Looking for input on a new stove -- Oslo, Cumberland Gap...or Progress Hybrid?

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Just and FYI. A stove lined with fire brick is more or less a convection stove. The Oslo only has fire brick in the rear to get the six in rear wall clearance. It is mostly lined with cast iron burn plates and is more or less a radiant stove.
 
I got the quote for extending the hearth 9 inches and putting 32" of tile in front of the hearth (wood floor demo'd to the joists, osb, micor cement board then tile on top). $1750. The tile work in front of the hearth on its own would be $700--800 and I provide the tile. Yikes. The hearth work bid was admittedly more than I expected, but the expense would largely be reworking the hearth so it matched the current face of the FP and insuring that the new addition wouldnt separate/crack from the old material. For roughly the same price, I can demo the entire fireplace flush to the wall (doing that work myself) and have stone/tile put on the wall and a hearth built for an unobstructed installation of a free standing stove (while still using the lined masonry chimney for the flue). Thats actually what the mason suggested I do. He's done similar jobs before and even showed me some pics on his phone. He thought it would look much better and I have to agree...it certainly would afford me more space around the stove. He even offered to loan me his demo tools and show me how to break it down myself (or with a friend).

If i go this route, I want to use the Oslo in top vent configuration with the pipe taking a right angle and passing into a thimble to the T inside the chimney (with a cleanout door below). It would be ideal to set the thimble high enough so as to allow for varying height stoves in the future, should I decide to change stoves someday. The Oslo is only 28.5 tall. Anyone have a recommendation how high the thimble in the wall should be from the hearth floor? It would look a little like the two photos below. Notice both have significantly different heights for the thimble. I'd like to go as low as possible while still maintaining room for other, taller, stoves. I was thinking somewhere around 60 inches from the floor. Any suggestions?

The other option is to do something like dddddden suggested. That would solve my height issue, but probably not my side door clearance. In order to have enough room for the side door to clear while the stove is situated on the hearth, I have to hang the ash lip out past the front of the hearth and I dont know if I like how that will look.
 

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Unfortunately, you can't really go by the mfr's specs at the nitty-gritty level of loadable firebox capacity. The best way to compare them would be to measure the fireboxes yourself. We've sorta started a standard here called the "usable space" in a firebox.
https://www.hearth.com/talk/threads/how-big-is-your-stove-really.51736/

Looks like the Oslo = 14 x 13 x 24"

https://www.hearth.com/talk/threads/jotul-f500-vs-woodstock-fireview.72916/page-4


Well for the Oslo that's pretty close--2.52 v. 2.54.
 
Just and FYI. A stove lined with fire brick is more or less a convection stove. The Oslo only has fire brick in the rear to get the six in rear wall clearance. It is mostly lined with cast iron burn plates and is more or less a radiant stove.

Firebrick usually only goes up 9" yet the whole firebox is often 20" high or more. There's a big difference in the heat radiated from an unshielded steel stove and a jacketed one. Compare the clearance requirements between an Englander 13NC without side shields and a Napoleon 1400 for example.
 
Unfortunately, you can't really go by the mfr's specs at the nitty-gritty level of loadable firebox capacity. The best way to compare them would be to measure the fireboxes yourself. We've sorta started a standard here called the "usable space" in a firebox.
https://www.hearth.com/talk/threads/how-big-is-your-stove-really.51736/


Looks like the Oslo = 14 x 13 x 24"

https://www.hearth.com/talk/threads/jotul-f500-vs-woodstock-fireview.72916/page-4

Well for the Oslo that's pretty close--2.52 v. 2.54.
The full quote from the link I posted is:
Since the stove is cold and I was curious, I just measured the firebox of my Oslo. Not counting the area that protrudes for the front door (you can't really put wood there) it is 14" X 13" X 24", for a 2.5 cu. ft. firebox.
I did not mean to question the 2.54 spec, just to suggest that you need to measure the firebox to know for sure. . .trying to suggest that he measure the CG and compare to 14 x 13 x 24".
(I don't think the 2.54 cu ft was a published spec two years ago when that thread was created. This is he first time I've seen an officiaI spec for volume from Jotul.)

IMO, it's also better to go by the dimensions instead of the total volume. A stove that was 14 x 15 x 20" would only be 2.43 cu ft, but would hold more wood than a 14 x 13 x 24" stove, if you were using, say, 18" logs, as many people do. (Not counting cramming scraps on the end of the stack.)

How 'bout some measurements on that PH?==c
 
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I have never measured my firebox, but I will tell you it's challenging to load my stove up to 100% capacity due to a metal piece that hangs near the loading door.

The full quote from the link I posted is:

I did not mean to question the 2.54 spec, just to suggest that you need to measure the firebox to know for sure. . .trying to suggest that he measure the CG and compare to 14 x 13 x 24".
(I don't think the 2.54 cu ft was a published spec two years ago when that thread was created. This is he first time I've seen an officiaI spec for volume from Jotul.)

IMO, it's also better to go by the dimensions instead of the total volume. A stove that was 14 x 15 x 20" would only be 2.43 cu ft, but would hold more wood than a 14 x 13 x 24" stove, if you were using, say, 18" logs, as many people do. (Not counting cramming scraps on the end of the stack.)

How 'bout some measurements on that PH?==c[/quote
 
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Correct. It's almost impossible to load all the way and actually not advisable. That is why I have always considered the F400 to be a 1.5 cuft usable firebox and the F500 having a 2.2 cu ft firebox. This is particularly true for stoves that have fragile baffle boards. There is no point in loading right up against the tubes.
 
If you haven't purchased the Oslo yet make sure the dealer gives you the $300 instant credit from Jotul for replacing an older, inefficient stove with one of theirs. I believe it's valid through september 30th on the form the dealer fills out, and it's valid for replacing an old woodstove, or even putting a new jotul in a open fireplace. Couple that with your 15% off deal, and you are getting a pretty cheap and great stove!
 
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I ordered the stove and liner kit on Friday and got the $300 credit. Taking the tax credit into account, the stove was $1891 before sales tax. Not bad.
 
I was a little late for the input part. So, instead I'll get right to the congratulations part. Great stove, good choice. I have enjoyed mine for 6 years now. Looking forward to your install pictures.
 
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