Adding masonry mass to stove to stock heat

[AlpineSkier]

Hi there, my first post as you see so I would like to say hello to forum users.

I would prefer to build a masonry stove but since it won't be on the ground floor I won't because of weight issues.

In order to get some of the advantages of this type of heating I would like to add mass to a stove just to store heat. Here in France you can buy a cast-iron firebox with fins which is usually built into rather ugly fireplace/chimney units sold in big DIY stores.

What I wish to do is build a heavy rock "wall" around and on the stove body for max heat take-up and storage. Weight will probably be 800 lbs vs 5,000 for masonry stove.

I asked in a store about this and they were unsure about what was obviously a strange concept to them. I will contact manufacturers too, but would like to know if anyone has done this and if they are pleased with the result/ what they might do differently - the usual questions in fact.

Unusual questions might be if there is any difference between different types of stone for absorbing and giving back heat ( is there a scientific term for this ? )

Look forward to your replies

 

[canyon]

Alpineskier,
You sound like an ideal candidate for a rocket mass heater. Because of the internal stack you can run the exhaust horizontal through a masonry bench and spread the weight out so the floor can handle it. Check out rocketstoves.com ,you can download the book!

 

[oldgrezmonke]

Soapstone is the choice of two well known U.S. stove companies .