Alcove install questions...

[NVHunter]

I'm planning on purchasing a Lopi Cape Cod wood stove, and I want to install it in an alcove. The dimensions of the alcove are, height: 84", width: 60", and depth: 24".

I'm already planning on making the alcove deeper to 36".

My questions are, I'm planning on making a non-combustible wall on the back wall but the manual says for alcove installs to make it non-combustible the back, sides and ceiling needs to have a non-combustible wall.

Can I just do the back and sides? Or do I have to do all of it? I want to reduce the clearances (from 11.75" to 4" on the rear) this way but since it's an alcove install do I need to do the ceiling too? Even though I have the 84" minimum.

The non combustible wall will be a fiber board of some type with a 1" spacer between it and the drywall. I'll then put stone on the fiber board to get the 3.5" requirements the manual calls for.

Do I need to have a 1" gap between the back wall and the side walls for ventilation in the corners of the alcove? Or can they be closed together with openings on the top and bottom?

Also, if I do need to do the ceiling as well what's the best way to do that? Still use stone? Or just metal?

Can I seal up the front of the non-combustible wall so the 1" gap for ventilation isn't visible from the front?

Thanks for all the help,

Mike

 

[begreen]

If you have an 84" ceiling the manual doesn't seem to say that is an alcove.

"Whenever the stove is placed in a location where the ceiling height is less than 7' (2.134M) tall, it is considered an alcove installation. Because of the reduced height, the special installation requirements listed below must be met."

The minimum width for a combustible wall alcove is 59" which at 60" your setup is ok too. If you want to exceed spec by using cement board and a stone veneer no problem. Remember the clearance requirements are to the nearest combustible, in this case the studs in the wall, not the final stone surface. If you want to ventilate the wall, no problem either. It's fine to exceed the minimum spec. You don't need to have it open on the side edges, just top and bottom.

 

[NVHunter]

Thanks for the reply. I've run into some new issues. First thing is, I have a truss running right above where my chimney pipe would be running up.

I can't move it either way as I won't have the sufficient clearance from combustible materials then. I'm off by less than one inch I think. The chimney connector pipe needs to be 26" away from combustible side wall, based off of my measurements I'm sitting at 25.5"....

Do you there's a way to fix this? Can't cut the truss I'm sure...

Also, I said I'm going to move 5' wide section of the alcove wall back one foot to make it a total of 36" deep. My other question is, the wall is currently positioned directly at the center of the trusses. Do you think moving it one foot off center will make a difference in the stability of the house or anything for that matter?

Thanks

 

[begreen]

Are you planning to use double-wall connector pipe? I think we need to see some pictures and a sketch diagram of what is being proposed. How did they run the previous chimney? How about an offset to avoid the centered truss?

 

[cwill]

I would set the chimney where it will work with the clearances around the truss and use a couple of adjustable elbows to get the stove to the clearances it needs. I did this with my Century stove to get it to work. The ceiling should be the same cement board as the walls. With my setup the ceiling gets hotter than the walls so it's not something to skip out on. If it was my house I would still build the space as an alcove with the proper specs. That way if you ever change stoves you have a better chance of it meeting clearances, besides overbuild is never a bad thing.

If your making the alcove deeper will that allow you to change the location of the chimney? Is is necessary to move the wall back? Whats the advantage? Would not moving the wall back allow for better clearances around the truss? We need pics to better address the situation.

 

[NVHunter]

I'll get pictures of the alcove soon. Here's the deal. The alcove has cabinets in it right now. I want to put the stove there as this location is the center of my house. I currently don't have a stove in the house (just a crummy gas fireplace which is useless) I'm going to pull them out and then drop the back wall back one foot to gain room to put the stove back into it.

The reason I want to push the wall back is so the hearth stone doesn't stick too far out as the hallway back to the bedrooms starts near by the alcove.

The truss runs parallel to the alcove (front to back) so the only way to miss it is to move left or right in the alcove. However, I have an idea.

The alcove has a "false" ceiling in the sense that it's ceiling is at 7'. The closet that is directly behind the alcove and where I'm going to get the extra foot from as well as the rest of the house (except living room, kitchen and dinning room have cathedral ceilings) has 9' ceilings.

My thought is, there is a an empty 2' x 5' void above the alcove which I could utilize to use elbows to move the chimney over 2 or so more inches. My clearances are very close to where they need to be to fit the stove in to the alcove as is anyway. If I can do this I'm thinking I can center my stove in the alcove without having to install a non combustie wall and then turn the chimney in that 2' open area before I reach the bottom of the truss, then straight up to the roof.

Sorry for the long post... What do you guys think? Does any of this make sense....?


Thanks,

Mike

 

[NVHunter]

Ps, cwill, how much did your non combustible wall cost to build? It's beautiful. The lopi calls for a 3.5" non combustible wall with a 1" air space behind it. That's at least an extra $1500 or more ontop of a $3,700.00 stove without the price of the chimney and such...

I can't stand being only able to purchase one of these two stoves, the Lopi Cape Cod, or the Blaze King Sirocco 30.

The county I live in says homes that are on less than an acre can not have a wood stove that emits more than 1.0 gms/hr.... The government drives me nuts....!

 

[begreen]

I think you are misunderstanding the specs for a ventilated wall shield. It doesn't have to have stone on it and it doesn't need to go floor to ceiling. One could meet the basic requirements for a hundred dollars or less.

Washoe county regs appear to restrict wood stoves to no more than one per acre due to rising pollution there. NG and pellet stoves burning less than a gram/hr are unrestricted. Seems reasonable when poor burning habits and old stoves are choking out the neighborhood. How available is NG? Do you have gas in your neighborhood?

 

[NVHunter]

The manual for the lopi cape cod states if it's considered an non combustible alcove install the the wall has to be 3.5" of non combustible material with a 1" air space between it and the combustible wall. Also the non combustible has to be all walls and ceiling for the alcove per their manual.

My home has natural gas for the furnace and the gas stove. I want to install a wood stove to supplement those heat sources as I have an abundance of wood I can harvest for cheap each year.

I'm fine with getting a low emission wood stove and I'm leaning towards the Blaze King Sirocco 30 as it would fit much easier than the cape cod, plus it's $1,000 less...

I looked into a good gas stove system and the sales rep quoted me $6,000 to $7,000 to remove the old one and install the new one with me and my buddy framing the new one in... I said BS.... I'll put in a decent low emission wood burner and cut my own wood...

This is about saving some money for me. Gas will continue to get more expensive and the winters here in northern Nevada get cold for a high desert.

Thanks.

 

[weatherguy]

How many square feet are you heating?

 

[NVHunter]

The whole house is 2300 just about. This location I've picked is in the middle of the house.

 

[weatherguy]

The whole house is 2300 just about. This location I've picked is in the middle of the house.

Either stove should do the job, you may want to read Webby's thread, he had the Cape Cod and now has the BK Ashford which is the same size as the BK you're considering. May make your work easier if you have a stove picked out.

https://www.hearth.com/talk/threads/the-ashford-is-now-the-main-heat-source.116894/

 

[begreen]

The manual for the lopi cape cod states if it's considered an non combustible alcove install the the wall has to be 3.5" of non combustible material with a 1" air space between it and the combustible wall. Also the non combustible has to be all walls and ceiling for the alcove per their manual.

My home has natural gas for the furnace and the gas stove. I want to install a wood stove to supplement those heat sources as I have an abundance of wood I can harvest for cheap each year.

I'm fine with getting a low emission wood stove and I'm leaning towards the Blaze King Sirocco 30 as it would fit much easier than the cape cod, plus it's $1,000 less...

I looked into a good gas stove system and the sales rep quoted me $6,000 to $7,000 to remove the old one and install the new one with me and my buddy framing the new one in... I said BS.... I'll put in a decent low emission wood burner and cut my own wood...

This is about saving some money for me. Gas will continue to get more expensive and the winters here in northern Nevada get cold for a high desert.

Thanks.

Wow, thanks for pointing that out. Apparently Lopi is combining two NFPA 211 requirements into one. Usually it is a 3.5" thick masonry wall or a ventilated wall space, not both. But for alcoves they are demanding both. This is the first time I have seen such a requirement. I can see why the Sirocco is more attractive. It would be to me too.

Something seems amok with the gas stove price. It should be a lot less.

 

[NVHunter]

Yes I totally agree with the gas stove price. Plus the location where the gas fireplace is at now is on the opposite side of the house from the bedrooms.

I saw the Ashford, it looks good too. I'll have to verify that it is acceptible for the county regulations.

Here is a photo of the alcove. BK's requirements are much less stringent than Lopi's for alcoves too.

I'm going to pull these cabinets and push the wall back for more room from 24" to 36". There's a closet directly on the other side of this alcove with 36" of depth to it.

That truss is just to the right of the center of the cabinets which is the center line for the alcove. I still think the BK Sirocco will be fine with no elbows though.

What do you guys think of this spot, looks feasible right?

Thanks for all the input everyone

Mike

 

[begreen]

Yes, the Sirocco and Ashford have easier alcove requirements. If its flue location is also better to avoid the offset, it sounds like a winner.

 

[cwill]

Ps, cwill, how much did your non combustible wall cost to build? It's beautiful. The lopi calls for a 3.5" non combustible wall with a 1" air space behind it. That's at least an extra $1500 or more ontop of a $3,700.00 stove without the price of the chimney and such...

I can't stand being only able to purchase one of these two stoves, the Lopi Cape Cod, or the Blaze King Sirocco 30.

The county I live in says homes that are on less than an acre can not have a wood stove that emits more than 1.0 gms/hr.... The government drives me nuts....!

If i remember right, we have about 2500 into it without the stove. That includes the chimney and also the new water heater venting. Stone filled alcoves are not a cheap route to take. Begreen is right, you could make the requirements with alot less. Cement board with tile, or smoothed and painted would probably work as well. I like the idea of a "false ceiling" with a hidden elbow. Does anyone know if there is a class A elbow that would work with such a small offset needed??

Would it work to simply off set the entire stove in the alcove and then "balance" (frame in one side slightly more) the opening back out so that it appears centered in the opening. This is what we did to accommodate the water heater vent.

What is on the closet side of the alcove. bedroom? If you move the wall back will you still keep the closet? Reason i ask is that if its a living room or such you could eliminate the alcove entirely and open it up on both sides. With out knowing your floor plan I'm just rambling here.

 

[NVHunter]

The room I'd be taking the foot from is an office with a 36" deep closet right now. If I take a foot from it it will still be big enough to hang clothes and store things in, just not as deep.

The Sirocco I think will fit just fine in the alcove and I don't think I'll need to use and concrete board or rock since I'm going to go double wall pipe, the fans, and get the rear heat shield. The BK manual doesn't say I need any more than that for the clearances I have.

I will have to very slightly off set it to avoid the truss but only and inch or two if I have done my math right. If not I think I could use two 15 degree elbows to center the stove and maneuver around the truss in that false ceiling area. Duratech chimney pipe has 15 degree elbows and 30 degree elbows I can use, they are not cheap though....

I'd love to put in a beautiful rock but the funds aren't there for it. Maybe I can add it later.