Forge & Flame P42i-TC 20"

The Forge & Flame P42i-TC 20-inch is rated to heat 1,050–2,100 sq ft, which suits a living room and the rooms around it. It's a pellet insert built on Harman technology that goes into your existing fireplace, with a cast iron face and a standard steel surround included.

The 20-inch-hopper P42i-TC needs an opening at least 24-7/8 inches wide, 15-9/16 inches deep and 20 inches high. It fits masonry fireplaces, and a factory-built wood-burning fireplace requires Harman's manufactured fireplace (zero clearance) kit. Without any fireplace, it installs in the Harman zero clearance box.

The P42i-TC vents through 4-inch stainless steel flex pipe run up your existing masonry or Class A factory-built chimney, with the damper area sealed off by a metal plate. Adding 3-inch flex pipe for 100% outside combustion air is the setup the manual calls the most efficient, and it also gives natural draft during a power failure.

Without backup power it shuts down, because the combustion blower and controls run on 120-volt household power. A Harman-approved UPS such as the TrippLite INTERNET750U only powers a safe, smoke-clearing shutdown, while an approved inverter/charger on a 12-volt deep-cycle battery can run the insert for up to eight hours.

The EASY Touch Control on the insert is a single-screen panel with scheduling, diagnostics, cleaning prompts, and a fuel gauge, paired with a wireless room sensor that runs on 2 AA batteries. If those batteries die, a backup sensor keeps heating your home, and the lit glass lid on the 47.5 lb hopper shows how many pellets are left.

Keep 12 inches to a side wall and 12 inches to a 12-inch-deep mantel, while 3/4-inch trim can butt right up to the surround. Floor protection must reach 6 inches in front of the door glass and 6 inches to each side of the door opening, and it must be at least 30 inches wide by 17 inches deep.

Scrape the burn pot every time you add pellets, or at least every 3 bags, and empty the ash pan weekly. Each month, clean the heat exchanger, distribution fan and igniter, and before every heating season do the yearly Total Clean of the combustion fan, venting and door gasket. The Easy Touch control prompts you to scrape, empty the ash pan and do the total clean.

The P42i-TC comes in Matte Black only and runs one blower, while the Accentra52i-TC adds a Majolica Brown porcelain finish and a second blower. The P42i-TC is the more efficient of the two, at 79% versus 76% on the higher heating value, and it's EPA certified at 1.0 grams per hour.