A friend of mine has a insert in his house that is not in a fireplace. It stands alone in the corner of a room with brick under it and behind it , so that the exterior walls or floor do not get too hot. My question is that is this a hard thing to do..His was working well and it was very hot.. he did not install it it was there when he purchased the house so he could not tell me anything about it. I've tried looking it up and I have found some stuff on it but just curious if anyone here has ever tried this and had any success. Not only did his setup look good but it works great also
Insert used as a stand alone wood stove
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Squirrely
Feeling the Heat
I'm sure it does. I call that "adapting to an unintended purpose".
Were the bricks mortared or dry stacked? If they were dry, I'd build a mortared brick stand in the shape of the bottom of the insert for it to sit on. You'd also want a brick hearth to extend out in front of the insert.
Greg
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Sounds like an uncertified and most likely uninsurable situation. The insert was never tested for this application. There is no way of knowing how hot the wood underneath the bricks and behind it has gotten over time. Makes one wonder what other shortcuts exist in this installation.
That is no where near enough protectipn from heat. An insert is meant to go into a fireplace. Not on a single layer of brick. It is very likely that you need more than a single layer of brick as the hearth infront as well.I'm sure it does. I call that "adapting to an unintended purpose".
Were the bricks mortared or dry stacked? If they were dry, I'd build a mortared brick stand in the shape of the bottom of the insert for it to sit on. You'd also want a brick hearth to extend out in front of the insert.
Greg
I have seen this type of install before and it would need to be treated like an unlisted stove which means 36" of clearance to combustibles. One layer of brick without a ventilated air space would bring that down to 24" with a ventilated air space it would be 12". And you would need way more than one layer of brick under it. And even if you met all of those requirements many insurance companies will still not insure it.
Squirrely
Feeling the Heat
What does that matter? You do realize the longer it is used the more risk there is due to pyrolization of the wood behind or under that brick right?
Squirrely
Feeling the Heat
I'll await his answer as I'm curious as to how long it has been in use.
Don't you ever get tired of holler-ing at people.
Greg
When it comes to peoples safety no. I am much more concerned about giving people the right advice to help keep them safe than I am about sticking it to the man by ignoring all safety regulations regardless of the dangers.I'll await his answer as I'm curious as to how long it has been in use.
Don't you ever get tired of holler-ing at people.
Greg
kennyp2339
Minister of Fire
Maybe for the sake of the OP's friend the insert is sitting on bricks, which are on top of a cement floor (like a basement) still not an excuse to make a wrong a right though..I agree with Bhollar, safety is paramount.
Squirrely
Feeling the Heat
That's still an unknown as he has yet to post any responses. There's a possibility he might have been put off by the scolding.
Greg
@Tim33 this has been occasionally tried by others. As bholler pointed out, the stove must be treated as an unlisted stove in this circumstance. This means 36" clearance in all directions, though that can be reduced on the sides and back with proper wall shielding per NFPA211. These same regs list the hearth requirements for such an installation as well as minimum leg height (brick stack?). More often this is seen in a shop installation with cement floors. The concern here is that very often shortcuts are taken that may jeopardize safety. Without pictures or eyes and a measuring tape on site it's impossible to know which is the case. When in doubt it's best to err on the side of safety.
He said about the brick to make sure the floor and wall don't get to hot. To me that implies that they are combustible. Which is why I gave the answer that I did. I did not scold him at all just told him what would be required to make an install like that safe and legal. And even at that there are insurance companies that still would not cover that install. That is the reality of the situation I just made the op aware of it. If you don't like that I am sorry but that is just to bad.
Hogwildz
Minister of Fire
Unless its a Buck that was designed be used as an insert or freestander... Not sure if anyone else makes anything similar.
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