My concrete hearth is under construction!!

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marajade

Member
Nov 6, 2014
81
Massachusetts
we purchased a jotul Oslo CF a few weeks ago and while we wait for it to be installed we are having a concrete hearth pad fabricated

My brother in law has a concrete design company.

He sent pix today of the construction process. I think now it has to cure and then get sealed.
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When all is said and done the Oslo will live in this corner of my living room where you see the blue tape outline. We are so excited!!

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Looking good! I will be joining the Oslo club next year.
 
You'll love the oslo. I really like the idea of the concrete pad.

I gotta ask, is it big enough? Rebuilding our Oslo hearth this year and it's a big stove and needs some space. You're gonna need the side door locking kit too for a corner install.

Not trying to question the install, just know first hand that some MA inspectors can be difficult at best.
 
You'll love the oslo. I really like the idea of the concrete pad.

I gotta ask, is it big enough? Rebuilding our Oslo hearth this year and it's a big stove and needs some space. You're gonna need the side door locking kit too for a corner install.

Not trying to question the install, just know first hand that some MA inspectors can be difficult at best.


Good question! It's a 59" square with an angle cut at the front that will be 30" wide

I showed my plans to the hearth store AND with the inspector in my town and they are cool with it. It is bigger than the clearances specify in the Oslo manual. We are using double wall pipe.

We will have the lock for the side door
 
You are asking for a pain in the butt if you plan on burning 24/7 and loading through the front. Once I get a good ash bed, the front door is useless unless you want to clean up ash. I wouldn't lock that side door you are gonna need it!
 
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You are asking for a pain in the butt if you plan on burning 24/7 and loading through the front. Once I get a good ash bed, the front door is useless unless you want to clean up ash. I wouldn't lock that side door you are gonna need it!

He's right, front loading on the Oslo is terrible. Purchase a rated ash vacuum as you'll need it every time you open the door.
 
Good question! It's a 59" square with an angle cut at the front that will be 30" wide

I showed my plans to the hearth store AND with the inspector in my town and they are cool with it. It is bigger than the clearances specify in the Oslo manual. We are using double wall pipe.

We will have the lock for the side door
The Oslo is best loved as a side loading stove. A corner install is the reason I ended up getting the Castine instead of the Oslo. And the reason I upgraded to the Alderlea T6 2 yrs later.
 
Thanks for sharing the interesting pics, enjoy your new adventure...
 
Don't let em scare you. Yes the oslo has a shallow wood box and yes it is best loaded by the side door. It will still function just fine with front door loading. May be a bit messier than desired but it will work.

My wife and I each have our own houses (not by choice) I have my hearthstone she has her Oslo. I'm used to front door loading so that's what I do at her house, she freaks out, in the end, all is good, more of a mess than the side door, but entirely functional.

The Oslo dire box is much shallower than my hearthstone, thus the increased spillage, but that's why there's an ash lip and 18" of ember protection out front. No worries.

Make sure you post pics of the completed install.
 
Report back to us......and have fun!
 
I am not worried. I've read every jotul thread on this board, talked to multiple owners, jotul reps....

I know about the ash spillage issue but I think we can deal. My husband wasn't a fan of the castine's cast iron design on the front door and really wanted the clear face of the Oslo. We have to use a corner install for a variety of reasons.

The lock on the side door is removeable and we have plenty of clearance.... However I would not load via the side door unless the stove was cool and there was no risk of accident.

We are fully researched on this stove and we are super excited about it.
 
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I am not worried. I've read every jotul thread on this board, talked to multiple owners, jotul reps....

I know about the ash spillage issue but I think we can deal. My husband wasn't a fan of the castille's cast iron design on the front door and really wanted the clear face of the Oslo. We have to use a corner install for a variety of reasons.

The lock on the side door is removeable and we have plenty of clearance.... However I would not load via the side door unless the stove was cool and there was no risk of accident.

We are fully researched on this stove and we are super excited about it.

Good luck, it is a great stove. Those of us that warned you of the ash spillage were simply trying to help you avoid a possible costly mistake. But - you've done the research. Enjoy!
 
The side door works fine with the dimensions I used. I recall the two corner sides are 5' each. To get it back as far as allowable I used a rear heat shield. The side door will swing open fully. All the way until it's against the back of the stove. With my layout you get no feeling of an issue loading from the side door. As I recall the two back corners are at the minimum distance to the walls.

Using the side door is the way to go with this stove. If you have the stove, try it out in the corner, and pull it forward until the back corners are at the required minimum distance. Then check the door. My front hearth dimension may not exactly correct, but we never use it.

Curious, what is the type of concrete that works at 1" thick?
 
^^ with the floor trim taken into consideration, we will also have 5' on the back corner sides. We are getting the rear Heat shield as well so we will have the same setup as you. I'm glad to hear you are happy with it.

I'm asking my brother in law about the specific type of concrete. He fabricates everything from sinks to furniture to countertops to commercial architectural installations. I'll let you know what he says.
 
Sounds like you have the dimensions to make it work. See my avatar. But as I said don't worry about the front side dimension. PM me if you need a drawing of what I did.
 
According to the Oslo manual,

* Use of the left side load door is prohibited in alcove or
corner installations. Use Side Door Lock Kit # 155850.
 
According to the Oslo manual,

* Use of the left side load door is prohibited in alcove or
corner installations. Use Side Door Lock Kit # 155850.

I'm glad this is posted this in the thread for posterity. I do love how this community prioritizes safety.

I don't have the beautiful wall protection that xman does so i definitely do not want to tempt disaster and I will be using the front door for all my reloads. I didn't buy the stove for the side door.
 
i wanted to pass along this diagram of my plan. does this look kosher to you all? we aren't going to have any wall protection at this time.

i based this off some f500 clearance diagrams the stove store gave to me that don't appear to be in any of the other manuals i found online. they state that the hearth has to come out a minimum of 61.25" from the corner. (along with all the other clearance dimensions). my plan is for that diagonal to be 67.62" from the corner to the front of the hearth.

my floor molding is 1" thick so the clearance to the walls is actually 58.5" plus 1". please take that into account.

when the manual states that the corners of the stove have to be 9" from the wall, they mean from the corner of the actual stove, right? the heatshield doesn't count into the clearances?

i should have plenty of room for the 18" at the front, right? is my math right?

fyi... the actual stove is 16.25" deep, but once you count the front lip at heat shield its 27.25". the width is 28.25"

the gray areas are the hearth


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Yes we are using a double wall pipe. I have the actual manual as well on my computer. The dealer had some additional papers including a letter from jotul for the local inspector reiterating that the hearth only needs to be ember protection.

I've run all the measurements a ton of times, run it by my dealer, an installation surveyor and the inspector and I'm still nervous :) the install will be done by a professional who is familiar with our town inspector and who does tons of installs.
 
I know the drill. Did mine last year the same as you with tape on the floor and triple checking things. Ultimately, no one ever officially locked at it, building inspector, fire chief, insurance company, nothing. I was all proud to show off my work and not a a sole gave a rats ass.

We re-did the Oslo in the wife's house this year in CT. The inspector and I have had some "exchanges" in the past so I was ready for a battle. I had all the books out, tape measures, I could recite every dimension from memory. Inspector just glanced at it, said it looked like a good professional job, said the final sign off paperwork will be in the mail shortly. Huh. Okay ....... paperwork showed up, all is good.

no worries.

I would, however, find a new home for those guitars.
 
^^ glad I'm not the only crazy one! I actually have a cardboard box made to the dimensions of the f55 carrabassett that we were considering. I even drew the front door and flames on it!

The guitars will go to live in my bedroom or the den... Far from the heat and dryness!!
 
Tough restrictions in Yankeeland. I suppose it does prevent some fires.
Down South here in North Carolina, no government official comes by to inspect your stove.
 
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