The family’s heater after several seasons of use is seen in the photo below.

The heater viewed from the opposite side is shown below. The bake-oven is in the home’s kitchen.

The owners of this 1970′s Colonial home were delighted to find a secluded,  beautiful wooded lot in the rural North West New Jersey. The family decided to take advantage of the ample woods in the surrounding area as a way to reduce energy bills and their impact on the environment. After researching clean and efficient wood burning appliances they arrived at the best choice for burning cordwood: a masonry heater.

The home had an existing traditional, inefficient wood burning fireplace. The fireplace is centered in the home, dividing the kitchen and living room, a perfect location for a masonry heater.

After a consultation with Fire Works Masonry and a review of the existing home and fireplace, the decision was made to demolish the existing fireplace and move ahead with an efficient wood burning masonry heater. The location of the fireplace in  the home was ideal for the radiant heat of the masonry heater.

The family decided to renovate the original kitchen and open up the floor plan. The heater’s bake-oven and radiant heat will both warm the kitchen.

The existing fireplace is demolished and removed to a local recycling center. The fireplace’s foundation was modified to accommodate the new masonry heater . Once the foundation work is completed, a new concrete hearth pad is poured and capped with a course of firebricks.