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qbs413

Quadra Fire 7100 fp

qbs413
19 years ago

Hi all. I ususally just browse through these postings and find them quite informative. So, I thought I'd ask for opinions. We are planning to build a new house and want to heat with wood. I have had, and heated with, a Quadra Fire 3100 step top for the past 3 years. We want the new house to have a traditional looking fireplace in the living room. Has anyone had any experience with the new 7100fp? How well will ducting this unit to other areas work? Thoughts and comments appreciated.

Andy

Comments (88)

  • riverview111
    18 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    OK, I'll weigh in here as a past Xtrordinaire user. We put the Xtrordinaire in a previous home about 10 years ago. It was a 70's leaky house with the early aluminum-frame double-pane windows. The Xtrordinaire put out an amazing amount of heat, handily heating our 2400 sf home in below-freezing weather. We ran our furnace fan to circulate the heat, and the Posi-Pressure was great in our leaky house. All drafts were eliminated, so the comfort level was terrific. And, especially when clean, the unit looked totally fantastic. Beautiful unit. We did a slate surround ourselves, and a raised hearth. Wow.

    BUT---there were some pretty significant negatives: 1) Not enough draw from the chimney during reloading, even though it was installed EXACTLY as specified. Cough, cough. Yucky smoke. Even with the door or windows wide open. Truly, not enough draw for the aerodynamics of the firebox/chimney setup. It was on the almost lowest level of a four-level home (converted tri-level). We tried extending the chimney by adding another section (making it significantly higher than the tallest ceiling of our house, but it really didn't help enough. We tried every technique imaginable (and then some) on reloading to eliminate the smoking.

    2) glass was dirty, dirty, dirty. It did not self clean even with a really hot fire. I eventually came up with a system of glass cleaner/paper towels/saran wrap tent to clean it occasionally. (This was before the days of the new gel products.) The air wash didn't work well.

    3) newer homes are pretty tight, so the posi-pressure is not going to work well as a means of circulating heat.

    4) catalyst got clogged up with the ash from our lousy firewood. Fully dried, but it was cottonwood from our property that we needed to make go away. It was free fuel. Very ashy stuff (and smelly smoke, too).

    SOOOOO, I'm now really leaning toward installing a qf7100 in our new home. Just saw one live at the local showroom, and I think I'm sold. We also like that with the 7100 you have the option of going posi-pressure, which I imagine I'll do when running my kitchen exhaust hood at full blast (1200 cfm).

    HTH

  • feathersnfins
    18 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    bgrbob,

    I believe my trim kit is the mission hill. It's the one that is solid black. I'm not a big fan of the silver or gold. I like it plain black and I think it was my only option and if I remember correclty, the cheapest!

  • dkelsch
    18 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Got my 7100 up and running a while ago. No problems so far. Fan is relatively loud on full but fine on all lower settings. I let it burn for long periods (overnite)on low draft settings and get a LOT of soot on the glass. One hour later after using steel wool it's as good as new. I think I will have to experiment with trying to prevent the soot from getting there in the first place or burn the soot off the glass with a hotter fire. There has to be a better way than the scrub the glass method. I heard mention of jell products that would clean off the glass and that the soot would burn off with a hot fire. Any input/experience with preventing/dealing with this problem would be greatly appreciated.

    I have to agree with the statement that Quarafire support is a little difficult to get. If you call the number in the installation manual you get people who are reading the installation manual. I found them to be of little help with detailed questions. They do have lines to much better tech reps if you are the dealer/installer. I got through to them once and they were very well informed.

    I have a three story house and the 7100 is on the middle floor. I wanted to use a heat zone kit to heat the first floor (garage) however, after talking to a tech rep, I think I will be engineering my own.

    He stated that from all the feedback he'd gotten the heat zone kit works very well if the area you are heating is at the same level or above but the bladed fan does very poorly in overcoming the static pressure that a long run going down would entail. Does anyone have any experience to either verify or refute his comment?

    I have done the entire installation and used the Simpson Dura-plus Duravent and so far am very satisfied. I found the price to be highly variable and with a little research got it for less than one-half the original quote.

    I designed the installation so that the entire unit is on a interior wall in the main living area and the back is in a mechanical room/pantry. I figured fine tuning and installing the heat zone kit and outside air plumbing would be easier. The only concern I had was how hot the back of the unit would get. I've had it pretty hot during this break in period and the "hottest" areas are slightly warm so no worries there.

    I live in interior Alaska and we have routine -20 F to -50 F periods. I consulted the most experienced chimney installer/servicer in our valley and he stated that the double-walled SL-300 series type components don't work well at the extreme cold temperatures we get. The air in the outside chamber cools the chimney too much and causes excessive creosote buildup. Maybe that is only a problem here but I thought I'd mention it.

    Thanks for any help.
    dk

  • tomr999
    18 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    I ran my heat zone down into the crawl space below the house, and it just blows out a little bit of warm air, not the hot air I expected by having to use the b-vent pipe.

  • velvetfoot
    18 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Great thread. I will be moving into a house that apparently has a zero-clearance fireplace. (Heatilator 36" Element, brochure: http://content.hearthnhome.com/downloads/brochures/ELEMENT.PDF ). What's interesting about the 7100 is that it specifes the same chimney system. The width of the framed opening (into an exterior pipe chase) seems to be adequate but the vertical opening needs to be larger (which does not seem to be that much of a problem) but it needs to be 3 inches deeper (maybe more of a problem, depending on how chase is framed, I guess).

    An alternate I'm thinking of is just putting in a Quadrafire 2700i insert (brochure: http://www.quadrafire.com/products/inserts/woodInsertDetail.asp?f=2700i) into the zero-clearance fireplace. The house is a 2000 ft2 colonial, so maybe the 7100 would be overkill anyway, plus more effort, I imagine. Firebox is probably small on the 2700i is probably small though - since it is a flush design, I am thinking the logs load in from side to side instead of front to back. Front to back lets you load in a lot more wood.

    Comments? My local dealers either don't seem that knowledgable or they are too busy at the moment.

    Thanks!

  • maltay08
    18 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    I was happy to have this forum when we were installing our Quad 7100 this Fall. I was so confused by the installation process, the best way to finish the surround, and how to work the stove when we burnt our first fire! After burning fires in this stove non-stop for about a month, I think we've finally figured it out. Although, I must say, this has been quite a learning experience. I can relate to all these posts - the glass doors getting black, the blower being loud and not seeming like it's blowing very hard (until all of a sudden I'm so hot I've got to change to shorts and a tank top in the middle of winter) etc. But one thing I've found that hasn't been mentioned here is that this is a MESSY fireplace. Every time we open the door (even when we do it very slowly) ashes fly out. Also, the design of the lip that keeps the ashes in the firebox is not great - I find that ashes and coals fall out easily when we're adding logs. We just cleaned out a ton of ashes tonight, so maybe it'll be better.

    Anyway, about the picture I'm uploading... We hired a stone mason in our area to do a dry laid look out of moss rock and we love how it came out. We are still trying to find a hand hewn old beam to use as a mantle so you'll see in this picture that is still missing. If anyone has any questions on installation and finishing, please feel free to ask!

  • airbus
    18 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Like another poster, wish that I could have read a site like this 2 years ago. This my second season and I do not find the ash a problem, it seems that I can go a week and only fill the ash bucket, but sometimes I just shovel a couple of scoops of what I call clinkers. Dirty wood - stays outside with the bugs in the woodshed built with green 2x4s and Hardibacker lap siding. 8ft x 12ft x 8ft filled took us through last winter (04-05). Very seldom use gas force air furnace.

    Back of the 7100 still not enclosed. Front done with 1/2" Hardibacker. Why not Durock or other. Some underlayment have little white beads of something, Durock has the web. Hardi may be a paper mix but is well coated with cementatous mix and was assured by Hardi support that it would not burn. But then I may have a phobia. Covered the wood backside with sheetmetal from the Heat-a-later (Oxymoron) and then another heatsheld/baffle. See what I mean about phobia. I only have wood on the insert wall and steel framing on the surround back (still does not have the 1/2" Hardi hung. Tiled the front with the red terra cota from Loews. Feel lucky that I met a man working another stores tile dept - not only did he give us a design that we liked but he let me help him lay the floor in front and the face. I purposely did not add mantel - again the phobia.

    Huey1 do you (is that like in helicopter-another interest) have any problem with heat on the mantel of hearth?

    Chimney is Simpson Dura-Vents DURATECH line. Did not like the S300 from Hon or the other choice DuraPlus. S300, well , you decide. DuraPlus because it only had 1/2" of insulation and an air chamber which I thought would add to any creosote problem. As is I have to get up on the one story flat roof and take the last 4foot section and the cap down to clean. The screen in the cap glazes over and then smoke spills into the room. Burnt Cherry last year. Lots of creosote. Maple this year - should not be as much. Glass - hot fire burns off - last year cleaned with glass scraper/razor blade - this year who cares - just a little white ash.

    Maybe QF has fixed their "AutoCombustion" Clock but the Illinois Rep FINALLY GOT OUT last spring after it got warm outside and replaced the clock as well as the fans in the back. Last winter I would slip a putty knife through the grill and move the clock arm to the left. Probably should not have armed to begin with.

    Lastly, I cannot control the flame. Must be because the gasket needs replaced. The other day I was at the fireplace store to buy the rope gasket and we called to find out what size - did not know - "do you have the part #", - 15 min. later on hold - hung up.

    Do I like the QF - yes

    Why QF7100 - Fire Brick, No Catalytic device, and Pipe hot air. If anybody is interested in why the back panel is off let me know. Hot Water anyone?

    Dan

  • adirondacker
    18 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Try cleaning glass with oven cleaner spray on wipe off quick and easy

  • graphixkid
    18 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Like others, I'm so thrilled to have found this thread - what did we ever do before the Internet! My husband installed our 7100 over the summer, and we have had all of the same issues as others - ours was an older model without the outside damper switch, and 3 service guys were here (no charge) in November to install the knob on the lowere right side - seems to have helped, not perfect, but better. The one thing I haven't seen anything about is the paint on the handles flaking off - ours looks terrible! The guys that were here adding the knob said it was a manufacturing glich on the first run and has since been corrected. They ordered me a new set of handles and 8 hours later they were on their way. 3 months later still no handles! They didn't leave a card or any paperwork that I can find (especially after the holidays!) I emailed Quadrafire, and below is what I got. Any suggestions would be helpful and appreciated.

    Actual Email from QuadraFire:

    Ms. McCarthy,
    Paint sometimes flakes off due to the heating and cooling of the unit. In order to check the status of the wood handles, please advise the dealer's name as well as which wood insert you have installed in your home. Please advise at your earliest convenience so that I may assist you further.

    Thank you for your inquiry,

    Julie A. Randall
    Hearth & Home Technologies
    Case Specialist
    1-800-669-4328, ext 56688
    randallju@hearthnhome.com

    My reply and her answer:

    -----Original Message-----

    Sent: Friday, January 06, 2006 6:30 AM
    To: Julie Randall
    Cc: Vince Bossany
    Subject: RE: Quadra-Fire Question

    Julie - Please bear with me as my patience is running thin. Somehow,QuadraFire managed to track me down in October and call several times to set up a time to service our unit, sent out 3 techs (one from Washington state!), yet when I ask about a set of handles, no one knows who we are or what model we have...??? For ease of reference, we purchased the unit from Baumgarteners in Westminster, MD. It is a 7100 model. The guys that were here to service the unit in
    November said that there were some manufacturing gliches on the model we bought, and one of them was the problem with the paint on the handles. They told me that they ordered new ones ( this was in November), so again, please understand my lack of patience at this point.

    Your reply of "Paint sometimes flakes off due to the heating and cooling of the unit" is silly, and only adds to my frustration... it's a fireplace!!! Of course it will heat and cool - that's why you use paint designed to perform within these temperture ranges, as described in your literature.

    I would appreciate a more thoughtful and researched reply about my "wood handles" as soon as possible. Thank you.

    Ms. McCarthy,

    I checked our database when I first received your e-mail and again with the additional information you have provided. There is no documentation with our company in regards to the service on the blower or any updates to the unit. You have assumed that I have this information when I do not. I called your dealer, Baumgardner's in Westminster, MD, and spoke to Shawn who is going to find the Sales Order
    for the handles and contact me so that I can look into this further. We receive orders for handles from dealers all over the country, but do not know who the customers these parts are intended for; therefore, I need to know the Sales Order that was placed specifically for you. I gave
    your dealer your phone number so that he can follow up with you as well. You must understand without all of the information provided, I am limited as to what I can do from here.

    Thank you,

    Julie A. Randall
    Hearth & Home Technologies
    Case Specialist
    1-800-669-4328, ext 56688
    randallju@hearthnhome.com

  • grotenhuisa
    18 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    I need help on determining which fireplace to put into my new home. It is under construction currently. I have a friend who put in a quadrafire and is having problems with it and customer service. The other suggestions that have been brought to my attention are the kozy heat 231 zc and the northstar made my heat-n-glow. I really like the look of the quadrafire more than the others but mostly want the fireplace to work as supposed to. I am not mechanical in any way. I am building a two story with an open floor plan. The family room is the location for the fireplace. It has an 18 foot ceiling. I am hoping that the heat will rise and heat some of the upstairs thus not letting the living room become a sweat shop. I am not putting my thermostat by the fireplace and am having zone heating put in my bedrooms trying to eliminate having a hot living room and cool bedrooms. I just really need advice and help. We need to decide fairly quickly and I am really stressed out in which model to choose.

  • woodinvirginia
    18 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    !8 ft high ceilings What is length & Width of room? Seems like you will nee a High end unit Quad 7100 or Napoloean High Country or Custom Made Masonry heater .

  • nothappy_wa
    18 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    I can not tell you how frustrated we are with the 7100. We have had all the issues discussed in this link, plus some.

    The biggest issue we have is that when the fireplace is cold it lets cold, smelly air into our house through the bottom intake. It's absolutely terrible. After one day our house smells like an ash tray.

    All told we have had issues with the automatic damper (had to be replaced, and still doesn't work well), snap disc (had to be replaced, but still takes 90 minutes to turn on the fan), handles (flaked off and had to be replaced), outside combustion air (was totally shut down by the techs, so we can no longer pressurize our house), they retro-fitted our unit with the "knob" on the lower right to try to stop the cold air flow, but this feature doesn't seem to work at all.

    One more thing...the fp does let out a lot of smokey air when you stock it. You can only open the right hand door, but even then there's smoke that enters the room.

    This has been going on for two years now and we're very frustrated. Our local sales rep from Big and R has been as helpful as he can be with the lack of support from Quadra-Fire.

    We're running out of options at this point, but the FP needs to be fixed. I've never sued anyone in my life, but this might be the first occasion. We need this FP replaced, period.

    My Recommendation: DO NOT BUY THIS FIREPLACE

    -Not Happy in Washington

  • akiszka
    18 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Update on 7100FP. I just wanted to update the thread on my experience most of the way through my first heating season. The fireplace has worked well, I would say its been at least 75-85% replacement for my propane forced air furnace in a large 2200 SQ/FT ranch. We burn the quad nearly 24-7 with the early morning being the down time. It just won't make it through the night on high burn. The temp in the great room is still okay. In the back bedrooms the temp has come down where the furnace kicks in. FYI furnace is set at 72 degrees. I have had to replace the handle's due to chipping, and just ordered a set of door gaskets. I haven't done much yet with the heat zones kits but have plan under construction. I will NOT be using the lame 100 CFM in-line blowers. Dayton makes a 350 cfm hot air fan model 4yj33 which can handle 450 degree air. Also looking into forced air injection as the draft is sometimes hard to start. I have been buring mostly elm, ash and hickory. I have some oak which is still a little green, but with a hot fire it gets going. Please look at my pictures at the listed link below, email me with comments.

  • getchellad
    18 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    I've been running the quadrafire in a 5,000sqft house to help offset my heat bills for about a month this winter. I've run into some of the same issues others have had. My main issue is that the blowers do not seem to circulate much air through the fireplace. I've had a buck stove before and when the blowers went into an automatic high position they moved a rather large amount of air out the grills. I've noticed the Quadrafire seams to put out about the amount I would expect from two hairdryers on a medium setting. I've taken the bottom out of the stove and insured the blowers were working properly etc.

    I had the same issue the the snap disk taking forever to kick the blowers on. I resolved it by welding a 3/4 bolt directly on top of the cover were the snap disk is located and then cutting a hole in the firebricks for the bolt to come just to the surface of the firebrick. This seems to work much better and the fireplace will kick on without fail after about 15-20 minutes. I've also noticed that keeping the ash cleaned out of the fireplace also effects the time it takes to kick the blowers in.

    I'm thinking about trying to replace the blowers with something that moves a larger cfm. Has anyone done this?

    Thanks,
    Adam Getchell

  • akiszka
    18 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Adam,

    I think the issue you will run into with trying to replace the blowers is getting something to fit into the stove. On top of that there are warranty issues as well. I think the better simpler fan upgrade would be to boost the aux convection intake air duct. I don't know if you have this option installed but I think the fire place burns better with more air flow using the oustside air. Fireplace xtrodinaire doesn't even put a blower in the fireplace, their blower system is an external squirrel cage system. I have both of the air intakes (combustion air & aux convection air) in my soffit. with a nice gril over them I am considering install a Broan top exhaust bathroom fan in the soffit to boost the air flow. I would wire this on a current sensing relay picking up current flow on the black fan power lead. I also have two heat zone kits piped into the basement which I am going to try to pull the heat out of the fireplace and into my furnace plenum. I have two of the dayton high temp 350 cfm blowers which will run on a snap switch. I found white rogers has a variable 90-135 snap switch. I am installing backdraft dampers and relays so if my gas furnace comes on the fans will kick out and close the back draft dampers. Email me direct for further discussion. akiszka@orbitform.com

  • home_nw
    18 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    We're building and need to select our wood fireplace soon. Anyone have experience with a recently intalled wood-burning Fireplace Xtrordinaire? I was concerned about the negative comments I saw above, but since that installation was over 10 years ago, hopefully things have improved!

    How about cost? Approximately how much should one expect to pay? Should we pay to dealer to install the fireplace, or just let the builder to it? Any thoughts would be much apppreciated. Thanks!

  • adirondacker
    18 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Maybe we just got lucky we have a 7100 and love it no real problems except the burn time really burns about 5hrs to get more than that you would really have to load it up and when you opened the doors the next morning you would have a mess with the ash

  • zevi_b
    18 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    The QF7100 is highly rated by any scale. Of course, even highly rated products could have problems and fail. Typically, people with complaints tend to write much more often than the satisfied crowd. Even in newspapers bad news make it to the front page, while good news are on the last page...

    After a long wait, we had our 7100 installed at the end of 2005. During weekends (fri evening to mon morning) it would typically burn non-stop, sometimes I would start it mid-week also. When burning, it would keep our 3000 sq-ft (2 stories, quite an open floor plan) at 70-75 deg.

    Let me try and list some good and bad stuff with ratings (scale is 1-5, positives and negative points are +/-):

    (1) the auto fan takes time to engage -- but I don't care: I can turn it on with the override switch, and flip it back off when it's auto-engaged (-1)
    (2) high-speed setting of the fan is noisy (no big deal - I hardly ever set it at that level) (-1)
    (3) unless you burn at almost full blast, the glass gets very dirty (-3)
    (4) big capacity firebox (+4)
    (5) wish the fan moved more air (-2)
    (6) good heating capability (+4)
    (7) easy ash cleaning (+2)

    Overall summary: positive.

  • airbus
    17 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    In case somebody reading in the future is interested about Hot Water from their 7100 --- On advise of a person in the business of building fireplaces I attempted fixing a 20 X 20 X 3/4 in. stainless steel heat exchanger on the back of the steel firebox. Had to remove back and air chamber. Not enough heat. Silver brazed 3/4 copper same size. Not enough heat. Finally ordered another SS heat exchanger and drilled two holes in the back of the firebox just below the chimney and above the blanket. Heats the water up to 100 F with a real hot fire. Never (this must be a violation of Murphy's law) will there be a problem of over boiling. There is a 30 Gal tank and 2 loops of 1/2 inch BPEX - total about 400' in 450 sq ft tiled concrete floor. Two snap disks (Granger #2E245) to turn on the pump and keep it on. One on the hot side after it passes the insulated outside of the 7100 and one on top by the chimney to keep the pump from cycling. Wired in series.

    If this is the only heat source then you do not need anything but another snap disk (maybe a variable temp) to turn the floor circ. pump on and off. I spent $60 for a remote in floor sensor with a terminal for wall-mounted thermostat, which I don't need. The logic proved to be that if it is too hot in the room you are letting the fire die down. It turns out to be automatic - No fire the pumps turn off - I do not have to remember to flip a switch when I build a fire. Research the rest on line. Feed water valve, pressure relieve valve, expansion tank, one-way valves, air venting valves and of course manifold.

    This is not going to heat a house like the 7100 hot air will but it nicely takes the chill off the floor of our 450 sq ft sunroom and the radiation makes us more comfortable. As I say the colder the night the hotter the fire and the more efficient the system.

    If you want the SS heat exchanger go to www.hilkoil.com and when you call talk to Adam and not the owner. I bought the first from the owner and later when I talked to Adam he didnt hesitate when he told me, "that will not get hot enough." At that point I knew he was right.

    Hope this helps someone some time.

    Dan

  • bobbyobox_hotmail_com
    17 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    I want to thank everyone who has posted to this thread, the information has been extremely useful in helping make my decision. We are about to purchase this model and are working out stone work details with our contractor. It sounds like the QF-7100 is the right direction to go, but to be aware of newer models and upgrades that have come out since inception (ie: bugs that were worked out). I also sounds like a good idea to hold off on the stone work until the box is in place and "burned-in" to avoid the hassle of working in tight place, or possible removing sections to repair the unit.
    We're considering a winter river rock for our stone work. I, if anyone has a finish similar to this, we'd appreciate seeing pictures.
    thanks
    Bob

  • scfa99
    17 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    over on the hearth.com site, i've posted pictures of my stonework with the 7100, its under the picture forum. let me know what you think.

  • hmhm
    17 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Joeffemt,

    I am in a similar situation. I want to replace a prefab open fireplace with a 7100. The guys at the store told me that all I need is to reline my chimney with a SS liner. I have an installer coming to my house this Friday 11/10 and I will see what he says needs to be done.

  • tomr999
    17 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    We removed a zero clearance vermont castings, and installed the 7100. They ran the sl300 pipe, inside the chimney chase same as yours, and we dont have any trouble at all with it. It is air cooled. the fireplace also draws outside air for combustion, and also room heat. We found out that it definatly heats and pressurizes the house, so much that we leave a window open upstairs to keep a good air flow and to get rid of the heat. This fireplace was well worth the money spent on it.. Tom

  • salbwil
    16 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Hi,
    I'm re-opening this post as I have some questions for those of you who've installed this unit. I have an old (thirty years) heatilator that I want to replace with this quad. I have a brick chimney with clay flues. Is this possible by replacing the clay flue with a new stainless flue? Does anyone have any ideas about cost? Do those of you who have this unit up and running now still like it?
    Many thanks,
    salbwil

  • qbs413
    Original Author
    16 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Hi salbwil. Just saw your response. We moved into our new house just after Thanksgiving of last year. After doing some research, I went with the 7100. In our old house, I had a Quad 3100 stove (which is slated for the basement of the new house). We have about 1800 sq. ft. we are heating with the 7100. With some high ceiling areas, it takes awhile to get the area up to temperature. We use it as our primary heat source and we had a pretty cold winter in Kansas City. A quick review.

    PROS:

    Good looking.

    Burns HOT!! We have a raised hearth in front of it that is great to sit on to warm up after coming in from outside. With a good burn, you can't sit directly in front of it.

    If you get it going, then load it up it has great burn time. Will have a strong bed of coals in the morning.

    Automatic combustion control works fairly well. I almost miss messing around with the fire.

    Burns clean. Any soot on glass comes off with higher burn.

    Large capacity.

    Remote zone kit. We piped one to the master bath. Works like a charm on chilly mornings. However, it will reduce the capacity of the fireplace to heat the living area somewhat.

    CONS:

    In order to maintain temps, it burns a lot of wood.

    Lots of wood burnt, means lots of ashes. Clean out is more frequent than with the stove.

    Must use blower to truly heat the house. Stove would radiate and doesn't need the blower.

    Clearance to mantle is 60". That means if you want it lower, no wood. We wanted wood, so with the fireplace off the floor about 18" our mantle height is 6 1/2 ft. It's a little tall, but looks OK.

    Bottom line, I really like this fireplace. Compared to the stove, I don't think it heats quite as well. However, we wanted a fireplace, not something freestanding or that stuck out of the wall. And, like I said, we did heat our house with it. The furnace came on twice during the winter. Can't wait to get the stove set up in the basement!

    As to your question about replacing the clay tiles, I'll leave that to someone with more experience in that area.

    Andy

  • salbwil
    16 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Thanks, Andy,
    I wish someone would chime in about replacing the clay flue. The chimney person is coming in a few weeks, and I'd like to be armed with some information.

    salbwil

  • qbs413
    Original Author
    16 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Salbwil, I'm pretty sure the chimney guy will be able to come up with a solution. I wouldn't think they would replace it, rather they would run the chimney pipe through
    your existing clay tile chimney.

    You may want to post this as a separate question. This forum doesn't get much attention this time of year.
    Andy

  • salbwil
    16 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Hi,
    I posted as a new thread, but maybe will get a quicker response here. Chimney man is worried that the clay flue will come down on him when cutting out the old heatilator as it is resting on top of the unit.......I understand his concern, but need to know what can be done to not have this happen......anyone any suggestions ?
    Many thanks, salbwil

  • mlmck
    16 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    After reading this entire thread, I am confused whether or not to get a 7100. I am used to an older unit that will bake you out of the room (80 degrees) 2 hours after you start a fire with only 4 pieces of wood. We are building a 3500 sf house and the unit I have is from the early 70's and pretty much shot. They don't sell anything like it any longer (EPA regs and all that crap). I would like something that puts out a large amount of heat, but I'm not crazy about all the problems I am hearing about the 7100. If there is so much dislike of the unit, can someone point me to a better unit, or is this a "you get what you get because this is the best thing out there" kind of thing? Any reply would be helpful. Thanks!

  • lookinforahearth
    16 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    You can take a look at the Bis Tradition/Lennox Montecito Estate (sister modles). 4 cu feet firebox.

    Also the Travis Fireplace Xtrordinair Elite 44, 4.3 cubic feet firebox.

    And KozyHeat makes a fairly big firebox unit too. Forget the name. Their website has it.

    Each are EPA II compliant.

  • rickt06
    16 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    All,
    I have a Fireplace Xtrordinaire, its a great wood burning insert. But I did not like how long it took befor ethe snap disk clicked on the blowers (90-120 min). The wires to my thermostat were burried so there was nothing that I could do with that. I have just cut the wires to the snap disk and connected them together (obviously remove power to the stove first). This bypasses the sensor and the blower can work all the time. The only problem is that it doesnt shut off when it cools off. I may end up running a switch in there to control this, but due to the installation, I dont have anice place to put it, so I have yet to do this.

    Its a quick and free fix if you are complaining about the snap disk.

    Rick

  • harryrange
    16 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Hello All,
    I'm new to the forum but have been using a Quadrafire 7100 for amost 2 years now. 2 questions. Anyone know where to buy replacement handles ( black ceramic ). My dealer wants $60 for a pair and won't split the pair. I think that's a bit steep. Also anyone tried to put a reostat on the blower fan to slow it down a bit. It's a bit too loud and I don't need full volume all the time. I bought one and it didn't work. Anyone know the spec for this device ?
    Thanks for any advice.

  • kul1dsd2cm_gci_net
    15 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Heat Zone Kit question: We are currently installing a 7100fp in the center of our 1800sf ranch. We are wanting to use heat zone kits in our two back bedrooms, but don't know where to run the venting. Does anyone have an opinion on which is better, the attic or the crawl space? The manual indicates either to be fine. Thanks.

  • homeanddollars_gmail_com
    15 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    My wife and I are building a home and installing a 7100. I am blogging about it at: http://homeanddollars.blogspot.com/2008/10/heat-zone.html. Look for entries tagged with fireplace.

    We are doing a heat zone above in the master bedroom. I am pretty excited about the prospects here. I am interested in how loud the blowers are going to be.

  • pcconstructionanddesign_yahoo_com
    15 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    We have had our 7100FP installed for about a year now. It cranks in our 2200sqft new construction post & beam home. We installed on a gable end of the house with the vent on the outside. With lots of open space, if we keep it going we can maintain between 65-75 degrees. Our boiler is currently not working so it is the only heat we draw into the house. Not more tnan a week ago, there was a big ice storm; which took out all the power in a 25 mile radius of us - the neighbors were at our house for the heat :)! With no power for 8 days and running on a construction generator it saved us...

    Our only complaints (which have also been mentioned above) are the handles chip easily, the door gasket has started falling off and therefore has burnt almost to nothing. This has caused inefficientcy and a constant whistle between the missing rope. And the fan's not the best (it is a little loud & our electrician was confused by the electrical install directions it came with. The ceramic blanket may need some attention in the near future.

    To answer some q's above - scan through some of the older postings above (I did a cntrl-find and saw some answers) - reostat blower, etc.

    Does anyone know where you can get parts at a reasonable price? We have an immediate need to replace the door gasket. And maybe the ceramic blanket and upgrade the blower in the future.

    Thanks for any info you can provide.

  • krissyb
    15 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    We are also looking at the 7100 ... and wondering if it will be producing too much heat for us. It will be a secondary source of heat in a 2 story, 2600 sf house. We have radiant heat floors and they will not respond well to big or quick thermostat adjustments from what we understand (so we can't just turn them off when we build a fire). Also, we are building this house to be airtight - using sprayfoam insulation - so don't want to lose any heat through our fireplace. And don't want to have to open doors to cool down the house if the fire is too hot. One other note - although it will be a secondary source of heat, we do want the fireplace to serve as a source of heat during any power outage situation.

    Some background: we are building new on acreage and had designed the house for a gas fireplace. But once out here we realize we want wood. It's free, abundant, renewable, and relatively clean (we live in WA state so must buy a fireplace that meets our very strict emissions standards). But we are running into troubles with what is essentially now a retrofit - trying to find a fireplace system that will work with the space that was to be for the gas insert. Looks like the quad 7100 will work, but is it really the right fireplace for us? We would love to find something a bit smaller & less spendy, that will work with our specs - already ruled out BIS, Lennox, Bodart and Gonay, and Heatilator Constitution!

    Any ideas are welcome!

  • bartoncs
    15 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Installed 7100 myself last winter during a rebuild.
    Must have gotten lucky with clearance issues to grout mentioned above.
    Great heat. Wired fan to reostat switch so there's no problem there.
    Glass gets really dirty unless you have full fire (grout cleaner and 3m pad works well to clean). Home centers sell new gaskets..part of mine fell off right away, but is fine now.
    BIG COMPLAINT: Cold air rushes in through the bottom. closed off all vents from outside to no effect. Chase is covered in DD building paper and 4" stone, but they've told me the air must be coming into the chase somewhere.
    Anyone have a solution for the cold air flow? Keep in mind that we've eliminated the chance that it's coming in from any of the venting.

  • mjalexander
    14 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    I have installed a Quadra-Fire 7100FP per the installation manual and had it inspected per our local building department. We have been using the fireplace since December 2008 and it has heated our 3500 foot house fine. The outer non-flammable facing material is cement board. We have some concern about how extremely hot (so hot you can't touch) the cement board around the edge of the stove when the fan is running. When the fan is on, the area above the stove is cool but the area about 18 to 24 inches from the bottom of the metal fascia and about 4 to 5 inches out from the metal fascia is extremely hot. You cannot touch it for even a second. The cement board will not burn, but I'm now concerned about the 2 X 4 wood stud behind the cement board. The very hot area is beyond the 41 inch width of the stove box shielding. Obviously, the stove is now all enclosed and I can't see the studs. Has anyone else noticed how hot the wall or fascia material or rock gets around the upper edge around the stove when the fan is blowing. When the fan is not blowing the wall is cool. Can anyone give me some info or feedback on my concern? I do not want a fire to start behind the wall.

  • adam_page
    13 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Im debating on if the 7100 will put out enough heat. I am getting rid of my pellet stove because it would keep one floor that was completley open and fully insulated 78 burning 2 bags a day. Im looking for something that could heat me right out of the house. Anyone has any experience with the 7100's heating capability?? Thanks

  • sportsman58
    13 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    We too are debating on the 7100. 2300sqft ranch house, Great room in the middle, having trouble heating the outter bedrooms with the Jotel 6100 free standing stove. Considering Heat zones for the basement....would like some current input. Thanks

  • rod555333_yahoo_com
    13 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    i have and use my quad 7100 in my 2600 sq ranch home. i have heat zone kit piped to my basement and it works great. best thing i put in my new house, besides geothermal, witch don't get used much if any with the fireplace cooking.

  • abc_123_com
    13 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    EASY way to clean the fireplace glass is this. Newspaper wadded up. Dip in small bowl of water to dampen. Dip damp paper in ashes. Wipe the dirty glass. Use a clean but dampened newspaper sheet to wipe clean and then dry with a dry piece of newspaper. EASY, WORKS, TAKES 5 MINUTES. You will thank me for this one!!!!!

  • g_lovelis_tds_net
    13 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    All of this information is great!
    We are also considering the Quadra Fire 7100. We have a 20x20 great room with a two-story cathedral ceiling that also opens to a loft. Anyone have any suggestions for placement of the return air for that room? Should we use the heat zone kits for other rooms? Our HVAC is planning on installing three units in our house. One for the living room, master, kitchen. One for the upstairs. One for the left side of the house which includes a den, laundry, and two bedrooms. Thanks!

  • tomsawyer2011
    12 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    What do you guys think between the Quadra Fire 7100 and the NorthStar from heat and glow? they look similar

  • chillywind
    12 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Going on my 2nd year with the Quadrafire 7100. Although the weather has been mild so far this year, I've already learned some things in regards to heating with the 7100 the previous year that I know will benefit me this year. First, as some have already pointed out, the fan kicking on randomly appears to be a feature in most of the units. So... when I sense that the unit is hot enough, I just kick on the manual fan switch and let it run. Although we have 3 floors including our basement, the upper floors have about 3100 sqft. The first floor has 9 ft ceilings and the foyer is open space (2 story). The system does a great job of raising the temperature a good 6 to 7 degrees in a few hours if you run it with the fan. Letting the fan come on randomly (which it seems to do) it takes much longer. Before installing the 7100, primary heat on the main floor was propane with a heat pump upstairs. Unless the temp dips into the teens, the quad heats both upper floors - a savings on propane and electric. The quad is in a great room. When the fan is running and the heat has been distributed well, you can walk around some on the end opposite of the quad and pass through, what I call, little hot pockets. It would be interesting to somehow be able to follow the air flow (like with a colored spray). I have noticed that if a little bit of smoke escapes when I open the doors, just a few moments later, I can smell the smoke the most at the top of the stairs and that's on the other side of the house. So it rises quickly. Oh, that reminds me - I've learned to open the doors slowly and let the draft settle the light ashe first before opening all the way. That keeps it a bit more clean.

    Other tips:

    - Burning good seasoned hard wood with bigger splits (as others have suggested) is a really good thing. I don't have to damp it down all the way and still have good coals left in the morning up to 8 hours. Like others, I don't know where this "up to 16 hours" burn time came from. Not having to damp it down as much saves on glass cleaning as well. I used to spend a lot of time cleaning the glass. I've cleaned it once this year. If there is not much of a coating on the glass, a good hot fire burns it off anyway.

    - To get a fire going from coals in the morning, I just crack the door a little (leave the handle in the down position and let the draft pull it closed) and a fire kicks up in less than a minute in most cases.

    - The timer does a decent job most of the time, but there are times when it seems to hang. That might be due to the air intake lever being a little too far to the right.

    - I do take up ashes every two to three days. I'm thinking of buying an ashe vac, but don't know if it's worth the cost.

    - I still feel a little uncomfortable about leaving a fire going when we're not home, but the more I learn about the system, the more comfortable I am. And as long as I have the chimney inspected and cleaned every year, I think we'll be fine.

    Overall, I'm happy with the 7100. I am thinking of buying a humidifier. Burning does dry the air out quite a bit.

    Happy heating to all out there.

  • bgerber15
    10 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    I purchased a QF 7100 wood burning fireplace and could not be more DISAPOINTED! The heat output is terrible. We have burned over 4 full chords of wood this year and one would think we would be nice and warm. Not the case at all we are always FREEZING. I have been in contact with another individual with the same stove. We both have the exact same issues. An old pot belly stove would do a better job heating my house.

  • mxdad108
    9 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    We have the Quadra Fire 7100. Very disappointed with its performance. Hind sight being 20/20 I wish I would have found someone local that owned one and viewed its performance in person. The room we installed it in is the main room of our home. The room size is 48ft x 35ft with 12ft walls and a vaulted ceiling height of 23ft. Roughly 26,000 cubic feet of space. When temps fall below freezing at night between 25* and 32* the fireplace will keep the room temp around 58 degrees. If the temp falls into the low 20's and teens it will keep the room temp in the low 50's. That's with the fireplace doors closed and a slow burning flame. You have to refill the fireplace around every 4hrs or so with 4 or 5 pieces of wood when you have the fireplace doors shut and slow burning the wood. I know I am heating a lot of space but am very disappointed in the unit and the salesman that sold me the product and said it would be fine in my application. The only way to keep the temps higher in the room is to open the fireplace doors and keep the fire roaring. By doing this your burning about 4 pieces of wood every hour and a half which is equals a stack of wood in a 7 day period. My stack of wood is 16-20 inches wide, 4ft tall and 8ft long. I am sure there are several that are happy with their Quadra Fire but I have seen many that are unhappy and would advise anyone thinking about buying this unit to try and see one in action before purchasing. Don't throw your money away like I did.

  • jrb451
    9 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Are you using ceiling fans to push the warm air back down into the room and aid in circulation? You don't mention using one in your post.

  • stratocastermojo
    6 years ago

    I just moved into a home that has a Quadra-Fire 7100 fireplace in the living room. This entire thread has been invaluable to the operation of the unit. I was very disappointed with the lack of heating I was getting from the fireplace. I did not think I the blower/fan unit was working or wired correctly in my fireplace until I read about the thermostat controlling the on/off operations of the unit. I am now running the fan and looking forward to seeing how well this heats the main floor of my home. I have had many of the problems others have described in this thread, but reading through the operations and fixes I hope to alleviate all those issues. Thanks again to everyone that has contributed to this thread.

    Jon

    Bismarck, ND

  • chillywind
    6 years ago

    Good luck with everything, Jon.

    I had forgotten that I'd commented on this thread until I saw that someone (you) had entered a new post. So I've been using mine now for 9 years. Overall, I'm very happy with the 7100. Yes, the thermostat thing has always been an issue. I wish that worked better such that I could have the fan run when it should - more at night. And... when the unit is not burning wood (even though that's rare during the burning season), there is a cold draft from the bottom of the unit.

    Getting a good hot fire going and running the fan keeps the 2 top floors of my house heated up to 72 degrees - 3100 sq ft. I normally like it between 68 and 70, but my wife would like it at 78 :)

    Since I don't damp the fire down at night, I really don't have to clean the glass often at all. But when I do, I picked up the best trick to clean it online: You get some newspaper, ball it up some, wet it and dip it into ashes that are already sitting inside your unit. Then you just rub that on your glass. It takes the soot right off - it's WAY better than the cleaners you buy in stores. I make sure that I have a clean wet paper towel ready to go such that I can clean it the rest of the way and then dry it with paper towels as well.

    I try to season mostly good hardwood along with some lighter stuff. To do that, I decided to build myself a wood pavilion - I attached a pic of that. It holds about 6 cord or so.

    Anyway, happy heating to all :)


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