Building Hearth - HELP!!

So, I'm building a 20-28 sqft hearth for a wood stove we are installing in our basement. The basement floor is currently wall to wall carpet over the concrete slab/foundation. I am planning on using 12"x12" absolute black granite tile for the job. The questions come when I try and figure out how to do it exactly. I would like to have the hearth sit up above the carpet when complete. After I cut away the carpet I need to put something in between the concrete and the tile that is about 1/2" thick and heat resistant. I want to keep it as simple and durable as possible. I'm a total amateur so I'll take any advice on the WHOLE job anyone is willing to help me out with. Thanks in advance.

Why not put down some thin cement board first before the tiles, whatever builds up the tile to the same height as the carpet so you can use a normal carpet strip. If it was me I would add at least 1 tile beyond the fire code / stove instructions minimum distance from the stove to the pad. The tiles you describe will look very nice so it is not like it will take away from the look of the room. Just remember the minimums are just that going one tile beyond them will not break the bank in any way or should not if you are picking granite I personally would be most concerned with the front in case some sparks or coals ever got loose on you.. The only other tip I have to offer is the ash can always lives outside and 5 feet away from the house in a sealed container. Along those lines there are some tips to take a cheap ash shovel and drill a bunch of small holes in it to make a coals /ash sieve so you only or mostly only take out ashes. You shovel one side of the coals to the other shovel ashes only the repeat going in the other direction to get the rest of the ashes. Keepsfire risk down and simple to relight.

That was what I had in mind, I just wasn't sure about how to fasten the cement board to the slab and if that was a suitable base for the tile that will bare a significant amount of weight and traffic.

A coat of thinset mortar should bond the cement board to the floor. A layer or two of 1/2" Durock should do what you want.

I agree, make it as big as you can get away with. The minimum in front isn't enough, IMO. A big hearth is nice for wood storage and someplace to put your tools, and easy to clean up.

And welcome. What are you installing?

Don't want to anger the wood stove gods but I went with a new Vogelzang Performer. This is our first wood stove so we didn't want to break the bank.

Feed it dry wood and it will be fine. Do you have a wood supply yet?

Might be on the small side if you intend on heating the whole house from the basement. I guess that would depend on your house and insulation, and location.

I'm on 5 acres with lots of dead fall and storm stock. Have a cord of 2 year old split just waiting to get going.... Thanks for the welcome by the way.

You can also use tapcons top screw the board to the floor. Should not take much. With the weight of the stove, it ain't going anywhere.

Comb on a layer of thinset to fill in irregularities and voids, then screw the CBU down into it with tapcons. If you don't already have one, buy a cheap hammer drill for the tapcons; it takes forever to put holes in concrete with a normal drill motor.

Load yes what traffic not that it matters. It's not like a hallway in an office building. I have cement board under my kitchen and bathroom floor as well as on walls of my shower it is cement and what it is made to do.

I plan on building it big enough to store wood on the wings. Traffic would be me (210lbs), wood and a hand truck. My main concern is just the process of the install and make sure tiles aren't popping up in the future.

The better place to ask tile advice is at the John Bridge forums. I'm pretty sure that the gist of what they'll tell you is that you need to comb on a layer of unmodified thinset (the cheap stuff) to bed the CBU into so that there are no voids between it and the concrete. The more uneven the existing floor, the more thinset you'll need under the CBU. You're using the unmodified stuff because it will cure even without exposure to air, and you're screwing the CBU down because unmodified thinset has poor adhesive properties; it won't glue the CBU to the concrete very well.

Then you'll set the tiles using a modified thinset, and let it cure for a couple of days before grouting.

Yeah, I put a post up there too but I'm not getting any bites.