Looking for opinions on rear venting stove

[jeromehdmc]

I have a friend that wants to put a stove in front of the fireplace and run the flue up the chimney. What are some good stoves to look for that have a rear exit flue? He has already looked at the Hearthstone Heritage. He's not set on any particular style. Also does anyone have pictures of their install so he can have some ideas?

 

[begreen]

Most cast iron stoves have a rear exit option. That covers a lot of stoves from Jotul, Morso, Quadrafire, Hampton, Hearthstone, etc.. We need more specifics about his lintel height, heating needs, budget, etc.. Can you convince him(her?) to log on here for more direct advice?

For pics, the gallery section of this site has a lot of them.

 

[bogydave]

Do you mean an "insert" or free standing wood stove?

 

[johnstra]

The Heritage I had did not draft nearly as well as my Mansfield attache to the same chimney. I suspect some of that is due to the fact that I rear-vented the Heritage. It performed pretty well, but I think my flue temps were way too cool and I could not get them higher. I have a probe thermometer in my flue and highest temperature I could get was 600-800 - and that was really pushing the stove hard. With my Mansfield I can hit 1200+ if I'm not careful. My chimney is 20' of class A off of 2' of stove pipe.

Not saying the Heritage isn't a good choice, but I think flue temps might be borderline unless you have a super-strong draft.

Woodstock stoves rear-vent I haven't heard anything negative about them.

 

[begreen]

500-600F flue temp is pretty normal for what we see with a probe on our flue. 800F only happens on a large reload when the air is left open too long. Why would you want higher?

 

[pinewoodburner]

I have a friend that wants to put a stove in front of the fireplace and run the flue up the chimney. What are some good stoves to look for that have a rear exit flue? He has already looked at the Hearthstone Heritage. He's not set on any particular style. Also does anyone have pictures of their install so he can have some ideas?

Look at Woodstock. I place the Fireview in front of my fireplace and ran the stove pipe out the rear to a T then up thru the chimney.

 

[johnstra]

BG - I know my flue with the Heritage accumulated quite a bit of fluffy buildup. I attributed this to not being able to get the flue hot enough. I'd normally get to 500-600 on a reload. With the air shut down 2/3 I'd get good primaries but my flue temp would drop to 200-300. The stove gave off good heat and it burned effeciently, but I was always bothered by the low flue temps.

 

[Coach B]

My Jotul Oslo is a rear vent/hearthmount and I have had no problems to this point. I did install an insulated liner(22') to hopefully help with draft. I also liked the looks of the Quadrafire Cumberland Gap and the Hearthstone Shelburne for the hearthmount. So far I love my Oslo but I would have bought the Cumberland Gap if it would have come with a short leg kit.

 

[jeromehdmc]

Thanks for the reply's. I'll try and get the dimensions from him. After I wrote the posting I thought about needing that info.

 

[afptl]

we bought a used Vermont Castings Intrepid II because we wanted to set it on the hearth, hubby wanted to see the fire (we also have a screen for it) and the measurements fits. Also, did I say the $$ worked out because it was used? Finally have the kinks out and it's working well. Picture attached.

It is a small stove, no overnight burn but it fit. We'll get the learning curve down and maybe a bigger stove down the road.

 

[begreen]

I suppose you already know this, but in case not, the hearth rug is not a substitute for the required hearth in front of the stove. It's not non-combustible, nor fixed in place.

 

[afptl]

I suppose you already know this, but in case not, the hearth rug is not a substitute for the required hearth in front of the stove. It's not non-combustible, nor fixed in place.

That is one of those special rugs that is fire resistant. No, I don't know about a hearth in the front. How big is supposed to be?

 

[begreen]

Fire resistant is not non-combustible. There should be a 16" non-combustible hearth in front as measured from the stove door. This should be specced out in the manual.

 

[afptl]

OK. I have the manual on my computer, I'll check it out. Thanks!

 

[JoeB]

Fire resistant is not non-combustible. There should be a 16" non-combustible hearth in front as measured from the stove door. This should be specced out in the manual.

How does anyone get away with a hearth stove if you need 16" of hearth IN FRONT OF the stove door? The stove sits on top of the hearth taking up most of it.

 

[Coach B]

Fire resistant is not non-combustible. There should be a 16" non-combustible hearth in front as measured from the stove door. This should be specced out in the manual.

How does anyone get away with a hearth stove if you need 16" of hearth IN FRONT OF the stove door? The stove sits on top of the hearth taking up most of it.

I never use the front door to my Oslo. Side load only. I know the Cumberland Gap has a side door as well.

 

[Intheswamp]

Fire resistant is not non-combustible. There should be a 16" non-combustible hearth in front as measured from the stove door. This should be specced out in the manual.

How does anyone get away with a hearth stove if you need 16" of hearth IN FRONT OF the stove door? The stove sits on top of the hearth taking up most of it.

You either build the hearth deep enough to begin with or extend it out with an addition to the front of the hearth.

BG, is it 16" or 18"...I think it has been 18" in Canada for a while, but didn't it change to 18" down here in the states, too, or am I wrong?

Ed

 

[JoeB]

In looking through the photo gallery I don't see many hearth stoves with 16" of hearth in front of the door. Will the dealer install it if there is only 8-10" of hearth? It's not practical to build more hearth so how do most deal with this dilema. I have a nice fireplace with a nice raised hearth and would like to place a stove in front of the fireplace and I'm not sure there would be 16" of hearth left. Any tricks or advice would be appreciated.

 

[Intheswamp]

In looking through the photo gallery I don't see many hearth stoves with 16" of hearth in front of the door. Will the dealer install it if there is only 8-10" of hearth? It's not practical to build more hearth so how do most deal with this dilema. I have a nice fireplace with a nice raised hearth and would like to place a stove in front of the fireplace and I'm not sure there would be 16" of hearth left. Any tricks or advice would be appreciated.

There are reasons for the code, some of which have to do with dieing. If I found out that my installer would "fudge" on clearances/protection I would be finding another installer pronto! (what else might he fudge on that I wouldn't be aware of?)

What is the depth of your hearth...from front edge to fireplace face?

Ed

 

[JoeB]

The depth of the hearth is 19 1/4". Right now there is an old Glacier Bay inset in there and it sticks half way out of the fireplace.
It puts out good heat but it burns through wood very fast and no window. I would like to put a new stove, not insert, on the hearth but don't really want to back it into the fireplace because I heard that is not efficient. My home is 2300 sq ft so I would need a big stove. Now I'm doubting if that will be possible.

 

[Coach B]

The depth of the hearth is 19 1/4". Right now there is an old Glacier Bay inset in there and it sticks half way out of the fireplace.
It puts out good heat but it burns through wood very fast and no window. I would like to put a new stove, not insert, on the hearth but don't really want to back it into the fireplace because I heard that is not efficient. My home is 2300 sq ft so I would need a big stove. Now I'm doubting if that will be possible.

Try this thread for some ideas:
https://www.hearth.com/econtent/index.php/forums/viewthread/62945/

 

[Intheswamp]

The depth of the hearth is 19 1/4". Right now there is an old Glacier Bay inset in there and it sticks half way out of the fireplace.
It puts out good heat but it burns through wood very fast and no window. I would like to put a new stove, not insert, on the hearth but don't really want to back it into the fireplace because I heard that is not efficient. My home is 2300 sq ft so I would need a big stove. Now I'm doubting if that will be possible.

Joe, double check me on all of this because I am a newbie and have no formal training...I've only read and researched about stove/hearth installations till my eyes bled.

I'm not sure about what stove you are considering but 19 1/4" is just about enough for the stove only...no front hearth clearance.

Getting a stove in there is possible but there is a good chance that you will need to have a mason come in and extend your hearth.

It also depends on the stove choice. Some stoves only required "ember protection" rather than "radiant heat protection", meaning that all you need is a non-combustible surface for the hearth area so that if embers fall out fo the stove that the surface that they fall onto will not burn. This might allow you to install a thin non-layer of metal, tile, or other non-combustible material in front of your existing hearth....I'm just not sure if a "stepped-down" protection area such as this would satisfy code or not, but this would allow the floor level to basically remain the same in from of your present hearth. If it would pass code then the seam between the ember protection extension and the existing hearth would have to be *completely* sealed to absolutely prevent any coals from getting into the crack/seam to the combustible floor beneath. BUT...this (if it would work) only pertains to stoves requiring only EMBER PROTECTION. I would contact your stove shops who are on your list of possible vendors/installers and discuss this with them.

If you opt for a stove that does require more than ember protection then you will definitely need to call a mason in to extend your present hearth. There are several good stoves out there that require only ember protection. Check out the Woodstocks and some of the Jotuls...I'm sure there are other brands with ember-protection-only requirements.

Hopefully that was at least a littler clearer than mud.
Best wishes,
Ed