"cthorne" wrote in message oups.com...
Hi,
We just installed a Majestic BC36 fireplace and I'm not very impressed
with the heat output. Maybe I'm doing something wrong? The area being
heated is about 800 square feet (living room, dining room, and kitchen)
and has a 16' cathedral ceiling over the living room. We have blocked
off the rest of the house either by curtains or shutting doors to keep
the heat in that one area, the house is only 10 years old and well
insulated. But I can only get the temperature up to 58F in the living
room with the fireplace burning full tilt (it is about 32F outside
today). I have the fireplace vented to outside air and it has glass
doors on the front, the damper is supposedly non adjustable (all the
way open or closed). There is also a circulation fan installed in the
fireplace that evidently draws air in through the top vents of the
fireplace, circulates it around the firebox, and puts it out in the
bottom vents, but it is a meager air supply. I've even tried putting a
small fan in front of the lower air vents and it does seem to draw more
heat through, but not enough to make much of a difference. Does anyone
have any tips or suggestions, or was my expectation for this fireplace
just too high? Perhaps if I could modify the damper to keep it
partially closed it would make a difference?


A quick look at the web page for that unit shows no specification for heat output.
(BTUs) Such numbers are routinely spec'ed for woodstoves and fireplace inserts.
There is also no suggestion that it introduces superheated air into the firebox, or uses
a catalyst to burn off unburned smoke, like most EPA appoved woodstoves or
fireplace inserts. I would not expect much heat from such a unit. But then again, I
have no real experience with it, just with an EPA approved fireplace insert, which
has heated my house for the last few years.

Bob