Cinder Block Walls Mechanic Shop.

[Chrism]

My brother inlaw owns a Mechanic Shop and is in the market for a wood stove. do you have to worry about clearances ? is cinderblock considered a combustible cause it retains heat ?? any thoughts on this whole scenario would be greatly appreciated! the shop is 1200 square ft all wide open with 14 ft ceilings we will be installing a ceiling fan to move the air around . Thank you

 

[wkpoor]

No worries except maybe the the stuff in the shop. Fuel and VOCs might be of concern though. Volatile vapors and wood stoves don't get along.

 

[Chrism]

So diregard the clearances ???? Slide the stove as close to the wall as possible and don't have to worry ???

 

[wkpoor]

Well technically yes but if the wall is painted I wouldn't. You won't get enough heat off any stove to hurt concrete itself. My stove is about 18" from the basement wall and its never been an issue not even for the paint. If your stove has a rear shield then it would probably be ok within a few inches.

 

[kingquad]

Oversize the stove. That block will suck up a lot of heat.

 

[begreen]

Clearances are to "combustible" surfaces. Last time I checked, cinder block was non-combustible. However, it there is wood attached, adjacent or behind the block, then recompute.

 

[Wood Duck]

You didn't ask, but I'll mention anyway that adding even a little insulation to the block will really help. Has he considered glueing foamboard insulation (the pink or blue 'styrofoam' type stuff) onto the walls. It won't be realy expensive or time consuming, and will probably pay for itself just in the time it takes to cut the firewood.

I think cinder block is non-combustible but I'd want enough clearance from the walls to allow me to add insulation plus sheetrock in the future, just in case I want to. Also I think some clearance will help get the heat from the stove into the room rather than directly into the wall.

 

[Jags]

Also keep in mind the stove pipe. Single wall, double wall all have C to C's that need to be met, just like the stove.

 

[Highbeam]

Any solid fuel burner in a garage is illegal. The fire code forbids it. If there is ever a fire you can be sure that the insurance company will note the illegal stove and will have every right to deny the claim. Worse yet, if somebody is hurt in the fire or customer's cars, the burden of those liabilities will fall onto the owner of the building.

In a home basement built of cinder block walls, I would put it as close as possible while still retaining access for maintenance and inspection behind the stove. 6 inches seems sufficient.

 

[Jags]

Highbeam - do you know if there is any distinction between a "garage" and a "shop" in the code??

 

[Highbeam]

The very short line says "garage". A garage (according to my AHJ) is any building that you can drive into. A stove is perfectly legal in a shop so long as there are no garage doors.

I happen to think it is a pretty stupid rule but you must acknowledge the rule exists and decide on your risk level. Just because your daddy or neighbor has a stove in his barn does not make it legal.

My last new house built in 2005 had a furnace and water heater in the garage. The blue flames would reflect on the fenders of the cars parked within feet. Only rule was that the flames were 18" from the floor. Well how about I elevate my woodstove 18" from the floor? The more obvious stupidity is that I have evert intention of creating smoke, fire, and sparks on the floor of my garage through the use of torches, welders, and grinders.

 

[Jags]

The more obvious stupidity is that I have evert intention of creating smoke, fire, and sparks on the floor of my garage through the use of torches, welders, and grinders.

And that goes along with - "What in the world would create a dense enough vapor environment to be lit off. Was a 5 gallon gas can kicked over, and nobody picked it up"??

 

[wkpoor]

I know of plenty of shops around here that heat with wood and work on tractors, cars, saws, and whatever. Doesn't make it right and in my earlier post I qualified that VOCs in the same space as a stove may create a hazard. Just how much danger is an unanswerable question. Look how many people have salamanders going right next to cars they are working on in the garage. Even personally know of a guy who burned up a Harley when a gas leak from the bike ran on the floor over to the salamander and caught fire. Insurance did buy him a new bike and paid to repair the house. If he had been running a business....well who knows but I doubt it would have gone good for him.