Two things you might think of doing. You could ask a contractor/installer to check out the system for you. If he's any good, his "trained eye" will likely see things that you didn't, and he could advise you as to whether the installation needs any changes. That will cost you the price of a service call. I think it's worth it to give you peace of mind. The important thing, of course, is to select an installer you are confident really knows about these things. If the dealer from whom you bought the system is not interested in helping (maybe because you didn't let him install it), find someone else. The other suggestion is to find out what your local building codes say about the system, if anything. Contact the building codes guy in your Town and say you are THINKING ABOUT installing the system that you installed. Can they give you any guidance on how to go about it so your installation is not a violation of the codes. DO NOT tell them that you have installed the system, because there may be a risk that they'll send an inspector to check it out, and if he doesn't like it, make you take it out.

We had a Jotul DV gas insert installed into our prefab fireplace a few months ago. Some impressions that might be useful to you: They start heating gradually and after a little while start to feel like a blast furnace. But it's radiant heat, so that the farther you are from the source the less heat you feel. Therefore, a means of circulating the air in the room is a good idea. We have an old fashioned Hunter ceiling fan that we've owned for over 20 years, and it's still going strong. The nice thing about this fan is that you can "twist" the position of the paddles so that instead of blowing air down, which you want in warm weather, it blows air up. That produces a gentle circulation of air throughout the room and evens out the temperature. The other thing you should definitely consider is to get a remote control thermostat. I think the remotes are better than the ones you install in the wall, because you never know in advance the best position for the remote that will give you the best result. Finally, because of a disappointing experience we have had with the installation of our insert (we're still waiting for a final piece that, fortunately, only affects appearance, not operation or safety), I think it's very, very important to select an installer who can independently demonstrate that he knows everything he needs to know about the fireplace you select. If a GC has expressed doubts about a particular fireplace that you like, it's probably because he doesn't know it and is not sure he can do it. Our insert was a really complicated installation that took over a day. A whole fireplace is likely to be even more demanding. Good luck with your selection.

We are back from our fireplace shopping...we had some informative help this time. Looks like it is between these two. Kozy Heat Minnetonka 40,000 BTU/hr Input -NG & LP High Efficiency: Natural Gas - 80% LP Gas - 81% Canada P-4 Top Vent AFE - 62.06% LP Gas - 66.12% High Quality Borofloat Glass (35" x 26") Quick-Latch Glass Refractory Brick Lining Accepts DuraVent or Selkirk Metalbestos Or Kozy Heat Flexible Vent Kit (Part #TRF-WPT required for ALL horizontal terminations) High-Low Regulator Minnesota Energy Code Compliant to 50 pascals Limited Lifetime Warranty __________________________ or Heat and Glo 6000GLX Suggested Retail Price: $2565 - $3564 US* Our exceptional luxury model, comes standard with all the Series' features: 3-burner system with dual Flame-Out-of-Log burners and the fully concealed Mystifire® burner, our patented accent lighting system and our most advanced wall control, the IntelliSwitch300. 3-burner system (Mystifire burner plus dual Flame-Out-of-Log burners) Independent control of main burner and Flame-Out-of-Log burners provides best-in-class heat management capabilities 4-piece brick refractory in choice of Stratford or School House Red IntelliSwitch300 wall control with thermostat Adjustable accent lighting Fan (thermostatically controlled and manually adjusted) Most mature fire with lots of flames and glow Have you ever heard of Kozy Heat brand before? Any input or suggestions? Thanks! Just starting our remodeling project and already over budget!

I am about to post a similar message in that I need help deciding between the Mendota DXV45 (or 60, perhaps) and the Heat& Glo Escape. I'm leaning towards the Mendota, however, because I like the wide range on the BTU output and hope to have the ability to put the fireplace on for ambiance on not so chilly nights. I don't know if that factored into your consideration at all, but I thought I would throw that out as some food for thought. I'm sorry that I can't help with your specific questions.