Hearthstone Clydesdale Redesigned 2009 Model Installed (With Pics)

"Out With the Old, In With the New" Well sort of...

My DIY Wood Burning Installation odyssey that began last Nov 2008 has come to an end. I sold my not so old 2008 matte black Clydesdale on CL and bought the new improved 2009 model. The 2009 30percent tax credit prompted this action. If not for the credit it would have cost me approx 1200 dollars to upgrade and I would not have done so. I plan on taking the full 30 percent credit of 1500. Including tax and misc supplies I will realize somewhere between 200 and 300 profit on the entire deal. This was to good to pass up.

I looked seriously at the Quadrafire Isle Royal and Jotul F500/600 stoves thinking maybe I wanted to try a hearth stove for more radiant heat output and a different overall experience but finally decided to stick with the Clydesdale. I loved the 2008 model and the way it looked in my masonry fireplace installation. It heated most of my house (2500 sqrft ranch style) without having to push it hard, maybe 70-80 Percent capacity on the coldest winter days. 85deg in the fireplace room and mid to upper 70's in the rest of the house except for the bedrooms at the far opposite end, mid 60's for those 3 bedrooms which is fine for sleeping.

Pretty much everything I didn't like about the 2008 Clydesdale got updated in the 2009 model... It's almost like Hearthstone was reading my mind, plus I always regretted not getting the Blue/black porcelain finish.

Some of the improvements in the 2009 model include:

1 - Replaced the very thin boring steel framed door with a nice looking larger cast frame that is porcelain finish to match the rest of the insert. With the 08 in blue black the steel door frame came matte black!!

2 - Added a complete heat shield around the top/sides/back of the insert. The original model left much of the back and some of the top and side cast fire box exposed and that generated a good deal of heat into the masonry fireplace. This always bothered me. Even with my ridiculously over done heat shields and damper block off plate I felt like I was losing some significant heat to the back of the insert. Problem solved!! After several fires I notice the back and side fireplace walls are now pretty much cool to the touch. Only the top third of the masonry fire box opening gets really hot now (150-175 degree range measure on a Rutland Thermometer stuck to the damper block plate). From midway down to the floor I can now keep my hand on the heat shields that line the back and sides of the masonry firebox. They still get warm but not so hot that I can't keep my hand on them.

3 - Redesigned the door latch assembly adding a nice big knob, cast handle and a roller bearing assembly that locks the door shut much better compared to the original.

4 - Redesigned the blower assembly resulting in significantly reduced fan noise. Totally re-designed including isolated motor mounts and quieter motors. Also added a nice fan control on the ash lip bottom center. This new control is far superior to the original one allowing a much more gradual control of the fans from 0-220CFM.

5 - Added a removable vented grate to the top of the face assembly to allow more heat to escape into the room from all that cast iron hidden beneath it. This increases the radiant heat factor a bit. Beneath the heat grate is a bolt that can be removed to check draft with a meter. (Now I wish I had a draft meter).

6 - Redesigned the cast iron surround kit. I guess this is a subjective improvement re: being better looking versus the original. I actually liked the look of the original surround but like this new one as well. It does have a cleaner more polished look to it.

Some pics of the new insert during install..

A few more pics of the finished install..

WOW, Nice, clean, lines to that monster. Goes very well with the hearth.
Beautiful.
One question though. In the pic of the interior of the stove, is there a reason the stones on the far left and right are not cut at angles to fill the space? Seems to me, for that stove, those should have been cut to fit a bit better. I know, I'm picking nits.
Perhaps there's a reason I would be unaware of. Maybe the stove runs better like that? Maybe I shouldn't ask so many questions?


Dave

Great looking installation and beautiful stove. Enjoy

it appears you take a lot of pride in your work, nice job. Thats quite a few changes in the improvements they have made,, seems they covered all your issues.What have you lined the fireplace firebox with,,and does if float for expansion reasons. I`ve been thinking along those lines to help retain heat loss into the masonry,,but also to trap in the odor,,is this feasible?

Thanks guys..

Dave, Not sure on the corners. The 08 is the same. I would imagine the folks at Hearthstone who designed the firebox must have had some reason for not putting angled stones to fill it in. Although now that you point it out I think it would have looked nice had they done so.

ML, The back and side heat shields are held in place with 600deg rtv, a few tapcons and a few angle brackets. I tried to leave it to float as much as possible and it has worked out well as I have not experienced any expansion related noise. I washed out the entire fireplace real well before doing the install. I have no odor at all from the original fireplace. I'm sure having a sealed damper block plate helps in that respect as well..

Thats one nice looking stove, is the interior soapstone too?

Very very nice. Being a Clydesdale owner for 3 years now, I can appreciate a few of the upgrades, but I can't justify the trouble to get the old one out and the new one in. At 550lbs give or take a few, its a bear moving that thing. Although it does look very sharp.

One question, the old Clydesdale had the blower opening on the front and center bottom to suck in cold room air and pushed it out the top. Where is the blower air intake on the new model? I would guess its in the same place, however the blower unit didn't seem to have a grate or any opening in it to allow the air intake...?

Thanks.

Enjoy it this winter!

Mike

Well,
That minor detail does not in any meaningful way diminish the beauty of your setup.
Now, if you can just send some of that heat my way when you get it crankin'........... :coolsmile:

Dave

Thanks Mike..

Yeah the thing is heavy. When I sold the 08 I made sure the buyer could move it off the hearth and out of the house. I was lucky as the buyer had a f250 with lift gate, a decent hand truck and a strong friend. I also made sure my dealer would deliver the new insert to the hearth. My days of lifting anything beyond a hundred pounds or so are behind me.

The air is drawn in through a slim grill just below the ash lip. I think a good amount is also drawn from below as it's wide open from the bottom. So the grill is still there, just a good dealer smaller versus the original. I think the smaller grill, isolated motor mounts and quieter motors play a combined roll in noise level improvement. It sounds more like a hush noise compared to what I remember the original model's sound.

Here's a pic of the fans with the ash lip removed..

That's nice that you can access the inside of the blower on the new model . I haven't taken my blower out in a couple years, but I don't remember being able to access the actual blower blades like that.

I would love to add some hard rubber bushings to the certain parts of the original blower assembly, but I can usually get any vibrating to stop by moving the blower assembly. I leave it loose, I found that loosening the allen screws and just leaving the blower loose makes it easier to stop any vibrating.

Good luck with it. Keep us posted how it operates compared to the old model.

Thanks,
Mike

very impressive instal. i enjoyed reading this thread a whole bunch. pete

Very good looking setup ! I really like the hearth it is unique and a real attention getter..

Ray

On the Hearthstone website, under the features tab for the Clydesdale (Select), I saw the following: "Screen (optional): Allows for open door fire viewing. Enjoy the sounds of your fire too." On some other manufacturer sites, I've seen cautions that one should never operate an insert with the door open (except for putting wood in and starting a fire). I just found that curious. Any idea why Hearthstone suggests the option of burning with the door open (obviously would be terribly inefficient--and I thought it would increase creosote buildup in the chimney and maybe get the Clydesdale to over-fire temperatures)?

Beautiful Stove and setup...i wish you all the luck and warmth!

Thanks all for the feedback. I really appreciate it and would like to say without this forum I think I would have gotten myself in trouble with this project.

Yes BGreen, I took those pics of the inside before starting the brake in fires realizing it would never look like that again. Can one be sad and happy at the same time? I say Yep...
Did the same on the original insert.

It is a shame to dirty up those stones.. One of these days I'd like to get a soapstone stoves, maybe a small model in another room? Seeing them in my dealer's show room made me a fan of the soapstone look but I also really like the cast iron look as well.

Over the past week or so I've burned a bunch of brake in fires, maybe 10 or 12 total and last night I I think I finally got past the stink phase. Every fire that i ran hotter than previous created some burn off from the insert. It hasn't been that cold yet so opening windows to vent the house was not a big issue. I can't wait for that first cold snap so I can really crank it up and gain a comparison to the previous model.

Here's a few pics of the first brake in fire. I tried my best to keep things below 300deg measured from a Rutland thermometer placed center on top for the first few fires, I could see water droplets form on the side and back stones through the first 3 or 4 break in fires. A good amount of smoke came off the insert as well... Very stinky for sure. By last nights dozen + burn there was no sign of moisture seeping from the stones and the Rutland hovered between 450 and 500 as a high point for the 3 or 4 hour burn. I just ordered a Condar flue thermometer and plan on installing it approx 10 inches above the insert collar (That's as high as I can go on the insert). I want to see what happens to my flue temps at different stages of the burn cycle..

Great pics and stove! Best of luck with your new stove!!

Ray

Some manufacturers have designed, tested, and approved some models of their stoves for use with a spark screen and without a front door. It's a feature that I like but my stove does not have. If your stove isn't specifically made for it then don't burn with an open door.

I had no idea that they used polished stone inside the clydesdale.

Thanks for the clarification Highbeam..

Yes the Clydesdale is one that offers the screen option for open door burning. I didn't buy the screen for either the 08 or 09 models but last season I did occasionally burn with the door open for short periods just for the heck of it. In some respects it was nice to see and hear the fire like it was in the old days with the fireplace but you give to get. With the door open you loose most of the efficiency and a large portion of heating capacity with all that hot air jetting up the flue. You can also forget about secondary combustion with the door open further degrading efficiency.

One note on the 09 model compared to 08. The door on the 09 opens just short of 90degrees or perpendicular to the front of the stove. In the 08 it would open close to 180 degrees. There is a stop on the hinge side to keep you from opening the door so wide as to cause the cast door frame to rub against the front face frame. I took my stop off and removed some of its surface with a bench grinder to allow the door to swing open just a bit past 90degrees but not so much that it would hit the face frame. It worked out well and doesn't really bother me that it work open fully.. Just something to be aware of for those of you that expect or like to have the door open completely out of the way..