It appears that the Lennox Estate series 36" and 50" are the only ones left that have good opening proportions. The others either have unsightly grilles and/or short openings. The Lennox Colonial 36 was the best I've ever seen but apparently it is no longer offered. Sadly authentic looking fireplaces are on their way to extinction. Here is a link that might be useful: Lennox

I'm putting a flat panel over my TV, too, with a frame and some art that will pull down to keep it out of sight when not wanted. It allows all the seating of the room to be oriented in the same direction, which is also the 'veiw wall' in my house-- I won't have multiple focal points fighting for attention. BUT I have a backup plan: the wiring will also run to my 'second choice' location, in case turns out that the anti-above-the-TV people have a point. My fp is in a 'chase' [FP salesman told me that's the right word for installing it outside the footprint of the room], just like yours. I think it is very likely that I won't be able to have the FP and TV on at the same time. At least for plasma screens, 95 degrees is supposed to be some kind of magic number: warmer than that, and the tv suffers. How this translates to those who have plasmas but no AC is a mystery to me. Still, I'll go with an LCD, which is supposed to be more mechanically robust, and I'll keep a thermometer up there the first few times I try to run them at the same time. If your fp will accomodate it, a blower with ductwork that would carry some of the heat to a secondary location might be a good idea. I think it would be easier if the FP wasn't in a chase: you could have some vents etc. on the side to conduct cooler air to the tv area, warm air away from it. As to storage, though: I agree it would be tunnel like and ruin the look of a chased fireplace. The wall o' shelving/cabs thing mostly developed as a way to make fireplaces look like they were in chases when they weren't. Remember too that 'zero clearance' refers to the firebox: there are rules about the setback for protrusions at 90degrees to the fireplace face, varies depending on model, should be in your owner's manual. Perhaps you could have some matching cabs in the corners, as far from the FP as possible, with no connecting elements... My plan is to put the equipment in a bench like unit beside the FP, sort of like an extension of my raised hearth. It will have a kind of traditional look, as if its main function is to cuddle up as near the FP as possible. The equipment itself isn't attractive, so the less I see of it the better, and this will keep it below eye level. Haven't quite figured out how to face this bench, though; I want something to obscure the equipment, but still allow the remote control signals to penetrate. I'm thinking mission style slats backed by sheer black fabric might do it, though I hope a better solution will present itself. The media itself can be further away, in a cabinet outside the fireplace zone. Not ideal, but workable, I think.

The height is adjustable with the legs. However, if you install the outside airkit and fan, or either, the minimim total height is 45" unless you also buy the remote fan box, then it can be as low as 1" off the ground. I just measured mine, and the trim ring is exactly 11" off the tile hearth, and if I remeber corrected, the fan box was 12" tall, so minus the extra height the trim ring added, and the tile, that makes sense. The top of the trim ring measure 39", so if you look at the drawing, you see I installed mine as the absolute minimum heights, give or take a 1/2"; without buying the remote fan box. If I was doing it again, I'd buy the remote fan box and install it lower, since it makes sense to have it as low as possible. Luckily, I route my convection air instakes to pull the coldest air from the bottom of the room. (See page 21, http://wittus.com/Specs/Optifire%20Manual.pdf) My mantel is much higher the the frame, becuase we wanted it that way, and the install instruction specify a minimum of 28", unless you run the remote hot air outlets, which I did not. . With remote hot air outlets (e.g. above the mantel you can go as low as 12". If you mantel is combustible, it says you have to have remote hot air outlets. Mine mantel is stainless steel and therefor, even though it has a wooden frame, I assumed it was not combustible. (See page 23, http://wittus.com/Specs/Optifire%20Manual.pdf) As far as the outside air, that is the part that I described above as being not all that great. They call it make up air for a reason. Really, outside air should route directly to the combustion chamber, not mix with the convection air, but I suspect the outside air kit was added by the US/Canadian importer to meet certain regulations. The problem with it is, after the fire burns out, with the outside air damper open, it leaks cold outside air under the unit, and in my case out the convection air instakes. Anyway, somehow, you have to allow for 65 square inches of intake air, and you get to count the outside air intake as well as the convection air intake as part of that. Here is a copy and paste from my installation notes on how I achieved the 65 square inch minimum: "The biggest pain of this whole thing is with the clean face of the fireplace it needs a place to draw convection air in and it has to be 65 square inches. Not wanting to put a 12"x6" grate underneath, we choose to slightly bump out the fireplace and put two grates on each side. I think I would have preferred the flat front, but I don't think I would have liked that grate, and it likely would have been a tad louder as well. Anyway, coming up with the 65 square inches has proven to be challenging, but I think I got it. Two grates that measure 13.5"x2" one on each side give me 27 square inches each. And then you are also allowed to count outside air intake, which at 4" gives me 3.14*2*2 or 12.56 square inches. That makes for a grand total of 66.56 square inches. Now if I could just get going on the straightening of the chimney before it gets so cold I can't get on the roof and actually start the framing. I guess I am probably being overly cautious and taking this whole thing at about a quarter the speed I normally would. But now that all the safety related stuff is out of the way, things should go quicker. " So, do you need outside air? Depends on local codes on how air tight your place is. I needed it for both reasons. Our code required it, and my house is so air tight, if I make a fire and fail to open the outside air intake, the fireplace will pull smoke back down the outer chimney liner which then mixes with the convection air and fills the house with smoke. You could also feel to suction on the door when you opened it. The first time this happened, I thought the chase was on fire, until I figure out what was going on. Hope that helps. If you have any more questions, let me know, I try and check back once a week or so. The other night it got down to 44, almost had to make the first fire of the year, in September, no less.

Don't entertain that thought anymore. That is a bad idea a customer came into the showroom one day In search of an insert. I was going to sell him one until I found out he was doing exactly what you are doing. Taking a manufactured fireplace out and installing the insert. I told him no that's a bad idea don't do it, I won't sell you a unit. He went 15 miles down the road and bought one anyways. First fire he caused 42,000$ in damage to his house. If your going to do this check into a Kozy heat. They are specifically designed for a 0 clearance installation. http://www.kozyheat.com As far as the flue goes be sure to use a class A chimney. I recommend superpro21 they have a ceramic packed insulation between the inner and outer pipe allowing the pipe to expand and contract between the walls in case of a flue fire. Some company's have a packed insulation made of a cinder or clinker type material in the event of a flue fire the pipe will expand against the clinkers and damage the inside of the pipe. If your going to install a kozy heat or any zero clearance fireplace insert be sure to get the chimney cleaned annually. Wood inserts are a completely different ballgame compared to a fireplace. You will load it up and knock the air control back so it will burn a long time. In the mornings when you add more wood get the flue gases up to around 900 degreese for 20 minutes or so while your drinking your coffee. Then close it down. What your doing is taking the creosote from the night before and evaporating the moisture out of it. the creosote will dry up, flake off and land on the baffle. I have customers that take my advice and some that do not. The ones that don't I clean the chimney every year the ones that do I only see every few years. hope this helps