm one and it is great, super easy to use, chucks out loads of heat and the "glass" never soots up.

https://woodwarmstoves.co.uk/product/phoenix-ecodesign-ready-firebright-eco-inset-5kw/