Ultra-thin stone veneer for hearth

[Rusnakes]

Greetings everyone!

It's been a while since I've been on here (since last spring really) and we finally decided to buy a Jotul F55 (Carrabassett) stove. We are going to be installing it soon and have been on the lookout for some type of hearth covering to use. The F55 only requires ember protection and we are really looking to minimize the weight of the hearth (live in a home built in 1832 and the section where the stove is going is in a section where the floor joists need to be babied a bit (3 were cut years ago to put a stairwell to the cellar...now basement).

So, adding many thousand of pounds of stone is out of the question. The hearth pads (ember protection only) are okay, but we were hoping to have something that looks like a stone hearth.

Well, I came upon this ultra-thin stone veneer that is used for fireplace hearths (among other things) and wondered if others had tried it yet. The company is called TXTR-LITE (http://www.txtr-lite.com/). We ordered the sample kit that came today and really like 2 of the samples. It is incredibly lightweight and is about...maybe 1/16 to 1/8" thick. It is comprised of a layer of real stone on top, held together by a polymer on the bottom.

I would love to see if others have used it before. It was totally new to me, but seems like a perfect fit for our needs.



Emily
SE MI

 

[begreen]

I would make sure this material is appropriate for the hearth.

 

[Rusnakes]

I would make sure this material is appropriate for the hearth.

Thanks for your thoughts. The material is actually shown to be used for fireplaces in their literature. As we only need ember protection, I would figure that stone (even though thin) would provide that protection, since it would be effectively just keeping anything random out of the stove off of the floor itself.

 

[Oregon aloha]

With ignition time of 52 seconds I don't think I would use it. I think code is a minimum of 1/4" none flammable . I would use 1/4” of ceramic tile beneath the stove before I would consider something like that.

 

[firefighterjake]

Slate is pretty thin.

 

[begreen]

You'll note in their gallery that in the hearth applications it is only being used as a vertical facing, with natural stone being used for the actual hearth. The substrate is a plastic/fiberglass polymer. It is glued down so the adhesive is also suspect. The rapid ignition time of this product leads me to think that under the regular ~130F heat that it will be exposed to it may break down and outgas. It doesn't seem made for hearth application. You want something that will perform as well 10 years from now as it does on day one. During that time you may have a burning log roll out onto the hearth and for sure some embers will pop out. I would look for another product or surface unless the mfg asserts they have specifically tested for this application.

If you want lightweight, ember only protection, consider having some hemmed sheet metal made to size. It can be wrapped over some 1/2" durock nextgen cement board, then painted. Or have it made out of stainless steel or copper for a classy look. Even tiled cement board is not going to weigh that much and the weight is distributed over several sq. ft.

 

[EatenByLimestone]

The weight of the stove on the area of 4 little feet might cause it to break also. It could also scratch when the stove is shifted.

 

[Heatsource]

its my understanding that ember protection should be min 3/8" thick

 

[pen]

I emailed the company last week, this was their response:

No, I wouldn't recommend it for ember protection or behind a stove. Txtr-Lite is made of polyester resins and as most plastics it will burn.
Thanks much.

From the sounds of it, it only looks like stone.

pen