Need advice on Fireplace xtrordinair 44 elite

I've no direct experience with a FPX, but my North Star which I installed myself last year, came with micore board cut to the shape of the face of the fireplace. and that bridges all the gaps to combustibles to the sides and above and below. I don't think You want to cement anything direct to the unit.



So, I just took a quick look at the FPX instal manual, it says you have to supply the board, so you need to have some facing material.

From page 22 of your units install manual:

"Facing Requirements
NOTE: Artisan faces vary in size. If the facing is over 1” thick (brick, river-rock, etc.) use the
artisan face to create a template.
• The fireplace is shipped with a set-up face that is 1/8" taller and wider than the finished
faceplate. This creates a 1/16” gap around the perimeter of the face when the finished face is
installed. Leave the set-up face in place to act as a template when installing the facing.
• The fireplace requires 1/2" thick concrete-board or other non-combustible to extend from the
header to the base of the fireplace and to the framing members on both sides (do not use
sheetrock or drywall). See Figure 27.
• The non-combustible facing must extend a minimum of 12" above and 2-1/2" to each side of
the faceplate.
• The non-combustible facing must be a minimum 1" thick
• Attach the cement board to the front of the fireplace with screws. Do not penetrate the
fireplace more than 3/4”."

Click to expand...

Good luck finding it, Micore is a tough retail find. You usually have to buy sheets from a fireplace shop for $$$$. There used to be a couple online places, still $$ but less than a fireplace shop would sell it for. Ask your dealer or your installers, if they bought a whole pallet that's where it becomes really cheap ad they may have pieces to sell you that you can use.

I would have actually thought, if you had it installed, they would have done that, if you did have it installed, I would ask that it be completed per the manual free of charge. Those things aren't cheap, and if you had it installed, I'm sure that wasn't cheap either, it should have been completed to a state ready for a mason to finish it off.
If you installed it yourself, the manual doesn't say what R/K value the material must have, so you might get away with durarock or something like that, available from HD or Lowes. But again, I don't have FPX experience, so I don't know what it's supposed to be, you might ask your dealer to tell you what material is required.

I'm in the process of finishing my self-install of a FPX 36 elite. Pretty much the same thing as yours but a little smaller.

Let me start by saying I'm no expert. Take what I say with appropriate caution.

I interpreted the manual to mean that 1/2" concrete board was appropriate for the facing. I screwed it directly to the front of the unit and to the surrounding framing. I installed tile on that using thinset mortar.

If your dealer is doing the chimney, blower duct and cooling ducts for $400, that is money well spent. It's bear of a job for a do-it-yourselfer like me.

I'll be interested to hear about your use of your FPX when your install is complete. I've been burning for two weeks now and learning more every day.

-Speak

I've got a ton of photos, and when the project is totally done I'll work on posting them somewhere on the web. For now, here's the way she looks. As you can see, I still have the mantel to do as well as some finish work.

NOTE: The mantel is going to be non-combustible (thinking granite or polished concrete), because I chose to go lower than the clearance specified in the manual for a combustible mantel.

-Speak

SpeakEasy said:

I've got a ton of photos, and when the project is totally done I'll work on posting them somewhere on the web. For now, here's the way she looks. As you can see, I still have the mantel to do as well as some finish work.

NOTE: The mantel is going to be non-combustible (thinking granite or polished concrete), because I chose to go lower than the clearance specified in the manual for a combustible mantel.

-Speak

Click to expand...

I have the same 36" as well, and my mantle (wood) is I think ~ 15" above (I dunno, I'll measure if you want me too) and sticks out maybe 8". As I recall the the clearance should be 18" but the installer said it'd be ok because of the fan. He was right, with the fan on the air blows straight out and actually the temp under the mantle is pretty much room temp anyway, maybe a few degrees warmer because of the proximity but not a problem. I thought I'd have to go with a non-combustible but it's been fine, hopefully that's not a problem!

You need the cement board. You'll need something to screw the metal lath mesh down to.

hdm2002 said:

Thanks for the info and the picture looks like you have done a really nice job with the installation . Let me know when you post all of your pictures I would love to see how the whole project evolved.

Click to expand...

Here you go...

http://picasaweb.google.com/jschwar7/FireplaceInstallation?feat=directlink

I just posted them last night.

-Speak

hdm2002 said:

SpeakEasy, I am not real good with computers but I could not get the link to work. I clicked on the link and it took me to the home page of Picasa no pictures. Can you help me out?

Click to expand...

I'm not much with computers either, so I'm not sure why it isn't working for you. I suspect maybe you need a g-mail account (free) in order for it to work. But hey, what do I know?

-Speak

Yeah that link takes me to my own account.... You need to go into the album and click the share to generate a link HTH
Devon

OK, I edited the post with a new (hopefully functional) link.

Here it is so that you don't have to page back up:


http://picasaweb.google.com/jschwar7/FireplaceInstallation?feat=directlink


-Speak