Replacement or retrofit
Wife and I just bought a house with a fireplace and we've had a few companies come out to look at it.
It's clear looking up just myself that the liner has buckled in on itself.
One company said they could shoot a new liner/chimney up inside the existing liner and block off the opening to pipe a standalone wood burning stove up and through.
The other company said that method was wrong and dangerous, but quoted $20k+ for the replacement of the prefabricated insert, stating that they have to demo out the entire brick mantle and rebuild it.
My questions are, is the standalone wood stove method a bad idea? And is it really impossible to replace a prefab insert without completely destroying the brick mantle?
I'd also appreciate any other insight or advice anyone might have.
Thanks in advance.