Hello,
I am new here and hope to get some feedback/suggestions on my hearth pad. Any feedback would be very appreciated. My wife and I are in the process of replacing flooring in our home. We felt a pellet stove would be a nice addition to our family room. It is the lowest of our try-level home and tends to get chilly and my wife has arctic blood running through her veins.
We went to a local dealer and were shown the Harmon P68. When it blew hot comfortable air on her, she was immediately sold. This purchase should definitely help her quality of life in our home.
I researched the unit and the unit was challenged by a Quadra-fire dealer recommending the MT Vernon AE. I've researched both units and was troubled by the numerous igniter issues people have had with the MT Vernon AE, as well as it's 2 year warranty vs. the 5 year P68.
We've decided on the P68. The stove would be most appropriately place in the inner corner of the room with direct access to the outside wall. I am in the process of designing a hearth pad for the stove. I am using two 48 inch 2x4s placed along each wall, with 2x4's at a 90 degrees into a notched front. They will be stand up giving me 4 inches plus height. I am not sure of the notch location just yet and need to make some more measurements at the dealer. The literature only gives distance from the corner of the stove to the wall, not the hopper to the corner. I am thinking the pad will measure around 55 inches from the wall corner to the notched front. Any thoughts on this for adequate fit?
I've attached a picture of the area it is going, with some tape placed to account for the specified distances away from the drywall. The stove will be 13 inches from the back corner of the stove, and perhaps an inch or two more to allow for room to the controls. Not entirely sure of the placement.
I am uncertain of a couple of things. After reading the forums and faq's for the hearth.com site, I was left questioning the r-value of the hearth specified for the P68. There isn't one in the manual. They just state a 20 gauge steel plate as the minimum. This doesn't tell me much.
Once I have the hearth framed, I plan to use plywood and cement board, then tile the top and sides. How thick should the plywood be and what brand/thickness of cement board is recommended for the P68? I've asked the dealer, but I get the impression they are not very spec oriented. Here is why.
I read the installation/manual for the P68 and it mentions using a draft meter to tune the low fan speed. When I asked the dealer about this, they became very confused stating they did not know what I was talking about. Their install is essentially place the stove, install vent pipe using wall thimble, add pellets, plug in and turn it on. I get the feeling I would do a better job with adequate planning and by not rushing the install.
Another issue is the ac outlet, phone, ethernet gang you see on the right upper part of the picture. If the stove is at least 13 inches away from that part, I don't expect any problems. Can anyone confirm? I don't want ethernet running behind the stove on top of the hearth, so I re-ran it to the room via the back corner and plan to tuck it behind the 2x4 on the wall or on top behind the baseboard.
Thank you,
Jerold
I am new here and hope to get some feedback/suggestions on my hearth pad. Any feedback would be very appreciated. My wife and I are in the process of replacing flooring in our home. We felt a pellet stove would be a nice addition to our family room. It is the lowest of our try-level home and tends to get chilly and my wife has arctic blood running through her veins.
We went to a local dealer and were shown the Harmon P68. When it blew hot comfortable air on her, she was immediately sold. This purchase should definitely help her quality of life in our home.
I researched the unit and the unit was challenged by a Quadra-fire dealer recommending the MT Vernon AE. I've researched both units and was troubled by the numerous igniter issues people have had with the MT Vernon AE, as well as it's 2 year warranty vs. the 5 year P68.
We've decided on the P68. The stove would be most appropriately place in the inner corner of the room with direct access to the outside wall. I am in the process of designing a hearth pad for the stove. I am using two 48 inch 2x4s placed along each wall, with 2x4's at a 90 degrees into a notched front. They will be stand up giving me 4 inches plus height. I am not sure of the notch location just yet and need to make some more measurements at the dealer. The literature only gives distance from the corner of the stove to the wall, not the hopper to the corner. I am thinking the pad will measure around 55 inches from the wall corner to the notched front. Any thoughts on this for adequate fit?
I've attached a picture of the area it is going, with some tape placed to account for the specified distances away from the drywall. The stove will be 13 inches from the back corner of the stove, and perhaps an inch or two more to allow for room to the controls. Not entirely sure of the placement.
I am uncertain of a couple of things. After reading the forums and faq's for the hearth.com site, I was left questioning the r-value of the hearth specified for the P68. There isn't one in the manual. They just state a 20 gauge steel plate as the minimum. This doesn't tell me much.
Once I have the hearth framed, I plan to use plywood and cement board, then tile the top and sides. How thick should the plywood be and what brand/thickness of cement board is recommended for the P68? I've asked the dealer, but I get the impression they are not very spec oriented. Here is why.
I read the installation/manual for the P68 and it mentions using a draft meter to tune the low fan speed. When I asked the dealer about this, they became very confused stating they did not know what I was talking about. Their install is essentially place the stove, install vent pipe using wall thimble, add pellets, plug in and turn it on. I get the feeling I would do a better job with adequate planning and by not rushing the install.
Another issue is the ac outlet, phone, ethernet gang you see on the right upper part of the picture. If the stove is at least 13 inches away from that part, I don't expect any problems. Can anyone confirm? I don't want ethernet running behind the stove on top of the hearth, so I re-ran it to the room via the back corner and plan to tuck it behind the 2x4 on the wall or on top behind the baseboard.
Thank you,
Jerold
