1892 Monarch Fireplace Insert

freetown fred wrote:Ya got a real nice unit there PW. Clean er up, fill er up & ENJOY!

Thanks Fred ! Its great to know you are back on your feet.

just peter wrote:
If you mean Hamburg Germany, I estimate 400Km.

I did not see the lower flue outlet it's amazing.
It's more than a nice find, it's loveley or something like that

Peter

Yes, I hope to take a few days off while Im there and see more of the sights.

Looking at the flue arangments a little more, I think I got it figured out. On starting the fire I would pull the bottom knob out, opening the rear damper.

Once the fire is settled down, I would, put on the front cover, open the upper adjustable damper, then close the rear directing the heat towards the front.

SWPaDon wrote:
Nothin beats a try, but a failure.

I'll have to remember that quote,

Paulie

franco b wrote:I think it will do very well with anthracite as long as you can seal the lower portion air intake around the edges. Needs an ash pan or shovel ash gently.

Because so much is inside the fireplace it depends on a long fire to heat the mass of the fireplace to really feel the heat which will be gentle, but a lot. After several days burning you will instantly feel the radiant heat on entering that room.

Ash will build on those ledges which I would ignore because it will insulate the fire pot better. I suspect you will be pleasantly surprised at how well it will burn.

I like very much how the fire pot sides are spaced away from the side walls.

Thanks Franco!

I will post some pictures of those sliding air intakes. There is one in the firebox, and one in the ash door. I think I can get a nice seal fitting in a rope gasket behind the sliding plate. I'm sure Pierre (Nortcan) will love that idea. There is no doubt ......It needs an ash pan.

Forty years ago, I burned our family room fireplace, on a regular basis. You are 100% correct on your take on that. It took two or three days before the entire wall radiated a nice comfortable heat. I think that front damper I described above will definitely help direct the heat towards the front cover.

There really isn't much of a ledge, the pictures are deceiving, I will take a few pictures with a few pieces of nut and stove coal on the grates for a better view.

The grates are really agressive, so I'm thinking of restricting the throw limits.

Paulie

Pauliewog wrote:Looking at the flue arangments a little more, I think I got it figured out. On starting the fire I would pull the bottom knob out, opening the rear damper.

Once the fire is settled down, I would, put on the front cover, open the upper adjustable damper, then close the rear directing the heat towards the front.

I would have thought the opposite. The top vent for easiest draft flow on starting or with weak draft and the bottom vent to get a reverse flow to better heat the interior fireplace mass. The top vent is straight up the chimney. The bottom vent gives an extra 3 feet or so of flue gas travel before exiting. The front cover gets lots of radiant heat either way. Once going you can try both ways to see which is best. Just have thick gloves or some sort of hook for the front cover.

I second that.

Peter.

franco b wrote:
I would have thought the opposite. The top vent for easiest draft flow on starting or with weak draft and the bottom vent to get a reverse flow to better heat the interior fireplace mass. The top vent is straight up the chimney. The bottom vent gives an extra 3 feet or so of flue gas travel before exiting. The front cover gets lots of radiant heat either way. Once going you can try both ways to see which is best. Just have thick gloves or some sort of hook for the front cover.

just peter wrote:I second that.

Peter.

Good point.Franco. That is one of the things I love about this forum.

I arrived at my conclusion based on the linkages.

The upper tee handle connects to a series of spring loaded linkages, with a positive lock saw tooth adjustment. This handle controls the top front damper. In the closed position facing the linkage side, it is in the 5 :00 position. When completely open it in the 3:00 position.

The lower knob is connected to a straight rod that controls the rear damper. There is very little resistance required to close it. If you push it a bit the damper slams shut under its own weight. When closed, facing the linkage side it is in the 9:00 position. When completely open it is in the 12:00 position.

When do you think the rear damper would come into play? Possibly to create a good draft when adding coal?

Paulie

Cleaning up the front firebox cover,and ash door. 100 years of stove polish covered up the copper plating.

Although the plating is worn thru in a few places, I like the look. This is going to be a refurbish project rather than a full restoration.

Unfortunately the pictures do not do it justice. I think with a good camera and the right lighting the shine in the copper would come out in the pictures.

Paulie

I like it PW. Now quit screwin around & light her off!! YES, possibly when loading. No way to really tell till you get er lit. Now you get to play findin the right combination.

freetown fred wrote:I like it PW. Now quit screwin around & light her off!! YES, possibly when loading. No way to really tell till you get er lit. Now you get to play findin the right combination.

Ya no lad.... Zee fireplace iz on de south wall of de shack an da dor ain't on a hinge just sets on an ways bout 14 pounds.

I gots to get da rite combination so az not to take out Freetown's most famous Civil War Vet!



Paulie

What would look good is piercing the cover with a nice design and backed with mica, sort of like the new Chubby doors.

Be extra careful that those saw teeth hold that damper open securely. You don't want that flopping closed on its own.

Those look like shaker grates to me...... Isn't that nub sticking out the front for the shaker handle? If it wasn't for coal use, it wouldn't have shaker grates. The first three pictures show the square end of the grate sticking out for shaker handle. Yes, Very nice find......

franco b wrote:What would look good is piercing the cover with a nice design and backed with mica, sort of like the new Chubby doors.

Be extra careful that those saw teeth hold that damper open securely. You don't want that flopping closed on its own.

Oh yes..... I'm a big fan of mica , and lots of it.
I think rather than cut into the original .door, I'm going to make a pattern and build a different front cover with a hinged mica loading door. I have a few doors from some parts stoves that may work.

The saw tooth damper holds secure, it's the rear one that I have to be careful with.

Paulie

oliver power wrote:Those look like shaker grates to me...... Isn't that nub sticking out the front for the shaker handle? If it wasn't for coal use, it wouldn't have shaker grates. The first three pictures show the square end of the grate sticking out for shaker handle. Yes, Very nice find......

Thanks OP

They are definitely shaker grates, and very hefty and agressive. Most of the old pictures I have run across with similar style inserts look to be burning some type of lump coal.
Here is a picture of the grates in their wide open position.

Paulie

Nice find, Paulie.

With those shaker grates and the fireclay lined firepot, my vote is also that it was originally a coal insert.

Many Victorian houses had those coal fireplace inserts. Not all were the enclosed type like the Baltimore heaters. Many were like that one. Some had an even more open grill work, or cast iron "basket".

My neighbor's 1870's Victorian house still has just the curved-top cast iron surround fitted into the Parlor fireplace. The grate/basket section was removed and the chimney flue blocked off when an oil boiler was installed.

Paul

I may be late to the party here and hopefully I can add something material.
First of all, this is NOT a stove. It is a precast fireplace and it is for burning Bituminous Coal. When the hearth was built, these were inserted into the fireplace opening.
I have used many, many of these as I have lived in plenty of Victorian houses. These work beautifully with Bituminous coal as you get a bright happy fire to sit beside.
Don't expect stove level efficiency from this because, well; it's not a stove.

Sunny Boy wrote:Nice find, Paulie.

With those shaker grates and the fireclay lined firepot, my vote is also that it was originally a coal insert.

Many Victorian houses had those coal fireplace inserts. Not all were the enclosed type like the Baltimore heaters. Many were like that one. Some had an even more open grill work, or cast iron "basket".

My neighbor's 1870's Victorian house still has just the curved-top cast iron surround fitted into the Parlor fireplace. The grate/basket section was removed and the chimney flue blocked off when an oil boiler was installed.

Paul

After looking the grates over, I was leaning towards it being coal, but until our resident guru spoke, I had no idea what type.

It will still be a nice compliment to my anthracite based " Man Cave" project, and I won't have to build another chimney!

Paulie