Keep Your Family Warm and Safe—No Matter What

A wood insert installed into an existing masonry fireplace typically runs $4,500 to $9,500 in the Poconos, depending on the insert model and whether the chimney needs a new stainless liner. A freestanding stove installed where no chimney currently exists—common in the smaller cabins around the lakes—usually runs higher, $6,000 to $12,000, once Class A chimney pipe, a hearth pad, and roof penetration are factored in. Local installers typically handle the Lehman Township building permit as part of the job.

Many homes here are compact, weekend-use cabins rather than large year-round houses, so sizing looks a little different than it does in a suburban subdivision. A small stove (rated for up to 1,000 sq ft) is often plenty for a one- or two-bedroom lake cabin, while larger, full-time homes on Pocono Woodland Lakes may need a medium stove in the 1,000-2,000 sq ft range. Because winter lows here average 16°F and cold snaps can push well below that, it's worth erring toward a stove that can hold a fire overnight rather than one that's just big enough on paper—a local dealer will size it based on your actual layout and insulation.

Look for NFI-certified installers or CSIA-credentialed chimney professionals—this small lake community doesn't have big-box hearth stores of its own, so most residents work with dealers based in the greater Milford, Stroudsburg, or Bushkill area who travel out to Pike County for installs. Because Lehman Township requires a building permit for new wood-burning installations, using an installer who regularly pulls permits in the area saves you from having to navigate that process yourself.

If your cabin already has a masonry fireplace—common in older lake homes built decades ago—an insert is usually the better call, since it reuses your existing chimney with a new liner and turns a drafty, inefficient fireplace into a real heat source. Newer cabins or camps without an existing chimney are better candidates for a freestanding stove, which can be placed almost anywhere with the right clearances and a new Class A chimney run through the roof. Given how many properties around the lakes were built as seasonal camps, it's worth having a dealer inspect your existing masonry before assuming either direction.

Yes—new wood-burning installations require a building permit through Lehman Township, and the unit itself needs to meet current EPA 2020 NSPS emissions standards. Most local hearth dealers include the permit application as part of the installation quote. Unlike parts of the West, Pike County has no winter air-quality non-attainment status, so there are no mandatory curtailment periods that restrict when you can burn.

For homes used year-round, a catalytic stove from a brand like Blaze King can hold a fire 15-20+ hours, which matters when overnight lows drop into the single digits during a cold snap. For weekend cabins that sit unheated between visits, a soapstone stove from Woodstock Soapstone Company is worth a look—soapstone absorbs heat slowly and radiates it for hours after the fire burns down, which suits an intermittent-use lake camp better than a stove designed to run continuously. A local dealer can walk through both options against your actual usage pattern.

The CSIA recommends an annual inspection for any wood-burning system, and that holds even for cabins that only see weekend or seasonal use—creosote can build up over a handful of fires just as it does with daily burning, and unused chimneys are also prone to animal nesting and moisture damage between visits. Plan on a sweep and inspection each fall before the burning season starts, and ask specifically for a Level 1 inspection if the cabin sat empty much of the off-season.

Oak, hickory, maple, and cherry are the dominant species in the forests around Pocono Woodland Lakes, and all four are excellent firewood—oak and hickory in particular burn long and hot once seasoned. Several small firewood dealers serve the Milford and Bushkill area, typically charging $200 to $300 per cord depending on species and how well-seasoned the wood is. For self-cutting, the Pennsylvania Bureau of Forestry issues personal-use firewood permits for the nearby Delaware State Forest—check with the district office before cutting, since rules and seasons vary by tract.

Wood stoves burn cordwood cut from the oak and hickory forests right around the lakes, and they keep working when the power goes out—a real consideration given how often storms knock out lines through this wooded terrain. Pellet stoves burning regional brands like Energex or Greene Team Pellet Fuel are cleaner and easier to load and run, but they need electricity for the auger and blower, so they go dark in the same outages a wood stove would ride out. For a full-time home in Pocono Woodland Lakes where storm outages are a real possibility, wood is usually the more resilient choice; for a low-maintenance secondary heat source in a home with reliable power, pellet is worth considering.

Open fireplaces suck—literally. As the fire burns, it consumes air your furnace already paid to heat and pulls it out through the chimney, so the house is actually colder after the fire goes out than before you lit it. An insert fixes this: it seals the chimney, puts fixed glass across the front, and turns that hole in your house into a real heat source.

The right one can. If waking up to a warm house and live coals matters to you, say exactly that when you're shopping—firebox size and burn-rate control determine overnight performance far more than any number on a spec sheet. It's a much more useful question than asking about BTUs.

On average, a fireplace adds back to the home about the same amount you spent installing it. Add the monthly savings from heating the rooms you actually use instead of the whole house—often hundreds of dollars a year—and the value case is strong before you even count what a fire does for how your family uses the room.

For an average home—covering the fireplace, the vent pipe, and basic installation—a budget between $3,900 and $5,500 gives you a lot of options across wood, gas, and pellet. By the time you add finish work, gas line, and electrical, the average complete installation lands between $5,000 and $12,000 all-in. In a remodel or new build, a good rule is to put about 2.5% of the total project cost toward the fireplace.