Getting my first wood stove this week!

[firefighterjake]

I have a question for the forum about the pictures. I see in a few pics that there is plywood underneath tile or slate. I have similar hearth construction, and when choosing a stove I thought I would have to be careful about choosing a type that doesn't need too much heat protection in the floor. Is tile over wood a typical installation, and did I need to be worried about my floor? I chose a Lopi that needs only a sheet of metal over wood, and i have tile, cement board, then wood, so i am OK, but curious.

I'll speak for myself . . . my stove only required ember protection . . . so in theory I suppose I could have just laid the slate tile down on to plywood and it would have been OK.

However, I woudl be a bit concerned on the outside chance that a break or missing grout between the tile could in theory allow an errant spark (or more likely coal) drop on to the plywood and smolder . . . a slim chance to be sure . . . and perhaps putting down a layer of sheet metal would have solved this concern . . . but I like to meet and exceed fire codes when it comes to life and property . . . especially my life, my wife's life and our property . . . so I laid down a layer or two of Durock . . . which gave me another layer of protection against embers/sparks/coals and gave me some thermal protection . . . not to mention that it gave me a nice, rigid surface for my tile to stick to.

 

[Backwoods Savage]

Just curious, what kind of cooking (eggs/boiling water/or just heating stuff up) does your wife do on the Fireview?
Are you using the extra panels of soapstone placed on the top or just cooking directly on the stove?
How hot is the top when you are cooking?

We have never tried this, but do lose power very often and would like to try it out.

Tony, I'd have to let her answer that for sure as she is the cook in this house. I can tell you we've had some wonderful chili and beans for sure along with cooking potatoes, etc. Sometimes she does use it just to heat things. Cooking does take longer. btw, she also made apple butter on the stove.

We do not have the extra stone on the stove as those would drop the stove top temperature too much, or at least I feel they would but haven't tried it. Just that Woodstock did state up to 200 degree difference with the extra panels. We do, however always have boot driers or glove warmers (or those small pieces of soapstone like you got at the factory) on the stove and she most of the time sits pots and pans on those. If she wants hotter, she sits it directly on the stove top. Yes, we do have a few scratches but I have not yet tried to buff them out.

 

[kathyfitz]

As I informed my children, they are not stripper poles. Nobody wants to see that! :bug: This, of course, led to a discussion of how the best stripper poles spin - now how my children knew this....

(The poles were required to support the weight from above since we took out some walls, from there it goes up about 20'.)

As for the hearth, our stove required 3/8" of noncombustible material. The slate tiles were mostly 1/2 to 5/8", in the thinnest spot it was 3/8". That plus the thinset gives us over the minimum. In front of the stove, there is actually much more than that, the front 3" of the hearth and the floor in front of the hearth are several inches of noncombustible.

I would love to see people share their methods and recipes for cooking on your wood stove! I have searched and not found much information. The best article I found was from Sunset magazine in March 1998. It has a few recipes, but mostly gives tips for the how-to.

http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m1216/is_n3_v180/ai_6402451/

 

[begreen]

I have a question for the forum about the pictures. I see in a few pics that there is plywood underneath tile or slate. I have similar hearth construction, and when choosing a stove I thought I would have to be careful about choosing a type that doesn't need too much heat protection in the floor. Is tile over wood a typical installation, and did I need to be worried about my floor? I chose a Lopi that needs only a sheet of metal over wood, and i have tile, cement board, then wood, so i am OK, but curious.

There should have been a cement backer board installed. It needs cement board substrate under the slate for a more rigid hearth and most importantly, for better bonding. I suspect the bond between the slate and plywood is poor and will degrade over time due to differing expansion rates, perhaps rapidly.

Wood Duck, the hearth requirements are dictated by the stove mfg's testing. You need to meet or exceed the stove's requirement as spelled out in the manual.

http://www.doityourself.com/stry/layaslatefloor

 

[kathyfitz]

I suspect the bond between the slate and plywood is poor and will degrade over time due to differing expansion rates, perhaps rapidly.

Hmmm, my contractor didn't suggest that and he has laid quite a bit of slate (a lot of it at his house). I guess I will just have to watch out for any problems!

 

[begreen]

It's not an absolute requirement, but does make for a better job. If the slate is directly placed on the plywood, it should have been sealed first in order to stop the wet mortar from swelling the grain. If he did this step, it may work ok. Time will tell.

 

[PapaDave]

Kathy,
thanks for the pics, even if I did get a headache trying to put them in order. :cheese:
I really like your hearth, and the step top style suits me too (we have an older Ashley ST).
By the way, I also noticed that the door hinges on the correct side. :lol:
I make our morning oatmeal on the stove. Winter only. I've also done chili, and chicken noodle soup.
Others put potatoes IN the stove.
Did I mention how nice your hearth and stove came out?

 

[kathyfitz]

Kathy,
thanks for the pics, even if I did get a headache trying to put them in order. :cheese:
I really like your hearth, and the step top style suits me too (we have an older Ashley ST).
By the way, I also noticed that the door hinges on the correct side. :lol:
I make our morning oatmeal on the stove. Winter only. I've also done chili, and chicken noodle soup.
Others put potatoes IN the stove.
Did I mention how nice your hearth and stove came out?

Thank you! I am really happy with how it all came out. My hubby is coming home tonight to check it out, he has been working out of town for the last two years He does come home to play with the log splitter though. :kiss: I am hoping to figure out the cooking thing, but honestly, as long as I am not going outside to heat water for tea or some canned soup when there is no power it will be a huge improvement! :cheese:

It is funny that you say the door opens the right way - if there was one thing I would change, it would be to reverse the door! I never even thought about it when we were shopping, our old fireplace doors opened in the center. I'm sure I will get used to it. ;-)

 

[PapaDave]

My stove door opens opposite yours, but my front door to the house is to the right of the stove.
I've gotten used to it, but would prefer the door on the other side. Seems to me, changing to a stove with the door on the other side might be a tad easier than moving the front door. :ahhh:

 

[begreen]

My stove door opens opposite yours, but my front door to the house is to the right of the stove.
I've gotten used to it, but would prefer the door on the other side. Seems to me, changing to a stove with the door on the other side might be a tad easier than moving the front door. :ahhh:

LOL :lol:

 

[begreen]

My stove door opens opposite yours, but my front door to the house is to the right of the stove.
I've gotten used to it, but would prefer the door on the other side. Seems to me, changing to a stove with the door on the other side might be a tad easier than moving the front door. :ahhh:

LOL :lol: